Franklin, Tennessee climate: Normal weather by month, frost dates and records
Franklin's normal year runs from 29°F January nights to 91°F July afternoons, with 53.8 inches of precipitation and 2 inches of snow a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 15.4°C, January lows of −2°C, July highs of 33°C, 1,366 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationFranklin Sewage Plant
- Station IDUSC00403280
- Location35.94°N 86.87°W
- Elevation655 ft (200 m)
- Population89,142
On October 14, the normal high in Franklin is 75°F and the normal low 48°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 30%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Franklin.
- Jan 49° 29°
- Feb 53° 31°
- Mar 62° 38°
- Apr 72° 46°
- May 80° 55°
- Jun 87° 64°
- Jul 91° 69°
- Aug 90° 67°
- Sep 85° 60°
- Oct 74° 47°
- Nov 62° 37°
- 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 Franklin each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 91°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of 29°F. The most precipitation falls in May (5.39 in), the least in October (3.47 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 | 49°F | 29°F | 38.9°F | 4.25 | 0.9 | 12 | <1 | 21 | 10 h |
| February | 53°F | 31°F | 42.3°F | 4.76 | 0.3 | 11 | <1 | 17 | 10 h 50 min |
| March | 62°F | 38°F | 50.0°F | 5.16 | 0.4 | 13 | <1 | 11 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 72°F | 46°F | 59.0°F | 5.16 | 0.0 | 11 | <1 | 3 | 13 h |
| May | 80°F | 55°F | 67.4°F | 5.39 | 0.0 | 12 | 1 | <1 | 14 h |
| June | 87°F | 64°F | 75.8°F | 4.39 | 0.0 | 11 | 8 | <1 | 14 h 30 min |
| July | 91°F | 69°F | 79.7°F | 4.57 | 0.0 | 11 | 16 | <1 | 14 h 20 min |
| August | 90°F | 67°F | 78.5°F | 3.61 | 0.0 | 9 | 14 | <1 | 13 h 30 min |
| September | 85°F | 60°F | 72.3°F | 4.00 | 0.0 | 8 | 6 | <1 | 12 h 30 min |
| October | 74°F | 47°F | 60.5°F | 3.47 | 0.0 | 9 | <1 | 2 | 11 h 20 min |
| November | 62°F | 37°F | 49.4°F | 3.83 | 0.0 | 10 | <1 | 12 | 10 h 20 min |
| December | 53°F | 32°F | 42.1°F | 5.20 | 0.1 | 12 | <1 | 19 | 9 h 40 min |
| Year (annual) | 71°F | 48°F | 59.7°F | 53.79 | 1.7 | 130 | 45 | 84 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 10°C | −2°C | 3.8°C | 108 mm | 2 cm |
| February | 12°C | 0°C | 5.7°C | 121 mm | 1 cm |
| March | 17°C | 3°C | 10.0°C | 131 mm | 1 cm |
| April | 22°C | 8°C | 15.0°C | 131 mm | 0 cm |
| May | 26°C | 13°C | 19.7°C | 137 mm | 0 cm |
| June | 31°C | 18°C | 24.3°C | 112 mm | 0 cm |
| July | 33°C | 20°C | 26.5°C | 116 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 32°C | 19°C | 25.8°C | 92 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 29°C | 15°C | 22.4°C | 102 mm | 0 cm |
| October | 23°C | 8°C | 15.8°C | 88 mm | 0 cm |
| November | 16°C | 3°C | 9.7°C | 97 mm | 0 cm |
| December | 11°C | 0°C | 5.6°C | 132 mm | 0 cm |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00403280; 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 Franklin?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in April, May, September and October. Of those, September 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 USC00403280.
When is the last frost in Franklin?
In Franklin, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after April 3 in half of years and after April 20 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before October 31 in half of years and before October 18 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
- April 31 year in 10 after April 20; 9 in 10 after March 17
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- October 311 year in 10 before October 18; 9 in 10 before November 13
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 210 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 233 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after March 22 in half of springs and before November 10 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Franklin in zone 7b across its 3 ZIP code areas (7b in 37064, the largest). By the map's own method, the average of each year's coldest night over 1991-2020, Franklin's NOAA station is in zone 7b: the coldest night of a typical year reaches 8°F (27 complete years).
Frost dates for every NOAA station in Tennessee · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USC00403280; 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 Franklin ZIP code in?
The USDA's 2023 map gives each ZIP code area one zone. Franklin's 3 ZIP code areas are all in zone 7b. 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 Franklin?
In a normal year in Franklin, 45 days a year reach 90°F (1 of them 100°F or more), 84 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 130 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 45a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- 1a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 84a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 8high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 130a normal year
- Days with 1 inch of snow or more
- 1a normal year
The highest temperature in this station's record (since 1893) is 108°F, on June 30, 2012; the lowest is −22°F, on January 22, 1985.
The wettest calendar year on that record is 1973, with 68.74 in; the snowiest season is 1963–64, with 19.5 inches.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USC00403280; records: ACIS (NOAA Regional Climate Centers), station USC00403280. Records use complete months only; a month missing more than three days is left out.
How sunny is Franklin?
Over a year 75% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds in the area around Franklin, 4.3 kWh per square metre a day. June is the sunniest month (80%) and February the cloudiest (63%). Among the 459 U.S. places of 50,000 or more, that ranks tied 304th (with 25 others) in sunshine.
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 66% | 2.3 |
| February | 63% | 2.9 |
| March | 68% | 4.0 |
| April | 75% | 5.3 |
| May | 76% | 5.9 |
| June | 80% | 6.4 |
| July | 79% | 6.1 |
| August | 80% | 5.5 |
| September | 79% | 4.8 |
| October | 76% | 3.7 |
| November | 75% | 2.8 |
| December | 65% | 2.0 |
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 Franklin need?
A normal year in Franklin brings 3,601 heating degree days, 33% fewer than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 1,686 cooling degree days, 86% more than 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 4,769 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 811 | 0 |
| February | 638 | 1 |
| March | 472 | 7 |
| April | 218 | 40 |
| May | 64 | 140 |
| June | 3 | 327 |
| July | 0 | 454 |
| August | 0 | 420 |
| September | 20 | 239 |
| October | 192 | 52 |
| November | 474 | 5 |
| December | 709 | 1 |
| Year (annual) | 3,601 | 1,686 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00403280. 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 Franklin been warmer than normal lately?
Over 44 complete years from 1949 to 2020, the station's annual mean temperature rose at a fitted 4.1°F per century (+0.23°C per decade). A fitted rate summarizes the whole record; single years swing well above and below it.
Source: trend: NOAA GHCN-Monthly v4. A year counts only with all twelve months complete.
How does Franklin's climate compare?
Franklin is warmer than 94 of the other 115 places with their own NOAA record in Tennessee, and wetter than 26. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 59.7°F is warmer than 74%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Franklin 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.
Questions about Franklin's climate
What is the coldest month in Franklin?
January, with a normal high of 49°F and a normal low of 29°F. The warmest is July (91°F by day, 69°F at night).
Does it snow in Franklin?
Yes: 2 inches in a normal year, falling on 1 days with 0.1 inch or more, the most in January (0.9 inches).
What is the rainiest month in Franklin?
May, with 5.39 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is October with 3.47 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Franklin in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Franklin in zone 7b across its 3 ZIP code areas (7b in 37064, the largest). By the same method at Franklin's NOAA station, the coldest night of a typical year reaches 8°F (27 years, 1991-2020): zone 7b.
How late can frost come in Franklin?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after April 3; in one year in ten it comes after April 20. Waiting until April 20 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- Franklin in OctoberThis month day by day, its records and recent years
- Tennessee climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Brentwood, TN6 miles from this station, 57.9°F a year
- Warner Park, TN9 miles from this station, 58.6°F a year
- Spring Hill, TN13 miles from this station, 59.7°F a year
- Fairview, TN15 miles from this station, 58.8°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made