Howells, Nebraska climate: Normal weather by month, frost dates and records
Howells's normal year runs from 13°F January nights to 87°F July afternoons, with 28.8 inches of precipitation and 24 inches of snow a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 10.2°C, January lows of −10°C, July highs of 30°C, 731 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationHowells
- Station IDUSC00254035
- Location41.72°N 97.00°W
- Elevation1,520 ft (463 m)
- From the centerunder 1 mile
- Population571
On October 22, the normal high in Howells is 62°F and the normal low 37°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 Howells.
- Jan 33° 13°
- Feb 38° 16°
- Mar 51° 27°
- Apr 63° 37°
- May 73° 50°
- Jun 83° 61°
- Jul 87° 64°
- Aug 84° 62°
- Sep 78° 52°
- Oct 65° 40°
- Nov 50° 27°
- Dec 37° 17°
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 Howells each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 87°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of 13°F. The most precipitation falls in June (4.97 in), the least in January (0.47 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 33°F | 13°F | 23.3°F | 0.47 | 5.2 | 4 | <1 | 30 | 9 h 30 min |
| February | 38°F | 16°F | 27.0°F | 0.74 | 6.5 | 4 | <1 | 27 | 10 h 30 min |
| March | 51°F | 27°F | 38.7°F | 1.46 | 3.1 | 6 | <1 | 23 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 63°F | 37°F | 49.8°F | 3.10 | 1.7 | 8 | <1 | 10 | 13 h 20 min |
| May | 73°F | 50°F | 61.4°F | 4.25 | 0.0 | 11 | 1 | 1 | 14 h 30 min |
| June | 83°F | 61°F | 71.9°F | 4.97 | 0.0 | 9 | 5 | <1 | 15 h 10 min |
| July | 87°F | 64°F | 75.5°F | 3.09 | 0.0 | 7 | 8 | <1 | 15 h |
| August | 84°F | 62°F | 72.7°F | 3.64 | 0.0 | 8 | 5 | <1 | 13 h 50 min |
| September | 78°F | 52°F | 65.3°F | 2.94 | 0.0 | 6 | 2 | <1 | 12 h 30 min |
| October | 65°F | 40°F | 52.6°F | 2.22 | 0.7 | 6 | <1 | 9 | 11 h 10 min |
| November | 50°F | 27°F | 38.4°F | 1.04 | 2.3 | 4 | <1 | 22 | 9 h 50 min |
| December | 37°F | 17°F | 27.0°F | 0.84 | 4.2 | 5 | <1 | 30 | 9 h 10 min |
| Year (annual) | 62°F | 39°F | 50.3°F | 28.76 | 23.7 | 78 | 22 | 152 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 1°C | −10°C | −4.8°C | 12 mm | 13 cm |
| February | 3°C | −9°C | −2.8°C | 19 mm | 17 cm |
| March | 11°C | −3°C | 3.7°C | 37 mm | 8 cm |
| April | 17°C | 3°C | 9.9°C | 79 mm | 4 cm |
| May | 23°C | 10°C | 16.3°C | 108 mm | 0 cm |
| June | 28°C | 16°C | 22.2°C | 126 mm | 0 cm |
| July | 30°C | 18°C | 24.2°C | 78 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 29°C | 16°C | 22.6°C | 92 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 26°C | 11°C | 18.5°C | 75 mm | 0 cm |
| October | 19°C | 4°C | 11.4°C | 56 mm | 2 cm |
| November | 10°C | −3°C | 3.6°C | 26 mm | 6 cm |
| December | 3°C | −8°C | −2.8°C | 21 mm | 11 cm |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00254035; 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 Howells?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in May, June, August, September and October. Of those, October has the fewest days with rain (6).
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 USC00254035.
When is the last frost in Howells?
In Howells, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after April 25 in half of years and after May 8 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before October 11 in half of years and before September 25 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 251 year in 10 after May 8; 9 in 10 after April 13
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- October 111 year in 10 before September 25; 9 in 10 before October 25
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 168 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 186 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after April 16 in half of springs and before October 21 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Howells in zone 5b in ZIP code 68641, the nearest ZIP area. By the map's own method, the average of each year's coldest night over 1991-2020, Howells's NOAA station is in zone 5b: the coldest night of a typical year reaches −13°F (20 complete years).
Frost dates for every NOAA station in Nebraska · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USC00254035; 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 Howells?
In a normal year in Howells, 22 days a year reach 90°F, 152 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 78 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 22a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- fewer than 1a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 152a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 47high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 78a normal year
- Days with 1 inch of snow or more
- 8a normal year
The highest temperature in this station's record (since 1940) is 102°F, on May 14, 2013; the lowest is −27°F, on February 16, 2021.
The wettest calendar year on that record is 1998, with 37.92 in; the snowiest season is 1983–84, with 59.6 inches.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USC00254035; records: ACIS (NOAA Regional Climate Centers), station USC00254035. Records use complete months only; a month missing more than three days is left out.
How sunny is Howells?
Over a year 78% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds in the area around Howells, 4.3 kWh per square metre a day. July is the sunniest month (84%) and March the cloudiest (71%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 75% | 2.2 |
| February | 76% | 3.1 |
| March | 71% | 4.0 |
| April | 73% | 5.1 |
| May | 74% | 5.9 |
| June | 81% | 6.7 |
| July | 84% | 6.7 |
| August | 82% | 5.7 |
| September | 81% | 4.6 |
| October | 77% | 3.3 |
| November | 77% | 2.4 |
| December | 72% | 1.8 |
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 Howells need?
A normal year in Howells brings 6,319 heating degree days, 18% more than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 1,004 cooling degree days, 11% more than the median (908). Seven months need 300 or more heating degree days, a monthly mean of about 55°F or colder. For gardens and crops, NOAA counts 3,335 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 1,291 | 0 |
| February | 1,062 | 0 |
| March | 815 | 1 |
| April | 463 | 7 |
| May | 180 | 68 |
| June | 23 | 230 |
| July | 5 | 328 |
| August | 9 | 248 |
| September | 97 | 107 |
| October | 401 | 15 |
| November | 798 | 0 |
| December | 1,176 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 6,319 | 1,004 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00254035. 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 Howells been warmer than normal lately?
2025 averaged 52.1°F, 1.8°F above the 1991-2020 normal of 50.3°F. 5 of the 5 complete years since 2021 ran warmer than the normal.
| Year | Mean | Against normal | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 52.1°F | +1.8°F | 27.87 | 19.2 |
| 2022 | 51.1°F | +0.8°F | 14.08 | 3.0 |
| 2023 | 52.2°F | +1.9°F | 22.37 | 18.1 |
| 2024 | 53.0°F | +2.7°F | 25.49 | 19.1 |
| 2025 | 52.1°F | +1.8°F | 30.92 | 17.0 |
Source: observed years: ACIS, station USC00254035. A year counts only with all twelve months complete.
How does Howells's climate compare?
Howells is warmer than 84 of the other 136 places with their own NOAA record in Nebraska, and wetter than 91. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 50.3°F is warmer than 42%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Howells is Dwa: continental, dry-winter, 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 Howells share this climate record?
2 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.
- Dodge, NE582 people · 6 mi E
- Rogers, NE85 people · 18 mi S
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 Howells's climate
What is the coldest month in Howells?
January, with a normal high of 33°F and a normal low of 13°F. The warmest is July (87°F by day, 64°F at night).
Does it snow in Howells?
Yes: 24 inches in a normal year, falling on 14 days with 0.1 inch or more, the most in February (6.5 inches).
What is the rainiest month in Howells?
June, with 4.97 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is January with 0.47 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Howells in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Howells in zone 5b in ZIP code 68641, the nearest ZIP area. By the same method at Howells's NOAA station, the coldest night of a typical year reaches −13°F (20 years, 1991-2020): zone 5b.
How late can frost come in Howells?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after April 25; in one year in ten it comes after May 8. Waiting until May 8 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- Nebraska climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Clarkson, NE6 miles from this station, 48.7°F a year
- West Point, NE17 miles from this station, 48.8°F a year
- Stanton, NE20 miles from this station, 49.4°F a year
- Columbus, NE24 miles from this station, 50.5°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made