Columbia, South Carolina climate: Normal weather by month, frost dates and records
Columbia's normal year runs from 35°F January nights to 93°F July afternoons, with 45.2 inches of precipitation and 1 inch of snow a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 17.9°C, January lows of 1°C, July highs of 34°C, 1,149 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationColumbia Metropolitan Airport
- Station IDUSW00013883
- Location33.95°N 81.12°W
- Elevation231 ft (70 m)
- Population144,788
On October 23, the normal high in Columbia is 74°F and the normal low 49°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 23%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Columbia.
- Jan 57° 35°
- Feb 61° 37°
- Mar 68° 44°
- Apr 77° 52°
- May 84° 61°
- Jun 90° 69°
- Jul 93° 72°
- Aug 91° 71°
- Sep 86° 65°
- Oct 77° 53°
- Nov 66° 42°
- Dec 59° 37°
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 93°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of 35°F. The most precipitation falls in July (5.35 in), the least in November (2.76 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 | 57°F | 35°F | 45.7°F | 3.49 | 0.6 | 10 | <1 | 14 | 10 h 10 min |
| February | 61°F | 37°F | 49.1°F | 3.39 | 0.4 | 9 | <1 | 9 | 11 h |
| March | 68°F | 44°F | 55.9°F | 3.57 | 0.1 | 9 | <1 | 4 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 77°F | 52°F | 64.1°F | 2.83 | 0.0 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 13 h |
| May | 84°F | 61°F | 72.2°F | 3.49 | 0.0 | 9 | 7 | <1 | 13 h 50 min |
| June | 90°F | 69°F | 79.1°F | 4.97 | 0.0 | 11 | 18 | <1 | 14 h 20 min |
| July | 93°F | 72°F | 82.4°F | 5.35 | 0.0 | 12 | 24 | <1 | 14 h 10 min |
| August | 91°F | 71°F | 81.0°F | 4.65 | 0.0 | 10 | 21 | <1 | 13 h 30 min |
| September | 86°F | 65°F | 75.5°F | 3.91 | 0.0 | 8 | 10 | <1 | 12 h 30 min |
| October | 77°F | 53°F | 64.6°F | 3.13 | 0.0 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 11 h 20 min |
| November | 66°F | 42°F | 54.0°F | 2.76 | 0.0 | 7 | <1 | 6 | 10 h 30 min |
| December | 59°F | 37°F | 47.7°F | 3.70 | 0.1 | 9 | <1 | 12 | 9 h 50 min |
| Year (annual) | 76°F | 53°F | 64.3°F | 45.24 | 1.2 | 109 | 81 | 47 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 14°C | 1°C | 7.6°C | 89 mm | 2 cm |
| February | 16°C | 3°C | 9.5°C | 86 mm | 1 cm |
| March | 20°C | 6°C | 13.3°C | 91 mm | 0 cm |
| April | 25°C | 11°C | 17.8°C | 72 mm | 0 cm |
| May | 29°C | 16°C | 22.3°C | 89 mm | 0 cm |
| June | 32°C | 20°C | 26.2°C | 126 mm | 0 cm |
| July | 34°C | 22°C | 28.0°C | 136 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 33°C | 22°C | 27.2°C | 118 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 30°C | 19°C | 24.2°C | 99 mm | 0 cm |
| October | 25°C | 12°C | 18.1°C | 80 mm | 0 cm |
| November | 19°C | 5°C | 12.2°C | 70 mm | 0 cm |
| December | 15°C | 3°C | 8.7°C | 94 mm | 0 cm |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USW00013883; 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 March, April, May, October and November. Of those, October 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 USW00013883.
When is the last frost in Columbia?
In Columbia, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after March 25 in half of years and after April 10 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before November 7 in half of years and before October 26 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 251 year in 10 after April 10; 9 in 10 after March 4
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- November 71 year in 10 before October 26; 9 in 10 before November 24
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 229 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 259 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after March 10 in half of springs and before November 22 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Columbia in zone 8b across its 9 ZIP code areas (8b in 29207, 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 8b: the coldest night of a typical year reaches 17°F (30 complete years).
Frost dates for every NOAA station in South Carolina · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USW00013883; 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 9 ZIP code areas are all in zone 8b. 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, 81 days a year reach 90°F (6 of them 100°F or more), 47 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 109 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 81a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- 6a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 47a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- fewer than 1high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 109a normal year
- Days with 1 inch of snow or more
- fewer than 1a normal year
The highest temperature in Columbia's official record (kept by the National Weather Service since 1887) is 109°F, on June 30, 2012; the lowest is −2°F, on February 14, 1899.
The wettest calendar year on that record is 1964, with 70.53 in; the snowiest season is 1972–73, with 18.2 inches.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USW00013883; records: ACIS (NOAA Regional Climate Centers), NWS threaded record CAEthr. 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 69°F. The muggiest month is July, with an average dew point of 70°F, above the 65°F at which most people call the air sticky; the driest air comes in January (33°F). March is the windiest month (7.4 mph on average), and October has the most clear or nearly clear hours (54%).
| Month | Dew point | Humidity | Afternoon humidity | Wind | Clear or few clouds | Overcast |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 33°F | 61% | 39% | 6.6 mph | 45% | 31% |
| February | 39°F | 61% | 40% | 7.0 mph | 45% | 30% |
| March | 45°F | 58% | 37% | 7.4 mph | 46% | 26% |
| April | 53°F | 62% | 40% | 6.9 mph | 46% | 21% |
| May | 63°F | 66% | 46% | 6.2 mph | 39% | 20% |
| June | 69°F | 68% | 48% | 5.7 mph | 38% | 15% |
| July | 70°F | 71% | 51% | 5.3 mph | 38% | 18% |
| August | 67°F | 70% | 48% | 5.3 mph | 42% | 18% |
| September | 60°F | 71% | 49% | 5.3 mph | 49% | 22% |
| October | 48°F | 70% | 44% | 4.9 mph | 54% | 21% |
| November | 40°F | 68% | 44% | 5.2 mph | 51% | 23% |
| December | 36°F | 67% | 47% | 5.8 mph | 45% | 30% |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 hourly normals, station USW00013883. 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 79% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds in the area around Columbia, 4.6 kWh per square metre a day. July is the sunniest month (81%) and February the cloudiest (73%). Among the 459 U.S. places of 50,000 or more, that ranks tied 176th (with 33 others) in sunshine.
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 76% | 2.9 |
| February | 73% | 3.5 |
| March | 75% | 4.5 |
| April | 80% | 5.8 |
| May | 80% | 6.2 |
| June | 81% | 6.4 |
| July | 81% | 6.2 |
| August | 80% | 5.6 |
| September | 79% | 4.9 |
| October | 79% | 4.0 |
| November | 79% | 3.1 |
| December | 74% | 2.5 |
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 Columbia need?
A normal year in Columbia brings 2,473 heating degree days, 54% fewer than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 2,237 cooling degree days, 2.5 times 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 5,815 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 600 | 2 |
| February | 451 | 4 |
| March | 302 | 21 |
| April | 109 | 82 |
| May | 18 | 239 |
| June | 1 | 425 |
| July | 0 | 538 |
| August | 0 | 496 |
| September | 6 | 321 |
| October | 105 | 92 |
| November | 343 | 13 |
| December | 540 | 4 |
| Year (annual) | 2,473 | 2,237 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USW00013883. 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 64.8°F, 0.5°F above the 1991-2020 normal of 64.3°F. 5 of the 5 complete years since 2021 ran warmer than the normal.
| Year | Mean | Against normal | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 64.7°F | +0.4°F | 47.70 | 0.0 |
| 2022 | 64.8°F | +0.5°F | 40.84 | 2.0 |
| 2023 | 65.5°F | +1.2°F | 55.58 | 0.0 |
| 2024 | 66.1°F | +1.8°F | 51.18 | 0.0 |
| 2025 | 64.8°F | +0.5°F | 44.45 | 0.9 |
Over 129 complete years from 1873 to 2025, the station's annual mean temperature rose at a fitted 0.3°F per century (+0.02°C per decade). A fitted rate summarizes the whole record; single years swing well above and below it.
Source: observed years: ACIS, station USW00013883; trend: NOAA GHCN-Monthly v4. A year counts only with all twelve months complete.
How does Columbia's climate compare?
Columbia is warmer than 56 of the other 72 places with their own NOAA record in South Carolina, and wetter than 7. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 64.3°F is warmer than 86%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Columbia 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 Columbia share this climate record?
12 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.
- Lexington, SC25,354 people · 7 mi NW
- St. Andrews, SC20,953 people · 7 mi N
- West Columbia, SC18,418 people · 3 mi N
- Seven Oaks, SC15,990 people · 7 mi N
- Oak Grove, SC12,031 people · 3 mi NW
- Red Bank, SC10,950 people · 7 mi W
- White Knoll, SC7,865 people · 8 mi SW
- Springdale, SC2,756 people · 1 mi NE
- South Congaree, SC2,392 people · 3 mi S
- Pine Ridge, SC2,326 people · 4 mi SE
- Gaston, SC1,641 people · 9 mi S
- Edmund, SC1,274 people · 7 mi SW
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?
2 more NOAA stations keep 1991-2020 normals in or near Columbia. This page uses Columbia Metropolitan Airport; the others differ by site and elevation, and the linked ones have pages of their own:
| Station | From this station | Elevation | Year | Jan low | Jul high | Precip. | Snow | Last frost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Columbia Owens Downtown Airport USW00053867 | 7 mi E | 212 ft | 65.5°F | 37°F | 93°F | 43.7 | – | March 13 |
| Columbia University Of Sc USC00381944 | 6 mi NE | 223 ft | 66.5°F | 37°F | 96°F | 48.1 | 0 | March 16 |
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 57°F and a normal low of 35°F. The warmest is July (93°F by day, 72°F at night).
Does it snow in Columbia?
Yes: 1 inch in a normal year, falling on 1 days with 0.1 inch or more, the most in January (0.6 inches).
What is the rainiest month in Columbia?
July, with 5.35 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is November with 2.76 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Columbia in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Columbia in zone 8b across its 9 ZIP code areas (8b in 29207, the largest). By the same method at Columbia's NOAA station, the coldest night of a typical year reaches 17°F (30 years, 1991-2020): zone 8b.
How late can frost come in Columbia?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after March 25; in one year in ten it comes after April 10. Waiting until April 10 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
- South Carolina climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Columbia Owens Downtown Airport, SC7 miles from this station, 65.5°F a year
- Pelion, SC15 miles from this station, 64.8°F a year
- Cedar Creek (2 mi E), SC19 miles from this station, 60.2°F a year
- Sandhill Research - Elgin, SC19 miles from this station, 63.5°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made