Dunkirk, NY Climate: Temperature & Rain by Month
Explore NOAA NCEI's 1991–2020 climate normals → and a clearly labeled PlainClimate comfort calculation
30-year climate normals (1991-2020) from Dunkirk's primary NOAA station, DUNKIRK.
The climate verdict for Dunkirk
Water is the standout signal in Dunkirk, New York: 46.8 inches of precipitation in a normal year. Against that wet profile, NOAA records an annual average of 48°F. Its climate comfort score of 64/100 (good) lands mid-pack nationally, exceeding 49% of station-mapped location scores.
- 48°F
- annual average temperature (NOAA normal)
- 64/100
- comfort score, above 49% of station-mapped location scores
- 46.8"
- yearly precipitation total
- 176 days
- frost-free days per growing season
Dunkirk: NOAA 1991-2020 normals describe a typical year, not a forecast. Method: /methodology.
Normals record plate
Sheet USC00302197 · Dunkirk, NY 48°F mean · 46.8" precip
TEMP-COOL · RANK-COOL · PHOTO-FINISH · PRCP-MID · SWING-WIDE · COMF-MID · LOAD-HEAT · STN-1 · BOOK-FULL
- TEMP-COOL 48°F
- RANK-COOL #2,264
- PHOTO-FINISH ≈ Haverhill
- PRCP-MID 46.8"
- SWING-WIDE 46°F
- COMF-MID 64/100
- LOAD-HEAT 6,555 HDD
- STN-1 USC00302197
- BOOK-FULL 6/6 fields
Nearest mean-temperature peer: Haverhill, MA (+ 0 °F mean)
Instrument codes from this station's NOAA 1991–2020 normals, mean temperature, corpus warmth rank, photo-finish peer station, precipitation band, seasonal swing, comfort composite, degree-day load, and field book, not a livability rating.
Mean-temperature neighbourhood
Nationwide NOAA normal poles and nearest peers, not a reprint of every NY station list.
- Dunkirk (this station) 48°F
- Cold E Brimfield Lake, MA 48°F
- Hot Haverhill, MA 48°F
- Near Emporium, PA 48°F
- Near Middleton, MA 48°F
Climate Living Index · Dunkirk
Dunkirk: 47/100 · grade D
Dunkirk publishes 4 of 6 Living Index dimensions (NOAA annual/seasonal normals · NOAA daily multivariate normals); 2 missing weights rescale to 100.
PlainClimate-derived for Dunkirk, not an official NOAA rating. Rankings still use Comfort Score 64/100 (separate formula). Breakpoints and limits.
| Dimension | Station value | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Precipitation balance | 46.8 in · 11.8 from 35 in | 58/100 · C |
| Normal heat + freeze calendar | 137 calendar days | 55/100 · C |
| Frost-free season | 176 days/year | 47/100 · D |
| Annual temperature balance | 48.4°F · 19.1° from 67.5°F | 33/100 · F |
Dunkirk · 2026-08-04 · NOAA NCEI Climate Normals · method · Comfort Score method.
Dunkirk is a continental Köppen climate: Dfb
Coldest-month mean 25.0°F and warmest-month mean 70.9°F place this station in continental, no dry season, warm summer climates (Dfb). Class Dfb is the Peel et al. (2007) label for this station's monthly mean temperature and precipitation normals: continental, specifically continental, no dry season, warm summer.
- Köppen code
- Dfb
- Group
- Continental
- Warmest month
- 70.9°F
- Coldest month
- 25.0°F
Source: official public datasets monthly normals (1991–2020) at the city’s primary station. This is a station classification, not a mapped regional consensus.
National standing · heating-led station
Where Dunkirk sits across the climate record
Three NOAA fields for Dunkirk's primary station, temperature, precipitation, and seasonal swing, are ranked against every station-mapped normal that carries the same field.
- Annual temperature
- 33rd percentile warmth
- Mid-pack annual mean versus 6,861 station normals.
- Annual precipitation
- Top 27% wettest
- Dunkirk's annual total ranks in the wetter third of 6,352 measured normals.
- Seasonal temperature swing
- 63rd percentile swing
- Typical seasonal amplitude versus 6,861 complete station-years.
How Dunkirk compares across U.S. station-mapped locations
Dunkirk's comfort score vs. all station-mapped locations
PlainClimate composite comfort index (1–100), NOAA 1991–2020 normals
64 49th percentile score exceeds 49% of 6,189 station-mapped location scores
- 0–10: 0 station-mapped locations (0%). Below this entry.
- 10–20: 0 station-mapped locations (0%). Below this entry.
- 20–30: 96 station-mapped locations (2%). Below this entry.
- 30–40: 280 station-mapped locations (5%). Below this entry.
- 40–50: 1,113 station-mapped locations (18%). Below this entry.
- 50–60: 1,329 station-mapped locations (21%). Below this entry.
- 60–70: 1,236 station-mapped locations (20%). This entry sits in this band.
- 70–80: 650 station-mapped locations (11%). Above this entry.
- 80–90: 921 station-mapped locations (15%). Above this entry.
- 90–100: 564 station-mapped locations (9%). Above this entry.
Source NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, PlainClimate comfort index · 1991–2020
Monthly Temperatures
Average daily high and low temperatures by month
| Month | Avg High | Avg Low | Mean | Precip | Freeze Days | 90°F+ Days |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 33°F (0°C) | 17°F (-8°C) | 25°F (-4°C) | 3.4" | 27.8 | 0.0 |
| February | 34°F (1°C) | 17°F (-8°C) | 26°F (-4°C) | 2.6" | 23.8 | 0.0 |
| March | 42°F (6°C) | 24°F (-4°C) | 33°F (1°C) | 3.0" | 22.5 | 0.0 |
| April | 54°F (12°C) | 34°F (1°C) | 44°F (7°C) | 3.8" | 13.2 | 0.0 |
| May | 67°F (20°C) | 46°F (8°C) | 57°F (14°C) | 4.0" | 1.6 | 0.4 |
| June | 77°F (25°C) | 57°F (14°C) | 67°F (19°C) | 4.2" | 0.0 | 0.7 |
| July | 80°F (27°C) | 61°F (16°C) | 71°F (22°C) | 4.6" | 0.0 | 1.8 |
| August | 79°F (26°C) | 60°F (15°C) | 70°F (21°C) | 3.9" | 0.0 | 0.3 |
| September | 73°F (23°C) | 53°F (11°C) | 63°F (17°C) | 4.4" | 0.0 | 0.7 |
| October | 61°F (16°C) | 44°F (6°C) | 52°F (11°C) | 4.8" | 1.5 | 0.0 |
| November | 49°F (9°C) | 34°F (1°C) | 41°F (5°C) | 4.1" | 12.5 | 0.0 |
| December | 38°F (3°C) | 26°F (-3°C) | 32°F (0°C) | 4.2" | 22.5 | 0.0 |
The year, day by day
Summer here tops out rather than builds: the warmest normal high is 81°F around July 23, short of 90°F on every date, while 137 dates carry a normal low at or below freezing, the coldest 16°F near January 31.
The freezing stretch
The normal low stays at or below 32°F into April 8, then returns to freezing around November 24, covering 137 dates in all.
Derived from the normal daily minimum. This is a different measure from the 50%-probability frost dates shown elsewhere on this page, which come from NOAA’s frost product.
The widest day
May 14 carries the biggest normal gap between afternoon and dawn, 21°F between the normal high and the normal low.
Look up any date
Any date's 1991–2020 normal for Dunkirk.
Where Dunkirk Stands Nationally
Among the steadiest day-night climates ranked: even the widest normal daily swing holds to roughly 21°F.
Dunkirk earns one nationally notable standing (outer quintile) against 6,860 NOAA 1991–2020 normals stations, middle-of-the-pack metrics stay silent here.
Monthly Precipitation
Average monthly rainfall
Dunkirk spreads its precipitation across the year
Neither half of the year dominates here: June through August take 27% of the annual total and December through February 22%, with neither reaching the 35% that would mark a distinct wet season. Dunkirk has no dry season to plan around, though it does carry a wide 45.9°F gap between its warmest and coldest month.
The gap between the wettest and driest month still matters: October averages 4.8" and February 2.6". The three wettest months together take 29% of the year, against the 25% a perfectly flat distribution would give them.
Shares are computed from this station's own 1991-2020 monthly precipitation normals. "Spread across the year" means neither the June-August nor the December-February share reaches 35%; it describes an average year, not the variability of any single one.
Frost Dates & Growing Season
First Fall Freeze
October 23
50% probability date
Last Spring Freeze
April 30
50% probability date
Growing Season
176 days
Heating & Cooling Degree Days
Annual totals indicate energy demand for heating and cooling
Heating Degree Days
6,555
Higher = more heating needed
Cooling Degree Days
526
Higher = more cooling needed
Warmest Month
July
Coldest Month
January
Nationwide similar cities
Other rankable U.S. places outside NY closest to Dunkirk on two NOAA annual-normal axes (mean temperature and annual precipitation). Chip rows use distinct link sets.
Closest by average temperature
Nearest out-of-state peers by annual mean temperature (48°F here).
- Alturas, CA 48°F · 0.0°F off
- Falls Village, CT 48°F · 0.0°F off
- Haverhill, MA 48°F · 0.0°F off
- Kenosha, WI 48°F · 0.0°F off
Closest by annual precipitation
Nearest out-of-state peers by annual precipitation (46.8" here), excluding temperature-peer places.
- Fort Leonard Wood, MO 46.8" · 0.0" off
- Oxon Hill, MD 46.8" · 0.0" off
- Palestine, TX 46.8" · 0.0" off
- Saluda, SC 46.8" · 0.0" off
Data-derived climate profile
How Dunkirk's climate pattern fits together
heating led · wet · mid swing
Dunkirk's energy balance leans toward cold weather: 6,555 annual heating degree days against 526 for cooling. Its 45.9°F seasonal range still makes the monthly rows more useful than the annual average alone.
Dunkirk's frost-free season lasts about 176 days, a middle-length window whose endpoints matter more than the annual average. It describes freeze probability, not year-specific planting conditions.
July and January mark the typical warm and cold ends of the calendar in Dunkirk's middle-range seasonal profile. The measured spread is 45.9°F. The annual average is 48°F. Neither the annual mean nor one extreme month represents the full calendar on its own.
Alongside its heating load, Dunkirk carries 46.8 inches of precipitation in a normal year, inside PlainClimate's wet range. Snowfall is not added to the interpretation because its annual value is missing. That distinction matters because a wet annual total can arrive as rain, snow, or a mixture at different times.
These labels group NOAA 1991-2020 normals from Dunkirk's primary station, so the winter figures are a thirty-year average and not a floor: a single hard season can run well below them. Treat each band as a descriptive range for Dunkirk, not an official NOAA class or a year-ahead forecast.
Questions about Dunkirk's climate
How much rain does Dunkirk get? ▼
How cold does Dunkirk get in winter? ▼
How much energy does heating and cooling require in Dunkirk? ▼
Data Sources
Data source: NOAA U.S. Climate Normals v1.0.1 (1991-2020). All figures on this page are from Dunkirk's primary station: DUNKIRK (USC00302197). For informational purposes only.
Place identity: U.S. Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer places. The 2024 Census Gazetteer identifies the exact name-and-state match as an incorporated place (GEOID 3621105). Match rule for Dunkirk: exact normalized name + state only, no fuzzy expansion, so nearby differently spelled facilities stay unmatched.
On this page every temperature, precipitation, and derived score for Dunkirk comes from its primary NOAA station record. No figure on this page is typed in by an editor - each value is rendered from NOAA 1991-2020 U.S. Climate Normals. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of 1991–2020 normals.