Columbia, Missouri climate: Normal weather by month, frost dates and records
Columbia's normal year runs from 23°F January nights to 89°F July afternoons, with 41.4 inches of precipitation and 17 inches of snow a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 13.3°C, January lows of −5°C, July highs of 31°C, 1,052 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationColumbia Regional Airport
- Station IDUSW00003945
- Location38.82°N 92.22°W
- Elevation893 ft (272 m)
- From the center11 miles
- Population130,900
On October 23, the normal high in Columbia is 65°F and the normal low 44°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 Columbia.
- Jan 40° 23°
- Feb 45° 26°
- Mar 56° 36°
- Apr 67° 46°
- May 76° 56°
- Jun 85° 65°
- Jul 89° 69°
- Aug 88° 67°
- Sep 80° 58°
- Oct 68° 47°
- Nov 55° 36°
- Dec 44° 27°
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 each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 89°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of 23°F. The most precipitation falls in April (4.88 in), the least in December (2.09 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. | Snow | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 40°F | 23°F | 31.0°F | 2.12 | 6.0 | 8 | <1 | 26 | 9 h 40 min |
| February | 45°F | 26°F | 35.7°F | 2.12 | 4.6 | 8 | <1 | 21 | 10 h 40 min |
| March | 56°F | 36°F | 46.0°F | 2.97 | 1.5 | 11 | <1 | 13 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 67°F | 46°F | 56.4°F | 4.88 | 0.2 | 11 | <1 | 3 | 13 h 10 min |
| May | 76°F | 56°F | 65.8°F | 4.77 | 0.0 | 13 | 1 | <1 | 14 h 20 min |
| June | 85°F | 65°F | 74.6°F | 4.23 | 0.0 | 9 | 6 | <1 | 14 h 50 min |
| July | 89°F | 69°F | 78.5°F | 4.13 | 0.0 | 9 | 13 | <1 | 14 h 40 min |
| August | 88°F | 67°F | 77.2°F | 4.14 | 0.0 | 9 | 11 | <1 | 13 h 40 min |
| September | 80°F | 58°F | 69.2°F | 3.83 | 0.0 | 7 | 3 | <1 | 12 h 30 min |
| October | 68°F | 47°F | 57.5°F | 3.47 | 0.0 | 9 | <1 | 2 | 11 h 20 min |
| November | 55°F | 36°F | 45.3°F | 2.68 | 0.8 | 9 | <1 | 12 | 10 h 10 min |
| December | 44°F | 27°F | 35.2°F | 2.09 | 3.4 | 8 | <1 | 24 | 9 h 30 min |
| Year (annual) | 66°F | 46°F | 56.0°F | 41.43 | 16.5 | 111 | 35 | 101 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 4°C | −5°C | −0.6°C | 54 mm | 15 cm |
| February | 7°C | −3°C | 2.1°C | 54 mm | 12 cm |
| March | 13°C | 2°C | 7.8°C | 75 mm | 4 cm |
| April | 20°C | 8°C | 13.6°C | 124 mm | 1 cm |
| May | 24°C | 13°C | 18.8°C | 121 mm | 0 cm |
| June | 29°C | 18°C | 23.7°C | 107 mm | 0 cm |
| July | 31°C | 20°C | 25.8°C | 105 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 31°C | 19°C | 25.1°C | 105 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 27°C | 15°C | 20.7°C | 97 mm | 0 cm |
| October | 20°C | 8°C | 14.2°C | 88 mm | 0 cm |
| November | 13°C | 2°C | 7.4°C | 68 mm | 2 cm |
| December | 6°C | −3°C | 1.8°C | 53 mm | 9 cm |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USW00003945; 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?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in April, May, June, September and October. Of those, September has the fewest days with rain (7).
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 USW00003945.
When is the last frost in Columbia?
In Columbia, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after April 7 in half of years and after April 21 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before October 29 in half of years and before October 16 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 71 year in 10 after April 21; 9 in 10 after March 23
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- October 291 year in 10 before October 16; 9 in 10 before November 11
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 205 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 226 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after March 28 in half of springs and before November 6 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Columbia in zone 6b across its 3 ZIP code areas (6b in 65203, the largest). By the map's own method, the average of each year's coldest night over 1991-2020, Columbia's NOAA station is in zone 6b: the coldest night of a typical year reaches −3°F (30 complete years).
Frost dates for every NOAA station in Missouri · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USW00003945; 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.
What hardiness zone is each Columbia ZIP code in?
The USDA's 2023 map gives each ZIP code area one zone. Columbia's 3 ZIP code areas are all in zone 6b. Each ZIP's frost dates are in the frost tool.
Source: USDA 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map, ZIP listings: PRISM Group, Oregon State University, https://prism.oregonstate.edu, accessed October 8, 2026; ZIP areas in the place: Census Bureau 2020 ZCTA-to-place relationship file. A ZIP area counts when at least a tenth of its land (and 0.5 km²) lies in the place.
How hot and how cold does it get in Columbia?
In a normal year in Columbia, 35 days a year reach 90°F (2 of them 100°F or more), 101 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 111 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 35a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- 2a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 101a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 24high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 111a normal year
- Days with 1 inch of snow or more
- 5a normal year
The highest temperature in Columbia's official record (kept by the National Weather Service since 1889) is 113°F, on July 14, 1954; the lowest is −26°F, on February 12, 1899.
The wettest calendar year on that record is 1993, with 62.49 in; the snowiest season is 1977–78, with 54.9 inches.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USW00003945; records: ACIS (NOAA Regional Climate Centers), NWS threaded record COUthr. Records use complete months only; a month missing more than three days is left out.
How humid and windy is Columbia, and how clear are its skies?
The summer (June-August) dew point averages 65°F. The muggiest month is July, with an average dew point of 66°F, above the 65°F at which most people call the air sticky; the driest air comes in January (23°F). March is the windiest month (11.2 mph on average), and August has the most clear or nearly clear hours (75%).
| Month | Dew point | Humidity | Afternoon humidity | Wind | Clear or few clouds | Overcast |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 23°F | 69% | 55% | 9.9 mph | 54% | 36% |
| February | 28°F | 66% | 50% | 11.0 mph | 54% | 37% |
| March | 38°F | 63% | 48% | 11.2 mph | 57% | 30% |
| April | 48°F | 67% | 52% | 10.0 mph | 54% | 30% |
| May | 60°F | 73% | 56% | 8.5 mph | 60% | 21% |
| June | 66°F | 72% | 54% | 7.8 mph | 72% | 11% |
| July | 66°F | 72% | 52% | 7.0 mph | 71% | 12% |
| August | 64°F | 73% | 52% | 7.3 mph | 75% | 13% |
| September | 52°F | 70% | 48% | 8.3 mph | 73% | 16% |
| October | 40°F | 68% | 52% | 9.6 mph | 59% | 32% |
| November | 30°F | 70% | 56% | 10.3 mph | 56% | 35% |
| December | 23°F | 72% | 59% | 10.2 mph | 54% | 39% |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 hourly normals, station USW00003945. Monthly averages of all hours; afternoon humidity at 3 p.m. local standard time; sky as the share of hours NOAA's observations rate clear or few clouds (a dash where NOAA publishes no sky value).
How sunny is Columbia?
Over a year 75% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds in the area around Columbia, 4.2 kWh per square metre a day. July is the sunniest month (83%) and February the cloudiest (67%). Among the 459 U.S. places of 50,000 or more, that ranks tied 304th (with 25 others) in sunshine.
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 68% | 2.2 |
| February | 67% | 2.9 |
| March | 68% | 3.8 |
| April | 71% | 5.0 |
| May | 73% | 5.7 |
| June | 81% | 6.5 |
| July | 83% | 6.5 |
| August | 81% | 5.6 |
| September | 82% | 4.8 |
| October | 75% | 3.5 |
| November | 72% | 2.4 |
| December | 68% | 1.9 |
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 need?
A normal year in Columbia brings 4,681 heating degree days, 13% fewer than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 1,448 cooling degree days, 60% 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 4,226 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 1,054 | 0 |
| February | 819 | 0 |
| March | 596 | 5 |
| April | 285 | 27 |
| May | 90 | 114 |
| June | 7 | 294 |
| July | 0 | 419 |
| August | 1 | 379 |
| September | 47 | 173 |
| October | 267 | 34 |
| November | 592 | 3 |
| December | 925 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 4,681 | 1,448 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USW00003945. 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 been warmer than normal lately?
2025 averaged 56.4°F, 0.4°F above the 1991-2020 normal of 56.0°F. 5 of the 5 complete years since 2021 ran warmer than the normal.
| Year | Mean | Against normal | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 57.5°F | +1.5°F | 53.21 | 14.6 |
| 2022 | 56.4°F | +0.4°F | 34.07 | 28.7 |
| 2023 | 58.4°F | +2.4°F | 34.62 | 5.0 |
| 2024 | 58.2°F | +2.2°F | 47.03 | 9.8 |
| 2025 | 56.4°F | +0.4°F | 35.09 | 19.0 |
Over 133 complete years from 1891 to 2025, the station's annual mean temperature rose at a fitted 0.6°F per century (+0.03°C per decade). A fitted rate summarizes the whole record; single years swing well above and below it.
Source: observed years: ACIS, station USW00003945; trend: NOAA GHCN-Monthly v4. A year counts only with all twelve months complete.
How does Columbia's climate compare?
Columbia is warmer than 89 of the other 133 places with their own NOAA record in Missouri, and wetter than 37. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 56.0°F is warmer than 64%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Columbia 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 share this climate record?
5 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.
- Ashland, MO5,164 people · 1 mi W
- Hartsburg, MO138 people · 10 mi SW
- Pierpont, MO64 people · 6 mi NW
- Lupus, MO31 people · 13 mi W
- McBaine, MO16 people · 14 mi W
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 Columbia's other NOAA stations record?
One more NOAA station keeps 1991-2020 normals in or near Columbia. This page uses Columbia Regional Airport; the other differs by site and elevation:
| Station | From the center | Elevation | Year | Jan low | Jul high | Precip. | Snow | Last frost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Columbia U Of M USC00231801 | in town | 770 ft | 56.2°F | 23°F | 89°F | 44.8 | 17 | April 5 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 normals for each station. Last frost: the median last spring date of 32°F.
Questions about Columbia's climate
What is the coldest month in Columbia?
January, with a normal high of 40°F and a normal low of 23°F. The warmest is July (89°F by day, 69°F at night).
Does it snow in Columbia?
Yes: 17 inches in a normal year, falling on 11 days with 0.1 inch or more, the most in January (6.0 inches).
What is the rainiest month in Columbia?
April, with 4.88 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is December with 2.09 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Columbia in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Columbia in zone 6b across its 3 ZIP code areas (6b in 65203, the largest). By the same method at Columbia's NOAA station, the coldest night of a typical year reaches −3°F (30 years, 1991-2020): zone 6b.
How late can frost come in Columbia?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after April 7; in one year in ten it comes after April 21. Waiting until April 21 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- Columbia in OctoberThis month day by day, its records and recent years
- Missouri climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Fulton, MO15 miles from this station, 53.4°F a year
- Jefferson City, MO16 miles from this station, 56.3°F a year
- California, MO22 miles from this station, 54.9°F a year
- Boonville, MO30 miles from this station, 54.6°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made