Joplin, MO Climate: Temperature & Rain by Month
Explore NOAA NCEI's 1991–2020 climate normals → and a clearly labeled PlainClimate comfort calculation
30-year climate normals (1991-2020) from Joplin's primary NOAA station, JOPLIN 24 N.
The climate verdict for Joplin
Water is the standout signal in Joplin, Missouri: 45.8 inches of precipitation in a normal year. Against that wet profile, NOAA records an annual average of 57°F. It scores 80/100 for climate comfort (excellent), putting it in the top third of station-mapped location scores and exceeding 76% of them.
- 57°F
- average temperature, NOAA 1991-2020 normal
- 80/100
- comfort score, above 76% of station-mapped location scores
- 45.8"
- annual precipitation
- 201 days
- growing season, frost-free days
Joplin: NOAA 1991-2020 normals describe a typical year, not a forecast. Method: /methodology.
Normals record plate
Sheet USW00023908 · Joplin, MO 57°F mean · 45.8" precip
TEMP-MILD · RANK-UPPER · PHOTO-FINISH · PRCP-MID · SWING-MID · COMF-TOP · LOAD-HEAT · STN-1 · BOOK-FULL
- TEMP-MILD 57°F
- RANK-UPPER #4,528
- PHOTO-FINISH ≈ New York Laguar…
- PRCP-MID 45.8"
- SWING-MID 45°F
- COMF-TOP 80/100
- LOAD-HEAT 4,376 HDD
- STN-1 USW00023908
- BOOK-FULL 6/6 fields
Nearest mean-temperature peer: New York Laguardia, NY (+ 0.1 °F mean)
Instrument codes from this station's NOAA 1991–2020 normals, mean temperature, corpus warmth rank, photo-finish peer station, precipitation band, seasonal swing, comfort composite, degree-day load, and field book, not a livability rating.
Mean-temperature neighbourhood
Nationwide NOAA normal poles and nearest peers, not a reprint of every MO station list.
- Joplin (this station) 57°F
- Cold Vevay, IN 57°F
- Hot Dalhart, TX 57°F
- Near New York Laguar…, NY 57°F
- Near Monett, MO 57°F
Climate Living Index · Joplin
Joplin: 64/100 · grade C
Joplin publishes 4 of 6 Living Index dimensions (NOAA annual/seasonal normals · NOAA daily multivariate normals); 2 missing weights rescale to 100.
PlainClimate-derived for Joplin, not an official NOAA rating. Rankings still use Comfort Score 80/100 (separate formula). Breakpoints and limits.
| Dimension | Station value | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Annual temperature balance | 56.7°F · 10.8° from 67.5°F | 65/100 · C |
| Frost-free season | 201 days/year | 65/100 · C |
| Normal heat + freeze calendar | 121 calendar days | 64/100 · C |
| Precipitation balance | 45.8 in · 10.8 from 35 in | 62/100 · C |
Joplin · 2026-08-04 · NOAA NCEI Climate Normals · method · Comfort Score method.
Joplin is a temperate Köppen climate: Cfa
Coldest-month mean 33.7°F and warmest-month mean 78.2°F place this station in temperate, no dry season, hot summer climates (Cfa). Class Cfa is the Peel et al. (2007) label for this station's monthly mean temperature and precipitation normals: temperate, specifically temperate, no dry season, hot summer.
- Köppen code
- Cfa
- Group
- Temperate
- Warmest month
- 78.2°F
- Coldest month
- 33.7°F
Source: official public datasets monthly normals (1991–2020) at the city’s primary station. This is a station classification, not a mapped regional consensus.
National standing · heating-led station
Where Joplin sits across the climate record
Three NOAA fields for Joplin's primary station, temperature, precipitation, and seasonal swing, are ranked against every station-mapped normal that carries the same field.
- Annual temperature
- 66th percentile warmth
- Mid-pack annual mean versus 6,861 station normals.
- Annual precipitation
- Top 30% wettest
- Joplin's annual total ranks in the wetter third of 6,352 measured normals.
- Seasonal temperature swing
- 56th percentile swing
- Typical seasonal amplitude versus 6,861 complete station-years.
How Joplin compares across U.S. station-mapped locations
Joplin's comfort score vs. all station-mapped locations
PlainClimate composite comfort index (1–100), NOAA 1991–2020 normals
80 Top 24% score exceeds 76% of 6,189 station-mapped location scores
- 0–10: 0 station-mapped locations (0%). Below this entry.
- 10–20: 0 station-mapped locations (0%). Below this entry.
- 20–30: 96 station-mapped locations (2%). Below this entry.
- 30–40: 280 station-mapped locations (5%). Below this entry.
- 40–50: 1,113 station-mapped locations (18%). Below this entry.
- 50–60: 1,329 station-mapped locations (21%). Below this entry.
- 60–70: 1,236 station-mapped locations (20%). Below this entry.
- 70–80: 650 station-mapped locations (11%). Below this entry.
- 80–90: 921 station-mapped locations (15%). This entry sits in this band.
- 90–100: 564 station-mapped locations (9%). Above this entry.
Source NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, PlainClimate comfort index · 1991–2020
Monthly Temperatures
Average daily high and low temperatures by month
| Month | Avg High | Avg Low | Mean | Precip | Freeze Days | 90°F+ Days |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 44°F (7°C) | 23°F (-5°C) | 34°F (1°C) | 1.9" | 25.8 | 0.0 |
| February | 49°F (9°C) | 27°F (-3°C) | 38°F (3°C) | 2.1" | 21.4 | 0.0 |
| March | 59°F (15°C) | 36°F (2°C) | 48°F (9°C) | 3.0" | 11.8 | 0.0 |
| April | 69°F (20°C) | 46°F (8°C) | 57°F (14°C) | 5.3" | 2.9 | 0.0 |
| May | 76°F (24°C) | 55°F (13°C) | 65°F (19°C) | 6.8" | 0.0 | 0.2 |
| June | 85°F (29°C) | 64°F (18°C) | 74°F (23°C) | 5.4" | 0.0 | 6.9 |
| July | 89°F (32°C) | 67°F (20°C) | 78°F (26°C) | 4.0" | 0.0 | 14.5 |
| August | 89°F (32°C) | 65°F (18°C) | 77°F (25°C) | 3.8" | 0.0 | 13.1 |
| September | 81°F (27°C) | 56°F (13°C) | 69°F (20°C) | 5.2" | 0.0 | 4.5 |
| October | 71°F (21°C) | 45°F (7°C) | 58°F (14°C) | 3.6" | 2.9 | 0.1 |
| November | 58°F (14°C) | 35°F (2°C) | 46°F (8°C) | 2.9" | 13.2 | 0.0 |
| December | 47°F (8°C) | 26°F (-3°C) | 37°F (3°C) | 2.1" | 24.3 | 0.0 |
The year, day by day
Joplin works both ends of the calendar. Normal highs climb to 91°F by August 2 and hold at or above 90°F on 20 dates, then normal lows drop to freezing or below on 101 dates, bottoming at 23°F around January 7.
When the heat sits
Normal highs reach 90°F from July 25 through August 13, covering 20 dates. The broader mild season, normal highs of 70°F or more, runs April 24 to October 17.
This counts calendar dates whose 1991–2020 normal high reaches 90°F. It is a smaller number than the 90°F+ day counts in the monthly table above, which measure how often the threshold was actually crossed in a typical year. A date can average 88°F and still exceed 90°F in half of all years.
The freezing stretch
The normal low stays at or below 32°F into March 4, then returns to freezing around November 25, covering 101 dates in all.
Derived from the normal daily minimum. This is a different measure from the 50%-probability frost dates shown elsewhere on this page, which come from NOAA’s frost product.
Where the wet dates fall
The likeliest wet date is May 9, when 40% of years recorded at least a hundredth of an inch. The driest is November 12 at 23%. Summed across the calendar, that is about 108 wet dates a year.
The widest day
October 3 carries the biggest normal gap between afternoon and dawn, 26°F between the normal high and the normal low.
Look up any date
Any date's 1991–2020 normal for Joplin.
Monthly Precipitation
Average monthly rainfall
8.5 days with precipitation
9.4 days with precipitation
9.9 days with precipitation
10.5 days with precipitation
12.8 days with precipitation
9.0 days with precipitation
7.8 days with precipitation
8.4 days with precipitation
7.4 days with precipitation
8.3 days with precipitation
6.8 days with precipitation
8.5 days with precipitation
Joplin spreads its precipitation across the year
Neither half of the year dominates here: June through August take 29% of the annual total and December through February 13%, with neither reaching the 35% that would mark a distinct wet season. Joplin has no dry season to plan around, though it does carry a 44.5°F seasonal spread.
The gap between the wettest and driest month still matters: May averages 6.8" and January 1.9". The three wettest months together take 38% of the year, against the 25% a perfectly flat distribution would give them.
Shares are computed from this station's own 1991-2020 monthly precipitation normals. "Spread across the year" means neither the June-August nor the December-February share reaches 35%; it describes an average year, not the variability of any single one.
When it rains in Joplin, it arrives in quantity
45.8" of precipitation falls across only about 107 wet days here, averaging 0.43 inches each. Fewer days carry more water: the year's total is delivered in comparatively heavy events rather than persistent damp.
- Days with measurable precipitation
- about 107 a year, 29% of all days
- Average depth per wet day
- 0.43 inches
- Most wet days
- May, about 13
- Fewest wet days
- November, about 7
A wet day is one recording at least 0.01 inches. These are 1991-2020 normals: they describe an average year, and a per-day average is not a forecast of any individual storm.
Frost Dates & Growing Season
First Fall Freeze
October 24
50% probability date
Last Spring Freeze
April 6
50% probability date
Growing Season
201 days
Heating & Cooling Degree Days
Annual totals indicate energy demand for heating and cooling
Heating Degree Days
4,376
Higher = more heating needed
Cooling Degree Days
1,381
Higher = more cooling needed
Warmest Month
July
Coldest Month
January
Nationwide similar cities
Other rankable U.S. places outside MO closest to Joplin on two NOAA annual-normal axes (mean temperature and annual precipitation). Chip rows use distinct link sets.
Closest by average temperature
Nearest out-of-state peers by annual mean temperature (57°F here).
- Arnett, OK 57°F · 0.0°F off
- Bethpage, TN 57°F · 0.0°F off
- Haysville, KS 57°F · 0.0°F off
- Manchester, TN 57°F · 0.0°F off
Closest by annual precipitation
Nearest out-of-state peers by annual precipitation (45.8" here), excluding temperature-peer places.
- Millbrook, NY 45.8" · 0.0" off
- Williamstown, KY 45.9" · 0.1" off
- Salem, IL 45.9" · 0.1" off
- Siler City, NC 45.9" · 0.1" off
Data-derived climate profile
How Joplin's climate pattern fits together
heating led · wet · mid swing
Joplin's energy balance leans toward cold weather: 4,376 annual heating degree days against 1,381 for cooling. Its 44.5°F seasonal range still makes the monthly rows more useful than the annual average alone.
Joplin's frost-free season lasts about 201 days, a middle-length window whose endpoints matter more than the annual average. It describes freeze probability, not year-specific planting conditions.
July and January mark the typical warm and cold ends of the calendar in Joplin's middle-range seasonal profile. The measured spread is 44.5°F. The annual average is 57°F. Neither the annual mean nor one extreme month represents the full calendar on its own.
Alongside its heating load, Joplin carries 45.8 inches of precipitation in a normal year, inside PlainClimate's wet range. Snowfall is not added to the interpretation because its annual value is missing. That distinction matters because a wet annual total can arrive as rain, snow, or a mixture at different times.
These labels group NOAA 1991-2020 normals from Joplin's primary station, so the winter figures are a thirty-year average and not a floor: a single hard season can run well below them. Treat each band as a descriptive range for Joplin, not an official NOAA class or a year-ahead forecast.
Questions about Joplin's climate
How much rain does Joplin get? ▼
How many days above 90°F does Joplin get? ▼
How much energy does heating and cooling require in Joplin? ▼
Data Sources
Data source: NOAA U.S. Climate Normals v1.0.1 (1991-2020). All figures on this page are from Joplin's primary station: JOPLIN 24 N (USW00023908). For informational purposes only.
Place identity: U.S. Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer places. The 2024 Census Gazetteer identifies the exact name-and-state match as an incorporated place (GEOID 2937592). Match rule for Joplin: exact normalized name + state only, no fuzzy expansion, so nearby differently spelled facilities stay unmatched.
On this page every temperature, precipitation, and derived score for Joplin comes from its primary NOAA station record. No figure on this page is typed in by an editor - each value is rendered from NOAA 1991-2020 U.S. Climate Normals. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of 1991–2020 normals.