Lincoln, Illinois climate: Normal weather by month, frost dates and records
Lincoln's normal year runs from 18°F January nights to 86°F July afternoons, with 39.8 inches of precipitation and 19 inches of snow a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 11.2°C, January lows of −8°C, July highs of 30°C, 1,012 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationLincoln
- Station IDUSC00115079
- Location40.15°N 89.34°W
- Elevation583 ft (178 m)
- From the center2 miles
- Population13,047
On October 23, the normal high in Lincoln is 63°F and the normal low 40°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 32%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Lincoln.
- Jan 35° 18°
- Feb 40° 22°
- Mar 52° 31°
- Apr 64° 41°
- May 75° 52°
- Jun 83° 61°
- Jul 86° 64°
- Aug 84° 61°
- Sep 79° 53°
- Oct 66° 42°
- Nov 51° 32°
- Dec 39° 23°
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 Lincoln each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 86°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of 18°F. The most precipitation falls in July (4.91 in), the least in February (1.92 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 35°F | 18°F | 26.1°F | 2.17 | 5.7 | 9 | <1 | 28 | 9 h 40 min |
| February | 40°F | 22°F | 30.6°F | 1.92 | 6.2 | 9 | <1 | 25 | 10 h 40 min |
| March | 52°F | 31°F | 41.4°F | 2.70 | 1.8 | 11 | <1 | 19 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 64°F | 41°F | 52.6°F | 4.24 | 0.0 | 12 | <1 | 6 | 13 h 10 min |
| May | 75°F | 52°F | 63.6°F | 4.37 | 0.0 | 13 | 1 | <1 | 14 h 20 min |
| June | 83°F | 61°F | 72.3°F | 4.16 | 0.0 | 11 | 6 | <1 | 15 h |
| July | 86°F | 64°F | 74.6°F | 4.91 | 0.0 | 9 | 8 | <1 | 14 h 50 min |
| August | 84°F | 61°F | 72.6°F | 3.47 | 0.0 | 9 | 6 | <1 | 13 h 50 min |
| September | 79°F | 53°F | 66.3°F | 3.30 | 0.0 | 8 | 4 | <1 | 12 h 30 min |
| October | 66°F | 42°F | 54.1°F | 3.42 | 0.1 | 10 | <1 | 6 | 11 h 10 min |
| November | 51°F | 32°F | 41.7°F | 2.88 | 0.6 | 10 | <1 | 17 | 10 h |
| December | 39°F | 23°F | 31.1°F | 2.29 | 4.9 | 10 | <1 | 26 | 9 h 20 min |
| Year (annual) | 63°F | 42°F | 52.2°F | 39.83 | 19.3 | 118 | 24 | 126 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 1°C | −8°C | −3.3°C | 55 mm | 14 cm |
| February | 4°C | −6°C | −0.8°C | 49 mm | 16 cm |
| March | 11°C | 0°C | 5.2°C | 69 mm | 5 cm |
| April | 18°C | 5°C | 11.4°C | 108 mm | 0 cm |
| May | 24°C | 11°C | 17.6°C | 111 mm | 0 cm |
| June | 29°C | 16°C | 22.4°C | 106 mm | 0 cm |
| July | 30°C | 18°C | 23.7°C | 125 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 29°C | 16°C | 22.6°C | 88 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 26°C | 12°C | 19.1°C | 84 mm | 0 cm |
| October | 19°C | 5°C | 12.3°C | 87 mm | 0 cm |
| November | 11°C | 0°C | 5.4°C | 73 mm | 2 cm |
| December | 4°C | −5°C | −0.5°C | 58 mm | 12 cm |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00115079; 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 Lincoln?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in May, June, August, September and October. Of those, September has the fewest days with rain (8).
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 USC00115079.
When is the last frost in Lincoln?
In Lincoln, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after April 20 in half of years and after May 4 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before October 16 in half of years and before October 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
- April 201 year in 10 after May 4; 9 in 10 after April 5
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- October 161 year in 10 before October 3; 9 in 10 before October 29
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 179 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 200 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after April 7 in half of springs and before October 26 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Lincoln in zone 6a in ZIP code 62656, the nearest ZIP area. By the map's own method, the average of each year's coldest night over 1991-2020, Lincoln's NOAA station is in zone 6a: the coldest night of a typical year reaches −9°F (28 complete years).
Frost dates for every NOAA station in Illinois · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USC00115079; 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 Lincoln?
In a normal year in Lincoln, 24 days a year reach 90°F, 126 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 118 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 24a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- fewer than 1a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 126a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 33high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 118a normal year
- Days with 1 inch of snow or more
- 7a normal year
The highest temperature in this station's record (since 1906) is 113°F, on July 15, 1936; the lowest is −34°F, on January 15, 1927.
The wettest calendar year on that record is 2008, with 56.25 in; the snowiest season is 2013–14, with 46.2 inches.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USC00115079; records: ACIS (NOAA Regional Climate Centers), station USC00115079. Records use complete months only; a month missing more than three days is left out.
How sunny is Lincoln?
Over a year 74% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds in the area around Lincoln, 4.1 kWh per square metre a day. July is the sunniest month (83%) and December the cloudiest (62%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 64% | 1.9 |
| February | 67% | 2.8 |
| March | 68% | 3.7 |
| April | 71% | 4.9 |
| May | 72% | 5.6 |
| June | 79% | 6.3 |
| July | 83% | 6.4 |
| August | 81% | 5.6 |
| September | 81% | 4.7 |
| October | 73% | 3.2 |
| November | 70% | 2.2 |
| December | 62% | 1.6 |
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 Lincoln need?
A normal year in Lincoln brings 5,624 heating degree days, 5% more than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 1,015 cooling degree days, 12% 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 3,495 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 1,204 | 0 |
| February | 964 | 0 |
| March | 734 | 2 |
| April | 383 | 11 |
| May | 132 | 88 |
| June | 15 | 234 |
| July | 2 | 301 |
| August | 6 | 243 |
| September | 78 | 117 |
| October | 357 | 17 |
| November | 700 | 1 |
| December | 1,049 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 5,624 | 1,015 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00115079. 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 Lincoln been warmer than normal lately?
2025 averaged 52.4°F, 0.2°F above the 1991-2020 normal of 52.2°F. 4 of the 5 complete years since 2021 ran warmer than the normal.
| Year | Mean | Against normal | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 53.5°F | +1.3°F | 42.53 | 21.9 |
| 2022 | 51.2°F | −1.0°F | 36.42 | 28.3 |
| 2023 | 54.3°F | +2.0°F | 37.41 | 6.9 |
| 2024 | 54.2°F | +2.0°F | 38.91 | 12.1 |
| 2025 | 52.4°F | +0.2°F | 34.45 | 32.0 |
Over 96 complete years from 1910 to 2025, the station's annual mean temperature rose at a fitted 0.7°F per century (+0.04°C per decade). A fitted rate summarizes the whole record; single years swing well above and below it.
Source: observed years: ACIS, station USC00115079; trend: NOAA GHCN-Monthly v4. A year counts only with all twelve months complete.
How does Lincoln's climate compare?
Lincoln is warmer than 77 of the other 143 places with their own NOAA record in Illinois, and wetter than 69. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 52.2°F is warmer than 50%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Lincoln is Dfa: continental, no dry season, 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 Lincoln share this climate record?
14 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.
- Clinton, IL6,881 people · 20 mi E
- Atlanta, IL1,634 people · 10 mi NE
- Mount Pulaski, IL1,506 people · 10 mi S
- Emden, IL454 people · 13 mi NW
- Elkhart, IL440 people · 12 mi SW
- Waynesville, IL376 people · 13 mi NE
- Latham, IL323 people · 16 mi SE
- Kenney, IL306 people · 14 mi E
- Armington, IL304 people · 13 mi N
- Chestnut, IL297 people · 11 mi SE
- Hartsburg, IL255 people · 9 mi NW
- Broadwell, IL139 people · 8 mi SW
- Beason, IL136 people · 8 mi E
- Cornland, IL53 people · 15 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 Lincoln's climate
What is the coldest month in Lincoln?
January, with a normal high of 35°F and a normal low of 18°F. The warmest is July (86°F by day, 64°F at night).
Does it snow in Lincoln?
Yes: 19 inches in a normal year, falling on 17 days with 0.1 inch or more, the most in February (6.2 inches).
What is the rainiest month in Lincoln?
July, with 4.91 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is February with 1.92 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Lincoln in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Lincoln in zone 6a in ZIP code 62656, the nearest ZIP area. By the same method at Lincoln's NOAA station, the coldest night of a typical year reaches −9°F (28 years, 1991-2020): zone 6a.
How late can frost come in Lincoln?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after April 20; in one year in ten it comes after May 4. Waiting until May 4 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- Illinois climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Mason City, IL17 miles from this station, 51.7°F a year
- Bloomington, IL27 miles from this station, 50.2°F a year
- Petersburg, IL28 miles from this station, 52.3°F a year
- Springfield, IL28 miles from this station, 54.0°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made