Kettleman City, California climate: Normal weather by month, frost dates and records
Kettleman City's normal year runs from 36°F January nights to 99°F July afternoons, with 7.5 inches of precipitation a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 17.9°C, January lows of 2°C, July highs of 37°C, 191 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationKettleman City
- Station IDUSC00044534
- Location36.01°N 119.96°W
- Elevation240 ft (73 m)
- Population (census place)899
On October 24, the normal high in Kettleman City is 78°F and the normal low 49°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 6%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Kettleman City.
- Jan 57° 36°
- Feb 63° 40°
- Mar 70° 43°
- Apr 76° 48°
- May 84° 55°
- Jun 92° 62°
- Jul 99° 68°
- Aug 98° 66°
- Sep 92° 61°
- Oct 81° 51°
- Nov 67° 41°
- Dec 58° 36°
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 Kettleman City each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 99°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of 36°F. The most precipitation falls in February (1.47 in), the least in August (0.02 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 57°F | 36°F | 46.3°F | 1.39 | 6 | <1 | 9 | 10 h |
| February | 63°F | 40°F | 51.5°F | 1.47 | 6 | <1 | 5 | 10 h 50 min |
| March | 70°F | 43°F | 56.4°F | 1.46 | 6 | <1 | 1 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 76°F | 48°F | 61.7°F | 0.59 | 4 | 2 | <1 | 13 h |
| May | 84°F | 55°F | 69.9°F | 0.37 | 1 | 9 | <1 | 14 h |
| June | 92°F | 62°F | 77.1°F | 0.04 | 1 | 22 | <1 | 14 h 40 min |
| July | 99°F | 68°F | 83.1°F | 0.13 | <1 | 30 | <1 | 14 h 20 min |
| August | 98°F | 66°F | 81.8°F | 0.02 | <1 | 30 | <1 | 13 h 30 min |
| September | 92°F | 61°F | 76.4°F | 0.06 | 1 | 21 | <1 | 12 h 30 min |
| October | 81°F | 51°F | 66.4°F | 0.16 | 1 | 5 | <1 | 11 h 20 min |
| November | 67°F | 41°F | 54.2°F | 0.57 | 4 | <1 | 2 | 10 h 20 min |
| December | 58°F | 36°F | 46.5°F | 1.24 | 7 | <1 | 12 | 9 h 40 min |
| Year (annual) | 78°F | 51°F | 64.3°F | 7.50 | 36 | 118 | 29 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 14°C | 2°C | 7.9°C | 35 mm |
| February | 17°C | 4°C | 10.8°C | 37 mm |
| March | 21°C | 6°C | 13.6°C | 37 mm |
| April | 24°C | 9°C | 16.5°C | 15 mm |
| May | 29°C | 13°C | 21.1°C | 9 mm |
| June | 34°C | 17°C | 25.1°C | 1 mm |
| July | 37°C | 20°C | 28.4°C | 3 mm |
| August | 36°C | 19°C | 27.7°C | 1 mm |
| September | 33°C | 16°C | 24.7°C | 2 mm |
| October | 27°C | 11°C | 19.1°C | 4 mm |
| November | 20°C | 5°C | 12.3°C | 14 mm |
| December | 14°C | 2°C | 8.1°C | 31 mm |
NOAA publishes no 1991-2020 snowfall normal for this station. The nearest record that keeps one, Coalinga (24 miles away), gets 0 inches of snow in a normal year; elevation and distance can change that.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00044534; 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 Kettleman City?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in March, April, May, October and November. Of those, October has the fewest days with rain (1).
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 USC00044534.
When is the last frost in Kettleman City?
In Kettleman City, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after February 19 in half of years and after March 15 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before November 29 in half of years and before November 14 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
- February 191 year in 10 after March 15; 9 in 10 after January 21
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- November 291 year in 10 before November 14; 9 in 10 before December 17
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 281 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 324 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after January 24 in half of springs and before December 12 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Kettleman City in zone 9b in ZIP code 93239, the nearest ZIP area.
Frost dates for every NOAA station in California · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USC00044534; USDA 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map, ZIP listings: PRISM Group, Oregon State University, https://prism.oregonstate.edu, accessed October 8, 2026. 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 Kettleman City?
In a normal year in Kettleman City, 118 days a year reach 90°F (41 of them 100°F or more), 29 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 36 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 118a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- 41a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 29a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- fewer than 1high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 36a normal year
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USC00044534.
How sunny is Kettleman City?
Over a year 90% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds in the area around Kettleman City, 5.4 kWh per square metre a day. August is the sunniest month (98%) and January the cloudiest (71%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 71% | 2.4 |
| February | 78% | 3.6 |
| March | 84% | 5.1 |
| April | 87% | 6.5 |
| May | 92% | 7.7 |
| June | 97% | 8.5 |
| July | 97% | 8.1 |
| August | 98% | 7.4 |
| September | 97% | 6.1 |
| October | 92% | 4.5 |
| November | 83% | 3.1 |
| December | 72% | 2.2 |
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 Kettleman City need?
A normal year in Kettleman City brings 2,368 heating degree days, 56% fewer than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 2,134 cooling degree days, 2.4 times the median (908). Four months need 300 or more heating degree days, a monthly mean of about 55°F or colder. For gardens and crops, NOAA counts 5,598 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 580 | 0 |
| February | 380 | 0 |
| March | 270 | 5 |
| April | 141 | 44 |
| May | 32 | 184 |
| June | 3 | 364 |
| July | 0 | 561 |
| August | 0 | 522 |
| September | 4 | 345 |
| October | 62 | 105 |
| November | 325 | 3 |
| December | 572 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 2,368 | 2,134 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00044534. 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.
How does Kettleman City's climate compare?
Kettleman City is warmer than 168 of the other 218 places with their own NOAA record in California, and wetter than 29. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 64.3°F is warmer than 86%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Kettleman City 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 Kettleman City share this climate record?
Avenal has no NOAA station with 1991-2020 normals of its 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.
- Avenal, CA14,108 people · 9 mi W
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 Kettleman City's climate
What is the coldest month in Kettleman City?
January, with a normal high of 57°F and a normal low of 36°F. The warmest is July (99°F by day, 68°F at night).
Does it snow in Kettleman City?
Rarely. NOAA publishes no 1991-2020 snowfall normal for Kettleman City's NOAA station; the nearest record that keeps one, Coalinga (24 miles away), records 0 inches of snow in a normal year.
What is the rainiest month in Kettleman City?
February, with 1.47 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is August with 0.02 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Kettleman City in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Kettleman City in zone 9b in ZIP code 93239, the nearest ZIP area.
How late can frost come in Kettleman City?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after February 19; in one year in ten it comes after March 15. Waiting until March 15 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- California climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Corcoran, CA22 miles from this station, 63.7°F a year
- Lemoore, CA22 miles from this station, 63.0°F a year
- Coalinga, CA24 miles from this station, 65.9°F a year
- Five Points (5 mi SSW), CA27 miles from this station, 64.3°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made