Gray, Maine climate: Normal weather by month, frost dates and records
Gray's normal year runs from 14°F January nights to 79°F July afternoons, with 50.1 inches of precipitation and 84 inches of snow a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 7.9°C, January lows of −10°C, July highs of 26°C, 1,274 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationGray
- Station IDUSC00173295
- Location43.89°N 70.25°W
- Elevation378 ft (115 m)
- Population (town)8,583
- Census place810
On October 22, the normal high in Gray is 55°F and the normal low 39°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 38%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Gray.
- Jan 30° 14°
- Feb 33° 16°
- Mar 41° 25°
- Apr 53° 34°
- May 64° 44°
- Jun 73° 54°
- Jul 79° 60°
- Aug 78° 59°
- Sep 70° 52°
- Oct 58° 41°
- Nov 46° 31°
- Dec 35° 21°
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 Gray each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 79°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of 14°F. The most precipitation falls in October (5.42 in), the least in February (3.34 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 30°F | 14°F | 22.0°F | 3.55 | 20.6 | 11 | <1 | 30 | 9 h 10 min |
| February | 33°F | 16°F | 24.7°F | 3.34 | 20.4 | 10 | <1 | 27 | 10 h 30 min |
| March | 41°F | 25°F | 32.9°F | 4.01 | 16.2 | 11 | <1 | 26 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 53°F | 34°F | 43.5°F | 4.40 | 4.7 | 12 | <1 | 11 | 13 h 20 min |
| May | 64°F | 44°F | 54.2°F | 3.56 | 0.0 | 14 | <1 | <1 | 14 h 40 min |
| June | 73°F | 54°F | 63.6°F | 4.73 | 0.0 | 13 | 1 | <1 | 15 h 30 min |
| July | 79°F | 60°F | 69.5°F | 3.73 | 0.0 | 12 | 2 | <1 | 15 h 10 min |
| August | 78°F | 59°F | 68.6°F | 3.84 | 0.0 | 11 | 1 | <1 | 14 h |
| September | 70°F | 52°F | 60.9°F | 4.32 | 0.0 | 10 | <1 | <1 | 12 h 40 min |
| October | 58°F | 41°F | 49.2°F | 5.42 | 0.6 | 12 | <1 | 4 | 11 h 10 min |
| November | 46°F | 31°F | 38.8°F | 4.65 | 3.8 | 11 | <1 | 18 | 9 h 40 min |
| December | 35°F | 21°F | 28.2°F | 4.59 | 17.7 | 13 | <1 | 29 | 9 h |
| Year (annual) | 55°F | 38°F | 46.3°F | 50.14 | 84.0 | 140 | 5 | 144 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | −1°C | −10°C | −5.6°C | 90 mm | 52 cm |
| February | 1°C | −9°C | −4.1°C | 85 mm | 52 cm |
| March | 5°C | −4°C | 0.5°C | 102 mm | 41 cm |
| April | 12°C | 1°C | 6.4°C | 112 mm | 12 cm |
| May | 18°C | 7°C | 12.3°C | 90 mm | 0 cm |
| June | 23°C | 12°C | 17.6°C | 120 mm | 0 cm |
| July | 26°C | 16°C | 20.8°C | 95 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 26°C | 15°C | 20.3°C | 98 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 21°C | 11°C | 16.1°C | 110 mm | 0 cm |
| October | 14°C | 5°C | 9.6°C | 138 mm | 2 cm |
| November | 8°C | 0°C | 3.8°C | 118 mm | 10 cm |
| December | 2°C | −6°C | −2.1°C | 117 mm | 45 cm |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00173295; 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 Gray?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in June, July, August and September. Of those, September has the fewest days with rain (10).
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 USC00173295.
When is the last frost in Gray?
In Gray, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after April 28 in half of years and after May 10 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before October 19 in half of years and before October 5 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 281 year in 10 after May 10; 9 in 10 after April 15
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- October 191 year in 10 before October 5; 9 in 10 before November 4
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 172 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 198 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after April 15 in half of springs and before November 1 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Gray in zone 5b in ZIP code 04039, the nearest ZIP area. By the map's own method, the average of each year's coldest night over 1991-2020, Gray's NOAA station is in zone 6a: the coldest night of a typical year reaches −8°F (25 complete years); the map interpolates between stations and terrain, so the station and the ZIP area can differ by half a zone.
Frost dates for every NOAA station in Maine · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USC00173295; 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 Gray?
In a normal year in Gray, 5 days a year reach 90°F, 144 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 140 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 5a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- fewer than 1a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 144a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 52high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 140a normal year
- Days with 1 inch of snow or more
- 20a normal year
The highest temperature in this station's record (since 1995) is 99°F, on June 24, 2025; the lowest is −17°F, on February 4, 2023.
The wettest calendar year on that record is 2005, with 71.90 in; the snowiest season is 2007–08, with 134.0 inches.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USC00173295; records: ACIS (NOAA Regional Climate Centers), station USC00173295. Records use complete months only; a month missing more than three days is left out.
How sunny is Gray?
Over a year 72% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds in the area around Gray, 3.8 kWh per square metre a day. August is the sunniest month (79%) and December the cloudiest (64%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 67% | 1.7 |
| February | 69% | 2.5 |
| March | 69% | 3.6 |
| April | 70% | 4.7 |
| May | 69% | 5.3 |
| June | 70% | 5.6 |
| July | 77% | 5.9 |
| August | 79% | 5.3 |
| September | 78% | 4.3 |
| October | 70% | 2.8 |
| November | 68% | 1.8 |
| December | 64% | 1.4 |
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 Gray need?
A normal year in Gray brings 7,163 heating degree days, 33% more than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 396 cooling degree days, 56% fewer than the median (908). Eight months need 300 or more heating degree days, a monthly mean of about 55°F or colder. For gardens and crops, NOAA counts 2,212 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 1,333 | 0 |
| February | 1,127 | 0 |
| March | 994 | 0 |
| April | 647 | 1 |
| May | 346 | 9 |
| June | 103 | 61 |
| July | 15 | 156 |
| August | 21 | 131 |
| September | 158 | 37 |
| October | 490 | 2 |
| November | 788 | 0 |
| December | 1,142 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 7,163 | 396 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00173295. 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 Gray been warmer than normal lately?
2025 averaged 46.5°F, 0.2°F above the 1991-2020 normal of 46.3°F. 5 of the 5 complete years since 2021 ran warmer than the normal.
| Year | Mean | Against normal | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 48.4°F | +2.1°F | 45.00 | 35.3 |
| 2022 | 47.8°F | +1.5°F | 45.50 | 41.1 |
| 2023 | 48.2°F | +1.9°F | 59.95 | 77.1 |
| 2024 | 48.6°F | +2.3°F | 51.41 | 66.9 |
| 2025 | 46.5°F | +0.2°F | 39.21 | 74.2 |
Source: observed years: ACIS, station USC00173295. A year counts only with all twelve months complete.
How does Gray's climate compare?
Gray is warmer than 36 of the other 41 places with their own NOAA record in Maine, and wetter than 34. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 46.3°F is warmer than 25%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Gray 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.
Which places near Gray share this climate record?
5 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.
- Yarmouth, ME9,060 people · 7 mi SE
- Cumberland Center, ME2,811 people · 7 mi S
- Freeport, ME8,877 people · 8 mi E
- Cousins Island, ME509 people · 10 mi SE
- Littlejohn Island, ME95 people · 11 mi SE
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 Gray's climate
What is the coldest month in Gray?
January, with a normal high of 30°F and a normal low of 14°F. The warmest is July (79°F by day, 60°F at night).
Does it snow in Gray?
Yes: 84 inches in a normal year, falling on 35 days with 0.1 inch or more, the most in January (20.6 inches).
What is the rainiest month in Gray?
October, with 5.42 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is February with 3.34 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Gray in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Gray in zone 5b in ZIP code 04039, the nearest ZIP area. By the same method at Gray's NOAA station, the coldest night of a typical year reaches −8°F (25 years, 1991-2020): zone 6a.
How late can frost come in Gray?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after April 28; in one year in ten it comes after May 10. Waiting until May 10 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- Maine climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Poland, ME9 miles from this station, 44.1°F a year
- Durham, ME11 miles from this station, 43.9°F a year
- Windham (2 mi NW), ME11 miles from this station, 45.7°F a year
- Lewiston, ME14 miles from this station, 46.3°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made