Cougar, Washington climate: Normal weather by month, frost dates and records
Cougar's normal year runs from 34°F December nights to 82°F August afternoons, with 115.3 inches of precipitation and 16 inches of snow a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 11.4°C, December lows of 1°C, August highs of 28°C, 2,929 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationCougar (6 mi E)
- Station IDUSC00451760
- Location46.06°N 122.20°W
- Elevation659 ft (201 m)
- Population (census place)32
On October 23, the normal high in Cougar is 59°F and the normal low 43°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 55%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Cougar.
- Jan 45° 34°
- Feb 49° 35°
- Mar 54° 37°
- Apr 59° 40°
- May 68° 46°
- Jun 73° 50°
- Jul 81° 54°
- Aug 82° 54°
- Sep 75° 51°
- Oct 63° 45°
- Nov 51° 39°
- Dec 44° 34°
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 Cougar each month?
August is the warmest month, with normal highs of 82°F; December the coldest, with normal lows of 34°F. The most precipitation falls in December (18.76 in), the least in July (0.91 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 45°F | 34°F | 39.6°F | 17.68 | 6.5 | 21 | <1 | 9 | 9 h |
| February | 49°F | 35°F | 42.0°F | 11.99 | 3.1 | 18 | <1 | 7 | 10 h 20 min |
| March | 54°F | 37°F | 45.0°F | 13.20 | 1.7 | 21 | <1 | 5 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 59°F | 40°F | 49.6°F | 9.71 | 0.1 | 19 | <1 | 1 | 13 h 30 min |
| May | 68°F | 46°F | 56.6°F | 5.17 | 0.0 | 14 | 1 | <1 | 15 h |
| June | 73°F | 50°F | 61.2°F | 3.82 | 0.0 | 11 | 2 | <1 | 15 h 40 min |
| July | 81°F | 54°F | 67.6°F | 0.91 | 0.0 | 5 | 7 | <1 | 15 h 30 min |
| August | 82°F | 54°F | 67.9°F | 1.42 | 0.0 | 4 | 6 | <1 | 14 h 10 min |
| September | 75°F | 51°F | 63.2°F | 4.26 | 0.0 | 9 | 2 | <1 | 12 h 40 min |
| October | 63°F | 45°F | 53.7°F | 10.55 | 0.0 | 16 | <1 | <1 | 11 h |
| November | 51°F | 39°F | 44.9°F | 17.83 | 0.7 | 20 | <1 | 3 | 9 h 30 min |
| December | 44°F | 34°F | 39.3°F | 18.76 | 4.1 | 21 | <1 | 9 | 8 h 40 min |
| Year (annual) | 62°F | 43°F | 52.5°F | 115.30 | 16.2 | 179 | 18 | 35 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 7°C | 1°C | 4.2°C | 449 mm | 17 cm |
| February | 9°C | 2°C | 5.6°C | 305 mm | 8 cm |
| March | 12°C | 3°C | 7.2°C | 335 mm | 4 cm |
| April | 15°C | 4°C | 9.8°C | 247 mm | 0 cm |
| May | 20°C | 8°C | 13.7°C | 131 mm | 0 cm |
| June | 23°C | 10°C | 16.2°C | 97 mm | 0 cm |
| July | 27°C | 12°C | 19.8°C | 23 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 28°C | 12°C | 19.9°C | 36 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 24°C | 11°C | 17.3°C | 108 mm | 0 cm |
| October | 17°C | 7°C | 12.1°C | 268 mm | 0 cm |
| November | 11°C | 4°C | 7.2°C | 453 mm | 2 cm |
| December | 7°C | 1°C | 4.1°C | 477 mm | 10 cm |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00451760; 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 Cougar?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in May, June, July, August and September. Of those, August has the fewest days with rain (4).
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 USC00451760.
When is the last frost in Cougar?
In Cougar, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after April 1 in half of years and after May 2 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before November 18 in half of years and before October 29 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 11 year in 10 after May 2; 9 in 10 after March 6
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- November 181 year in 10 before October 29; 9 in 10 before December 8
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 227 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 286 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after February 22 in half of springs and before December 7 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Cougar in zone 8b in ZIP code 98603, the nearest ZIP area. By the map's own method, the average of each year's coldest night over 1991-2020, Cougar's NOAA station is in zone 8b: the coldest night of a typical year reaches 19°F (15 complete years).
Frost dates for every NOAA station in Washington · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USC00451760; 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 Cougar?
In a normal year in Cougar, 18 days a year reach 90°F (2 of them 100°F or more), 35 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 179 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 18a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- 2a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 35a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 1high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 179a normal year
- Days with 1 inch of snow or more
- 5a normal year
The highest temperature in this station's record (since 1943) is 112°F, on June 29, 2021; the lowest is 4°F, on December 30, 1968.
The wettest calendar year on that record is 1972, with 141.63 in; the snowiest season is 1953–54, with 116.5 inches.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USC00451760; records: ACIS (NOAA Regional Climate Centers), station USC00451760. Records use complete months only; a month missing more than three days is left out.
How sunny is Cougar?
Over a year 67% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds in the area around Cougar, 3.5 kWh per square metre a day. July is the sunniest month (78%) and December the cloudiest (52%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 52% | 1.1 |
| February | 59% | 2.0 |
| March | 57% | 2.9 |
| April | 62% | 4.2 |
| May | 66% | 5.2 |
| June | 67% | 5.7 |
| July | 78% | 6.4 |
| August | 78% | 5.4 |
| September | 75% | 4.0 |
| October | 65% | 2.4 |
| November | 55% | 1.3 |
| December | 52% | 0.9 |
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 Cougar need?
A normal year in Cougar brings 4,908 heating degree days, 9% fewer than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 381 cooling degree days, 58% 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 2,314 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 789 | 0 |
| February | 644 | 0 |
| March | 620 | 0 |
| April | 465 | 2 |
| May | 279 | 18 |
| June | 156 | 42 |
| July | 47 | 126 |
| August | 40 | 130 |
| September | 112 | 58 |
| October | 354 | 4 |
| November | 603 | 0 |
| December | 798 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 4,908 | 381 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00451760. 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 Cougar been warmer than normal lately?
2023 averaged 53.7°F, 1.2°F above the 1991-2020 normal of 52.5°F. 3 of the 3 complete years since 2021 ran warmer than the normal.
| Year | Mean | Against normal | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 53.5°F | +1.0°F | 109.83 | 38.5 |
| 2022 | 53.1°F | +0.6°F | 112.19 | 12.3 |
| 2023 | 53.7°F | +1.2°F | 103.03 | 14.0 |
Over 45 complete years from 1960 to 2023, the station's annual mean temperature rose at a fitted 2.1°F per century (+0.11°C per decade). A fitted rate summarizes the whole record; single years swing well above and below it.
Source: observed years: ACIS, station USC00451760; trend: NOAA GHCN-Monthly v4. A year counts only with all twelve months complete.
How does Cougar's climate compare?
Cougar is warmer than 84 of the other 95 places with their own NOAA record in Washington, and wetter than 88. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 52.5°F is warmer than 52%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Cougar is Csb: temperate, dry-summer, warm 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.
Questions about Cougar's climate
What is the coldest month in Cougar?
December, with a normal high of 44°F and a normal low of 34°F. The warmest is August (82°F by day, 54°F at night).
Does it snow in Cougar?
Yes: 16 inches in a normal year, falling on 6 days with 0.1 inch or more, the most in January (6.5 inches).
What is the rainiest month in Cougar?
December, with 18.76 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is July with 0.91 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Cougar in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Cougar in zone 8b in ZIP code 98603, the nearest ZIP area. By the same method at Cougar's NOAA station, the coldest night of a typical year reaches 19°F (15 years, 1991-2020): zone 8b.
How late can frost come in Cougar?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after April 1; in one year in ten it comes after May 2. Waiting until May 2 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- Washington climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Carson, WA17 miles from this station, 48.3°F a year
- Battle Ground, WA25 miles from this station, 50.9°F a year
- Skamania Fish Hatchery, WA30 miles from this station, 50.9°F a year
- Cascade Locks, OR31 miles from this station, 52.6°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made