Brownton, Minnesota climate: Normal weather by month, frost dates and records
Brownton's normal year runs from 3°F January nights to 81°F July afternoons, with 31.7 inches of precipitation and 50 inches of snow a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 6.5°C, January lows of −16°C, July highs of 27°C, 805 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationBrownton Wastewater Treatment Plant
- Station IDUSC00211065
- Location44.73°N 94.34°W
- Elevation1,040 ft (317 m)
- From the centerunder 1 mile
- Population706
On October 14, the normal high in Brownton is 59°F and the normal low 37°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 25%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Brownton.
- Jan 21° 3°
- Feb 26° 7°
- Mar 38° 20°
- Apr 55° 34°
- May 68° 47°
- Jun 77° 58°
- Jul 81° 61°
- Aug 79° 58°
- Sep 72° 49°
- Oct 58° 37°
- Nov 40° 23°
- Dec 26° 11°
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 Brownton each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 81°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of 3°F. The most precipitation falls in June (5.24 in), the least in January (0.66 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 21°F | 3°F | 12.3°F | 0.66 | 6.9 | 5 | <1 | 31 | 9 h 10 min |
| February | 26°F | 7°F | 16.1°F | 0.84 | 11.8 | 5 | <1 | 28 | 10 h 20 min |
| March | 38°F | 20°F | 29.2°F | 1.51 | 7.6 | 6 | <1 | 26 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 55°F | 34°F | 44.1°F | 2.99 | 7.0 | 9 | <1 | 13 | 13 h 30 min |
| May | 68°F | 47°F | 57.3°F | 4.30 | 0.1 | 11 | 1 | 1 | 14 h 50 min |
| June | 77°F | 58°F | 67.5°F | 5.24 | 0.0 | 11 | 1 | <1 | 15 h 30 min |
| July | 81°F | 61°F | 70.9°F | 3.53 | 0.0 | 8 | 2 | <1 | 15 h 20 min |
| August | 79°F | 58°F | 68.7°F | 4.39 | 0.0 | 9 | 1 | <1 | 14 h 10 min |
| September | 72°F | 49°F | 60.5°F | 3.22 | 0.0 | 8 | 1 | <1 | 12 h 40 min |
| October | 58°F | 37°F | 47.0°F | 2.63 | 0.8 | 8 | <1 | 11 | 11 h |
| November | 40°F | 23°F | 31.6°F | 1.32 | 3.6 | 5 | <1 | 24 | 9 h 40 min |
| December | 26°F | 11°F | 18.5°F | 1.07 | 12.2 | 6 | <1 | 31 | 8 h 50 min |
| Year (annual) | 53°F | 34°F | 43.7°F | 31.70 | 50.0 | 90 | 6 | 164 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | −6°C | −16°C | −10.9°C | 17 mm | 18 cm |
| February | −4°C | −14°C | −8.8°C | 21 mm | 30 cm |
| March | 3°C | −6°C | −1.6°C | 38 mm | 19 cm |
| April | 13°C | 1°C | 6.7°C | 76 mm | 18 cm |
| May | 20°C | 8°C | 14.1°C | 109 mm | 0 cm |
| June | 25°C | 14°C | 19.7°C | 133 mm | 0 cm |
| July | 27°C | 16°C | 21.6°C | 90 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 26°C | 15°C | 20.4°C | 112 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 22°C | 10°C | 15.8°C | 82 mm | 0 cm |
| October | 14°C | 3°C | 8.3°C | 67 mm | 2 cm |
| November | 5°C | −5°C | −0.2°C | 34 mm | 9 cm |
| December | −3°C | −12°C | −7.5°C | 27 mm | 31 cm |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00211065; 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 Brownton?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in May, June, July, August and September. Of those, July has the fewest days with rain (8).
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 USC00211065.
When is the last frost in Brownton?
In Brownton, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after April 30 in half of years and after May 13 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before October 4 in half of years and before September 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 301 year in 10 after May 13; 9 in 10 after April 17
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- October 41 year in 10 before September 21; 9 in 10 before October 18
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 156 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 177 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after April 20 in half of springs and before October 15 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Brownton in zone 4b in ZIP code 55312, the nearest ZIP area. By the map's own method, the average of each year's coldest night over 1991-2020, Brownton's NOAA station is in zone 4b: the coldest night of a typical year reaches −22°F (16 complete years).
Frost dates for every NOAA station in Minnesota · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USC00211065; 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 Brownton?
In a normal year in Brownton, 6 days a year reach 90°F, 164 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 90 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 6a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- fewer than 1a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 164a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 83high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 90a normal year
- Days with 1 inch of snow or more
- 17a normal year
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USC00211065.
How sunny is Brownton?
Over a year 74% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds in the area around Brownton, 3.9 kWh per square metre a day. July is the sunniest month (83%) and December the cloudiest (66%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 75% | 1.9 |
| February | 80% | 3.0 |
| March | 71% | 3.8 |
| April | 69% | 4.7 |
| May | 69% | 5.4 |
| June | 74% | 6.1 |
| July | 83% | 6.5 |
| August | 80% | 5.4 |
| September | 78% | 4.2 |
| October | 71% | 2.8 |
| November | 69% | 1.8 |
| December | 66% | 1.4 |
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 Brownton need?
A normal year in Brownton brings 8,271 heating degree days, 54% more than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 535 cooling degree days, 41% fewer than the median (908). Seven months need 300 or more heating degree days, a monthly mean of about 55°F or colder. For gardens and crops, NOAA counts 2,486 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 1,634 | 0 |
| February | 1,368 | 0 |
| March | 1,110 | 0 |
| April | 628 | 1 |
| May | 270 | 31 |
| June | 43 | 118 |
| July | 11 | 195 |
| August | 26 | 141 |
| September | 181 | 46 |
| October | 560 | 4 |
| November | 1,001 | 0 |
| December | 1,441 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 8,271 | 535 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00211065. 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 Brownton's climate compare?
Brownton is warmer than 69 of the other 128 places with their own NOAA record in Minnesota, and wetter than 79. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 43.7°F is warmer than 14%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Brownton is Dfb: continental, no dry season, warm summer. 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.
Which places near Brownton share this climate record?
6 places have no NOAA station with 1991-2020 normals of their own, and this station is the nearest full record. A place's own climate can differ from these figures, by several degrees where it sits much higher or lower than the station, nearer the coast, or inside a large city's heat; for the larger places the next nearest records are named with their yearly mean, so the spread around them is visible, and places of 50,000 or more have their own page with NOAA's gridded normals.
- Glencoe, MN5,659 people · 10 mi E
- Buffalo Lake, MN641 people · 13 mi W
- Stewart, MN470 people · 7 mi W
- New Auburn, MN413 people · 7 mi SE
- Plato, MN325 people · 15 mi E
- Biscay, MN111 people · 7 mi NE
Source: Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer (place centers) and Vintage 2024 population estimates. Distance and direction from the station to each place's center.
Questions about Brownton's climate
What is the coldest month in Brownton?
January, with a normal high of 21°F and a normal low of 3°F. The warmest is July (81°F by day, 61°F at night).
Does it snow in Brownton?
Yes: 50 inches in a normal year, falling on 19 days with 0.1 inch or more, the most in December (12.2 inches).
What is the rainiest month in Brownton?
June, with 5.24 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is January with 0.66 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Brownton in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Brownton in zone 4b in ZIP code 55312, the nearest ZIP area. By the same method at Brownton's NOAA station, the coldest night of a typical year reaches −22°F (16 years, 1991-2020): zone 4b.
How late can frost come in Brownton?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after April 30; in one year in ten it comes after May 13. Waiting until May 13 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- Minnesota climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Hutchinson, MN12 miles from this station, 45.2°F a year
- Gaylord, MN14 miles from this station, 44.9°F a year
- Dassel, MN22 miles from this station, 44.0°F a year
- Litchfield, MN29 miles from this station, 42.2°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made