Busby, MT Climate: Temperature & Rain by Month
Average temperature and precipitation from NOAA NCEI 1991–2020 normals →, with a derived climate comfort score
30-year climate normals (1991-2020) from Busby's primary NOAA station, BUSBY.
The climate verdict for Busby
Dryness leads the climate profile for Busby, Montana, with 15.7 inches of precipitation a year. NOAA records an annual average of 45°F. At 44/100 (moderate) the climate comfort score falls in the bottom third of the station-mapped U.S. score corpus, exceeding only 10% of scores.
- 45°F
- yearly average temperature, NOAA normal
- 44/100
- comfort score, above 10% of station-mapped location scores
- 15.7"
- annual precipitation · 52" snow
- 115 days
- frost-free growing season
Busby: NOAA 1991-2020 normals describe a typical year, not a forecast. Method: /methodology.
Normals record plate
Sheet USC00241297 · Busby, MT 45°F mean · 15.7" precip
TEMP-COOL · RANK-COOL · PHOTO-FINISH · PRCP-DRY · SWING-WIDE · COMF-LOW · LOAD-HEAT · STN-1 · BOOK-FULL
- TEMP-COOL 45°F
- RANK-COOL #1,304
- PHOTO-FINISH ≈ Cornwall
- PRCP-DRY 15.7"
- SWING-WIDE 49°F
- COMF-LOW 44/100
- LOAD-HEAT 7,682 HDD
- STN-1 USC00241297
- BOOK-FULL 6/6 fields
Nearest mean-temperature peer: Cornwall, VT (+ 0 °F mean)
Instrument codes from this station's NOAA 1991–2020 normals, mean temperature, corpus warmth rank, photo-finish peer station, precipitation band, seasonal swing, comfort composite, degree-day load, and field book, not a livability rating.
Mean-temperature neighbourhood
Nationwide NOAA normal poles and nearest peers, not a reprint of every MT station list.
- Busby (this station) 45°F
- Hot Markesan, WI 45°F
- Near Cornwall, VT 45°F
- Near Big Sandy, MT 45°F
- Near Lawrenceville, NY 45°F
Busby sits in Montana, the #6 coldest U.S. state at 43.4°F statewide annual average - see all 50 coldest states ranked by NOAA normals
Climate Living Index · Busby
Busby: 16/100 · grade F
Busby publishes 5 of 6 Living Index dimensions (NOAA annual/seasonal normals · NOAA daily multivariate normals); 1 missing weight rescale to 100.
PlainClimate-derived for Busby, not an official NOAA rating. Rankings still use Comfort Score 44/100 (separate formula). Breakpoints and limits.
| Dimension | Station value | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Precipitation balance | 15.7 in · 19.3 from 35 in | 31/100 · F |
| Annual temperature balance | 45.0°F · 22.5° from 67.5°F | 20/100 · F |
| Snowfall burden | 52.3 inches/year | 20/100 · F |
| Normal heat + freeze calendar | 216 calendar days | 7/100 · F |
| Frost-free season | 115 days/year | 5/100 · F |
Busby · 2026-08-04 · NOAA NCEI Climate Normals · method · Comfort Score method.
Busby is a continental Köppen climate: Dfb
Coldest-month mean 21.3°F and warmest-month mean 70.6°F place this station in continental, no dry season, warm summer climates (Dfb). Class Dfb is the Peel et al. (2007) label for this station's monthly mean temperature and precipitation normals: continental, specifically continental, no dry season, warm summer.
- Köppen code
- Dfb
- Group
- Continental
- Warmest month
- 70.6°F
- Coldest month
- 21.3°F
Source: official public datasets monthly normals (1991–2020) at the city’s primary station. This is a station classification, not a mapped regional consensus.
National standing · heating-led station
Where Busby sits across the climate record
Three NOAA fields for Busby's primary station, temperature, precipitation, and seasonal swing, are ranked against every station-mapped normal that carries the same field.
- Annual temperature
- Cooler than 81%
- Among 6,861 stations, Busby sits in the cooler third of annual means.
- Annual precipitation
- Drier than 81%
- Busby's annual total ranks in the drier third of 6,352 measured normals.
- Seasonal temperature swing
- Wider than 79%
- Warmest-to-coldest month gap for Busby is large versus 6,861 complete station-years.
How Busby compares across U.S. station-mapped locations
Busby's comfort score vs. all station-mapped locations
PlainClimate composite comfort index (1–100), NOAA 1991–2020 normals
44 10th percentile score exceeds 10% of 6,189 station-mapped location scores
- 0–10: 0 station-mapped locations (0%). Below this entry.
- 10–20: 0 station-mapped locations (0%). Below this entry.
- 20–30: 96 station-mapped locations (2%). Below this entry.
- 30–40: 280 station-mapped locations (5%). Below this entry.
- 40–50: 1,113 station-mapped locations (18%). This entry sits in this band.
- 50–60: 1,329 station-mapped locations (21%). Above this entry.
- 60–70: 1,236 station-mapped locations (20%). Above this entry.
- 70–80: 650 station-mapped locations (11%). Above this entry.
- 80–90: 921 station-mapped locations (15%). Above this entry.
- 90–100: 564 station-mapped locations (9%). Above this entry.
Source NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, PlainClimate comfort index · 1991–2020
Busby's measured station temperature trend
MethodologyAcross 72 complete annual observations from 1910 to 2025, BUSBY warmed at a fitted rate of 0.16°C per decade. The line shows the fitted change relative to its first year, not raw year-to-year temperatures or a forecast.
- Busby primary station fitted change +0.16 °C/decade
Monthly Temperatures
Average daily high and low temperatures by month
| Month | Avg High | Avg Low | Mean | Precip | Snow | Freeze Days | 90°F+ Days |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 34°F (1°C) | 9°F (-13°C) | 21°F (-6°C) | 0.7" | 9.9" | 30.7 | 0.0 |
| February | 37°F (3°C) | 11°F (-11°C) | 24°F (-4°C) | 0.7" | 9.7" | 27.5 | 0.0 |
| March | 49°F (10°C) | 21°F (-6°C) | 35°F (2°C) | 0.9" | 7.3" | 27.6 | 0.0 |
| April | 59°F (15°C) | 30°F (-1°C) | 44°F (7°C) | 1.7" | 5.7" | 19.0 | 0.0 |
| May | 68°F (20°C) | 39°F (4°C) | 53°F (12°C) | 2.7" | 0.9" | 6.9 | 0.3 |
| June | 78°F (26°C) | 47°F (8°C) | 63°F (17°C) | 2.1" | 0.0" | 0.2 | 3.1 |
| July | 88°F (31°C) | 53°F (12°C) | 71°F (21°C) | 1.4" | 0.0" | 0.0 | 15.4 |
| August | 88°F (31°C) | 51°F (10°C) | 69°F (21°C) | 1.0" | 0.0" | 0.1 | 14.8 |
| September | 77°F (25°C) | 41°F (5°C) | 59°F (15°C) | 1.6" | 0.2" | 4.0 | 3.8 |
| October | 61°F (16°C) | 30°F (-1°C) | 45°F (7°C) | 1.5" | 3.8" | 18.3 | 0.1 |
| November | 46°F (8°C) | 19°F (-7°C) | 33°F (0°C) | 0.8" | 6.2" | 27.8 | 0.0 |
| December | 36°F (2°C) | 10°F (-12°C) | 23°F (-5°C) | 0.6" | 8.6" | 30.7 | 0.0 |
The year, day by day
Busby works both ends of the calendar. Normal highs climb to 91°F by July 27 and hold at or above 90°F on 17 dates, then normal lows drop to freezing or below on 199 dates, bottoming at 8°F around January 1.
When the heat sits
Normal highs reach 90°F from July 21 through August 6, covering 17 dates. The broader mild season, normal highs of 70°F or more, runs May 21 to September 28.
This counts calendar dates whose 1991–2020 normal high reaches 90°F. It is a smaller number than the 90°F+ day counts in the monthly table above, which measure how often the threshold was actually crossed in a typical year. A date can average 88°F and still exceed 90°F in half of all years.
The freezing stretch
The normal low stays at or below 32°F into April 27, then returns to freezing around October 12, covering 199 dates in all.
Derived from the normal daily minimum. This is a different measure from the 50%-probability frost dates shown elsewhere on this page, which come from NOAA’s frost product.
Where the wet dates fall
The likeliest wet date is May 15, when 30% of years recorded at least a hundredth of an inch. The driest is August 20 at 14%. Summed across the calendar, that is about 81 wet dates a year.
The widest day
August 24 carries the biggest normal gap between afternoon and dawn, 38°F between the normal high and the normal low.
Look up any date
Any date's 1991–2020 normal for Busby.
Where Busby Stands Nationally
Winters bite deep and often: the normal nightly low dips to freezing or below on around 199 nights a year, placing this among the most frost-prone tenth of ranked stations.
Day-to-night contrast is extreme by national standards — the widest normal daily swing reaches about 38°F, sharper than nine in ten ranked stations see.
Busby earns 2 nationally notable standings (outer quintiles) against 6,860 NOAA 1991–2020 normals stations; only those extremes render.
Monthly Precipitation
Average monthly rainfall and snowfall
Snow: 9.9"
7.6 days with precipitation
Snow: 9.7"
6.7 days with precipitation
Snow: 7.3"
6.7 days with precipitation
Snow: 5.7"
8.1 days with precipitation
Snow: 0.9"
9.2 days with precipitation
7.9 days with precipitation
5.8 days with precipitation
4.3 days with precipitation
Snow: 0.2"
5.3 days with precipitation
Snow: 3.8"
6.9 days with precipitation
Snow: 6.2"
5.8 days with precipitation
Snow: 8.6"
6.3 days with precipitation
Busby spreads its precipitation across the year
Neither half of the year dominates here: June through August take 29% of the annual total and December through February 13%, with neither reaching the 35% that would mark a distinct wet season. Busby has no dry season to plan around, though it does carry a wide 49.3°F gap between its warmest and coldest month.
The gap between the wettest and driest month still matters: May averages 2.7" and December 0.6". The three wettest months together take 41% of the year, against the 25% a perfectly flat distribution would give them.
Shares are computed from this station's own 1991-2020 monthly precipitation normals. "Spread across the year" means neither the June-August nor the December-February share reaches 35%; it describes an average year, not the variability of any single one.
Busby is dry, and what does fall arrives gently
Only about 81 days a year record measurable precipitation here, 22% of the calendar, and they carry 15.7" between them. At roughly 0.20 inches on an average wet day, this is not the damp drizzle of a marine climate; it is an arid record in which precipitation is both uncommon and light when it appears.
The wettest month by count is May at about 9 wet days; the driest is August at about 4.
A low per-event average in a dry record is a statement about typical days only. Arid regions can still take a large share of a year's total from a single convective storm, which a normal cannot show.
A wet day is one recording at least 0.01 inches. These are 1991-2020 normals: they describe an average year, not the extremes within it.
Winter brings real snow to Busby
Busby averages 52.3 inches of snowfall a year, with January the snowiest month on the normals, spread across roughly 30 days that record measurable snow. That is depth accumulating on the ground, which is why it can exceed the annual precipitation figure: precipitation counts the liquid the snow melts down to, and fresh snow is mostly air.
- Annual snowfall: 52.3 inches of depth.
- Days recording measurable snow: about 30 a year.
- At a rough ten-to-one melt ratio, snow accounts for on the order of 33% of the year's precipitation.
NOAA 1991-2020 normals. The ten-to-one ratio is a convention, not a measurement: real ratios vary with temperature, so treat the share as an order of magnitude rather than an exact split.
Frost Dates & Growing Season
First Fall Freeze
September 15
50% probability date
Last Spring Freeze
May 23
50% probability date
Growing Season
115 days
Heating & Cooling Degree Days
Annual totals indicate energy demand for heating and cooling
Heating Degree Days
7,682
Higher = more heating needed
Cooling Degree Days
443
Higher = more cooling needed
Warmest Month
July
Coldest Month
January
Nationwide similar cities
Other rankable U.S. places outside MT closest to Busby on two NOAA annual-normal axes (mean temperature and annual precipitation). Chip rows use distinct link sets.
Closest by average temperature
Nearest out-of-state peers by annual mean temperature (45°F here).
- Alexandria, SD 45°F · 0.0°F off
- Bangor, ME 45°F · 0.0°F off
- Chiloquin, OR 45°F · 0.0°F off
- Cresco, IA 45°F · 0.0°F off
Closest by annual precipitation
Nearest out-of-state peers by annual precipitation (15.7" here), excluding temperature-peer places.
- Soda Springs, ID 15.7" · 0.0" off
- Las Vegas, NM 15.7" · 0.0" off
- Eads, CO 15.7" · 0.0" off
- Show Low, AZ 15.7" · 0.0" off
Snow and freeze rhythm
When cold and snow define Busby
heating led · dry · mid swing
Busby's energy balance leans toward cold weather: 7,682 annual heating degree days against 443 for cooling. Its 49.3°F seasonal range still makes the monthly rows more useful than the annual average alone.
Only about 115 days are frost-free in a normal year. That short interval is consistent with the cold-season signal, but the measure does not predict the exact first or last freeze in any one year.
-
1. Busby coldest normal
January
Averaging 21°F (-6°C), this month sits below freezing for the month as a whole, not merely overnight.
-
2. Busby typical freeze period
January through December
The station reports average freezing days from January through December.
-
3. Busby snow peak
January
Busby averages 52.3 inches of snow a year, with January the snowiest month on the normals.
Questions about Busby's climate
How much snow does Busby get? ▼
How many days above 90°F does Busby get? ▼
How much energy does heating and cooling require in Busby? ▼
Data Sources
Data source: NOAA U.S. Climate Normals v1.0.1 (1991-2020). All figures on this page are from Busby's primary station: BUSBY (USC00241297). For informational purposes only.
Place identity: U.S. Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer places. The 2024 Census Gazetteer identifies the exact name-and-state match as a census-designated place (GEOID 3011200), not an incorporated municipality. Match rule for Busby: exact normalized name + state only, no fuzzy expansion, so nearby differently spelled facilities stay unmatched.
On this page every temperature, precipitation, and derived score for Busby comes from its primary NOAA station record. No figure on this page is typed in by an editor - each value is rendered from NOAA 1991-2020 U.S. Climate Normals. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of 1991–2020 normals.