Clinton, Iowa climate: Normal weather by month, frost dates and records
Clinton's normal year runs from 14°F January nights to 84°F July afternoons, with 36.5 inches of precipitation and 32 inches of snow a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 10.1°C, January lows of −10°C, July highs of 29°C, 926 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationClinton #1
- Station IDUSC00131635
- Location41.79°N 90.26°W
- Elevation585 ft (178 m)
- Population24,118
On October 23, the normal high in Clinton is 60°F and the normal low 40°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 29%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Clinton.
- Jan 29° 14°
- Feb 34° 18°
- Mar 48° 29°
- Apr 62° 40°
- May 73° 51°
- Jun 81° 61°
- Jul 84° 65°
- Aug 82° 63°
- Sep 76° 55°
- Oct 63° 43°
- Nov 48° 31°
- Dec 35° 21°
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 Clinton each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 84°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of 14°F. The most precipitation falls in June (4.74 in), the least in January (1.45 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 29°F | 14°F | 21.9°F | 1.45 | 9.2 | 10 | <1 | 29 | 9 h 30 min |
| February | 34°F | 18°F | 26.3°F | 1.68 | 7.5 | 8 | <1 | 25 | 10 h 30 min |
| March | 48°F | 29°F | 38.7°F | 2.32 | 3.9 | 10 | <1 | 20 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 62°F | 40°F | 51.0°F | 3.40 | 0.8 | 11 | <1 | 6 | 13 h 20 min |
| May | 73°F | 51°F | 62.1°F | 4.39 | 0.0 | 13 | 1 | <1 | 14 h 30 min |
| June | 81°F | 61°F | 71.1°F | 4.74 | 0.0 | 12 | 4 | <1 | 15 h 10 min |
| July | 84°F | 65°F | 74.4°F | 3.89 | 0.0 | 9 | 6 | <1 | 15 h |
| August | 82°F | 63°F | 72.2°F | 4.20 | 0.0 | 10 | 3 | <1 | 13 h 50 min |
| September | 76°F | 55°F | 65.3°F | 3.69 | 0.0 | 8 | 1 | <1 | 12 h 30 min |
| October | 63°F | 43°F | 53.0°F | 2.64 | 0.3 | 9 | <1 | 5 | 11 h 10 min |
| November | 48°F | 31°F | 39.3°F | 2.19 | 2.3 | 9 | <1 | 17 | 9 h 50 min |
| December | 35°F | 21°F | 27.5°F | 1.86 | 7.9 | 10 | <1 | 27 | 9 h 10 min |
| Year (annual) | 60°F | 41°F | 50.2°F | 36.45 | 31.9 | 118 | 15 | 129 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | −1°C | −10°C | −5.6°C | 37 mm | 23 cm |
| February | 1°C | −8°C | −3.2°C | 43 mm | 19 cm |
| March | 9°C | −2°C | 3.7°C | 59 mm | 10 cm |
| April | 17°C | 4°C | 10.6°C | 86 mm | 2 cm |
| May | 23°C | 11°C | 16.7°C | 112 mm | 0 cm |
| June | 27°C | 16°C | 21.7°C | 120 mm | 0 cm |
| July | 29°C | 18°C | 23.6°C | 99 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 28°C | 17°C | 22.3°C | 107 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 24°C | 13°C | 18.5°C | 94 mm | 0 cm |
| October | 17°C | 6°C | 11.7°C | 67 mm | 1 cm |
| November | 9°C | −1°C | 4.1°C | 56 mm | 6 cm |
| December | 1°C | −6°C | −2.5°C | 47 mm | 20 cm |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00131635; 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 Clinton?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in May, June, July, August and September. Of those, September has the fewest days with rain (8).
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 USC00131635.
When is the last frost in Clinton?
In Clinton, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after April 22 in half of years and after May 8 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before October 16 in half of years and before October 2 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
- April 221 year in 10 after May 8; 9 in 10 after April 9
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- October 161 year in 10 before October 2; 9 in 10 before October 28
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 175 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 195 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after April 13 in half of springs and before October 25 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Clinton in zone 5b in ZIP code 52732. By the map's own method, the average of each year's coldest night over 1991-2020, Clinton's NOAA station is in zone 5b: the coldest night of a typical year reaches −14°F (30 complete years).
Frost dates for every NOAA station in Iowa · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USC00131635; 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 Clinton?
In a normal year in Clinton, 15 days a year reach 90°F, 129 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 118 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 15a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- fewer than 1a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 129a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 47high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 118a normal year
- Days with 1 inch of snow or more
- 11a normal year
The highest temperature in this station's record (since 1893) is 109°F, on July 14, 1936; the lowest is −29°F, on January 31, 2019.
The wettest calendar year on that record is 1961, with 52.60 in; the snowiest season is 1978–79, with 74.5 inches.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USC00131635; records: ACIS (NOAA Regional Climate Centers), station USC00131635. Records use complete months only; a month missing more than three days is left out.
How sunny is Clinton?
Over a year 74% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds in the area around Clinton, 4.0 kWh per square metre a day. July is the sunniest month (81%) and December the cloudiest (63%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 64% | 1.8 |
| February | 70% | 2.8 |
| March | 69% | 3.7 |
| April | 70% | 4.8 |
| May | 72% | 5.5 |
| June | 77% | 6.2 |
| July | 81% | 6.3 |
| August | 80% | 5.5 |
| September | 81% | 4.5 |
| October | 72% | 3.0 |
| November | 69% | 2.1 |
| December | 63% | 1.5 |
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 Clinton need?
A normal year in Clinton brings 6,265 heating degree days, 17% more than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 918 cooling degree days, 1% more than the median (908). Seven months need 300 or more heating degree days, a monthly mean of about 55°F or colder. For gardens and crops, NOAA counts 3,282 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 1,337 | 0 |
| February | 1,082 | 0 |
| March | 819 | 2 |
| April | 428 | 9 |
| May | 159 | 68 |
| June | 19 | 202 |
| July | 2 | 292 |
| August | 8 | 231 |
| September | 94 | 101 |
| October | 384 | 14 |
| November | 773 | 0 |
| December | 1,161 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 6,265 | 918 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00131635. 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 Clinton been warmer than normal lately?
2025 averaged 52.7°F, 2.5°F above the 1991-2020 normal of 50.2°F. 4 of the 4 complete years since 2021 ran warmer than the normal.
| Year | Mean | Against normal | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 52.6°F | +2.4°F | 28.96 | 30.6 |
| 2023 | 53.5°F | +3.3°F | 28.69 | 19.6 |
| 2024 | 54.5°F | +4.3°F | 31.06 | 22.2 |
| 2025 | 52.7°F | +2.5°F | 26.20 | 23.2 |
Over 135 complete years from 1862 to 2025, the station's annual mean temperature rose at a fitted 1.7°F per century (+0.10°C per decade). A fitted rate summarizes the whole record; single years swing well above and below it.
Source: observed years: ACIS, station USC00131635; trend: NOAA GHCN-Monthly v4. A year counts only with all twelve months complete.
How does Clinton's climate compare?
Clinton is warmer than 112 of the other 131 places with their own NOAA record in Iowa, and wetter than 60. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 50.2°F is warmer than 41%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Clinton is Dfa: continental, 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 Clinton share this climate record?
3 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.
- Thomson, IL1,595 people · 15 mi NE
- Erie, IL1,491 people · 13 mi SE
- Albany, IL851 people · 3 mi E
Source: Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer (place centers) and Vintage 2024 population estimates. Distance and direction from the station to each place's center.
Questions about Clinton's climate
What is the coldest month in Clinton?
January, with a normal high of 29°F and a normal low of 14°F. The warmest is July (84°F by day, 65°F at night).
Does it snow in Clinton?
Yes: 32 inches in a normal year, falling on 23 days with 0.1 inch or more, the most in January (9.2 inches).
What is the rainiest month in Clinton?
June, with 4.74 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is January with 1.45 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Clinton in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Clinton in zone 5b in ZIP code 52732. By the same method at Clinton's NOAA station, the coldest night of a typical year reaches −14°F (30 years, 1991-2020): zone 5b.
How late can frost come in Clinton?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after April 22; in one year in ten it comes after May 8. Waiting until May 8 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- Iowa climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Fulton, IL9 miles from this station, 49.9°F a year
- Morrison, IL16 miles from this station, 48.3°F a year
- Le Claire, IA17 miles from this station, 50.6°F a year
- Davenport, IA21 miles from this station, 49.9°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made