Ekalaka, Montana climate: Normal weather by month, frost dates and records
Ekalaka's normal year runs from 11°F January nights to 86°F July afternoons, with 18.1 inches of precipitation and 48 inches of snow a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 7.4°C, January lows of −12°C, July highs of 30°C, 460 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationEkalaka
- Station IDUSC00242689
- Location45.89°N 104.55°W
- Elevation3,432 ft (1,046 m)
- Population405
On October 22, the normal high in Ekalaka is 55°F and the normal low 31°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 24%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Ekalaka.
- Jan 33° 11°
- Feb 35° 13°
- Mar 46° 22°
- Apr 57° 31°
- May 67° 40°
- Jun 77° 50°
- Jul 86° 57°
- Aug 85° 55°
- Sep 75° 46°
- Oct 58° 33°
- Nov 44° 22°
- Dec 34° 13°
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 Ekalaka each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 86°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of 11°F. The most precipitation falls in May (3.21 in), the least in December (0.51 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 33°F | 11°F | 21.6°F | 0.58 | 6.5 | 7 | <1 | 30 | 9 h |
| February | 35°F | 13°F | 24.0°F | 0.66 | 9.0 | 7 | <1 | 27 | 10 h 20 min |
| March | 46°F | 22°F | 34.1°F | 0.95 | 8.8 | 7 | <1 | 26 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 57°F | 31°F | 43.7°F | 1.86 | 5.3 | 8 | <1 | 17 | 13 h 30 min |
| May | 67°F | 40°F | 53.6°F | 3.21 | 2.6 | 11 | <1 | 5 | 14 h 50 min |
| June | 77°F | 50°F | 63.2°F | 2.95 | 0.0 | 11 | 2 | <1 | 15 h 40 min |
| July | 86°F | 57°F | 71.2°F | 2.10 | 0.0 | 8 | 9 | <1 | 15 h 20 min |
| August | 85°F | 55°F | 70.0°F | 1.35 | 0.0 | 7 | 8 | <1 | 14 h 10 min |
| September | 75°F | 46°F | 60.0°F | 1.60 | 0.1 | 7 | 2 | 2 | 12 h 40 min |
| October | 58°F | 33°F | 45.8°F | 1.58 | 2.4 | 8 | <1 | 14 | 11 h |
| November | 44°F | 22°F | 32.8°F | 0.76 | 6.2 | 7 | <1 | 26 | 9 h 30 min |
| December | 34°F | 13°F | 23.6°F | 0.51 | 7.5 | 7 | <1 | 30 | 8 h 40 min |
| Year (annual) | 58°F | 33°F | 45.3°F | 18.11 | 48.4 | 95 | 21 | 176 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 0°C | −12°C | −5.8°C | 15 mm | 17 cm |
| February | 2°C | −10°C | −4.4°C | 17 mm | 23 cm |
| March | 8°C | −6°C | 1.2°C | 24 mm | 22 cm |
| April | 14°C | −1°C | 6.5°C | 47 mm | 13 cm |
| May | 19°C | 5°C | 12.0°C | 82 mm | 7 cm |
| June | 25°C | 10°C | 17.3°C | 75 mm | 0 cm |
| July | 30°C | 14°C | 21.8°C | 53 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 29°C | 13°C | 21.1°C | 34 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 24°C | 8°C | 15.6°C | 41 mm | 0 cm |
| October | 15°C | 1°C | 7.7°C | 40 mm | 6 cm |
| November | 7°C | −6°C | 0.4°C | 19 mm | 16 cm |
| December | 1°C | −11°C | −4.7°C | 13 mm | 19 cm |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00242689; 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 Ekalaka?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in May, June, August and September. 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 USC00242689.
When is the last frost in Ekalaka?
In Ekalaka, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after May 20 in half of years and after June 1 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before September 23 in half of years and before September 7 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
- May 201 year in 10 after June 1; 9 in 10 after May 7
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- September 231 year in 10 before September 7; 9 in 10 before October 7
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 126 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 145 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after May 10 in half of springs and before October 2 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Ekalaka in zone 4b in ZIP code 59324, the nearest ZIP area. By the map's own method, the average of each year's coldest night over 1991-2020, Ekalaka's NOAA station is in zone 4b: the coldest night of a typical year reaches −24°F (30 complete years).
Frost dates for every NOAA station in Montana · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USC00242689; 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 Ekalaka?
In a normal year in Ekalaka, 21 days a year reach 90°F (1 of them 100°F or more), 176 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 95 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 21a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- 1a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 176a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 51high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 95a normal year
- Days with 1 inch of snow or more
- 14a normal year
The highest temperature in this station's record (since 1896) is 108°F, on July 14, 1910; the lowest is −44°F, on January 20, 1954.
The wettest calendar year on that record is 2013, with 28.55 in; the snowiest season is 2008–09, with 95.4 inches.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USC00242689; records: ACIS (NOAA Regional Climate Centers), station USC00242689. Records use complete months only; a month missing more than three days is left out.
How sunny is Ekalaka?
Over a year 78% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds in the area around Ekalaka, 4.2 kWh per square metre a day. July is the sunniest month (89%) and December the cloudiest (71%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 77% | 1.9 |
| February | 77% | 2.9 |
| March | 73% | 3.9 |
| April | 71% | 4.9 |
| May | 73% | 5.9 |
| June | 81% | 6.9 |
| July | 89% | 7.3 |
| August | 87% | 6.1 |
| September | 82% | 4.6 |
| October | 74% | 3.0 |
| November | 74% | 2.0 |
| December | 71% | 1.4 |
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 Ekalaka need?
A normal year in Ekalaka brings 7,678 heating degree days, 43% more than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 537 cooling degree days, 41% fewer than the median (908). Eight months need 300 or more heating degree days, a monthly mean of about 55°F or colder. For gardens and crops, NOAA counts 2,308 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 1,344 | 0 |
| February | 1,147 | 0 |
| March | 958 | 0 |
| April | 638 | 1 |
| May | 362 | 9 |
| June | 120 | 66 |
| July | 23 | 215 |
| August | 38 | 193 |
| September | 200 | 51 |
| October | 598 | 3 |
| November | 968 | 0 |
| December | 1,283 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 7,678 | 537 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00242689. 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 Ekalaka been warmer than normal lately?
2025 averaged 46.1°F, 0.8°F above the 1991-2020 normal of 45.3°F. 3 of the 4 complete years since 2022 ran warmer than the normal.
| Year | Mean | Against normal | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 43.9°F | −1.4°F | 18.33 | 125.4 |
| 2023 | 46.2°F | +0.9°F | 18.27 | 47.1 |
| 2024 | 47.3°F | +2.0°F | 12.65 | 45.6 |
| 2025 | 46.1°F | +0.8°F | 22.01 | 53.2 |
Over 98 complete years from 1906 to 2025, the station's annual mean temperature rose at a fitted 1.9°F per century (+0.10°C per decade). A fitted rate summarizes the whole record; single years swing well above and below it.
Source: observed years: ACIS, station USC00242689; trend: NOAA GHCN-Monthly v4. A year counts only with all twelve months complete.
How does Ekalaka's climate compare?
Ekalaka is warmer than 99 of the other 140 places with their own NOAA record in Montana, and wetter than 109. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 45.3°F is warmer than 21%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Ekalaka is Dfb: continental, no dry season, 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 Ekalaka's climate
What is the coldest month in Ekalaka?
January, with a normal high of 33°F and a normal low of 11°F. The warmest is July (86°F by day, 57°F at night).
Does it snow in Ekalaka?
Yes: 48 inches in a normal year, falling on 34 days with 0.1 inch or more, the most in February (9.0 inches).
What is the rainiest month in Ekalaka?
May, with 3.21 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is December with 0.51 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Ekalaka in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Ekalaka in zone 4b in ZIP code 59324, the nearest ZIP area. By the same method at Ekalaka's NOAA station, the coldest night of a typical year reaches −24°F (30 years, 1991-2020): zone 4b.
How late can frost come in Ekalaka?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after May 20; in one year in ten it comes after June 1. Waiting until June 1 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- Montana climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Powderville (8 mi NNE), MT24 miles from this station, 47.0°F a year
- Ridgeway (1 mi S), MT27 miles from this station, 44.3°F a year
- Ladner (9 mi SW), SD33 miles from this station, 43.9°F a year
- Baker, MT35 miles from this station, 43.5°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made