Chugwater, WY Climate: Temperature & Rain by Month
Pulled from NOAA NCEI 1991–2020 normals →: climate measurements used in PlainClimate's documented score
30-year climate normals (1991-2020) from Chugwater's primary NOAA station, CHUGWATER.
The climate verdict for Chugwater
Dryness leads the climate profile for Chugwater, Wyoming, with 16.8 inches of precipitation a year. NOAA records an annual average of 48°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.
- 48°F
- yearly average temperature, NOAA normal
- 44/100
- comfort score, above 10% of station-mapped location scores
- 16.8"
- annual precipitation · 70" snow
- 129 days
- frost-free growing season
Chugwater: NOAA 1991-2020 normals describe a typical year, not a forecast. Method: /methodology.
Normals record plate
Sheet USC00481730 · Chugwater, WY 48°F mean · 16.8" precip
TEMP-COOL · RANK-COOL · PHOTO-FINISH · PRCP-DRY · SWING-MID · COMF-LOW · LOAD-HEAT · STN-1 · BOOK-FULL
- TEMP-COOL 48°F
- RANK-COOL #2,127
- PHOTO-FINISH ≈ W Hampstead
- PRCP-DRY 16.8"
- SWING-MID 42°F
- COMF-LOW 44/100
- LOAD-HEAT 6,732 HDD
- STN-1 USC00481730
- BOOK-FULL 6/6 fields
Nearest mean-temperature peer: W Hampstead, NH (+ 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 WY station list.
- Chugwater (this station) 48°F
- Hot Ola, ID 48°F
- Near W Hampstead, NH 48°F
- Near Elko Rgnl, NV 48°F
- Near Dorset, OH 48°F
Chugwater sits in Wyoming, the #5 coldest U.S. state at 43.3°F statewide annual average - see all 50 coldest states ranked by NOAA normals
Climate Living Index · Chugwater
Chugwater: 23/100 · grade F
Chugwater publishes 5 of 6 Living Index dimensions (NOAA annual/seasonal normals · NOAA daily multivariate normals); 1 missing weight rescale to 100.
PlainClimate-derived for Chugwater, not an official NOAA rating. Rankings still use Comfort Score 44/100 (separate formula). Breakpoints and limits.
| Dimension | Station value | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Precipitation balance | 16.8 in · 18.2 from 35 in | 35/100 · F |
| Annual temperature balance | 47.8°F · 19.7° from 67.5°F | 31/100 · F |
| Normal heat + freeze calendar | 193 calendar days | 18/100 · F |
| Frost-free season | 129 days/year | 11/100 · F |
| Snowfall burden | 69.8 inches/year | 10/100 · F |
Chugwater · 2026-08-04 · NOAA NCEI Climate Normals · method · Comfort Score method.
Chugwater is a continental Köppen climate: Dfb
Coldest-month mean 29.4°F and warmest-month mean 71.3°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
- 71.3°F
- Coldest month
- 29.4°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 Chugwater sits across the climate record
Three NOAA fields for Chugwater's primary station, temperature, precipitation, and seasonal swing, are ranked against every station-mapped normal that carries the same field.
- Annual temperature
- 31st percentile warmth
- Mid-pack annual mean versus 6,861 station normals.
- Annual precipitation
- Drier than 78%
- Chugwater's annual total ranks in the drier third of 6,352 measured normals.
- Seasonal temperature swing
- 44th percentile swing
- Typical seasonal amplitude versus 6,861 complete station-years.
How Chugwater compares across U.S. station-mapped locations
Chugwater'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
Chugwater's measured station temperature trend
MethodologyAcross 93 complete annual observations from 1903 to 2017, CHUGWATER warmed at a fitted rate of 0.12°C per decade. The line shows the fitted change relative to its first year, not raw year-to-year temperatures or a forecast.
- Chugwater primary station fitted change +0.11 °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 | 41°F (5°C) | 18°F (-8°C) | 30°F (-1°C) | 0.5" | 9.0" | 28.1 | 0.0 |
| February | 42°F (6°C) | 17°F (-8°C) | 30°F (-1°C) | 0.7" | 11.4" | 25.6 | 0.0 |
| March | 51°F (11°C) | 24°F (-4°C) | 38°F (3°C) | 1.1" | 11.1" | 25.2 | 0.0 |
| April | 58°F (14°C) | 30°F (-1°C) | 44°F (7°C) | 2.1" | 8.9" | 18.4 | 0.0 |
| May | 68°F (20°C) | 40°F (4°C) | 54°F (12°C) | 3.1" | 2.1" | 5.3 | 0.1 |
| June | 80°F (26°C) | 48°F (9°C) | 64°F (18°C) | 2.1" | 0.0" | 0.2 | 3.6 |
| July | 88°F (31°C) | 55°F (13°C) | 71°F (22°C) | 1.6" | 0.0" | 0.0 | 12.5 |
| August | 86°F (30°C) | 53°F (12°C) | 69°F (21°C) | 1.6" | 0.0" | 0.0 | 8.7 |
| September | 77°F (25°C) | 44°F (7°C) | 60°F (16°C) | 1.3" | 1.0" | 2.3 | 2.2 |
| October | 62°F (17°C) | 32°F (0°C) | 47°F (8°C) | 1.3" | 5.2" | 15.6 | 0.0 |
| November | 50°F (10°C) | 24°F (-4°C) | 37°F (3°C) | 0.7" | 9.1" | 23.6 | 0.0 |
| December | 41°F (5°C) | 18°F (-8°C) | 29°F (-1°C) | 0.7" | 12.0" | 28.2 | 0.0 |
The year, day by day
Summer here tops out rather than builds: the warmest normal high is 89°F around July 22, short of 90°F on every date, while 193 dates carry a normal low at or below freezing, the coldest 17°F near February 9.
The freezing stretch
The normal low stays at or below 32°F into April 24, then returns to freezing around October 15, covering 193 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 23, when 36% of years recorded at least a hundredth of an inch. The driest is November 22 at 19%. Summed across the calendar, that is about 91 wet dates a year.
The widest day
September 2 carries the biggest normal gap between afternoon and dawn, 33°F between the normal high and the normal low.
Look up any date
Any date's 1991–2020 normal for Chugwater.
Where Chugwater Stands Nationally
Freezing is routine here by normals standards — the normal low reaches 32°F or colder on about 193 nights a year, more than most ranked stations.
Daily temperature swings run wider than most of the country, peaking near 33°F between the normal high and low.
Chugwater 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: 9.0"
6.2 days with precipitation
Snow: 11.4"
6.7 days with precipitation
Snow: 11.1"
6.8 days with precipitation
Snow: 8.9"
9.1 days with precipitation
Snow: 2.1"
11.3 days with precipitation
9.1 days with precipitation
8.3 days with precipitation
8.3 days with precipitation
Snow: 1.0"
6.9 days with precipitation
Snow: 5.2"
6.4 days with precipitation
Snow: 9.1"
5.7 days with precipitation
Snow: 12.0"
6.4 days with precipitation
Chugwater spreads its precipitation across the year
Neither half of the year dominates here: June through August take 31% of the annual total and December through February 12%, with neither reaching the 35% that would mark a distinct wet season. Chugwater has no dry season to plan around, though it does carry a 41.9°F seasonal spread.
The gap between the wettest and driest month still matters: May averages 3.1" and January 0.5". The three wettest months together take 43% 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.
Chugwater is dry, and what does fall arrives gently
Only about 91 days a year record measurable precipitation here, 25% of the calendar, and they carry 16.8" between them. At roughly 0.18 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 11 wet days; the driest is November at about 6.
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 Chugwater
Chugwater averages 69.8 inches of snowfall a year, with December the snowiest month on the normals, spread across roughly 38 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: 69.8 inches of depth.
- Days recording measurable snow: about 38 a year.
- At a rough ten-to-one melt ratio, snow accounts for on the order of 42% 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 24
50% probability date
Last Spring Freeze
May 18
50% probability date
Growing Season
129 days
Heating & Cooling Degree Days
Annual totals indicate energy demand for heating and cooling
Heating Degree Days
6,732
Higher = more heating needed
Cooling Degree Days
500
Higher = more cooling needed
Warmest Month
July
Coldest Month
December
Nationwide similar cities
Other rankable U.S. places outside WY closest to Chugwater 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 (48°F here).
- Alliance, NE 48°F · 0.0°F off
- Broadwater, NE 48°F · 0.0°F off
- Colo, IA 48°F · 0.0°F off
- Dupree, SD 48°F · 0.0°F off
Closest by annual precipitation
Nearest out-of-state peers by annual precipitation (16.8" here), excluding temperature-peer places.
- Lewistown, MT 16.8" · 0.0" off
- Cantwell, AK 16.8" · 0.0" off
- Lamesa, TX 16.8" · 0.1" off
- Geraldine, MT 16.9" · 0.1" off
Snow and freeze rhythm
When cold and snow define Chugwater
heating led · dry · mid swing
Chugwater's energy balance leans toward cold weather: 6,732 annual heating degree days against 500 for cooling. Its 41.9°F seasonal range still makes the monthly rows more useful than the annual average alone.
Only about 129 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. Chugwater coldest normal
December
The monthly mean of 29°F (-1°C) sits near freezing, so cold nights and above-freezing afternoons share the same month.
-
2. Chugwater typical freeze period
January through December
The station reports average freezing days from January through December.
-
3. Chugwater snow peak
December
Chugwater averages 69.8 inches of snow a year, with December the snowiest month on the normals.
Questions about Chugwater's climate
How much snow does Chugwater get? ▼
How cold does Chugwater get in winter? ▼
How much energy does heating and cooling require in Chugwater? ▼
Data Sources
Data source: NOAA U.S. Climate Normals v1.0.1 (1991-2020). All figures on this page are from Chugwater's primary station: CHUGWATER (USC00481730). 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 5614165). Match rule for Chugwater: 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 Chugwater 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.