Bowie, Arizona climate: Normal weather by month, frost dates and records
Bowie's normal year runs from 30°F December nights to 97°F July afternoons, with 11.3 inches of precipitation a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 17.3°C, December lows of −1°C, July highs of 36°C, 287 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationBowie
- Station IDUSC00020958
- Location32.33°N 109.49°W
- Elevation3,777 ft (1,151 m)
- From the centerunder 1 mile
- Population (census place)399
On October 23, the normal high in Bowie is 80°F and the normal low 44°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 10%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Bowie.
- Jan 61° 30°
- Feb 65° 34°
- Mar 73° 38°
- Apr 80° 44°
- May 88° 52°
- Jun 98° 62°
- Jul 97° 66°
- Aug 94° 65°
- Sep 90° 59°
- Oct 82° 47°
- Nov 69° 36°
- Dec 60° 30°
Each month: normal high (large) and low, °F. Fill: the month's normal mean, colder blue to hotter red.
What is the weather like in Bowie each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 97°F; December the coldest, with normal lows of 30°F. The most precipitation falls in July (2.64 in), the least in April (0.18 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 61°F | 30°F | 45.5°F | 1.04 | 5 | <1 | 18 | 10 h 10 min |
| February | 65°F | 34°F | 49.6°F | 0.78 | 5 | <1 | 10 | 11 h |
| March | 73°F | 38°F | 55.4°F | 0.55 | 3 | <1 | 4 | 12 h |
| April | 80°F | 44°F | 61.9°F | 0.18 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 13 h |
| May | 88°F | 52°F | 69.9°F | 0.28 | 2 | 16 | <1 | 13 h 50 min |
| June | 98°F | 62°F | 79.7°F | 0.49 | 2 | 28 | <1 | 14 h 20 min |
| July | 97°F | 66°F | 81.4°F | 2.64 | 9 | 28 | <1 | 14 h 10 min |
| August | 94°F | 65°F | 79.8°F | 2.04 | 9 | 25 | <1 | 13 h 20 min |
| September | 90°F | 59°F | 74.5°F | 0.93 | 5 | 18 | <1 | 12 h 20 min |
| October | 82°F | 47°F | 64.3°F | 0.68 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 11 h 30 min |
| November | 69°F | 36°F | 52.4°F | 0.64 | 3 | <1 | 8 | 10 h 30 min |
| December | 60°F | 30°F | 44.7°F | 1.06 | 4 | <1 | 18 | 10 h |
| Year (annual) | 80°F | 47°F | 63.2°F | 11.31 | 51 | 121 | 59 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 16°C | −1°C | 7.5°C | 26 mm |
| February | 18°C | 1°C | 9.8°C | 20 mm |
| March | 23°C | 3°C | 13.0°C | 14 mm |
| April | 27°C | 7°C | 16.6°C | 5 mm |
| May | 31°C | 11°C | 21.1°C | 7 mm |
| June | 36°C | 17°C | 26.5°C | 12 mm |
| July | 36°C | 19°C | 27.4°C | 67 mm |
| August | 35°C | 19°C | 26.6°C | 52 mm |
| September | 32°C | 15°C | 23.6°C | 24 mm |
| October | 28°C | 8°C | 17.9°C | 17 mm |
| November | 21°C | 2°C | 11.3°C | 16 mm |
| December | 15°C | −1°C | 7.1°C | 27 mm |
NOAA publishes no 1991-2020 snowfall normal for this station. The nearest record that keeps one, San Simon (16 miles away), gets 1 inches of snow in a normal year; elevation and distance can change that.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00020958; annual normals. Wet days: 0.01 inch or more; 90°F days and freezing nights: NOAA's day counts. Daylight: sunrise to sunset on the 15th, computed from the latitude.
When is the best weather to visit Bowie?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in February, March, April, October and November. Of those, April has the fewest days with rain (1).
That is a measurement, not a recommendation: it counts the months whose normal afternoon high sits between 65°F and 85°F, where a light layer is enough by day.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00020958.
When is the last frost in Bowie?
In Bowie, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after April 1 in half of years and after April 18 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before November 6 in half of years and before October 21 in one year in ten.
Frost-free in half of yearsFrost in 1 to 9 years out of 10Frost most years
- Last spring frost, half of years after
- April 11 year in 10 after April 18; 9 in 10 after March 10
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- November 61 year in 10 before October 21; 9 in 10 before November 18
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 217 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 248 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after March 9 in half of springs and before November 17 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Bowie in zone 8b in ZIP code 85605, the nearest ZIP area. By the map's own method, the average of each year's coldest night over 1991-2020, Bowie's NOAA station is in zone 8b: the coldest night of a typical year reaches 18°F (15 complete years).
Frost dates for every NOAA station in Arizona · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USC00020958; USDA 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map, ZIP listings: PRISM Group, Oregon State University, https://prism.oregonstate.edu, accessed October 8, 2026; the station zone: ACIS daily lows, 1991-2020. A 10% date means one year in ten has a frost after it in spring or before it in autumn.
How hot and how cold does it get in Bowie?
In a normal year in Bowie, 121 days a year reach 90°F (29 of them 100°F or more), 59 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 51 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 121a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- 29a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 59a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- fewer than 1high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 51a normal year
The highest temperature in this station's record (since 1902) is 116°F, on July 20, 1936; the lowest is 3°F, on December 9, 1978.
The wettest calendar year on that record is 1914, with 19.96 in; the snowiest season is 1906–07, with 12.0 inches.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USC00020958; records: ACIS (NOAA Regional Climate Centers), station USC00020958. Records use complete months only; a month missing more than three days is left out.
How sunny is Bowie?
Over a year 89% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds in the area around Bowie, 5.8 kWh per square metre a day. May is the sunniest month (94%) and February the cloudiest (85%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 86% | 3.6 |
| February | 85% | 4.5 |
| March | 89% | 6.0 |
| April | 92% | 7.4 |
| May | 94% | 8.2 |
| June | 94% | 8.2 |
| July | 86% | 7.1 |
| August | 87% | 6.6 |
| September | 88% | 5.9 |
| October | 92% | 5.1 |
| November | 89% | 3.9 |
| December | 86% | 3.3 |
Source: NASA POWER solar climatology, 2001-2020 (CERES SYN1deg). Satellite-based, for the 1-degree cell (about 100 km across) around the station, so it describes the area rather than the airport.
How much heating and cooling does Bowie need?
A normal year in Bowie brings 2,576 heating degree days, 52% fewer than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 1,965 cooling degree days, 2.2 times the median (908). Four months need 300 or more heating degree days, a monthly mean of about 55°F or colder. For gardens and crops, NOAA counts 5,349 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 603 | 0 |
| February | 433 | 0 |
| March | 299 | 3 |
| April | 127 | 32 |
| May | 22 | 174 |
| June | 0 | 441 |
| July | 0 | 507 |
| August | 0 | 459 |
| September | 2 | 287 |
| October | 82 | 60 |
| November | 379 | 1 |
| December | 629 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 2,576 | 1,965 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00020958. A degree day is one degree of a day's mean temperature below 65°F (heating) or above it (cooling); utilities use them to estimate energy use.
How does Bowie's climate compare?
Bowie is warmer than 43 of the other 96 places with their own NOAA record in Arizona, and wetter than 45. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 63.2°F is warmer than 83%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Bowie is BSk: cold semi-arid steppe. What the classes mean.
Places with the most similar year elsewhere
Measured month by month on the normal high, low and precipitation, among places of 20,000 or more people in other states:
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 normals for every station PlainClimate covers. Similarity: the root-mean-square difference of the 36 monthly figures, precipitation weighted so an inch counts like 6°F.
Questions about Bowie's climate
What is the coldest month in Bowie?
December, with a normal high of 60°F and a normal low of 30°F. The warmest is July (97°F by day, 66°F at night).
Does it snow in Bowie?
Yes. NOAA publishes no 1991-2020 snowfall normal for Bowie's NOAA station; the nearest record that keeps one, San Simon (16 miles away), records 1 inches of snow in a normal year.
What is the rainiest month in Bowie?
July, with 2.64 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is April with 0.18 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Bowie in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Bowie in zone 8b in ZIP code 85605, the nearest ZIP area. By the same method at Bowie's NOAA station, the coldest night of a typical year reaches 18°F (15 years, 1991-2020): zone 8b.
How late can frost come in Bowie?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after April 1; in one year in ten it comes after April 18. Waiting until April 18 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- Arizona climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- San Simon, AZ16 miles from this station, 62.9°F a year
- Willcox, AZ21 miles from this station, 62.3°F a year
- Chiricahua National Monument, AZ24 miles from this station, 59.5°F a year
- Paradise, AZ31 miles from this station, 56.7°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made