Fort Ross, CA Climate: Temperature & Rain by Month
Explore NOAA NCEI's 1991–2020 climate normals → and a clearly labeled PlainClimate comfort calculation
- Warmer than median · Avg annual temp
- 54°F
- Above score median · Comfort score
- 76/100
- Wetter than median · Annual precip
- 39.2"
- Long-season national band · Growing season
- 304d
30-year climate normals (1991-2020) from Fort Ross's primary NOAA station, FT ROSS.
The climate verdict for Fort Ross
A compact 8.9°F seasonal swing gives Fort Ross, California a steadier-than-extreme annual shape. NOAA reports an annual average of 54°F. It scores 76/100 for climate comfort (good), putting it in the top third of station-mapped location scores and exceeding 69% of them.
- 54°F
- annual average temperature (NOAA normal)
- 76/100
- comfort score, above 69% of station-mapped location scores
- 39.2"
- precipitation, annual total
- 304 days
- frost-free growing season
Fort Ross: NOAA 1991-2020 normals describe a typical year, not a forecast. Method: /methodology.
Avg Temperature
54°F (12°C)
Warmer than median
Avg High
62°F
Cooler than median
Avg Low
45°F
Warmer than median
Annual Precip
39.2"
Wetter than median
Comfort Score
76/100
Above score median · Good
Climate Living Index · Fort Ross
Fort Ross: 82/100 · grade B
Fort Ross publishes 4 of 6 Living Index dimensions (NOAA annual/seasonal normals · NOAA daily multivariate normals); 2 missing weights rescale to 100.
PlainClimate-derived for Fort Ross, not an official NOAA rating. Rankings still use Comfort Score 76/100 (separate formula). Breakpoints and limits.
| Dimension | Station value | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Frost-free season | 304 days/year | 100/100 · A |
| Normal heat + freeze calendar | 0 calendar days | 100/100 · A |
| Precipitation balance | 39.2 in · 4.2 from 35 in | 85/100 · A |
| Annual temperature balance | 53.6°F · 13.9° from 67.5°F | 55/100 · C |
Fort Ross · 2026-08-04 · NOAA NCEI Climate Normals · method · Comfort Score method.
National standing · heating-led station
Where Fort Ross sits across the climate record
Three NOAA fields for Fort Ross's primary station, temperature, precipitation, and seasonal swing, are ranked against every station-mapped normal that carries the same field.
- Annual temperature
- 55th percentile warmth
- Mid-pack annual mean versus 6,861 station normals.
- Annual precipitation
- 56th percentile wetness
- Neither arid nor torrential versus 6,352 station totals.
- Seasonal temperature swing
- Narrower than 99%
- Warmest-to-coldest month gap for Fort Ross is compact versus 6,861 complete station-years.
How Fort Ross compares across U.S. station-mapped locations
Fort Ross's comfort score vs. all station-mapped locations
PlainClimate composite comfort index (1–100), NOAA 1991–2020 normals
76 Top 31% score exceeds 69% 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%). Below this entry.
- 60–70: 1,236 station-mapped locations (20%). Below this entry.
- 70–80: 650 station-mapped locations (11%). This entry sits in this band.
- 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 | Freeze Days | 90°F+ Days |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 57°F (14°C) | 42°F (5°C) | 49°F (10°C) | 7.2" | 2.2 | 0.0 |
| February | 59°F (15°C) | 42°F (6°C) | 50°F (10°C) | 7.0" | 2.4 | 0.0 |
| March | 59°F (15°C) | 42°F (6°C) | 50°F (10°C) | 5.2" | 1.9 | 0.0 |
| April | 60°F (16°C) | 43°F (6°C) | 52°F (11°C) | 2.9" | 0.4 | 0.0 |
| May | 62°F (17°C) | 45°F (7°C) | 54°F (12°C) | 1.6" | 0.5 | 0.0 |
| June | 66°F (19°C) | 46°F (8°C) | 56°F (13°C) | 0.5" | 0.2 | 0.0 |
| July | 66°F (19°C) | 48°F (9°C) | 57°F (14°C) | 0.0" | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| August | 67°F (19°C) | 50°F (10°C) | 58°F (15°C) | 0.1" | 0.2 | 0.1 |
| September | 67°F (20°C) | 48°F (9°C) | 58°F (14°C) | 0.2" | 0.1 | 0.0 |
| October | 66°F (19°C) | 47°F (8°C) | 57°F (14°C) | 2.0" | 0.8 | 0.1 |
| November | 61°F (16°C) | 44°F (7°C) | 53°F (11°C) | 4.2" | 1.1 | 0.0 |
| December | 57°F (14°C) | 42°F (5°C) | 49°F (10°C) | 8.4" | 2.2 | 0.0 |
The year, day by day
The calendar barely moves in Fort Ross: no date carries a normal high of 90°F or a normal low at freezing. The year runs between 41°F near January 1 and 67°F near August 23.
No freezing date
Not one calendar date in the 1991–2020 record carries a normal low at or below 32°F. The coldest normal low of the year is 41°F around January 1.
The widest day
June 19 carries the biggest normal gap between afternoon and dawn, 20°F between the normal high and the normal low.
Look up any date
Any date's 1991–2020 normal for Fort Ross.
Where Fort Ross Stands Nationally
Among the steadiest day-night climates ranked: even the widest normal daily swing holds to roughly 20°F.
Fort Ross earns one nationally notable standing (outer quintile) against 6,860 NOAA 1991–2020 normals stations, middle-of-the-pack metrics stay silent here.
Monthly Precipitation
Average monthly rainfall
Fort Ross's wet season runs through the cold months
December, January and February carry 58% of the year's precipitation here, while June through August contribute 2%. That is the cool-season-dominant pattern of the West Coast and the higher inland West, where storm tracks swing south in winter and summer turns dry; the thermometer meanwhile shows an unusually narrow 8.9°F seasonal spread.
- Wettest month
- December, 8.4"
- Driest month
- July, 0.0"
- Wettest three months
- December, January, February (58% of the year)
Shares are computed from this station's own 1991-2020 monthly precipitation normals. A cool-season label means the December-February share reaches 35%. Where snow falls, the monthly figures above report liquid-equivalent precipitation, so a wet winter month is not necessarily a rainy one.
Frost Dates & Growing Season
First Fall Freeze
December 27
50% probability date
Last Spring Freeze
February 26
50% probability date
Growing Season
304 days
Heating & Cooling Degree Days
Annual totals indicate energy demand for heating and cooling
Heating Degree Days
4,178
Higher = more heating needed
Cooling Degree Days
11
Higher = more cooling needed
Warmest Month
August
Coldest Month
January
Data-derived climate profile
How Fort Ross's climate pattern fits together
heating led · moderate · low swing
Heating is the larger measured load in Fort Ross, at 4,178 degree days versus 11 for cooling. Unlike a strongly continental record, however, its 8.9°F month-to-month range is compact; persistent cool-season demand matters more than a dramatic summer-to-winter reversal.
The frost-free window extends for about 304 days. That is a long calendar measure, but it is not a forecast and does not combine heat, rainfall, soil, or local elevation into a planting recommendation.
Temperature varies within a narrow 8.9°F band across the normal year. August and January mark the typical warm and cold ends of the calendar. The annual average is 54°F. Monthly rows still matter, but they refine a steady profile rather than reveal two climatic extremes.
Fort Ross's 39.2 inches of annual precipitation falls in PlainClimate's middle band, so “wet” or “dry” is not the leading description. Snowfall is not added to the interpretation because its annual value is missing. Temperature balance and the calendar distribution carry more information than the annual moisture label alone.
These labels group NOAA 1991-2020 normals from Fort Ross's primary station, so the winter figures are a thirty-year average and not a floor: a single hard season can run well below them. Treat each band as a descriptive range for Fort Ross, not an official NOAA class or a year-ahead forecast.
Questions about Fort Ross's climate
How much rain does Fort Ross get? ▼
How much energy does heating and cooling require in Fort Ross? ▼
Data Sources
Data source: NOAA U.S. Climate Normals v1.0.1 (1991-2020). All figures on this page are from Fort Ross's primary station: FT ROSS (USC00043191). 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 Fort Ross; 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 Fort Ross 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.