Gunnison, Colorado climate: Normal weather by month, frost dates and records
Gunnison's normal year runs from −6°F January nights to 80°F July afternoons, with 10.6 inches of precipitation and 46 inches of snow a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 3.2°C, January lows of −21°C, July highs of 27°C, 269 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationGunnison (3 mi SW)
- Station IDUSC00053662
- Location38.53°N 106.97°W
- Elevation7,622 ft (2,323 m)
- Population6,821
On October 22, the normal high in Gunnison is 57°F and the normal low 20°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 18%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Gunnison.
- Jan 26° -6°
- Feb 30° 1°
- Mar 44° 14°
- Apr 56° 23°
- May 66° 30°
- Jun 76° 37°
- Jul 80° 44°
- Aug 77° 43°
- Sep 70° 34°
- Oct 60° 22°
- Nov 44° 11°
- Dec 29° -3°
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 Gunnison each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 80°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of −6°F. The most precipitation falls in August (1.45 in), the least in March (0.51 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 26°F | −6°F | 9.8°F | 0.82 | 11.1 | 7 | <1 | 31 | 9 h 50 min |
| February | 30°F | 1°F | 15.6°F | 0.67 | 9.0 | 7 | <1 | 28 | 10 h 40 min |
| March | 44°F | 14°F | 29.0°F | 0.51 | 4.4 | 5 | <1 | 31 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 56°F | 23°F | 39.3°F | 0.74 | 3.5 | 5 | <1 | 28 | 13 h 10 min |
| May | 66°F | 30°F | 48.0°F | 1.00 | 0.6 | 7 | <1 | 20 | 14 h 10 min |
| June | 76°F | 37°F | 56.3°F | 0.57 | 0.0 | 5 | <1 | 5 | 14 h 50 min |
| July | 80°F | 44°F | 61.9°F | 1.31 | 0.0 | 10 | <1 | <1 | 14 h 40 min |
| August | 77°F | 43°F | 59.8°F | 1.45 | 0.0 | 11 | <1 | 1 | 13 h 40 min |
| September | 70°F | 34°F | 51.9°F | 1.22 | 0.2 | 9 | <1 | 14 | 12 h 30 min |
| October | 60°F | 22°F | 40.7°F | 0.73 | 1.2 | 6 | <1 | 29 | 11 h 20 min |
| November | 44°F | 11°F | 27.1°F | 0.65 | 5.2 | 5 | <1 | 30 | 10 h 10 min |
| December | 29°F | −3°F | 12.8°F | 0.93 | 10.3 | 6 | <1 | 31 | 9 h 30 min |
| Year (annual) | 55°F | 21°F | 37.7°F | 10.60 | 45.5 | 83 | <1 | 247 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | −3°C | −21°C | −12.3°C | 21 mm | 28 cm |
| February | −1°C | −17°C | −9.1°C | 17 mm | 23 cm |
| March | 7°C | −10°C | −1.7°C | 13 mm | 11 cm |
| April | 13°C | −5°C | 4.1°C | 19 mm | 9 cm |
| May | 19°C | −1°C | 8.9°C | 25 mm | 2 cm |
| June | 25°C | 3°C | 13.5°C | 14 mm | 0 cm |
| July | 27°C | 7°C | 16.6°C | 33 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 25°C | 6°C | 15.4°C | 37 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 21°C | 1°C | 11.1°C | 31 mm | 1 cm |
| October | 15°C | −6°C | 4.8°C | 19 mm | 3 cm |
| November | 6°C | −12°C | −2.7°C | 17 mm | 13 cm |
| December | −2°C | −19°C | −10.7°C | 24 mm | 26 cm |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00053662; 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 Gunnison?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in May, June, July, August and September. Of those, June has the fewest days with rain (5).
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 USC00053662.
How hot and how cold does it get in Gunnison?
In a normal year in Gunnison, a 90°F day is rare, 247 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 83 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- fewer than 1a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- fewer than 1a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 247a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 66high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 83a normal year
- Days with 1 inch of snow or more
- 17a normal year
The highest temperature in this station's record (since 1893) is 105°F, on August 3, 1894; the lowest is −47°F, on December 25, 1924.
The wettest calendar year on that record is 1959, with 17.75 in; the snowiest season is 2007–08, with 101.4 inches.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USC00053662; records: ACIS (NOAA Regional Climate Centers), station USC00053662. Records use complete months only; a month missing more than three days is left out.
How sunny is Gunnison?
Over a year 78% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds in the area around Gunnison, 5.0 kWh per square metre a day. March is the sunniest month (82%) and May the cloudiest (74%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 80% | 2.9 |
| February | 78% | 3.8 |
| March | 82% | 5.3 |
| April | 76% | 6.1 |
| May | 74% | 6.6 |
| June | 82% | 7.5 |
| July | 75% | 6.6 |
| August | 76% | 6.0 |
| September | 81% | 5.4 |
| October | 82% | 4.2 |
| November | 80% | 3.0 |
| December | 79% | 2.5 |
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 Gunnison need?
A normal year in Gunnison brings 9,935 heating degree days, 85% more than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 16 cooling degree days, 98% fewer than the median (908). Nine months need 300 or more heating degree days, a monthly mean of about 55°F or colder. For gardens and crops, NOAA counts 1,028 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 1,710 | 0 |
| February | 1,385 | 0 |
| March | 1,115 | 0 |
| April | 770 | 0 |
| May | 527 | 0 |
| June | 261 | 1 |
| July | 108 | 11 |
| August | 165 | 4 |
| September | 392 | 0 |
| October | 752 | 0 |
| November | 1,136 | 0 |
| December | 1,618 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 9,935 | 16 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00053662. 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 Gunnison been warmer than normal lately?
2025 averaged 40.0°F, 2.3°F above the 1991-2020 normal of 37.7°F. 4 of the 5 complete years since 2021 ran warmer than the normal.
| Year | Mean | Against normal | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 40.0°F | +2.3°F | 7.66 | – |
| 2022 | 38.9°F | +1.2°F | 10.10 | 37.4 |
| 2023 | 37.3°F | −0.4°F | 7.79 | – |
| 2024 | 39.2°F | +1.5°F | 13.78 | – |
| 2025 | 40.0°F | +2.3°F | 7.67 | – |
Over 81 complete years from 1902 to 2025, the station's annual mean temperature rose at a fitted 4.4°F per century (+0.25°C per decade). A fitted rate summarizes the whole record; single years swing well above and below it.
Source: observed years: ACIS, station USC00053662; trend: NOAA GHCN-Monthly v4. A year counts only with all twelve months complete.
How does Gunnison's climate compare?
Gunnison is warmer than 8 of the other 124 places with their own NOAA record in Colorado, and wetter than 15. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 37.7°F is warmer than 3%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Gunnison 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.
Questions about Gunnison's climate
What is the coldest month in Gunnison?
January, with a normal high of 26°F and a normal low of −6°F. The warmest is July (80°F by day, 44°F at night).
Does it snow in Gunnison?
Yes: 46 inches in a normal year, falling on 36 days with 0.1 inch or more, the most in January (11.1 inches).
What is the rainiest month in Gunnison?
August, with 1.45 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is March with 0.51 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Gunnison in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Gunnison in zone 5b in ZIP code 81230, the nearest ZIP area. By the same method at Gunnison's NOAA station, the coldest night of a typical year reaches −27°F (26 years, 1991-2020): zone 4a.
Nearby and next
- Colorado climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Blue Mesa Lake, CO12 miles from this station, 39.7°F a year
- Cochetopa Creek, CO12 miles from this station, 38.0°F a year
- Crested Butte, CO24 miles from this station, 34.2°F a year
- Taylor Park, CO28 miles from this station, 34.5°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made