Estherville, Iowa climate: Normal weather by month, frost dates and records
Estherville's normal year runs from 7°F January nights to 81°F July afternoons, with 29.3 inches of precipitation a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 7.0°C, January lows of −14°C, July highs of 27°C, 743 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationEstherville Municipal Airport
- Station IDUSW00094971
- Location43.41°N 94.75°W
- Elevation1,317 ft (401 m)
- From the center4 miles
- Population5,796
On October 23, the normal high in Estherville is 55°F and the normal low 33°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 26%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Estherville.
- Jan 23° 7°
- Feb 28° 11°
- Mar 41° 23°
- Apr 56° 34°
- May 69° 46°
- Jun 79° 57°
- Jul 81° 60°
- Aug 79° 57°
- Sep 73° 49°
- Oct 59° 36°
- Nov 42° 23°
- Dec 28° 12°
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 Estherville each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 81°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of 7°F. The most precipitation falls in June (4.57 in), the least in February (0.46 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 23°F | 7°F | 14.8°F | 0.56 | 4 | <1 | 31 | 9 h 20 min |
| February | 28°F | 11°F | 19.1°F | 0.46 | 5 | <1 | 27 | 10 h 30 min |
| March | 41°F | 23°F | 31.9°F | 1.45 | 7 | <1 | 25 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 56°F | 34°F | 45.1°F | 3.13 | 11 | <1 | 11 | 13 h 20 min |
| May | 69°F | 46°F | 57.6°F | 4.50 | 14 | 1 | 2 | 14 h 40 min |
| June | 79°F | 57°F | 67.8°F | 4.57 | 13 | 3 | <1 | 15 h 20 min |
| July | 81°F | 60°F | 70.6°F | 3.76 | 10 | 4 | <1 | 15 h 10 min |
| August | 79°F | 57°F | 68.0°F | 3.31 | 12 | 1 | <1 | 14 h |
| September | 73°F | 49°F | 60.6°F | 3.14 | 11 | 1 | 1 | 12 h 30 min |
| October | 59°F | 36°F | 47.3°F | 2.47 | 9 | <1 | 11 | 11 h 10 min |
| November | 42°F | 23°F | 32.6°F | 1.37 | 6 | <1 | 24 | 9 h 40 min |
| December | 28°F | 12°F | 20.2°F | 0.54 | 5 | <1 | 30 | 9 h |
| Year (annual) | 55°F | 35°F | 44.6°F | 29.26 | 106 | 10 | 161 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | −5°C | −14°C | −9.6°C | 14 mm |
| February | −2°C | −12°C | −7.2°C | 12 mm |
| March | 5°C | −5°C | −0.1°C | 37 mm |
| April | 13°C | 1°C | 7.3°C | 80 mm |
| May | 20°C | 8°C | 14.2°C | 114 mm |
| June | 26°C | 14°C | 19.9°C | 116 mm |
| July | 27°C | 16°C | 21.4°C | 96 mm |
| August | 26°C | 14°C | 20.0°C | 84 mm |
| September | 23°C | 9°C | 15.9°C | 80 mm |
| October | 15°C | 2°C | 8.5°C | 63 mm |
| November | 6°C | −5°C | 0.3°C | 35 mm |
| December | −2°C | −11°C | −6.6°C | 14 mm |
NOAA publishes no 1991-2020 snowfall normal for this station. The nearest record that keeps one, Spirit Lake (20 miles away), gets 42 inches of snow in a normal year; elevation and distance can change that.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USW00094971; 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 Estherville?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in May, June, July, August and September. Of those, July has the fewest days with rain (10).
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 USW00094971.
When is the last frost in Estherville?
In Estherville, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after May 2 in half of years and after May 14 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before September 30 in half of years and before September 17 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 21 year in 10 after May 14; 9 in 10 after April 19
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- September 301 year in 10 before September 17; 9 in 10 before October 13
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 150 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 170 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after April 24 in half of springs and before October 10 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Estherville in zone 5a in ZIP code 51334, the nearest ZIP area. By the map's own method, the average of each year's coldest night over 1991-2020, Estherville's NOAA station is in zone 5a: the coldest night of a typical year reaches −19°F (23 complete years).
Frost dates for every NOAA station in Iowa · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USW00094971; 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 Estherville?
In a normal year in Estherville, 10 days a year reach 90°F, 161 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 106 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 10a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- fewer than 1a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 161a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 73high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 106a normal year
The highest temperature in this station's record (since 1996) is 104°F, on May 14, 2013; the lowest is −32°F, on January 2, 2010.
The wettest calendar year on that record is 2004, with 39.29 in.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USW00094971; records: ACIS (NOAA Regional Climate Centers), station USW00094971. Records use complete months only; a month missing more than three days is left out.
How sunny is Estherville?
Over a year 74% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds in the area around Estherville, 4.0 kWh per square metre a day. July is the sunniest month (83%) and December the cloudiest (66%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 71% | 1.9 |
| February | 77% | 3.0 |
| March | 71% | 3.8 |
| April | 69% | 4.8 |
| May | 70% | 5.5 |
| June | 75% | 6.2 |
| July | 83% | 6.5 |
| August | 80% | 5.5 |
| September | 78% | 4.3 |
| October | 72% | 2.9 |
| November | 70% | 2.0 |
| December | 66% | 1.5 |
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 Estherville need?
A normal year in Estherville brings 7,910 heating degree days, 47% more than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 527 cooling degree days, 42% 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 2,493 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 1,555 | 0 |
| February | 1,285 | 0 |
| March | 1,026 | 0 |
| April | 599 | 2 |
| May | 262 | 31 |
| June | 44 | 128 |
| July | 14 | 188 |
| August | 32 | 125 |
| September | 178 | 48 |
| October | 552 | 5 |
| November | 972 | 0 |
| December | 1,390 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 7,910 | 527 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USW00094971. 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 Estherville been warmer than normal lately?
2025 averaged 47.4°F, 2.8°F above the 1991-2020 normal of 44.6°F. 5 of the 5 complete years since 2021 ran warmer than the normal.
| Year | Mean | Against normal | Precip. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 47.1°F | +2.5°F | – |
| 2022 | 45.4°F | +0.8°F | – |
| 2023 | 47.6°F | +3.0°F | – |
| 2024 | 49.6°F | +5.0°F | – |
| 2025 | 47.4°F | +2.8°F | 25.99 |
Source: observed years: ACIS, station USW00094971. A year counts only with all twelve months complete.
How does Estherville's climate compare?
Estherville is warmer than 3 of the other 131 places with their own NOAA record in Iowa, and wetter than 2. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 44.6°F is warmer than 18%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Estherville 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.
Which places near Estherville share this climate record?
5 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.
- Ringsted, IA346 people · 14 mi SE
- Ceylon, MN295 people · 10 mi NE
- Wallingford, IA154 people · 6 mi S
- Dunnell, MN127 people · 11 mi N
- Gruver, IA63 people · 2 mi SE
Source: Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer (place centers) and Vintage 2024 population estimates. Distance and direction from the station to each place's center.
What do Estherville's other NOAA stations record?
One more NOAA station keeps 1991-2020 normals in or near Estherville. This page uses Estherville Municipal Airport; the other differs by site and elevation:
| Station | From the center | Elevation | Year | Jan low | Jul high | Precip. | Snow | Last frost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Estherville (4 mi E) USC00132724 | 4 mi E | 1,320 ft | 44.8°F | 5°F | 83°F | 31.7 | – | May 2 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 normals for each station. Last frost: the median last spring date of 32°F.
Questions about Estherville's climate
What is the coldest month in Estherville?
January, with a normal high of 23°F and a normal low of 7°F. The warmest is July (81°F by day, 60°F at night).
Does it snow in Estherville?
Yes. NOAA publishes no 1991-2020 snowfall normal for Estherville's NOAA station; the nearest record that keeps one, Spirit Lake (20 miles away), records 42 inches of snow in a normal year.
What is the rainiest month in Estherville?
June, with 4.57 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is February with 0.46 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Estherville in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Estherville in zone 5a in ZIP code 51334, the nearest ZIP area. By the same method at Estherville's NOAA station, the coldest night of a typical year reaches −19°F (23 years, 1991-2020): zone 5a.
How late can frost come in Estherville?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after May 2; in one year in ten it comes after May 14. Waiting until May 14 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- Iowa climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Sherburn, MN16 miles from this station, 45.0°F a year
- Spirit Lake, IA20 miles from this station, 45.7°F a year
- Emmetsburg, IA21 miles from this station, 47.3°F a year
- Fairmont, MN22 miles from this station, 46.1°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made