Elmira, NY Climate: Temperature & Rain by Month
Average temperature and precipitation from NOAA NCEI 1991–2020 normals →, with a derived climate comfort score
30-year climate normals (1991-2020) from Elmira's primary NOAA station, ELMIRA.
The climate verdict for Elmira
Elmira, New York has a mixed annual climate rather than one dominant extreme. Its NOAA normal shows an annual average of 48°F. Its climate comfort score of 59/100 (moderate) lands mid-pack nationally, exceeding 37% of station-mapped location scores.
- 48°F
- yearly average temperature, NOAA normal
- 59/100
- comfort score, above 37% of station-mapped location scores
- 38.1"
- annual precipitation · 42" snow
- 158 days
- frost-free growing season
Elmira: NOAA 1991-2020 normals describe a typical year, not a forecast. Method: /methodology.
Normals record plate
Sheet USC00302610 · Elmira, NY 48°F mean · 38.1" 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 #2,196
- PHOTO-FINISH ≈ Copake
- PRCP-MID 38.1"
- SWING-WIDE 46°F
- COMF-MID 59/100
- LOAD-HEAT 6,655 HDD
- STN-1 USC00302610
- BOOK-FULL 6/6 fields
Nearest mean-temperature peer: Copake, NY (+ 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.
- Elmira (this station) 48°F
- Cold Millheim, PA 48°F
- Hot Manchester, MI 48°F
- Near Copake, NY 48°F
- Near Duchesne, UT 48°F
Climate Living Index · Elmira
Elmira: 44/100 · grade D
Elmira publishes 5 of 6 Living Index dimensions (NOAA annual/seasonal normals · NOAA daily multivariate normals); 1 missing weight rescale to 100.
PlainClimate-derived for Elmira, not an official NOAA rating. Rankings still use Comfort Score 59/100 (separate formula). Breakpoints and limits.
| Dimension | Station value | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Precipitation balance | 38.1 in · 3.1 from 35 in | 89/100 · A |
| Normal heat + freeze calendar | 157 calendar days | 41/100 · D |
| Annual temperature balance | 48.2°F · 19.3° from 67.5°F | 32/100 · F |
| Frost-free season | 158 days/year | 32/100 · F |
| Snowfall burden | 41.8 inches/year | 26/100 · F |
Elmira · 2026-08-04 · NOAA NCEI Climate Normals · method · Comfort Score method.
Elmira is a continental Köppen climate: Dfb
Coldest-month mean 24.8°F and warmest-month mean 71.0°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
- 71.0°F
- Coldest month
- 24.8°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 Elmira sits across the climate record
Three NOAA fields for Elmira's primary station, temperature, precipitation, and seasonal swing, are ranked against every station-mapped normal that carries the same field.
- Annual temperature
- 32nd percentile warmth
- Mid-pack annual mean versus 6,861 station normals.
- Annual precipitation
- 54th percentile wetness
- Neither arid nor torrential versus 6,352 station totals.
- Seasonal temperature swing
- 65th percentile swing
- Typical seasonal amplitude versus 6,861 complete station-years.
How Elmira compares across U.S. station-mapped locations
Elmira's comfort score vs. all station-mapped locations
PlainClimate composite comfort index (1–100), NOAA 1991–2020 normals
59 37th percentile score exceeds 37% 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%). This entry sits in this band.
- 60–70: 1,236 station-mapped locations (20%). Above this entry.
- 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
Elmira's measured station temperature trend
MethodologyAcross 83 complete annual observations from 1889 to 2024, ELMIRA warmed at a fitted rate of 0.10°C per decade. The line shows the fitted change relative to its first year, not raw year-to-year temperatures or a forecast.
- Elmira primary station fitted change +0.09 °C/decade
Monthly Temperatures
Average daily high and low temperatures by month
| Month | Avg High | Avg Low | Mean | Precip | Snow | Freeze Days | 90°F+ Days |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 34°F (1°C) | 16°F (-9°C) | 25°F (-4°C) | 2.1" | 8.4" | 28.4 | 0.0 |
| February | 36°F (2°C) | 17°F (-9°C) | 26°F (-3°C) | 1.9" | 9.5" | 26.2 | 0.0 |
| March | 45°F (7°C) | 23°F (-5°C) | 34°F (1°C) | 2.7" | 11.2" | 24.8 | 0.0 |
| April | 59°F (15°C) | 33°F (1°C) | 46°F (8°C) | 3.3" | 1.5" | 15.0 | 0.1 |
| May | 71°F (22°C) | 44°F (7°C) | 58°F (14°C) | 3.1" | 0.0" | 2.2 | 0.7 |
| June | 79°F (26°C) | 54°F (12°C) | 67°F (19°C) | 4.2" | 0.0" | 0.0 | 2.1 |
| July | 84°F (29°C) | 58°F (15°C) | 71°F (22°C) | 4.0" | 0.0" | 0.0 | 4.9 |
| August | 82°F (28°C) | 57°F (14°C) | 70°F (21°C) | 3.8" | 0.0" | 0.0 | 3.1 |
| September | 75°F (24°C) | 50°F (10°C) | 62°F (17°C) | 4.1" | 0.0" | 0.4 | 1.3 |
| October | 62°F (17°C) | 39°F (4°C) | 50°F (10°C) | 3.5" | 0.1" | 7.8 | 0.0 |
| November | 49°F (9°C) | 30°F (-1°C) | 39°F (4°C) | 2.7" | 2.7" | 19.3 | 0.0 |
| December | 39°F (4°C) | 23°F (-5°C) | 31°F (-1°C) | 2.6" | 8.4" | 26.4 | 0.0 |
The year, day by day
Summer here tops out rather than builds: the warmest normal high is 84°F around July 14, short of 90°F on every date, while 157 dates carry a normal low at or below freezing, the coldest 15°F near January 25.
The freezing stretch
The normal low stays at or below 32°F into April 12, then returns to freezing around November 8, covering 157 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.
Where the wet dates fall
The likeliest wet date is May 1, when 43% of years recorded at least a hundredth of an inch. The driest is September 2 at 34%. Summed across the calendar, that is about 140 wet dates a year.
The widest day
May 10 carries the biggest normal gap between afternoon and dawn, 27°F between the normal high and the normal low.
Look up any date
Any date's 1991–2020 normal for Elmira.
Monthly Precipitation
Average monthly rainfall and snowfall
Snow: 8.4"
12.2 days with precipitation
Snow: 9.5"
9.8 days with precipitation
Snow: 11.2"
10.6 days with precipitation
Snow: 1.5"
12.5 days with precipitation
13.2 days with precipitation
12.6 days with precipitation
11.8 days with precipitation
11.4 days with precipitation
10.6 days with precipitation
Snow: 0.1"
13.0 days with precipitation
Snow: 2.7"
10.6 days with precipitation
Snow: 8.4"
11.8 days with precipitation
Elmira spreads its precipitation across the year
Neither half of the year dominates here: June through August take 32% of the annual total and December through February 17%, with neither reaching the 35% that would mark a distinct wet season. Elmira has no dry season to plan around, though it does carry a wide 46.2°F gap between its warmest and coldest month.
The gap between the wettest and driest month still matters: June averages 4.2" and February 1.9". The three wettest months together take 32% 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.
How Elmira's precipitation splits across the calendar
About 140 days a year record measurable precipitation here, carrying 38.1" between them, or roughly 0.27 inches on a typical wet day. That sits in the middle band: neither the many-light-days pattern of the Pacific Northwest and the Great Lakes, nor the few-heavy-events pattern of the Gulf and the desert Southwest.
A wet day is one recording at least 0.01 inches. These are 1991-2020 normals: they describe an average year and say nothing about the heaviest single storm on record.
Winter brings real snow to Elmira
Elmira averages 41.8 inches of snowfall a year, with March the snowiest month on the normals, spread across roughly 22 days that record measurable snow. That is depth accumulating on the ground, which is why it can exceed the annual precipitation figure: precipitation counts the liquid the snow melts down to, and fresh snow is mostly air.
- Annual snowfall: 41.8 inches of depth.
- Days recording measurable snow: about 22 a year.
- At a rough ten-to-one melt ratio, snow accounts for on the order of 11% of the year's precipitation.
NOAA 1991-2020 normals. The ten-to-one ratio is a convention, not a measurement: real ratios vary with temperature, so treat the share as an order of magnitude rather than an exact split.
Frost Dates & Growing Season
First Fall Freeze
October 11
50% probability date
Last Spring Freeze
May 6
50% probability date
Growing Season
158 days
Heating & Cooling Degree Days
Annual totals indicate energy demand for heating and cooling
Heating Degree Days
6,655
Higher = more heating needed
Cooling Degree Days
561
Higher = more cooling needed
Warmest Month
July
Coldest Month
January
Nationwide similar cities
Other rankable U.S. places outside NY closest to Elmira 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).
- Belle Plaine, IA 48°F · 0.0°F off
- Broadus, MT 48°F · 0.0°F off
- Compton, IL 48°F · 0.0°F off
- Elizabeth, CO 48°F · 0.0°F off
Closest by annual precipitation
Nearest out-of-state peers by annual precipitation (38.1" here), excluding temperature-peer places.
- Lebanon, NH 38.1" · 0.0" off
- Ames, IA 38.1" · 0.0" off
- Mcgregor, TX 38.1" · 0.0" off
- Morenci, MI 38.1" · 0.0" off
Snow and freeze rhythm
When cold and snow define Elmira
heating led · moderate · mid swing
Elmira's energy balance leans toward cold weather: 6,655 annual heating degree days against 561 for cooling. Its 46.2°F seasonal range still makes the monthly rows more useful than the annual average alone.
Elmira's frost-free season lasts about 158 days, a middle-length window whose endpoints matter more than the annual average. It describes freeze probability, not year-specific planting conditions.
-
1. Elmira coldest normal
January
Averaging 25°F (-4°C), this month sits below freezing for the month as a whole, not merely overnight.
-
2. Elmira typical freeze period
January through December
The station reports average freezing days from January through December.
-
3. Elmira snow peak
March
Elmira averages 41.8 inches of snow a year, with March the snowiest month on the normals.
Questions about Elmira's climate
How much snow does Elmira get? ▼
How cold does Elmira get in winter? ▼
How much energy does heating and cooling require in Elmira? ▼
Data Sources
Data source: NOAA U.S. Climate Normals v1.0.1 (1991-2020). All figures on this page are from Elmira's primary station: ELMIRA (USC00302610). 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 3624229). Match rule for Elmira: 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 Elmira 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.