Donaldsonville, Louisiana climate: Normal weather by month, frost dates and records
Donaldsonville's normal year runs from 42°F January nights to 91°F July afternoons, with 63.4 inches of precipitation and less than an inch of snow (0.1 in) a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 20.1°C, January lows of 5°C, July highs of 33°C, 1,610 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationDonaldsonville (4 mi SW)
- Station IDUSC00162534
- Location30.07°N 91.03°W
- Elevation30 ft (9 m)
- From the center3 miles
- Population6,945
On October 23, the normal high in Donaldsonville is 78°F and the normal low 56°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 22%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Donaldsonville.
- Jan 62° 42°
- Feb 66° 45°
- Mar 72° 51°
- Apr 78° 57°
- May 85° 65°
- Jun 89° 72°
- Jul 91° 74°
- Aug 91° 73°
- Sep 88° 69°
- Oct 80° 59°
- Nov 71° 49°
- Dec 64° 44°
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 Donaldsonville each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 91°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of 42°F. The most precipitation falls in June (6.97 in), the least in March (4.03 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 62°F | 42°F | 51.9°F | 5.78 | 11 | <1 | 7 | 10 h 20 min |
| February | 66°F | 45°F | 55.6°F | 4.11 | 9 | <1 | 3 | 11 h 10 min |
| March | 72°F | 51°F | 61.7°F | 4.03 | 8 | <1 | 1 | 12 h |
| April | 78°F | 57°F | 67.8°F | 4.88 | 7 | <1 | <1 | 12 h 50 min |
| May | 85°F | 65°F | 75.0°F | 5.64 | 8 | 5 | <1 | 13 h 40 min |
| June | 89°F | 72°F | 80.4°F | 6.97 | 12 | 17 | <1 | 14 h |
| July | 91°F | 74°F | 82.1°F | 6.51 | 13 | 22 | <1 | 14 h |
| August | 91°F | 73°F | 81.9°F | 6.37 | 13 | 22 | <1 | 13 h 20 min |
| September | 88°F | 69°F | 78.3°F | 5.39 | 9 | 13 | <1 | 12 h 20 min |
| October | 80°F | 59°F | 69.4°F | 4.65 | 7 | 2 | <1 | 11 h 30 min |
| November | 71°F | 49°F | 59.8°F | 4.21 | 7 | <1 | 1 | 10 h 40 min |
| December | 64°F | 44°F | 54.1°F | 4.86 | 9 | <1 | 5 | 10 h 10 min |
| Year (annual) | 78°F | 58°F | 68.2°F | 63.40 | 113 | 80 | 16 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 17°C | 5°C | 11.1°C | 147 mm |
| February | 19°C | 7°C | 13.1°C | 104 mm |
| March | 22°C | 11°C | 16.5°C | 102 mm |
| April | 26°C | 14°C | 19.9°C | 124 mm |
| May | 29°C | 18°C | 23.9°C | 143 mm |
| June | 32°C | 22°C | 26.9°C | 177 mm |
| July | 33°C | 23°C | 27.8°C | 165 mm |
| August | 33°C | 23°C | 27.7°C | 162 mm |
| September | 31°C | 21°C | 25.7°C | 137 mm |
| October | 27°C | 15°C | 20.8°C | 118 mm |
| November | 22°C | 9°C | 15.4°C | 107 mm |
| December | 18°C | 7°C | 12.3°C | 123 mm |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00162534; 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 Donaldsonville?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in February, 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 USC00162534.
When is the last frost in Donaldsonville?
In Donaldsonville, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after February 21 in half of years and after March 15 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before December 5 in half of years and before November 14 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
- February 211 year in 10 after March 15; 9 in 10 after January 23
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- December 51 year in 10 before November 14; 9 in 10 before January 6
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 291 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 330 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after February 1 in half of springs and before December 28 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Donaldsonville in zone 9a in ZIP code 70346, the nearest ZIP area. By the map's own method, the average of each year's coldest night over 1991-2020, Donaldsonville's NOAA station is in zone 9a: the coldest night of a typical year reaches 24°F (30 complete years).
Frost dates for every NOAA station in Louisiana · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USC00162534; 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 Donaldsonville?
In a normal year in Donaldsonville, 80 days a year reach 90°F, 16 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 113 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 80a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- fewer than 1a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 16a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- fewer than 1high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 113a normal year
The highest temperature in this station's record (since 1893) is 105°F, on August 28, 2023; the lowest is 3°F, on February 13, 1899.
The wettest calendar year on that record is 1961, with 93.15 in; the snowiest season is 1987–88, with 1.6 inches.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USC00162534; records: ACIS (NOAA Regional Climate Centers), station USC00162534. Records use complete months only; a month missing more than three days is left out.
How sunny is Donaldsonville?
Over a year 78% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds in the area around Donaldsonville, 4.7 kWh per square metre a day. October is the sunniest month (83%) and February the cloudiest (68%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 71% | 2.9 |
| February | 68% | 3.4 |
| March | 74% | 4.6 |
| April | 79% | 5.7 |
| May | 81% | 6.2 |
| June | 79% | 6.1 |
| July | 79% | 5.9 |
| August | 80% | 5.6 |
| September | 82% | 5.1 |
| October | 83% | 4.4 |
| November | 80% | 3.4 |
| December | 70% | 2.6 |
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 Donaldsonville need?
A normal year in Donaldsonville brings 1,526 heating degree days, 72% fewer than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 2,705 cooling degree days, 3.0 times the median (908). Two months need 300 or more heating degree days, a monthly mean of about 55°F or colder. For gardens and crops, NOAA counts 6,896 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 418 | 13 |
| February | 283 | 21 |
| March | 162 | 60 |
| April | 51 | 134 |
| May | 4 | 314 |
| June | 0 | 462 |
| July | 0 | 529 |
| August | 0 | 525 |
| September | 1 | 401 |
| October | 45 | 182 |
| November | 201 | 44 |
| December | 360 | 21 |
| Year (annual) | 1,526 | 2,705 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00162534. 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 Donaldsonville been warmer than normal lately?
2025 averaged 69.4°F, 1.2°F above the 1991-2020 normal of 68.2°F. 4 of the 4 complete years since 2022 ran warmer than the normal.
| Year | Mean | Against normal | Precip. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 68.8°F | +0.6°F | 61.99 |
| 2023 | 70.9°F | +2.7°F | 50.36 |
| 2024 | 70.0°F | +1.8°F | 76.95 |
| 2025 | 69.4°F | +1.2°F | – |
Over 65 complete years from 1950 to 2025, the station's annual mean temperature rose at a fitted 1.4°F per century (+0.08°C per decade). A fitted rate summarizes the whole record; single years swing well above and below it.
Source: observed years: ACIS, station USC00162534; trend: NOAA GHCN-Monthly v4. A year counts only with all twelve months complete.
How does Donaldsonville's climate compare?
Donaldsonville is warmer than 42 of the other 64 places with their own NOAA record in Louisiana, and wetter than 46. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 68.2°F is warmer than 93%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Donaldsonville 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 Donaldsonville share this climate record?
15 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.
- Gonzales, LA13,837 people · 12 mi NE
- Pierre Part, LA2,333 people · 13 mi SW
- Sorrento, LA1,589 people · 12 mi NE
- Belle Rose, LA1,574 people · 2 mi SW
- Paincourtville, LA1,455 people · 6 mi S
- Welcome, LA751 people · 9 mi E
- Supreme, LA693 people · 15 mi S
- Lemannville, LA680 people · 6 mi E
- Convent, LA615 people · 13 mi E
- Napoleonville, LA506 people · 9 mi S
- Union, LA472 people · 8 mi E
- St. James, LA395 people · 11 mi E
- Bayou Corne, LA209 people · 8 mi SW
- Darrow, LA163 people · 4 mi NE
- Romeville, LA12 people · 12 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 Donaldsonville's climate
What is the coldest month in Donaldsonville?
January, with a normal high of 62°F and a normal low of 42°F. The warmest is July (91°F by day, 74°F at night).
Does it snow in Donaldsonville?
Rarely: NOAA's normal is 0.1 inch a year.
What is the rainiest month in Donaldsonville?
June, with 6.97 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is March with 4.03 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Donaldsonville in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Donaldsonville in zone 9a in ZIP code 70346, the nearest ZIP area. By the same method at Donaldsonville's NOAA station, the coldest night of a typical year reaches 24°F (30 years, 1991-2020): zone 9a.
How late can frost come in Donaldsonville?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after February 21; in one year in ten it comes after March 15. Waiting until March 15 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- Louisiana climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Carville (2 mi SW), LA11 miles from this station, 68.7°F a year
- Lsu Ben-Hur Farm, LA22 miles from this station, 67.3°F a year
- Brusly, LA27 miles from this station, 67.3°F a year
- Thibodaux, LA27 miles from this station, 70.1°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made