Burlington, Colorado climate: Normal weather by month, frost dates and records
Burlington's normal year runs from 17°F January nights to 90°F July afternoons, with 17.1 inches of precipitation a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 10.8°C, January lows of −8°C, July highs of 32°C, 434 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationBurlington Carson Airport
- Station IDUSW00003026
- Location39.24°N 102.28°W
- Elevation4,192 ft (1,278 m)
- Population3,171
On October 23, the normal high in Burlington is 63°F and the normal low 34°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 14%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Burlington.
- Jan 44° 17°
- Feb 46° 19°
- Mar 56° 26°
- Apr 64° 34°
- May 73° 45°
- Jun 85° 56°
- Jul 90° 61°
- Aug 87° 59°
- Sep 80° 50°
- Oct 66° 37°
- Nov 53° 25°
- Dec 44° 17°
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 Burlington each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 90°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of 17°F. The most precipitation falls in August (3.05 in), the least in January (0.19 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 44°F | 17°F | 30.4°F | 0.19 | 3 | <1 | 31 | 9 h 40 min |
| February | 46°F | 19°F | 32.2°F | 0.27 | 3 | <1 | 27 | 10 h 40 min |
| March | 56°F | 26°F | 41.1°F | 0.75 | 5 | <1 | 24 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 64°F | 34°F | 48.8°F | 1.57 | 7 | <1 | 13 | 13 h 10 min |
| May | 73°F | 45°F | 58.9°F | 2.55 | 10 | 2 | 2 | 14 h 20 min |
| June | 85°F | 56°F | 70.1°F | 2.76 | 8 | 11 | <1 | 14 h 50 min |
| July | 90°F | 61°F | 75.4°F | 2.95 | 9 | 19 | <1 | 14 h 40 min |
| August | 87°F | 59°F | 73.1°F | 3.05 | 10 | 13 | <1 | 13 h 50 min |
| September | 80°F | 50°F | 64.8°F | 1.21 | 6 | 7 | <1 | 12 h 30 min |
| October | 66°F | 37°F | 51.5°F | 1.05 | 5 | <1 | 10 | 11 h 10 min |
| November | 53°F | 25°F | 39.3°F | 0.38 | 3 | <1 | 25 | 10 h |
| December | 44°F | 17°F | 30.6°F | 0.36 | 3 | <1 | 31 | 9 h 30 min |
| Year (annual) | 66°F | 37°F | 51.4°F | 17.09 | 72 | 52 | 162 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 6°C | −8°C | −0.9°C | 5 mm |
| February | 8°C | −7°C | 0.1°C | 7 mm |
| March | 13°C | −3°C | 5.1°C | 19 mm |
| April | 18°C | 1°C | 9.3°C | 40 mm |
| May | 23°C | 7°C | 14.9°C | 65 mm |
| June | 29°C | 13°C | 21.2°C | 70 mm |
| July | 32°C | 16°C | 24.1°C | 75 mm |
| August | 31°C | 15°C | 22.8°C | 77 mm |
| September | 26°C | 10°C | 18.2°C | 31 mm |
| October | 19°C | 3°C | 10.8°C | 27 mm |
| November | 12°C | −4°C | 4.1°C | 10 mm |
| December | 7°C | −8°C | −0.8°C | 9 mm |
NOAA publishes no 1991-2020 snowfall normal for this station. Burlington's own co-op station Burlington station does: 34 inches of snow in a normal year (see the other stations below).
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USW00003026; 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 Burlington?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in May, June, September and October. Of those, October has the fewest days with rain (5).
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 USW00003026.
When is the last frost in Burlington?
In Burlington, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after May 2 in half of years and after May 16 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before October 10 in half of years and before September 27 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
- May 21 year in 10 after May 16; 9 in 10 after April 19
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- October 101 year in 10 before September 27; 9 in 10 before October 22
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 160 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 179 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after April 23 in half of springs and before October 19 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Burlington in zone 6a in ZIP code 80807, the nearest ZIP area. By the map's own method, the average of each year's coldest night over 1991-2020, Burlington's NOAA station is in zone 6a: the coldest night of a typical year reaches −8°F (23 complete years).
Frost dates for every NOAA station in Colorado · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USW00003026; 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 Burlington?
In a normal year in Burlington, 52 days a year reach 90°F (5 of them 100°F or more), 162 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 72 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 52a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- 5a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 162a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 22high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 72a normal year
The highest temperature in this station's record (since 1997) is 107°F, on June 11, 2013; the lowest is −24°F, on February 15, 2021.
The wettest calendar year on that record is 2017, with 24.84 in.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USW00003026; records: ACIS (NOAA Regional Climate Centers), station USW00003026. Records use complete months only; a month missing more than three days is left out.
How sunny is Burlington?
Over a year 82% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds in the area around Burlington, 4.9 kWh per square metre a day. July is the sunniest month (88%) and February the cloudiest (75%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 79% | 2.6 |
| February | 75% | 3.4 |
| March | 78% | 4.7 |
| April | 77% | 5.7 |
| May | 79% | 6.6 |
| June | 86% | 7.4 |
| July | 88% | 7.3 |
| August | 88% | 6.5 |
| September | 86% | 5.3 |
| October | 81% | 3.9 |
| November | 81% | 2.8 |
| December | 78% | 2.2 |
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 Burlington need?
A normal year in Burlington brings 5,859 heating degree days, 9% more than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 921 cooling degree days, 2% more 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 3,160 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 1,073 | 0 |
| February | 918 | 0 |
| March | 741 | 0 |
| April | 489 | 2 |
| May | 225 | 37 |
| June | 34 | 188 |
| July | 3 | 327 |
| August | 8 | 259 |
| September | 107 | 101 |
| October | 425 | 8 |
| November | 771 | 0 |
| December | 1,066 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 5,859 | 921 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USW00003026. 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.
Has Burlington been warmer than normal lately?
2025 averaged 51.9°F, 0.5°F above the 1991-2020 normal of 51.4°F. 4 of the 5 complete years since 2021 ran warmer than the normal.
| Year | Mean | Against normal | Precip. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 53.3°F | +1.9°F | 15.59 |
| 2022 | 51.9°F | +0.5°F | 11.41 |
| 2023 | 50.9°F | −0.5°F | 18.12 |
| 2024 | 53.4°F | +2.0°F | 17.99 |
| 2025 | 51.9°F | +0.5°F | 17.88 |
Source: observed years: ACIS, station USW00003026. A year counts only with all twelve months complete.
How does Burlington's climate compare?
Burlington is warmer than 98 of the other 124 places with their own NOAA record in Colorado, and wetter than 81. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 51.4°F is warmer than 47%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Burlington 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.
Which places near Burlington share this climate record?
2 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.
- Bethune, CO185 people · 9 mi NW
- Kanorado, KS150 people · 15 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.
What do Burlington's other NOAA stations record?
One more NOAA station keeps 1991-2020 normals in or near Burlington. This page uses Burlington Carson Airport; the other differs by site and elevation:
| Station | From this station | Elevation | Year | Jan low | Jul high | Precip. | Snow | Last frost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Burlington station USC00051121 | 4 mi N | 4,162 ft | 51.7°F | 17°F | 91°F | 19.3 | 34 | May 6 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 normals for each station. Last frost: the median last spring date of 32°F.
Questions about Burlington's climate
What is the coldest month in Burlington?
January, with a normal high of 44°F and a normal low of 17°F. The warmest is July (90°F by day, 61°F at night).
Does it snow in Burlington?
Yes. NOAA publishes no 1991-2020 snowfall normal for Burlington's NOAA station; Burlington's own co-op station Burlington station records 34 inches of snow in a normal year.
What is the rainiest month in Burlington?
August, with 3.05 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is January with 0.19 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Burlington in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Burlington in zone 6a in ZIP code 80807, the nearest ZIP area. By the same method at Burlington's NOAA station, the coldest night of a typical year reaches −8°F (23 years, 1991-2020): zone 6a.
How late can frost come in Burlington?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after May 2; in one year in ten it comes after May 16. Waiting until May 16 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- Colorado climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Arapahoe (14 mi N), CO16 miles from this station, 50.7°F a year
- Stratton, CO17 miles from this station, 51.4°F a year
- Cheyenne Wells, CO27 miles from this station, 52.7°F a year
- Bonny Dam (2 mi NE), CO30 miles from this station, 51.7°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made