Clemson, South Carolina climate: Normal weather by month, frost dates and records
Clemson's normal year runs from 34°F January nights to 89°F July afternoons, with 49.0 inches of precipitation a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 16.3°C, January lows of 1°C, July highs of 32°C, 1,244 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationClemson Oconee County Airport
- Station IDUSW00053850
- Location34.67°N 82.89°W
- Elevation891 ft (272 m)
- From the center4 miles
- Population18,610
On October 14, the normal high in Clemson is 73°F and the normal low 53°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 30%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Clemson.
- Jan 52° 34°
- Feb 56° 36°
- Mar 64° 43°
- Apr 72° 50°
- May 79° 59°
- Jun 85° 66°
- Jul 89° 70°
- Aug 87° 69°
- Sep 82° 64°
- Oct 72° 52°
- Nov 62° 42°
- Dec 54° 36°
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 Clemson each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 89°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of 34°F. The most precipitation falls in August (4.91 in), the least in May (3.49 in).
Each month has its own page with the day-by-day normals, the month's records and its recent years:
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 52°F | 34°F | 42.7°F | 4.51 | 11 | <1 | 14 | 10 h |
| February | 56°F | 36°F | 46.0°F | 4.16 | 11 | <1 | 8 | 11 h |
| March | 64°F | 43°F | 53.2°F | 4.67 | 10 | <1 | 3 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 72°F | 50°F | 60.9°F | 3.78 | 10 | <1 | <1 | 13 h |
| May | 79°F | 59°F | 68.8°F | 3.49 | 10 | 3 | <1 | 14 h |
| June | 85°F | 66°F | 75.7°F | 4.40 | 11 | 12 | <1 | 14 h 30 min |
| July | 89°F | 70°F | 79.3°F | 3.65 | 12 | 17 | <1 | 14 h 20 min |
| August | 87°F | 69°F | 78.0°F | 4.91 | 13 | 15 | <1 | 13 h 30 min |
| September | 82°F | 64°F | 72.8°F | 3.68 | 9 | 6 | <1 | 12 h 30 min |
| October | 72°F | 52°F | 62.1°F | 3.60 | 9 | <1 | <1 | 11 h 20 min |
| November | 62°F | 42°F | 52.0°F | 3.64 | 10 | <1 | 3 | 10 h 20 min |
| December | 54°F | 36°F | 45.0°F | 4.50 | 11 | <1 | 10 | 9 h 50 min |
| Year (annual) | 71°F | 52°F | 61.4°F | 48.99 | 127 | 53 | 38 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 11°C | 1°C | 5.9°C | 115 mm |
| February | 13°C | 2°C | 7.8°C | 106 mm |
| March | 18°C | 6°C | 11.8°C | 119 mm |
| April | 22°C | 10°C | 16.1°C | 96 mm |
| May | 26°C | 15°C | 20.4°C | 89 mm |
| June | 30°C | 19°C | 24.3°C | 112 mm |
| July | 32°C | 21°C | 26.3°C | 93 mm |
| August | 31°C | 20°C | 25.6°C | 125 mm |
| September | 28°C | 18°C | 22.7°C | 93 mm |
| October | 22°C | 11°C | 16.7°C | 91 mm |
| November | 17°C | 5°C | 11.1°C | 92 mm |
| December | 12°C | 2°C | 7.2°C | 114 mm |
NOAA publishes no 1991-2020 snowfall normal for this station. Clemson's own co-op station Clemson University does: 2 inches of snow in a normal year (see the other stations below).
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USW00053850; 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 Clemson?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in April, May, September and October. Of those, September has the fewest days with rain (9).
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 USW00053850.
When is the last frost in Clemson?
In Clemson, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after March 21 in half of years and after April 7 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before November 11 in half of years and before October 28 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
- March 211 year in 10 after April 7; 9 in 10 after March 1
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- November 111 year in 10 before October 28; 9 in 10 before December 1
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 236 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 266 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after March 7 in half of springs and before November 27 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Clemson in zone 8a in ZIP code 29631. By the map's own method, the average of each year's coldest night over 1991-2020, Clemson's NOAA station is in zone 8b: the coldest night of a typical year reaches 17°F (20 complete years); the map interpolates between stations and terrain, so the station and the ZIP area can differ by half a zone.
Frost dates for every NOAA station in South Carolina · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USW00053850; 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 Clemson?
In a normal year in Clemson, 53 days a year reach 90°F (2 of them 100°F or more), 38 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 127 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 53a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- 2a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 38a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- fewer than 1high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 127a normal year
The highest temperature in this station's record (since 1998) is 107°F, on July 1, 2012; the lowest is 6°F, on December 24, 2022.
The wettest calendar year on that record is 2013, with 76.37 in.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USW00053850; records: ACIS (NOAA Regional Climate Centers), station USW00053850. Records use complete months only; a month missing more than three days is left out.
How sunny is Clemson?
Over a year 78% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds in the area around Clemson, 4.6 kWh per square metre a day. June is the sunniest month (82%) and February the cloudiest (71%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 75% | 2.7 |
| February | 71% | 3.4 |
| March | 74% | 4.4 |
| April | 79% | 5.7 |
| May | 79% | 6.2 |
| June | 82% | 6.5 |
| July | 81% | 6.2 |
| August | 81% | 5.7 |
| September | 80% | 4.9 |
| October | 79% | 4.0 |
| November | 79% | 3.1 |
| December | 73% | 2.4 |
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 Clemson need?
A normal year in Clemson brings 2,960 heating degree days, 45% fewer than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 1,666 cooling degree days, 84% more than the median (908). Five months need 300 or more heating degree days, a monthly mean of about 55°F or colder. For gardens and crops, NOAA counts 4,946 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 690 | 0 |
| February | 533 | 1 |
| March | 374 | 8 |
| April | 160 | 37 |
| May | 38 | 154 |
| June | 2 | 321 |
| July | 0 | 443 |
| August | 0 | 405 |
| September | 10 | 243 |
| October | 140 | 49 |
| November | 392 | 4 |
| December | 621 | 1 |
| Year (annual) | 2,960 | 1,666 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USW00053850. 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 Clemson been warmer than normal lately?
2023 averaged 62.8°F, 1.4°F above the 1991-2020 normal of 61.4°F. 3 of the 3 complete years since 2021 ran warmer than the normal.
| Year | Mean | Against normal | Precip. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 62.0°F | +0.6°F | 31.51 |
| 2022 | 62.2°F | +0.8°F | 47.83 |
| 2023 | 62.8°F | +1.4°F | 51.49 |
Source: observed years: ACIS, station USW00053850. A year counts only with all twelve months complete.
How does Clemson's climate compare?
Clemson is warmer than 16 of the other 72 places with their own NOAA record in South Carolina, and wetter than 37. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 61.4°F is warmer than 78%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Clemson is Cfa: temperate, no dry season, hot summer. 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 Clemson share this climate record?
7 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.
- Seneca, SC9,202 people · 5 mi W
- Clemson University, SC6,434 people · 3 mi E
- Central, SC5,339 people · 7 mi NE
- Gumlog, GA2,303 people · 17 mi SW
- Lavonia, GA2,165 people · 21 mi SW
- Utica, SC1,529 people · 2 mi W
- Newry, SC393 people · 4 mi NW
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 Clemson's other NOAA stations record?
One more NOAA station keeps 1991-2020 normals in or near Clemson. This page uses Clemson Oconee County Airport; the other differs by site and elevation:
| Station | From the center | Elevation | Year | Jan low | Jul high | Precip. | Snow | Last frost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clemson University USC00381770 | 2 mi SW | 800 ft | 61.5°F | 33°F | 91°F | 52.4 | 2 | April 1 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 normals for each station. Last frost: the median last spring date of 32°F.
Questions about Clemson's climate
What is the coldest month in Clemson?
January, with a normal high of 52°F and a normal low of 34°F. The warmest is July (89°F by day, 70°F at night).
Does it snow in Clemson?
Yes. NOAA publishes no 1991-2020 snowfall normal for Clemson's NOAA station; Clemson's own co-op station Clemson University records 2 inches of snow in a normal year.
What is the rainiest month in Clemson?
August, with 4.91 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is May with 3.49 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Clemson in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Clemson in zone 8a in ZIP code 29631. By the same method at Clemson's NOAA station, the coldest night of a typical year reaches 17°F (20 years, 1991-2020): zone 8b.
How late can frost come in Clemson?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after March 21; in one year in ten it comes after April 7. Waiting until April 7 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- Clemson in OctoberThis month day by day, its records and recent years
- South Carolina climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Sandy Springs, SC10 miles from this station, 59.9°F a year
- Walhalla, SC12 miles from this station, 59.2°F a year
- Anderson, SC16 miles from this station, 61.9°F a year
- Pickens, SC17 miles from this station, 60.6°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made