Joplin, Montana climate: Normal weather by month, frost dates and records
Joplin's normal year runs from 8°F January nights to 84°F July afternoons, with 10.8 inches of precipitation and 35 inches of snow a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 5.7°C, January lows of −13°C, July highs of 29°C, 273 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationJoplin
- Station IDUSC00244512
- Location48.56°N 110.77°W
- Elevation3,323 ft (1,013 m)
- Population (census place)269
On October 22, the normal high in Joplin is 53°F and the normal low 27°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 15%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Joplin.
- Jan 29° 8°
- Feb 33° 10°
- Mar 43° 19°
- Apr 55° 29°
- May 66° 38°
- Jun 73° 46°
- Jul 84° 52°
- Aug 82° 50°
- Sep 71° 41°
- Oct 56° 30°
- Nov 41° 19°
- Dec 31° 10°
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 Joplin each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 84°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of 8°F. The most precipitation falls in June (2.47 in), the least in February (0.28 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 29°F | 8°F | 18.6°F | 0.36 | 8.0 | 5 | <1 | 30 | 8 h 40 min |
| February | 33°F | 10°F | 21.4°F | 0.28 | 5.4 | 4 | <1 | 27 | 10 h 10 min |
| March | 43°F | 19°F | 31.1°F | 0.34 | 4.4 | 5 | <1 | 28 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 55°F | 29°F | 42.0°F | 0.82 | 3.0 | 5 | <1 | 19 | 13 h 40 min |
| May | 66°F | 38°F | 51.9°F | 1.59 | 0.4 | 8 | <1 | 7 | 15 h 10 min |
| June | 73°F | 46°F | 59.7°F | 2.47 | 0.2 | 10 | 1 | <1 | 16 h 10 min |
| July | 84°F | 52°F | 67.6°F | 1.34 | 0.0 | 6 | 8 | <1 | 15 h 50 min |
| August | 82°F | 50°F | 66.4°F | 1.05 | 0.0 | 6 | 9 | <1 | 14 h 30 min |
| September | 71°F | 41°F | 56.1°F | 1.06 | 0.0 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 12 h 40 min |
| October | 56°F | 30°F | 42.9°F | 0.65 | 2.4 | 5 | <1 | 17 | 10 h 50 min |
| November | 41°F | 19°F | 29.8°F | 0.50 | 5.3 | 4 | <1 | 27 | 9 h 20 min |
| December | 31°F | 10°F | 20.4°F | 0.30 | 6.2 | 4 | <1 | 30 | 8 h 20 min |
| Year (annual) | 55°F | 29°F | 42.3°F | 10.76 | 35.3 | 66 | 20 | 189 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | −1°C | −13°C | −7.4°C | 9 mm | 20 cm |
| February | 0°C | −12°C | −5.9°C | 7 mm | 14 cm |
| March | 6°C | −7°C | −0.5°C | 9 mm | 11 cm |
| April | 13°C | −2°C | 5.6°C | 21 mm | 8 cm |
| May | 19°C | 3°C | 11.1°C | 40 mm | 1 cm |
| June | 23°C | 8°C | 15.4°C | 63 mm | 1 cm |
| July | 29°C | 11°C | 19.8°C | 34 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 28°C | 10°C | 19.1°C | 27 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 22°C | 5°C | 13.4°C | 27 mm | 0 cm |
| October | 13°C | −1°C | 6.1°C | 17 mm | 6 cm |
| November | 5°C | −7°C | −1.2°C | 13 mm | 13 cm |
| December | −1°C | −12°C | −6.4°C | 8 mm | 16 cm |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00244512; 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 Joplin?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in May, June, July, August and September. Of those, September 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 USC00244512.
When is the last frost in Joplin?
In Joplin, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after May 21 in half of years and after June 6 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before September 19 in half of years and before September 3 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
- May 211 year in 10 after June 6; 9 in 10 after May 8
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- September 191 year in 10 before September 3; 9 in 10 before October 1
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 119 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 143 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after May 7 in half of springs and before September 29 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Joplin in zone 4a in ZIP code 59530, the nearest ZIP area. By the map's own method, the average of each year's coldest night over 1991-2020, Joplin's NOAA station is in zone 4a: the coldest night of a typical year reaches −27°F (21 complete years).
Frost dates for every NOAA station in Montana · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USC00244512; 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 Joplin?
In a normal year in Joplin, 20 days a year reach 90°F (1 of them 100°F or more), 189 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 66 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 20a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- 1a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 189a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 52high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 66a normal year
- Days with 1 inch of snow or more
- 10a normal year
The highest temperature in this station's record (since 1932) is 106°F, on July 24, 2024; the lowest is −48°F, on December 24, 1983.
The wettest calendar year on that record is 2010, with 15.93 in; the snowiest season is 2022–23, with 92.0 inches.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USC00244512; records: ACIS (NOAA Regional Climate Centers), station USC00244512. Records use complete months only; a month missing more than three days is left out.
How sunny is Joplin?
Over a year 76% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds in the area around Joplin, 3.9 kWh per square metre a day. July is the sunniest month (87%) and December the cloudiest (62%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 67% | 1.3 |
| February | 69% | 2.3 |
| March | 70% | 3.5 |
| April | 72% | 4.9 |
| May | 73% | 5.9 |
| June | 78% | 6.6 |
| July | 87% | 7.1 |
| August | 85% | 5.8 |
| September | 79% | 4.2 |
| October | 73% | 2.6 |
| November | 67% | 1.5 |
| December | 62% | 1.0 |
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 Joplin need?
A normal year in Joplin brings 8,523 heating degree days, 59% more than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 287 cooling degree days, 68% 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 1,771 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 1,438 | 0 |
| February | 1,219 | 0 |
| March | 1,053 | 0 |
| April | 690 | 0 |
| May | 411 | 5 |
| June | 185 | 25 |
| July | 47 | 126 |
| August | 70 | 112 |
| September | 286 | 19 |
| October | 686 | 1 |
| November | 1,056 | 0 |
| December | 1,383 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 8,523 | 287 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00244512. 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 Joplin been warmer than normal lately?
2025 averaged 43.4°F, 1.1°F above the 1991-2020 normal of 42.3°F. 4 of the 5 complete years since 2021 ran warmer than the normal.
| Year | Mean | Against normal | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 43.3°F | +1.0°F | 9.79 | 50.0 |
| 2022 | 42.3°F | at normal | 8.59 | 88.1 |
| 2023 | 43.7°F | +1.4°F | 8.17 | 50.5 |
| 2024 | 43.9°F | +1.6°F | 10.66 | 56.5 |
| 2025 | 43.4°F | +1.1°F | 11.10 | 61.3 |
Over 30 complete years from 1934 to 2025, the station's annual mean temperature rose at a fitted 2.9°F per century (+0.16°C per decade). A fitted rate summarizes the whole record; single years swing well above and below it.
Source: observed years: ACIS, station USC00244512; trend: NOAA GHCN-Monthly v4. A year counts only with all twelve months complete.
How does Joplin's climate compare?
Joplin is warmer than 36 of the other 140 places with their own NOAA record in Montana, and wetter than 5. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 42.3°F is warmer than 10%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Joplin is BSk: cold semi-arid steppe. 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 Joplin 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.
- Rudyard, MT363 people · 10 mi E
- Inverness, MT31 people · 3 mi E
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 Joplin's climate
What is the coldest month in Joplin?
January, with a normal high of 29°F and a normal low of 8°F. The warmest is July (84°F by day, 52°F at night).
Does it snow in Joplin?
Yes: 35 inches in a normal year, falling on 16 days with 0.1 inch or more, the most in January (8.0 inches).
What is the rainiest month in Joplin?
June, with 2.47 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is February with 0.28 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Joplin in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Joplin in zone 4a in ZIP code 59530, the nearest ZIP area. By the same method at Joplin's NOAA station, the coldest night of a typical year reaches −27°F (21 years, 1991-2020): zone 4a.
How late can frost come in Joplin?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after May 21; in one year in ten it comes after June 6. Waiting until June 6 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- Montana climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Chester, MT10 miles from this station, 41.3°F a year
- Rudyard (19 mi S), MT21 miles from this station, 40.6°F a year
- Gildford, MT22 miles from this station, 41.7°F a year
- Rudyard (21 mi N), MT22 miles from this station, 41.0°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made