Columbia City, Indiana climate: Normal weather by month, frost dates and records
Columbia City's normal year runs from 16°F January nights to 83°F July afternoons, with 39.1 inches of precipitation and 21 inches of snow a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 9.7°C, January lows of −9°C, July highs of 28°C, 992 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationColumbia City
- Station IDUSC00121739
- Location41.15°N 85.49°W
- Elevation834 ft (254 m)
- From the center1 miles
- Population10,185
On October 23, the normal high in Columbia City is 60°F and the normal low 39°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 33%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Columbia City.
- Jan 32° 16°
- Feb 35° 19°
- Mar 46° 27°
- Apr 59° 38°
- May 70° 49°
- Jun 79° 59°
- Jul 83° 62°
- Aug 81° 60°
- Sep 75° 53°
- Oct 63° 42°
- Nov 49° 31°
- Dec 37° 22°
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 Columbia City each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 83°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of 16°F. The most precipitation falls in June (4.62 in), the least in February (1.95 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 32°F | 16°F | 24.0°F | 2.54 | 7.0 | 12 | <1 | 28 | 9 h 30 min |
| February | 35°F | 19°F | 27.0°F | 1.95 | 6.5 | 9 | <1 | 25 | 10 h 40 min |
| March | 46°F | 27°F | 36.9°F | 2.62 | 3.0 | 10 | <1 | 22 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 59°F | 38°F | 48.6°F | 3.81 | 0.3 | 11 | <1 | 9 | 13 h 20 min |
| May | 70°F | 49°F | 59.8°F | 4.34 | 0.0 | 12 | <1 | 1 | 14 h 30 min |
| June | 79°F | 59°F | 69.1°F | 4.62 | 0.0 | 11 | 2 | <1 | 15 h 10 min |
| July | 83°F | 62°F | 72.3°F | 3.86 | 0.0 | 10 | 4 | <1 | 14 h 50 min |
| August | 81°F | 60°F | 70.4°F | 4.07 | 0.0 | 10 | 2 | <1 | 13 h 50 min |
| September | 75°F | 53°F | 63.8°F | 3.00 | 0.0 | 9 | 1 | <1 | 12 h 30 min |
| October | 63°F | 42°F | 52.1°F | 2.85 | 0.0 | 10 | <1 | 5 | 11 h 10 min |
| November | 49°F | 31°F | 39.9°F | 2.98 | 1.2 | 10 | <1 | 17 | 10 h |
| December | 37°F | 22°F | 29.5°F | 2.43 | 3.4 | 11 | <1 | 26 | 9 h 10 min |
| Year (annual) | 59°F | 40°F | 49.5°F | 39.07 | 21.4 | 124 | 9 | 134 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 0°C | −9°C | −4.4°C | 65 mm | 18 cm |
| February | 2°C | −7°C | −2.8°C | 50 mm | 17 cm |
| March | 8°C | −3°C | 2.7°C | 67 mm | 8 cm |
| April | 15°C | 3°C | 9.2°C | 97 mm | 1 cm |
| May | 21°C | 10°C | 15.4°C | 110 mm | 0 cm |
| June | 26°C | 15°C | 20.6°C | 117 mm | 0 cm |
| July | 28°C | 17°C | 22.4°C | 98 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 27°C | 16°C | 21.3°C | 103 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 24°C | 11°C | 17.7°C | 76 mm | 0 cm |
| October | 17°C | 5°C | 11.2°C | 72 mm | 0 cm |
| November | 9°C | 0°C | 4.4°C | 76 mm | 3 cm |
| December | 3°C | −5°C | −1.4°C | 62 mm | 9 cm |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00121739; 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 Columbia City?
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 (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 USC00121739.
When is the last frost in Columbia City?
In Columbia City, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after April 27 in half of years and after May 14 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before October 17 in half of years and before October 1 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 271 year in 10 after May 14; 9 in 10 after April 14
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- October 171 year in 10 before October 1; 9 in 10 before November 1
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 171 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 194 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after April 16 in half of springs and before October 29 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Columbia City in zone 6a in ZIP code 46725, the nearest ZIP area. By the map's own method, the average of each year's coldest night over 1991-2020, Columbia City's NOAA station is in zone 5b: the coldest night of a typical year reaches −10°F (22 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 Indiana · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USC00121739; 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 Columbia City?
In a normal year in Columbia City, 9 days a year reach 90°F, 134 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 124 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 9a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- fewer than 1a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 134a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 44high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 124a normal year
- Days with 1 inch of snow or more
- 10a normal year
The highest temperature in this station's record (since 1963) is 103°F, on June 26, 1988; the lowest is −24°F, on January 21, 1985.
The wettest calendar year on that record is 1968, with 44.73 in; the snowiest season is 1981–82, with 82.0 inches.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USC00121739; records: ACIS (NOAA Regional Climate Centers), station USC00121739. Records use complete months only; a month missing more than three days is left out.
How sunny is Columbia City?
Over a year 71% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds in the area around Columbia City, 3.8 kWh per square metre a day. July is the sunniest month (81%) and December the cloudiest (55%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 55% | 1.5 |
| February | 60% | 2.4 |
| March | 65% | 3.5 |
| April | 69% | 4.7 |
| May | 71% | 5.4 |
| June | 77% | 6.1 |
| July | 81% | 6.2 |
| August | 80% | 5.4 |
| September | 78% | 4.4 |
| October | 69% | 2.9 |
| November | 63% | 1.9 |
| December | 55% | 1.3 |
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 Columbia City need?
A normal year in Columbia City brings 6,347 heating degree days, 18% more than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 717 cooling degree days, 21% fewer 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 2,939 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 1,272 | 0 |
| February | 1,065 | 0 |
| March | 872 | 1 |
| April | 498 | 6 |
| May | 209 | 48 |
| June | 35 | 158 |
| July | 7 | 233 |
| August | 14 | 183 |
| September | 110 | 76 |
| October | 410 | 12 |
| November | 753 | 0 |
| December | 1,100 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 6,347 | 717 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00121739. 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 Columbia City been warmer than normal lately?
2025 averaged 49.3°F, 0.2°F below the 1991-2020 normal of 49.5°F. 2 of the 3 complete years since 2023 ran warmer than the normal.
| Year | Mean | Against normal | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 51.3°F | +1.8°F | 33.90 | 11.5 |
| 2024 | 51.8°F | +2.3°F | 33.83 | 7.6 |
| 2025 | 49.3°F | −0.2°F | 26.47 | 21.1 |
Over 42 complete years from 1964 to 2025, the station's annual mean temperature rose at a fitted 4.8°F per century (+0.27°C per decade). A fitted rate summarizes the whole record; single years swing well above and below it.
Source: observed years: ACIS, station USC00121739; trend: NOAA GHCN-Monthly v4. A year counts only with all twelve months complete.
How does Columbia City's climate compare?
Columbia City is warmer than 5 of the other 98 places with their own NOAA record in Indiana, and wetter than 10. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 49.5°F is warmer than 38%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Columbia City 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 Columbia City share this climate record?
9 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.
- Churubusco, IN1,857 people · 11 mi NE
- South Whitley, IN1,849 people · 8 mi SW
- Tri-Lakes, IN1,070 people · 8 mi N
- Big Lake, IN430 people · 9 mi N
- Merriam, IN309 people · 10 mi N
- Larwill, IN276 people · 7 mi W
- Lake Everett, IN154 people · 9 mi E
- Coesse, IN128 people · 5 mi E
- Laud, IN99 people · 7 mi S
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 Columbia City's climate
What is the coldest month in Columbia City?
January, with a normal high of 32°F and a normal low of 16°F. The warmest is July (83°F by day, 62°F at night).
Does it snow in Columbia City?
Yes: 21 inches in a normal year, falling on 15 days with 0.1 inch or more, the most in January (7.0 inches).
What is the rainiest month in Columbia City?
June, with 4.62 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is February with 1.95 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Columbia City in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Columbia City in zone 6a in ZIP code 46725, the nearest ZIP area. By the same method at Columbia City's NOAA station, the coldest night of a typical year reaches −10°F (22 years, 1991-2020): zone 5b.
How late can frost come in Columbia City?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after April 27; in one year in ten it comes after May 14. Waiting until May 14 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- Indiana climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- North Manchester, IN18 miles from this station, 49.9°F a year
- Northern Indiana Weather Office, IN19 miles from this station, 50.1°F a year
- Fort Wayne, IN19 miles from this station, 50.9°F a year
- Huntington, IN20 miles from this station, 50.1°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made