Chatham, VA 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 Chatham's primary NOAA station, CHATHAM.
The climate verdict for Chatham
Water is the standout signal in Chatham, Virginia: 47.7 inches of precipitation in a normal year. Against that wet profile, NOAA records an annual average of 56°F. It scores 78/100 for climate comfort (good), putting it in the top third of station-mapped location scores and exceeding 72% of them.
- 56°F
- average temperature, NOAA 1991-2020 normal
- 78/100
- comfort score, above 72% of station-mapped location scores
- 47.7"
- annual precipitation · 6" snow
- 184 days
- frost-free days per growing season
Chatham: NOAA 1991-2020 normals describe a typical year, not a forecast. Method: /methodology.
Normals record plate
Sheet USC00441614 · Chatham, VA 56°F mean · 47.7" precip
TEMP-MILD · RANK-UPPER · PHOTO-FINISH · PRCP-MID · SWING-MID · COMF-TOP · LOAD-HEAT · STN-1 · BOOK-FULL
- TEMP-MILD 56°F
- RANK-UPPER #4,254
- PHOTO-FINISH ≈ Williamsburg
- PRCP-MID 47.7"
- SWING-MID 40°F
- COMF-TOP 78/100
- LOAD-HEAT 4,450 HDD
- STN-1 USC00441614
- BOOK-FULL 6/6 fields
Nearest mean-temperature peer: Williamsburg, KY (+ 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 VA station list.
- Chatham (this station) 56°F
- Cold Milton Freewater, OR 56°F
- Hot Petrified Fores…, AZ 56°F
- Near Williamsburg, KY 56°F
- Near Roanoke, VA 56°F
Climate Living Index · Chatham
Chatham: 60/100 · grade C
Chatham publishes 5 of 6 Living Index dimensions (NOAA annual/seasonal normals · NOAA daily multivariate normals); 1 missing weight rescale to 100.
PlainClimate-derived for Chatham, not an official NOAA rating. Rankings still use Comfort Score 78/100 (separate formula). Breakpoints and limits.
| Dimension | Station value | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Snowfall burden | 5.8 inches/year | 69/100 · C |
| Normal heat + freeze calendar | 125 calendar days | 62/100 · C |
| Annual temperature balance | 55.6°F · 11.9° from 67.5°F | 61/100 · C |
| Precipitation balance | 47.7 in · 12.7 from 35 in | 55/100 · C |
| Frost-free season | 184 days/year | 53/100 · D |
Chatham · 2026-08-04 · NOAA NCEI Climate Normals · method · Comfort Score method.
Chatham is a temperate Köppen climate: Cfa
Coldest-month mean 35.7°F and warmest-month mean 75.5°F place this station in temperate, no dry season, hot summer climates (Cfa). Class Cfa is the Peel et al. (2007) label for this station's monthly mean temperature and precipitation normals: temperate, specifically temperate, no dry season, hot summer.
- Köppen code
- Cfa
- Group
- Temperate
- Warmest month
- 75.5°F
- Coldest month
- 35.7°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 Chatham sits across the climate record
Three NOAA fields for Chatham's primary station, temperature, precipitation, and seasonal swing, are ranked against every station-mapped normal that carries the same field.
- Annual temperature
- 62nd percentile warmth
- Mid-pack annual mean versus 6,861 station normals.
- Annual precipitation
- Top 25% wettest
- Chatham's annual total ranks in the wetter third of 6,352 measured normals.
- Seasonal temperature swing
- 35th percentile swing
- Typical seasonal amplitude versus 6,861 complete station-years.
How Chatham compares across U.S. station-mapped locations
Chatham's comfort score vs. all station-mapped locations
PlainClimate composite comfort index (1–100), NOAA 1991–2020 normals
78 Top 28% score exceeds 72% 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%). Below this entry.
- 50–60: 1,329 station-mapped locations (21%). Below this entry.
- 60–70: 1,236 station-mapped locations (20%). Below this entry.
- 70–80: 650 station-mapped locations (11%). This entry sits in this band.
- 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
Chatham's measured station temperature trend
MethodologyAcross 78 complete annual observations from 1924 to 2024, CHATHAM warmed at a fitted rate of 0.06°C per decade. The line shows the fitted change relative to its first year, not raw year-to-year temperatures or a forecast.
- Chatham primary station fitted change +0.06 °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 | 47°F (8°C) | 24°F (-4°C) | 36°F (2°C) | 4.2" | 1.9" | 25.7 | 0.0 |
| February | 51°F (11°C) | 26°F (-4°C) | 38°F (4°C) | 2.8" | 1.6" | 23.1 | 0.0 |
| March | 59°F (15°C) | 32°F (0°C) | 46°F (8°C) | 4.0" | 1.0" | 18.2 | 0.0 |
| April | 69°F (21°C) | 41°F (5°C) | 55°F (13°C) | 3.9" | 0.0" | 8.1 | 0.2 |
| May | 76°F (24°C) | 51°F (10°C) | 63°F (17°C) | 4.5" | 0.0" | 0.7 | 0.5 |
| June | 83°F (28°C) | 60°F (16°C) | 71°F (22°C) | 4.2" | 0.0" | 0.0 | 3.8 |
| July | 86°F (30°C) | 65°F (18°C) | 76°F (24°C) | 4.2" | 0.0" | 0.0 | 9.3 |
| August | 85°F (29°C) | 63°F (17°C) | 74°F (23°C) | 4.1" | 0.0" | 0.0 | 6.1 |
| September | 79°F (26°C) | 56°F (13°C) | 68°F (20°C) | 5.0" | 0.0" | 0.1 | 1.6 |
| October | 70°F (21°C) | 43°F (6°C) | 56°F (13°C) | 3.5" | 0.0" | 5.8 | 0.2 |
| November | 59°F (15°C) | 32°F (0°C) | 46°F (8°C) | 3.5" | 0.0" | 19.1 | 0.0 |
| December | 50°F (10°C) | 27°F (-3°C) | 39°F (4°C) | 3.8" | 1.3" | 24.4 | 0.0 |
The year, day by day
Summer here tops out rather than builds: the warmest normal high is 87°F around July 9, short of 90°F on every date, while 125 dates carry a normal low at or below freezing, the coldest 24°F near January 20.
The freezing stretch
The normal low stays at or below 32°F into March 17, then returns to freezing around November 14, covering 125 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 16, when 40% of years recorded at least a hundredth of an inch. The driest is November 12 at 28%. Summed across the calendar, that is about 119 wet dates a year.
The widest day
April 13 carries the biggest normal gap between afternoon and dawn, 29°F between the normal high and the normal low.
Look up any date
Any date's 1991–2020 normal for Chatham.
Monthly Precipitation
Average monthly rainfall and snowfall
Snow: 1.9"
10.0 days with precipitation
Snow: 1.6"
8.3 days with precipitation
Snow: 1.0"
10.4 days with precipitation
10.6 days with precipitation
12.2 days with precipitation
11.0 days with precipitation
11.2 days with precipitation
9.8 days with precipitation
9.1 days with precipitation
8.5 days with precipitation
8.5 days with precipitation
Snow: 1.3"
9.4 days with precipitation
Chatham spreads its precipitation across the year
Neither half of the year dominates here: June through August take 26% of the annual total and December through February 23%, with neither reaching the 35% that would mark a distinct wet season. Chatham has no dry season to plan around, though it does carry a 39.8°F seasonal spread.
The gap between the wettest and driest month still matters: September averages 5.0" and February 2.8". The three wettest months together take 29% 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.
When it rains in Chatham, it arrives in quantity
47.7" of precipitation falls across only about 119 wet days here, averaging 0.40 inches each. Fewer days carry more water: the year's total is delivered in comparatively heavy events rather than persistent damp.
- Days with measurable precipitation
- about 119 a year, 33% of all days
- Average depth per wet day
- 0.40 inches
- Most wet days
- May, about 12
- Fewest wet days
- February, about 8
A wet day is one recording at least 0.01 inches. These are 1991-2020 normals: they describe an average year, and a per-day average is not a forecast of any individual storm.
Snow reaches Chatham, but rarely amounts to much
The normals record 5.8 inches of snow a year here, most likely in January. That is a real but marginal amount: enough that snow is part of the local record, not enough to define the winter.
A figure in this range usually reflects a handful of events that melt quickly rather than a season of accumulation; about 3 days a year record any measurable snow at all.
NOAA 1991-2020 normals. An average across thirty years can smooth away a single heavy winter, so a small annual figure does not mean a significant snowfall is impossible.
Frost Dates & Growing Season
First Fall Freeze
October 23
50% probability date
Last Spring Freeze
April 22
50% probability date
Growing Season
184 days
Heating & Cooling Degree Days
Annual totals indicate energy demand for heating and cooling
Heating Degree Days
4,450
Higher = more heating needed
Cooling Degree Days
1,043
Higher = more cooling needed
Warmest Month
July
Coldest Month
January
Nationwide similar cities
Other rankable U.S. places outside VA closest to Chatham 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 (56°F here).
- Bradfordsville, KY 56°F · 0.0°F off
- Butler, MO 56°F · 0.0°F off
- Cliff, NM 56°F · 0.0°F off
- Grants Pass, OR 56°F · 0.0°F off
Closest by annual precipitation
Nearest out-of-state peers by annual precipitation (47.7" here), excluding temperature-peer places.
- Seabrook Farms, NJ 47.7" · 0.0" off
- Du Quoin, IL 47.7" · 0.0" off
- Edgartown, MA 47.7" · 0.0" off
- Cynthiana, KY 47.7" · 0.0" off
Data-derived climate profile
How Chatham's climate pattern fits together
heating led · wet · mid swing
Chatham's energy balance leans toward cold weather: 4,450 annual heating degree days against 1,043 for cooling. Its 39.8°F seasonal range still makes the monthly rows more useful than the annual average alone.
Chatham's frost-free season lasts about 184 days, a middle-length window whose endpoints matter more than the annual average. It describes freeze probability, not year-specific planting conditions.
July and January mark the typical warm and cold ends of the calendar in Chatham's middle-range seasonal profile. The measured spread is 39.8°F. The annual average is 56°F. Neither the annual mean nor one extreme month represents the full calendar on its own.
Alongside its heating load, Chatham carries 47.7 inches of precipitation in a normal year, inside PlainClimate's wet range. Annual snowfall totals 5.8 inches. That distinction matters because a wet annual total can arrive as rain, snow, or a mixture at different times.
These labels group NOAA 1991-2020 normals from Chatham's primary station, so the winter figures are a thirty-year average and not a floor: a single hard season can run well below them. Treat each band as a descriptive range for Chatham, not an official NOAA class or a year-ahead forecast.
Questions about Chatham's climate
How much rain does Chatham get? ▼
How cold does Chatham get in winter? ▼
How much energy does heating and cooling require in Chatham? ▼
Data Sources
Data source: NOAA U.S. Climate Normals v1.0.1 (1991-2020). All figures on this page are from Chatham's primary station: CHATHAM (USC00441614). 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 an incorporated place (GEOID 5115000). Match rule for Chatham: 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 Chatham 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.