Carson City, NV 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 Carson City's primary NOAA station, CARSON CITY.
The climate verdict for Carson City
Dryness leads the climate profile for Carson City, Nevada, with 9.3 inches of precipitation a year. NOAA records an annual average of 52°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.
- 52°F
- average temperature, NOAA 1991-2020 normal
- 44/100
- comfort score, above 10% of station-mapped location scores
- 9.3"
- annual precipitation · 14" snow
- 155 days
- frost-free days per growing season
Carson City: NOAA 1991-2020 normals describe a typical year, not a forecast. Method: /methodology.
Normals record plate
Sheet USC00261485 · Carson City, NV 52°F mean · 9.3" precip
TEMP-COOL · RANK-MID · PHOTO-FINISH · PRCP-ARID · SWING-MID · COMF-LOW · LOAD-HEAT · STN-1 · BOOK-FULL
- TEMP-COOL 52°F
- RANK-MID #3,293
- PHOTO-FINISH ≈ Whitman Mission
- PRCP-ARID 9.3"
- SWING-MID 38°F
- COMF-LOW 44/100
- LOAD-HEAT 5,353 HDD
- STN-1 USC00261485
- BOOK-FULL 6/6 fields
Nearest mean-temperature peer: Whitman Mission, WA (+ 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 NV station list.
- Carson City (this station) 52°F
- Cold Heppner, OR 52°F
- Hot Pilot Rock, OR 52°F
- Near Whitman Mission, WA 52°F
- Near Newport Rose, RI 52°F
Climate Living Index · Carson City
Carson City: 38/100 · grade F
Carson City publishes 5 of 6 Living Index dimensions (NOAA annual/seasonal normals · NOAA daily multivariate normals); 1 missing weight rescale to 100.
PlainClimate-derived for Carson City, not an official NOAA rating. Rankings still use Comfort Score 44/100 (separate formula). Breakpoints and limits.
| Dimension | Station value | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Snowfall burden | 14.0 inches/year | 57/100 · C |
| Annual temperature balance | 51.7°F · 15.8° from 67.5°F | 48/100 · D |
| Normal heat + freeze calendar | 156 calendar days | 42/100 · D |
| Frost-free season | 155 days/year | 29/100 · F |
| Precipitation balance | 9.3 in · 25.7 from 35 in | 10/100 · F |
Carson City · 2026-08-04 · NOAA NCEI Climate Normals · method · Comfort Score method.
Carson City is a temperate Köppen climate: Csa
Coldest-month mean 34.2°F and warmest-month mean 72.1°F place this station in temperate, dry-summer, hot summer climates (Csa). Class Csa is the Peel et al. (2007) label for this station's monthly mean temperature and precipitation normals: temperate, specifically temperate, dry-summer, hot summer.
- Köppen code
- Csa
- Group
- Temperate
- Warmest month
- 72.1°F
- Coldest month
- 34.2°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 Carson City sits across the climate record
Three NOAA fields for Carson City's primary station, temperature, precipitation, and seasonal swing, are ranked against every station-mapped normal that carries the same field.
- Annual temperature
- 48th percentile warmth
- Mid-pack annual mean versus 6,861 station normals.
- Annual precipitation
- Drier than 95%
- Carson City's annual total ranks in the drier third of 6,352 measured normals.
- Seasonal temperature swing
- Narrower than 73%
- Warmest-to-coldest month gap for Carson City is compact versus 6,861 complete station-years.
How Carson City compares across U.S. station-mapped locations
Carson City'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
Carson City's measured station temperature trend
MethodologyAcross 54 complete annual observations from 1926 to 2015, CARSON CITY warmed at a fitted rate of 0.23°C per decade. The line shows the fitted change relative to its first year, not raw year-to-year temperatures or a forecast.
- Carson City primary station fitted change +0.23 °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 | 46°F (8°C) | 24°F (-4°C) | 35°F (2°C) | 1.7" | 3.6" | 26.9 | 0.0 |
| February | 50°F (10°C) | 27°F (-3°C) | 38°F (3°C) | 1.5" | 1.7" | 22.5 | 0.0 |
| March | 56°F (13°C) | 32°F (0°C) | 44°F (7°C) | 1.2" | 1.6" | 20.4 | 0.0 |
| April | 62°F (17°C) | 36°F (2°C) | 49°F (9°C) | 0.5" | 0.0" | 12.1 | 0.0 |
| May | 70°F (21°C) | 43°F (6°C) | 57°F (14°C) | 0.5" | 0.0" | 2.7 | 0.4 |
| June | 81°F (27°C) | 49°F (10°C) | 65°F (18°C) | 0.4" | 0.0" | 0.4 | 5.2 |
| July | 90°F (32°C) | 55°F (13°C) | 72°F (22°C) | 0.2" | 0.0" | 0.0 | 17.3 |
| August | 88°F (31°C) | 53°F (11°C) | 70°F (21°C) | 0.1" | 0.0" | 0.0 | 13.5 |
| September | 81°F (27°C) | 46°F (8°C) | 63°F (17°C) | 0.2" | 0.0" | 0.6 | 3.1 |
| October | 68°F (20°C) | 36°F (2°C) | 52°F (11°C) | 0.6" | 0.0" | 12.6 | 0.0 |
| November | 55°F (13°C) | 28°F (-2°C) | 41°F (5°C) | 0.9" | 0.7" | 21.9 | 0.0 |
| December | 45°F (7°C) | 24°F (-5°C) | 34°F (1°C) | 1.5" | 6.4" | 25.8 | 0.0 |
The year, day by day
Carson City works both ends of the calendar. Normal highs climb to 90°F by July 19 and hold at or above 90°F on 16 dates, then normal lows drop to freezing or below on 140 dates, bottoming at 23°F around December 24.
When the heat sits
Normal highs reach 90°F from July 15 through July 30, covering 16 dates. The broader mild season, normal highs of 70°F or more, runs May 15 to October 11.
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 March 18, then returns to freezing around October 31, covering 140 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 January 24, when 21% of years recorded at least a hundredth of an inch. The driest is August 29 at 2%. Summed across the calendar, that is about 39 wet dates a year.
The widest day
September 2 carries the biggest normal gap between afternoon and dawn, 36°F between the normal high and the normal low.
Look up any date
Any date's 1991–2020 normal for Carson City.
Where Carson City Stands Nationally
Aridity defines the water calendar: about 9 inches in a normal year lands this among the driest tenth of ranked stations.
Daily temperature swings run wider than most of the country, peaking near 36°F between the normal high and low.
Carson City 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: 3.6"
6.2 days with precipitation
Snow: 1.7"
5.6 days with precipitation
Snow: 1.6"
4.8 days with precipitation
3.2 days with precipitation
3.4 days with precipitation
1.7 days with precipitation
0.9 days with precipitation
1.0 days with precipitation
1.1 days with precipitation
2.4 days with precipitation
Snow: 0.7"
3.3 days with precipitation
Snow: 6.4"
4.8 days with precipitation
Carson City's wet season runs through the cold months
December, January and February carry 50% of the year's precipitation here, while June through August contribute 7%. That is the cool-season-dominant pattern of the West Coast and the higher inland West, where storm tracks swing south in winter and summer turns dry; the thermometer meanwhile shows a 37.9°F seasonal spread.
- Wettest month
- January, 1.7"
- Driest month
- August, 0.1"
- Wettest three months
- January, December, February (50% of the year)
Shares are computed from this station's own 1991-2020 monthly precipitation normals. A cool-season label means the December-February share reaches 35%. Where snow falls, the monthly figures above report liquid-equivalent precipitation, so a wet winter month is not necessarily a rainy one.
How Carson City's precipitation splits across the calendar
About 38 days a year record measurable precipitation here, carrying 9.3" between them, or roughly 0.24 inches on a typical wet day. That sits in the middle band: neither the many-light-days pattern of the Pacific Northwest and the Great Lakes, nor the few-heavy-events pattern of the Gulf and the desert Southwest.
A wet day is one recording at least 0.01 inches. These are 1991-2020 normals: they describe an average year and say nothing about the heaviest single storm on record.
Winter brings real snow to Carson City
Carson City averages 14.0 inches of snowfall a year, with December the snowiest month on the normals, spread across roughly 6 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: 14.0 inches of depth.
- Days recording measurable snow: about 6 a year.
- At a rough ten-to-one melt ratio, snow accounts for on the order of 15% 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
October 6
50% probability date
Last Spring Freeze
May 4
50% probability date
Growing Season
155 days
Heating & Cooling Degree Days
Annual totals indicate energy demand for heating and cooling
Heating Degree Days
5,353
Higher = more heating needed
Cooling Degree Days
538
Higher = more cooling needed
Warmest Month
July
Coldest Month
December
Nationwide similar cities
Other rankable U.S. places outside NV closest to Carson City 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 (52°F here).
- Burlington, CO 52°F · 0.0°F off
- Conception, MO 52°F · 0.0°F off
- Connell, WA 52°F · 0.0°F off
- Donnellson, IA 52°F · 0.0°F off
Closest by annual precipitation
Nearest out-of-state peers by annual precipitation (9.3" here), excluding temperature-peer places.
- Riverside, CA 9.4" · 0.0" off
- St George, UT 9.3" · 0.0" off
- Terlingua, TX 9.3" · 0.0" off
- Arlington, OR 9.3" · 0.0" off
Snow and freeze rhythm
When cold and snow define Carson City
heating led · dry · mid swing
Carson City's energy balance leans toward cold weather: 5,353 annual heating degree days against 538 for cooling. Its 37.9°F seasonal range still makes the monthly rows more useful than the annual average alone.
Carson City's frost-free season lasts about 155 days, a middle-length window whose endpoints matter more than the annual average. It describes freeze probability, not year-specific planting conditions.
-
1. Carson City coldest normal
December
The monthly mean of 34°F (1°C) sits near freezing, so cold nights and above-freezing afternoons share the same month.
-
2. Carson City typical freeze period
January through December
The station reports average freezing days from January through December.
-
3. Carson City snow peak
December
Carson City averages 14.0 inches of snow a year, with December the snowiest month on the normals.
Questions about Carson City's climate
How much snow does Carson City get? ▼
How many days above 90°F does Carson City get? ▼
How much energy does heating and cooling require in Carson City? ▼
Data Sources
Data source: NOAA U.S. Climate Normals v1.0.1 (1991-2020). All figures on this page are from Carson City's primary station: CARSON CITY (USC00261485). For informational purposes only.
Place identity: U.S. Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer places. The conservative exact name-and-state crosswalk finds no Census place match, so PlainClimate treats this as a station-mapped location and does not claim it is a municipality. No exact Gazetteer row for Carson City; facility counts that depend on place identity are therefore an upper bound, not a municipal census.
On this page every temperature, precipitation, and derived score for Carson City 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.