Fairbanks, Alaska climate: Normal weather by month, frost dates and records
Fairbanks's normal year runs from −17°F January nights to 73°F July afternoons, with 11.7 inches of precipitation and 65 inches of snow a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of −2.1°C, January lows of −27°C, July highs of 23°C, 296 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationFairbanks International Airport
- Station IDUSW00026411
- Location64.80°N 147.88°W
- Elevation432 ft (132 m)
- From the center7 miles
- Population31,732
On October 23, the normal high in Fairbanks is 28°F and the normal low 13°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 32%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Fairbanks.
- Jan 1° -17°
- Feb 12° -11°
- Mar 25° -3°
- Apr 46° 22°
- May 62° 39°
- Jun 72° 50°
- Jul 73° 53°
- Aug 66° 48°
- Sep 55° 36°
- Oct 34° 18°
- Nov 12° -4°
- Dec 4° -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 Fairbanks each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 73°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of −17°F. The most precipitation falls in July (2.26 in), the least in April (0.34 in).
Each month has its own page with the day-by-day normals, the month's records and its recent years:
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 1°F | −17°F | -8.3°F | 0.61 | 10.2 | 9 | <1 | 31 | 5 h |
| February | 12°F | −11°F | 0.2°F | 0.52 | 10.0 | 7 | <1 | 28 | 8 h 20 min |
| March | 25°F | −3°F | 10.7°F | 0.40 | 6.5 | 6 | <1 | 31 | 11 h 30 min |
| April | 46°F | 22°F | 33.7°F | 0.34 | 3.1 | 4 | <1 | 26 | 15 h |
| May | 62°F | 39°F | 50.3°F | 0.54 | 0.9 | 6 | <1 | 6 | 18 h 30 min |
| June | 72°F | 50°F | 61.0°F | 1.48 | 0.0 | 11 | <1 | <1 | 21 h 40 min |
| July | 73°F | 53°F | 62.9°F | 2.26 | 0.0 | 13 | <1 | <1 | 20 h 20 min |
| August | 66°F | 48°F | 57.0°F | 2.10 | 0.0 | 14 | <1 | <1 | 16 h 40 min |
| September | 55°F | 36°F | 45.8°F | 1.35 | 2.3 | 11 | <1 | 9 | 13 h 10 min |
| October | 34°F | 18°F | 26.2°F | 0.76 | 8.2 | 10 | <1 | 29 | 9 h 50 min |
| November | 12°F | −4°F | 4.1°F | 0.74 | 12.5 | 10 | <1 | 30 | 6 h 20 min |
| December | 4°F | −13°F | -4.3°F | 0.57 | 10.9 | 9 | <1 | 31 | 3 h 50 min |
| Year (annual) | 39°F | 18°F | 28.3°F | 11.67 | 64.6 | 107 | <1 | 222 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | −17°C | −27°C | −22.4°C | 15 mm | 26 cm |
| February | −11°C | −24°C | −17.7°C | 13 mm | 25 cm |
| March | −4°C | −20°C | −11.8°C | 10 mm | 17 cm |
| April | 8°C | −6°C | 0.9°C | 9 mm | 8 cm |
| May | 17°C | 4°C | 10.2°C | 14 mm | 2 cm |
| June | 22°C | 10°C | 16.1°C | 38 mm | 0 cm |
| July | 23°C | 12°C | 17.2°C | 57 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 19°C | 9°C | 13.9°C | 53 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 13°C | 2°C | 7.7°C | 34 mm | 6 cm |
| October | 1°C | −8°C | −3.2°C | 19 mm | 21 cm |
| November | −11°C | −20°C | −15.5°C | 19 mm | 32 cm |
| December | −15°C | −25°C | −20.2°C | 14 mm | 28 cm |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USW00026411; 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 Fairbanks?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in June, July and August. Of those, June has the fewest days with rain (11).
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 USW00026411.
When is the last frost in Fairbanks?
In Fairbanks, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after May 13 in half of years and after May 26 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before September 13 in half of years and before August 29 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 131 year in 10 after May 26; 9 in 10 after May 2
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- September 131 year in 10 before August 29; 9 in 10 before September 24
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 121 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 140 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after May 4 in half of springs and before September 23 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Fairbanks in zone 2a in ZIP code 99703. By the map's own method, the average of each year's coldest night over 1991-2020, Fairbanks's NOAA station is in zone 2a: the coldest night of a typical year reaches −46°F (30 complete years).
Frost dates for every NOAA station in Alaska · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USW00026411; 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 Fairbanks?
In a normal year in Fairbanks, a 90°F day is rare, 222 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 107 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- fewer than 1a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- fewer than 1a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 222a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 154high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 107a normal year
- Days with 1 inch of snow or more
- 21a normal year
The highest temperature in Fairbanks's official record (kept by the National Weather Service since 1904) is 96°F, on June 15, 1969; the lowest is −66°F, on January 14, 1934.
The wettest calendar year on that record is 2021, with 18.74 in; the snowiest season is 1990–91, with 147.3 inches.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USW00026411; records: ACIS (NOAA Regional Climate Centers), NWS threaded record FAIthr. Records use complete months only; a month missing more than three days is left out.
How humid and windy is Fairbanks, and how clear are its skies?
The summer (June-August) dew point averages 47°F. The muggiest month is July, with an average dew point of 50°F; the driest air comes in December (−8°F). April is the windiest month (6.1 mph on average), and February has the most clear or nearly clear hours (38%).
| Month | Dew point | Humidity | Afternoon humidity | Wind | Clear or few clouds | Overcast |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | −8°F | 96% | 87% | 1.9 mph | 31% | 30% |
| February | −1°F | 77% | 62% | 3.4 mph | 38% | 28% |
| March | 10°F | 61% | 44% | 4.8 mph | 34% | 24% |
| April | 25°F | 51% | 34% | 6.1 mph | 27% | 22% |
| May | 39°F | 51% | 34% | 5.7 mph | 16% | 20% |
| June | 49°F | 60% | 44% | 5.2 mph | 8% | 25% |
| July | 50°F | 69% | 51% | 4.7 mph | 7% | 34% |
| August | 42°F | 72% | 51% | 4.5 mph | 15% | 31% |
| September | 29°F | 73% | 55% | 4.5 mph | 22% | 37% |
| October | 11°F | 82% | 77% | 3.0 mph | 26% | 41% |
| November | −5°F | 85% | 84% | 2.1 mph | 23% | 36% |
| December | −8°F | 90% | 94% | 2.0 mph | 31% | 31% |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 hourly normals, station USW00026411. Monthly averages of all hours; afternoon humidity at 3 p.m. local standard time; sky as the share of hours NOAA's observations rate clear or few clouds (a dash where NOAA publishes no sky value).
How sunny is Fairbanks?
Over a year 71% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds in the area around Fairbanks, 2.6 kWh per square metre a day. March is the sunniest month (84%) and October the cloudiest (62%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 75% | 0.2 |
| February | 75% | 0.8 |
| March | 84% | 2.6 |
| April | 83% | 4.4 |
| May | 73% | 5.2 |
| June | 69% | 5.4 |
| July | 66% | 4.8 |
| August | 67% | 3.7 |
| September | 67% | 2.3 |
| October | 62% | 1.0 |
| November | 63% | 0.3 |
| December | 79% | 0.1 |
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 Fairbanks need?
A normal year in Fairbanks brings 13,420 heating degree days, 2.5 times the median U.S. place (5,373), and 68 cooling degree days, 92% fewer than the median (908). Nine months need 300 or more heating degree days, a monthly mean of about 55°F or colder. For gardens and crops, NOAA counts 1,091 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 2,272 | 0 |
| February | 1,814 | 0 |
| March | 1,682 | 0 |
| April | 941 | 0 |
| May | 455 | 1 |
| June | 147 | 27 |
| July | 98 | 33 |
| August | 255 | 7 |
| September | 578 | 0 |
| October | 1,201 | 0 |
| November | 1,827 | 0 |
| December | 2,150 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 13,420 | 68 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USW00026411. 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 Fairbanks been warmer than normal lately?
2025 averaged 30.1°F, 1.8°F above the 1991-2020 normal of 28.3°F. 4 of the 5 complete years since 2021 ran warmer than the normal.
| Year | Mean | Against normal | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 27.9°F | −0.4°F | 18.74 | 120.4 |
| 2022 | 29.0°F | +0.7°F | 9.30 | 59.3 |
| 2023 | 29.7°F | +1.4°F | 10.59 | 90.5 |
| 2024 | 29.2°F | +0.9°F | 15.26 | 67.1 |
| 2025 | 30.1°F | +1.8°F | 12.46 | 62.0 |
Over 94 complete years from 1923 to 2025, the station's annual mean temperature rose at a fitted 4.2°F per century (+0.24°C per decade). A fitted rate summarizes the whole record; single years swing well above and below it.
Source: observed years: ACIS, station USW00026411; trend: NOAA GHCN-Monthly v4. A year counts only with all twelve months complete.
How does Fairbanks's climate compare?
Fairbanks is warmer than 27 of the other 84 places with their own NOAA record in Alaska, and wetter than 9. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 28.3°F is warmer than 1%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Fairbanks 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.
What do Fairbanks's other NOAA stations record?
3 more NOAA stations keep 1991-2020 normals in or near Fairbanks. This page uses Fairbanks International Airport; the others differ by site and elevation, and the linked ones have pages of their own:
| Station | From the center | Elevation | Year | Jan low | Jul high | Precip. | Snow | Last frost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fairbanks Midtown USC00502970 | 4 mi W | 440 ft | 29.0°F | −14°F | 73°F | 12.6 | 52 | May 13 |
| Fairbanks (11 mi NE) USW00026494 | 10 mi NE | 1,140 ft | 31.2°F | −2°F | 68°F | 15.0 | – | May 12 |
| Fairbanks Airport #2 USC00502965 | 7 mi W | 427 ft | 27.6°F | −15°F | 72°F | 12.2 | 60 | May 16 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 normals for each station. Last frost: the median last spring date of 32°F.
Questions about Fairbanks's climate
What is the coldest month in Fairbanks?
January, with a normal high of 1°F and a normal low of −17°F. The warmest is July (73°F by day, 53°F at night).
Does it snow in Fairbanks?
Yes: 65 inches in a normal year, falling on 60 days with 0.1 inch or more, the most in November (12.5 inches).
What is the rainiest month in Fairbanks?
July, with 2.26 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is April with 0.34 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Fairbanks in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Fairbanks in zone 2a in ZIP code 99703. By the same method at Fairbanks's NOAA station, the coldest night of a typical year reaches −46°F (30 years, 1991-2020): zone 2a.
How late can frost come in Fairbanks?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after May 13; in one year in ten it comes after May 26. Waiting until May 26 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- Fairbanks in OctoberThis month day by day, its records and recent years
- Alaska climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Fairbanks Midtown, AK3 miles from this station, 29.0°F a year
- University Experiment Station, AK4 miles from this station, 28.9°F a year
- College, AK4 miles from this station, 28.5°F a year
- Ester, AK6 miles from this station, 26.8°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made