Fort Smith, Arkansas climate: Normal weather by month, frost dates and records
Fort Smith's normal year runs from 30°F January nights to 94°F July afternoons, with 47.3 inches of precipitation and 3 inches of snow a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 16.9°C, January lows of −1°C, July highs of 35°C, 1,202 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationFort Smith Regional Airport
- Station IDUSW00013964
- Location35.33°N 94.36°W
- Elevation449 ft (137 m)
- From the center1 miles
- Population90,507
On October 14, the normal high in Fort Smith is 77°F and the normal low 52°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 25%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Fort Smith.
- Jan 51° 30°
- Feb 57° 33°
- Mar 66° 42°
- Apr 75° 50°
- May 81° 60°
- Jun 89° 68°
- Jul 94° 72°
- Aug 94° 71°
- Sep 87° 63°
- Oct 76° 51°
- Nov 63° 40°
- Dec 53° 32°
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 Fort Smith each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 94°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of 30°F. The most precipitation falls in May (5.63 in), the least in February (2.69 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 | 51°F | 30°F | 40.4°F | 2.91 | 1.4 | 8 | <1 | 20 | 10 h |
| February | 57°F | 33°F | 45.0°F | 2.69 | 0.6 | 8 | <1 | 13 | 10 h 50 min |
| March | 66°F | 42°F | 53.5°F | 3.90 | 0.3 | 10 | <1 | 5 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 75°F | 50°F | 62.1°F | 4.87 | 0.0 | 9 | <1 | 1 | 13 h |
| May | 81°F | 60°F | 70.4°F | 5.63 | 0.0 | 11 | 3 | <1 | 14 h |
| June | 89°F | 68°F | 78.8°F | 4.56 | 0.0 | 9 | 15 | <1 | 14 h 30 min |
| July | 94°F | 72°F | 83.1°F | 3.39 | 0.0 | 7 | 24 | <1 | 14 h 20 min |
| August | 94°F | 71°F | 82.3°F | 3.60 | 0.0 | 7 | 23 | <1 | 13 h 30 min |
| September | 87°F | 63°F | 74.8°F | 4.04 | 0.0 | 7 | 11 | <1 | 12 h 30 min |
| October | 76°F | 51°F | 63.5°F | 4.42 | 0.0 | 8 | 1 | <1 | 11 h 20 min |
| November | 63°F | 40°F | 51.7°F | 3.85 | 0.0 | 7 | <1 | 7 | 10 h 20 min |
| December | 53°F | 32°F | 42.8°F | 3.48 | 0.6 | 8 | <1 | 16 | 9 h 50 min |
| Year (annual) | 74°F | 51°F | 62.4°F | 47.34 | 2.9 | 99 | 78 | 63 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 11°C | −1°C | 4.7°C | 74 mm | 4 cm |
| February | 14°C | 1°C | 7.2°C | 68 mm | 2 cm |
| March | 19°C | 5°C | 11.9°C | 99 mm | 1 cm |
| April | 24°C | 10°C | 16.7°C | 124 mm | 0 cm |
| May | 27°C | 15°C | 21.3°C | 143 mm | 0 cm |
| June | 32°C | 20°C | 26.0°C | 116 mm | 0 cm |
| July | 35°C | 22°C | 28.4°C | 86 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 34°C | 22°C | 27.9°C | 91 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 30°C | 17°C | 23.8°C | 103 mm | 0 cm |
| October | 24°C | 11°C | 17.5°C | 112 mm | 0 cm |
| November | 17°C | 4°C | 10.9°C | 98 mm | 0 cm |
| December | 12°C | 0°C | 6.0°C | 88 mm | 2 cm |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USW00013964; 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 Fort Smith?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in March, April, May and October. Of those, October has the fewest days with rain (8).
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 USW00013964.
When is the last frost in Fort Smith?
In Fort Smith, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after March 25 in half of years and after April 11 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before November 6 in half of years and before October 23 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
- March 251 year in 10 after April 11; 9 in 10 after March 4
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- November 61 year in 10 before October 23; 9 in 10 before November 21
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 224 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 250 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after March 11 in half of springs and before November 17 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Fort Smith in zone 8a across its 6 ZIP code areas (8a in 72903, the largest). By the map's own method, the average of each year's coldest night over 1991-2020, Fort Smith's NOAA station is in zone 8a: the coldest night of a typical year reaches 12°F (30 complete years).
Frost dates for every NOAA station in Arkansas · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USW00013964; 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.
What hardiness zone is each Fort Smith ZIP code in?
The USDA's 2023 map gives each ZIP code area one zone. Fort Smith's 6 ZIP code areas are all in zone 8a. Each ZIP's frost dates are in the frost tool.
Source: USDA 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map, ZIP listings: PRISM Group, Oregon State University, https://prism.oregonstate.edu, accessed October 8, 2026; ZIP areas in the place: Census Bureau 2020 ZCTA-to-place relationship file. A ZIP area counts when at least a tenth of its land (and 0.5 km²) lies in the place.
How hot and how cold does it get in Fort Smith?
In a normal year in Fort Smith, 78 days a year reach 90°F (11 of them 100°F or more), 63 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 99 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 78a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- 11a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 63a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 4high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 99a normal year
- Days with 1 inch of snow or more
- 1a normal year
The highest temperature in Fort Smith's official record (kept by the National Weather Service since 1882) is 115°F, on August 3, 2011; the lowest is −15°F, on February 12, 1899.
The wettest calendar year on that record is 2015, with 73.93 in; the snowiest season is 1920–21, with 22.6 inches.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USW00013964; records: ACIS (NOAA Regional Climate Centers), NWS threaded record FSMthr. Records use complete months only; a month missing more than three days is left out.
How humid and windy is Fort Smith, and how clear are its skies?
The summer (June-August) dew point averages 69°F. The muggiest month is July, with an average dew point of 69°F, above the 65°F at which most people call the air sticky; the driest air comes in December (30°F). March is the windiest month (8.4 mph on average), and July has the most clear or nearly clear hours (80%).
| Month | Dew point | Humidity | Afternoon humidity | Wind | Clear or few clouds | Overcast |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 30°F | 65% | 46% | 7.4 mph | 57% | 35% |
| February | 35°F | 62% | 42% | 8.3 mph | 59% | 32% |
| March | 44°F | 62% | 43% | 8.4 mph | 59% | 29% |
| April | 54°F | 67% | 48% | 7.4 mph | 59% | 26% |
| May | 65°F | 72% | 54% | 6.3 mph | 66% | 16% |
| June | 69°F | 69% | 49% | 5.7 mph | 75% | 8% |
| July | 69°F | 66% | 45% | 5.4 mph | 80% | 8% |
| August | 67°F | 68% | 45% | 5.5 mph | 78% | 10% |
| September | 57°F | 68% | 43% | 5.8 mph | 76% | 14% |
| October | 46°F | 69% | 46% | 6.6 mph | 61% | 30% |
| November | 36°F | 68% | 47% | 7.3 mph | 62% | 31% |
| December | 30°F | 69% | 51% | 7.3 mph | 58% | 35% |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 hourly normals, station USW00013964. 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 Fort Smith?
Over a year 76% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds in the area around Fort Smith, 4.4 kWh per square metre a day. July is the sunniest month (83%) and February the cloudiest (66%). Among the 459 U.S. places of 50,000 or more, that ranks tied 276th (with 27 others) in sunshine.
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 71% | 2.5 |
| February | 66% | 3.1 |
| March | 69% | 4.1 |
| April | 72% | 5.2 |
| May | 73% | 5.7 |
| June | 82% | 6.6 |
| July | 83% | 6.5 |
| August | 83% | 5.9 |
| September | 82% | 5.0 |
| October | 77% | 3.8 |
| November | 75% | 2.8 |
| December | 70% | 2.2 |
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 Fort Smith need?
A normal year in Fort Smith brings 3,098 heating degree days, 42% fewer than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 2,177 cooling degree days, 2.4 times the median (908). Five months need 300 or more heating degree days, a monthly mean of about 55°F or colder. For gardens and crops, NOAA counts 5,500 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 761 | 0 |
| February | 561 | 1 |
| March | 369 | 14 |
| April | 142 | 57 |
| May | 28 | 197 |
| June | 0 | 416 |
| July | 0 | 561 |
| August | 0 | 536 |
| September | 10 | 304 |
| October | 129 | 81 |
| November | 407 | 8 |
| December | 689 | 1 |
| Year (annual) | 3,098 | 2,177 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USW00013964. 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 Fort Smith been warmer than normal lately?
2025 averaged 64.5°F, 2.1°F above the 1991-2020 normal of 62.4°F. 5 of the 5 complete years since 2021 ran warmer than the normal.
| Year | Mean | Against normal | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 63.1°F | +0.7°F | 50.60 | 6.0 |
| 2022 | 63.1°F | +0.7°F | 56.01 | 6.5 |
| 2023 | 64.8°F | +2.4°F | 45.29 | 4.0 |
| 2024 | 65.6°F | +3.2°F | 55.94 | 2.5 |
| 2025 | 64.5°F | +2.1°F | 52.33 | 9.0 |
Over 79 complete years from 1947 to 2025, the station's annual mean temperature rose at a fitted 1.7°F per century (+0.09°C per decade). A fitted rate summarizes the whole record; single years swing well above and below it.
Source: observed years: ACIS, station USW00013964; trend: NOAA GHCN-Monthly v4. A year counts only with all twelve months complete.
How does Fort Smith's climate compare?
Fort Smith is warmer than 60 of the other 85 places with their own NOAA record in Arkansas, and wetter than 8. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 62.4°F is warmer than 81%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Fort Smith is Cfa: temperate, no dry season, hot 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 Fort Smith share this climate record?
25 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.
- Van Buren, AR24,396 people · 8 mi N
- Greenwood, AR9,730 people · 11 mi SE
- Barling, AR5,284 people · 5 mi E
- Pocola, OK4,588 people · 8 mi SW
- Roland, OK4,021 people · 10 mi NW
- Muldrow, OK3,358 people · 14 mi W
- Lavaca, AR2,528 people · 10 mi E
- Spiro, OK2,197 people · 16 mi SW
- Arkoma, OK1,858 people · 5 mi W
- Panama, OK1,299 people · 21 mi SW
- Kibler, AR1,027 people · 10 mi NE
- Hackett, AR844 people · 10 mi S
- Rock Island, OK751 people · 12 mi SW
- Remy, OK609 people · 12 mi NW
- Bonanza, AR607 people · 8 mi SW
- Nicut, OK580 people · 22 mi NW
- Central City, AR470 people · 7 mi E
- Long, OK444 people · 15 mi NW
- Fort Coffee, OK349 people · 12 mi W
- Cameron, OK331 people · 17 mi SW
- Liberty, OK199 people · 14 mi NW
- Belfonte, OK195 people · 18 mi NW
- Short, OK138 people · 18 mi NW
- Dora, AR73 people · 10 mi NW
- Moffett, OK32 people · 7 mi NW
Source: Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer (place centers) and Vintage 2024 population estimates. Distance and direction from the station to each place's center.
Questions about Fort Smith's climate
What is the coldest month in Fort Smith?
January, with a normal high of 51°F and a normal low of 30°F. The warmest is July (94°F by day, 72°F at night).
Does it snow in Fort Smith?
Yes: 3 inches in a normal year, falling on 2 days with 0.1 inch or more, the most in January (1.4 inches).
What is the rainiest month in Fort Smith?
May, with 5.63 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is February with 2.69 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Fort Smith in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Fort Smith in zone 8a across its 6 ZIP code areas (8a in 72903, the largest). By the same method at Fort Smith's NOAA station, the coldest night of a typical year reaches 12°F (30 years, 1991-2020): zone 8a.
How late can frost come in Fort Smith?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after March 25; in one year in ten it comes after April 11. Waiting until April 11 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- Fort Smith in OctoberThis month day by day, its records and recent years
- Arkansas climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Mountainburg, AR25 miles from this station, 59.0°F a year
- Sallisaw, OK26 miles from this station, 60.2°F a year
- Booneville, AR30 miles from this station, 60.5°F a year
- Ozark, AR30 miles from this station, 60.2°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made