Fairbanks Midtown, AK Climate: Temperature & Rain by Month
Temperature and precipitation from NOAA NCEI 1991–2020 normals →, plus PlainClimate's derived comfort score
30-year climate normals (1991-2020) from Fairbanks Midtown's primary NOAA station, FAIRBANKS MIDTOWN.
The climate verdict for Fairbanks Midtown
Winter sets the terms in Fairbanks Midtown, Alaska. A pronounced 69.4°F seasonal swing and heating demand above twice the cooling total frame an annual average of 29°F. At 34/100 (below average) the climate comfort score falls in the bottom third of the station-mapped U.S. score corpus, exceeding only 2% of scores.
- 29°F
- annual average temperature (NOAA normal)
- 34/100
- comfort score, above 2% of station-mapped location scores
- 12.6"
- annual precipitation · 52" snow
- 120 days
- frost-free growing season
Fairbanks Midtown: NOAA 1991-2020 normals describe a typical year, not a forecast. Method: /methodology.
Normals record plate
Sheet USC00502970 · Fairbanks Midtown, AK 29°F mean · 12.6" precip
TEMP-COLD · RANK-COOL · PHOTO-FINISH · PRCP-DRY · SWING-WIDE · COMF-LOW · LOAD-HEAT · STN-1 · BOOK-FULL
- TEMP-COLD 29°F
- RANK-COOL #69
- PHOTO-FINISH ≈ Healy
- PRCP-DRY 12.6"
- SWING-WIDE 69°F
- COMF-LOW 34/100
- LOAD-HEAT 13,140 HDD
- STN-1 USC00502970
- BOOK-FULL 6/6 fields
Nearest mean-temperature peer: Healy, AK ( -0.4 °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 AK station list.
- Fairbanks Midto… (this station) 29°F
- Near Healy, AK 29°F
- Near Aurora, AK 29°F
- Near College Obsy, AK 29°F
- Cold Gilmore Creek, AK 28°F
Fairbanks Midtown sits in Alaska, the #1 coldest U.S. state at 33.5°F statewide annual average - see all 50 coldest states ranked by NOAA normals
Climate Living Index · Fairbanks Midtown
Fairbanks Midtown: 8/100 · grade F
Fairbanks Midtown publishes 5 of 6 Living Index dimensions (NOAA annual/seasonal normals · NOAA daily multivariate normals); 1 missing weight rescale to 100.
PlainClimate-derived for Fairbanks Midtown, not an official NOAA rating. Rankings still use Comfort Score 34/100 (separate formula). Breakpoints and limits.
| Dimension | Station value | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Precipitation balance | 12.6 in · 22.4 from 35 in | 20/100 · F |
| Snowfall burden | 51.5 inches/year | 20/100 · F |
| Frost-free season | 120 days/year | 7/100 · F |
| Normal heat + freeze calendar | 221 calendar days | 5/100 · F |
| Annual temperature balance | 29.0°F · 38.5° from 67.5°F | 0/100 · F |
Fairbanks Midtown · 2026-08-04 · NOAA NCEI Climate Normals · method · Comfort Score method.
Fairbanks Midtown is a continental Köppen climate: Dfb
Coldest-month mean -6.6°F and warmest-month mean 62.8°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
- 62.8°F
- Coldest month
- -6.6°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 Fairbanks Midtown sits across the climate record
Three NOAA fields for Fairbanks Midtown's primary station, temperature, precipitation, and seasonal swing, are ranked against every station-mapped normal that carries the same field.
- Annual temperature
- Cooler than 99%
- Among 6,861 stations, Fairbanks Midtown sits in the cooler third of annual means.
- Annual precipitation
- Drier than 88%
- Fairbanks Midtown's annual total ranks in the drier third of 6,352 measured normals.
- Seasonal temperature swing
- Wider than 99%
- Warmest-to-coldest month gap for Fairbanks Midtown is large versus 6,861 complete station-years.
How Fairbanks Midtown compares across U.S. station-mapped locations
Fairbanks Midtown's comfort score vs. all station-mapped locations
PlainClimate composite comfort index (1–100), NOAA 1991–2020 normals
34 2nd percentile score exceeds 2% 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%). This entry sits in this band.
- 40–50: 1,113 station-mapped locations (18%). Above this entry.
- 50–60: 1,329 station-mapped locations (21%). Above this entry.
- 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
Monthly Temperatures
Average daily high and low temperatures by month
| Month | Avg High | Avg Low | Mean | Precip | Snow | Freeze Days | 90°F+ Days |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 1°F (-17°C) | -14°F (-25°C) | -7°F (-21°C) | 0.6" | 7.9" | 31.0 | 0.0 |
| February | 13°F (-11°C) | -7°F (-22°C) | 3°F (-16°C) | 0.5" | 8.1" | 28.0 | 0.0 |
| March | 26°F (-3°C) | 0°F (-18°C) | 13°F (-10°C) | 0.4" | 4.7" | 31.0 | 0.0 |
| April | 47°F (8°C) | 22°F (-6°C) | 34°F (1°C) | 0.3" | 2.0" | 27.5 | 0.0 |
| May | 63°F (17°C) | 38°F (3°C) | 50°F (10°C) | 0.7" | 0.7" | 8.7 | 0.0 |
| June | 72°F (22°C) | 50°F (10°C) | 61°F (16°C) | 1.9" | 0.0" | 0.1 | 0.4 |
| July | 73°F (23°C) | 53°F (11°C) | 63°F (17°C) | 2.4" | 0.0" | 0.0 | 0.1 |
| August | 66°F (19°C) | 47°F (8°C) | 57°F (14°C) | 2.3" | 0.0" | 0.2 | 0.1 |
| September | 55°F (13°C) | 35°F (2°C) | 45°F (7°C) | 1.6" | 0.9" | 9.8 | 0.0 |
| October | 34°F (1°C) | 19°F (-7°C) | 27°F (-3°C) | 0.8" | 9.0" | 29.0 | 0.0 |
| November | 12°F (-11°C) | -1°F (-18°C) | 5°F (-15°C) | 0.7" | 8.6" | 30.0 | 0.0 |
| December | 4°F (-16°C) | -9°F (-23°C) | -3°F (-19°C) | 0.6" | 9.6" | 31.0 | 0.0 |
The year, day by day
Summer here tops out rather than builds: the warmest normal high is 75°F around July 1, short of 90°F on every date, while 221 dates carry a normal low at or below freezing, the coldest -15°F near January 10.
The freezing stretch
The normal low stays at or below 32°F into May 1, then returns to freezing around September 24, covering 221 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 August 9, when 50% of years recorded at least a hundredth of an inch. The driest is April 1 at 11%. Summed across the calendar, that is about 107 wet dates a year.
The widest day
March 20 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 Fairbanks Midtown.
Where Fairbanks Midtown Stands Nationally
Winters bite deep and often: the normal nightly low dips to freezing or below on around 221 nights a year, placing this among the most frost-prone tenth of ranked stations.
A drier-than-most normal water year — around 13 inches, below what four out of five ranked stations collect.
Fairbanks Midtown earns 2 nationally notable standings (outer quintiles) against 6,860 NOAA 1991–2020 normals stations; only those extremes render.
Monthly Precipitation
Average monthly rainfall and snowfall
Snow: 7.9"
7.7 days with precipitation
Snow: 8.1"
5.7 days with precipitation
Snow: 4.7"
3.9 days with precipitation
Snow: 2.0"
3.1 days with precipitation
Snow: 0.7"
7.0 days with precipitation
11.0 days with precipitation
15.4 days with precipitation
15.3 days with precipitation
Snow: 0.9"
11.9 days with precipitation
Snow: 9.0"
9.9 days with precipitation
Snow: 8.6"
8.2 days with precipitation
Snow: 9.6"
8.2 days with precipitation
Fairbanks Midtown runs a summer-peaked wet season
52% of Fairbanks Midtown's yearly precipitation falls in June, July and August alone, against the 25% an evenly spread year would give those three months. The wettest month is July at 2.4", on a wide 69.4°F gap between its warmest and coldest month. Warm-season convection and, across the Southwest, the North American monsoon produce this shape: rain arrives in short heavy bursts during the hottest part of the year rather than as long cool-season soaking.
- Wettest three months: July, August, June, taking 52% of the annual total between them.
- Driest month: April at 0.3".
- Winter share: 13% falls in December, January and February.
Shares are computed from this station's own 1991-2020 monthly precipitation normals. A summer-peaked label means the June-August share reaches 35%; it describes timing across an average year, not any single season, and says nothing about how heavy an individual storm can be.
Fairbanks Midtown is dry, and what does fall arrives gently
Only about 107 days a year record measurable precipitation here, 29% of the calendar, and they carry 12.6" between them. At roughly 0.12 inches on an average wet day, this is not the damp drizzle of a marine climate; it is an arid record in which precipitation is both uncommon and light when it appears.
The wettest month by count is July at about 15 wet days; the driest is April at about 3.
A low per-event average in a dry record is a statement about typical days only. Arid regions can still take a large share of a year's total from a single convective storm, which a normal cannot show.
A wet day is one recording at least 0.01 inches. These are 1991-2020 normals: they describe an average year, not the extremes within it.
Winter brings real snow to Fairbanks Midtown
Fairbanks Midtown averages 51.5 inches of snowfall a year, with December the snowiest month on the normals, spread across roughly 59 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: 51.5 inches of depth.
- Days recording measurable snow: about 59 a year.
- At a rough ten-to-one melt ratio, snow accounts for on the order of 41% 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
September 10
50% probability date
Last Spring Freeze
May 13
50% probability date
Growing Season
120 days
Heating & Cooling Degree Days
Annual totals indicate energy demand for heating and cooling
Heating Degree Days
13,140
Higher = more heating needed
Cooling Degree Days
70
Higher = more cooling needed
Warmest Month
July
Coldest Month
January
Nationwide similar cities
Other rankable U.S. places outside AK closest to Fairbanks Midtown 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 (29°F here).
- Cooke City, MT 34°F · 5.2°F off
- Crested Butte, CO 34°F · 5.2°F off
- Silver Gate, MT 34°F · 5.3°F off
- Stanley, ID 34°F · 5.4°F off
Closest by annual precipitation
Nearest out-of-state peers by annual precipitation (12.6" here), excluding temperature-peer places.
- Harrington, WA 12.6" · 0.0" off
- Valier, MT 12.6" · 0.0" off
- Conrad, MT 12.6" · 0.0" off
- Maybell, CO 12.6" · 0.0" off
Snow and freeze rhythm
When cold and snow define Fairbanks Midtown
heating led · dry · high swing
Winter and seasonal range jointly define this record. Fairbanks Midtown logs 13,140 heating degree days, more than twice its 70 cooling total, while the typical coldest-to-warmest-month gap reaches 69.4°F. The annual mean therefore compresses two materially different seasons.
Only about 120 days are frost-free in a normal year. That short interval is consistent with the cold-season signal, but the measure does not predict the exact first or last freeze in any one year.
-
1. Fairbanks Midtown coldest normal
January
Averaging -7°F (-21°C), this month sits below freezing for the month as a whole, not merely overnight.
-
2. Fairbanks Midtown typical freeze period
January through December
The station reports average freezing days from January through December.
-
3. Fairbanks Midtown snow peak
December
Fairbanks Midtown averages 51.5 inches of snow a year, with December the snowiest month on the normals.
Questions about Fairbanks Midtown's climate
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Data Sources
Data source: NOAA U.S. Climate Normals v1.0.1 (1991-2020). All figures on this page are from Fairbanks Midtown's primary station: FAIRBANKS MIDTOWN (USC00502970). For informational purposes only.
Place identity: U.S. Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer places. The conservative exact name-and-state crosswalk finds no Census place match, so PlainClimate treats this as a station-mapped location and does not claim it is a municipality. No exact Gazetteer row for Fairbanks Midtown; facility counts that depend on place identity are therefore an upper bound, not a municipal census.
On this page every temperature, precipitation, and derived score for Fairbanks Midtown 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.