Mcgaffey, NM Climate: Temperature & Rain by Month
Temperature and precipitation from NOAA NCEI 1991–2020 normals →, plus PlainClimate's derived comfort score
30-year climate normals (1991-2020) from Mcgaffey's primary NOAA station, MCGAFFEY 5 SE.
The climate verdict for Mcgaffey
Dryness leads the climate profile for Mcgaffey, New Mexico, with 19.7 inches of precipitation a year. NOAA records an annual average of 46°F. At 49/100 (moderate) the climate comfort score falls in the bottom third of the station-mapped U.S. score corpus, exceeding only 18% of scores.
- 46°F
- annual average temperature (NOAA normal)
- 49/100
- comfort score, above 18% of station-mapped location scores
- 19.7"
- annual precipitation · 42" snow
- 112 days
- frost-free days per growing season
Mcgaffey: NOAA 1991-2020 normals describe a typical year, not a forecast. Method: /methodology.
Normals record plate
Sheet USC00295560 · Mcgaffey, NM 46°F mean · 19.7" precip
TEMP-COOL · RANK-COOL · PHOTO-FINISH · PRCP-DRY · SWING-MID · COMF-LOW · LOAD-HEAT · STN-1 · BOOK-FULL
- TEMP-COOL 46°F
- RANK-COOL #1,647
- PHOTO-FINISH ≈ Laurel Mtn
- PRCP-DRY 19.7"
- SWING-MID 39°F
- COMF-LOW 49/100
- LOAD-HEAT 6,939 HDD
- STN-1 USC00295560
- BOOK-FULL 6/6 fields
Nearest mean-temperature peer: Laurel Mtn, OR (+ 0 °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 NM station list.
- Mcgaffey (this station) 46°F
- Cold Kumbrabow, WV 46°F
- Hot Moscow U of I, ID 46°F
- Near Laurel Mtn, OR 46°F
- Near Salida, CO 46°F
Climate Living Index · Mcgaffey
Mcgaffey: 21/100 · grade F
Mcgaffey publishes 5 of 6 Living Index dimensions (NOAA annual/seasonal normals · NOAA daily multivariate normals); 1 missing weight rescale to 100.
PlainClimate-derived for Mcgaffey, not an official NOAA rating. Rankings still use Comfort Score 49/100 (separate formula). Breakpoints and limits.
| Dimension | Station value | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Precipitation balance | 19.7 in · 15.3 from 35 in | 46/100 · D |
| Snowfall burden | 42.1 inches/year | 26/100 · F |
| Annual temperature balance | 46.3°F · 21.2° from 67.5°F | 24/100 · F |
| Normal heat + freeze calendar | 211 calendar days | 9/100 · F |
| Frost-free season | 112 days/year | 3/100 · F |
Mcgaffey · 2026-08-04 · NOAA NCEI Climate Normals · method · Comfort Score method.
Mcgaffey is a continental Köppen climate: Dsb
Coldest-month mean 27.7°F and warmest-month mean 66.6°F place this station in continental, dry-summer, warm summer climates (Dsb). Class Dsb is the Peel et al. (2007) label for this station's monthly mean temperature and precipitation normals: continental, specifically continental, dry-summer, warm summer.
- Köppen code
- Dsb
- Group
- Continental
- Warmest month
- 66.6°F
- Coldest month
- 27.7°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 Mcgaffey sits across the climate record
Three NOAA fields for Mcgaffey's primary station, temperature, precipitation, and seasonal swing, are ranked against every station-mapped normal that carries the same field.
- Annual temperature
- Cooler than 76%
- Among 6,861 stations, Mcgaffey sits in the cooler third of annual means.
- Annual precipitation
- Drier than 73%
- Mcgaffey's annual total ranks in the drier third of 6,352 measured normals.
- Seasonal temperature swing
- 31st percentile swing
- Typical seasonal amplitude versus 6,861 complete station-years.
How Mcgaffey compares across U.S. station-mapped locations
Mcgaffey's comfort score vs. all station-mapped locations
PlainClimate composite comfort index (1–100), NOAA 1991–2020 normals
49 18th percentile score exceeds 18% 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%). This entry sits in this band.
- 50–60: 1,329 station-mapped locations (21%). Above this entry.
- 60–70: 1,236 station-mapped locations (20%). Above this entry.
- 70–80: 650 station-mapped locations (11%). Above this entry.
- 80–90: 921 station-mapped locations (15%). Above this entry.
- 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 | Snow | Freeze Days | 90°F+ Days |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 44°F (6°C) | 12°F (-11°C) | 28°F (-2°C) | 1.8" | 9.0" | 30.8 | 0.0 |
| February | 46°F (8°C) | 15°F (-9°C) | 31°F (-1°C) | 1.5" | 8.7" | 27.8 | 0.0 |
| March | 53°F (12°C) | 22°F (-6°C) | 37°F (3°C) | 1.5" | 6.6" | 30.4 | 0.0 |
| April | 60°F (15°C) | 27°F (-3°C) | 43°F (6°C) | 1.1" | 2.4" | 26.6 | 0.0 |
| May | 70°F (21°C) | 34°F (1°C) | 52°F (11°C) | 1.0" | 0.2" | 15.9 | 0.0 |
| June | 82°F (28°C) | 42°F (5°C) | 62°F (17°C) | 0.6" | 0.0" | 4.0 | 2.7 |
| July | 84°F (29°C) | 49°F (10°C) | 67°F (19°C) | 2.8" | 0.0" | 0.2 | 3.5 |
| August | 81°F (27°C) | 48°F (9°C) | 65°F (18°C) | 3.1" | 0.0" | 0.1 | 0.7 |
| September | 77°F (25°C) | 42°F (5°C) | 59°F (15°C) | 1.6" | 0.0" | 5.3 | 0.0 |
| October | 67°F (19°C) | 30°F (-1°C) | 48°F (9°C) | 1.4" | 2.5" | 23.8 | 0.0 |
| November | 54°F (12°C) | 20°F (-7°C) | 37°F (3°C) | 1.6" | 2.6" | 29.4 | 0.0 |
| December | 44°F (7°C) | 12°F (-11°C) | 28°F (-2°C) | 1.6" | 10.1" | 30.7 | 0.0 |
The year, day by day
Summer here tops out rather than builds: the warmest normal high is 85°F around July 1, short of 90°F on every date, while 211 dates carry a normal low at or below freezing, the coldest 11°F near December 25.
The freezing stretch
The normal low stays at or below 32°F into May 7, then returns to freezing around October 10, covering 211 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 August 5, when 33% of years recorded at least a hundredth of an inch. The driest is June 6 at 9%. Summed across the calendar, that is about 61 wet dates a year.
The widest day
June 12 carries the biggest normal gap between afternoon and dawn, 41°F between the normal high and the normal low.
Look up any date
Any date's 1991–2020 normal for Mcgaffey.
Where Mcgaffey Stands Nationally
Winters bite deep and often: the normal nightly low dips to freezing or below on around 211 nights a year, placing this among the most frost-prone tenth of ranked stations.
Day-to-night contrast is extreme by national standards — the widest normal daily swing reaches about 41°F, sharper than nine in ten ranked stations see.
Mcgaffey earns 2 nationally notable standings (outer quintiles) against 6,860 NOAA 1991–2020 normals stations; only those extremes render.
Monthly Precipitation
Average monthly rainfall and snowfall
Snow: 9.0"
4.6 days with precipitation
Snow: 8.7"
6.1 days with precipitation
Snow: 6.6"
5.1 days with precipitation
Snow: 2.4"
3.4 days with precipitation
Snow: 0.2"
3.1 days with precipitation
2.3 days with precipitation
8.5 days with precipitation
9.8 days with precipitation
5.8 days with precipitation
Snow: 2.5"
3.9 days with precipitation
Snow: 2.6"
3.8 days with precipitation
Snow: 10.1"
4.4 days with precipitation
Mcgaffey spreads its precipitation across the year
Neither half of the year dominates here: June through August take 33% of the annual total and December through February 25%, with neither reaching the 35% that would mark a distinct wet season. Mcgaffey has no dry season to plan around, though it does carry a 38.9°F seasonal spread.
The gap between the wettest and driest month still matters: August averages 3.1" and June 0.6". The three wettest months together take 39% 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.
How Mcgaffey's precipitation splits across the calendar
About 61 days a year record measurable precipitation here, carrying 19.7" between them, or roughly 0.32 inches on a typical wet day. That sits in the middle band: neither the many-light-days pattern of the Pacific Northwest and the Great Lakes, nor the few-heavy-events pattern of the Gulf and the desert Southwest.
A wet day is one recording at least 0.01 inches. These are 1991-2020 normals: they describe an average year and say nothing about the heaviest single storm on record.
Winter brings real snow to Mcgaffey
Mcgaffey averages 42.1 inches of snowfall a year, with December the snowiest month on the normals, spread across roughly 13 days that record measurable snow. That is depth accumulating on the ground, which is why it can exceed the annual precipitation figure: precipitation counts the liquid the snow melts down to, and fresh snow is mostly air.
- Annual snowfall: 42.1 inches of depth.
- Days recording measurable snow: about 13 a year.
- At a rough ten-to-one melt ratio, snow accounts for on the order of 21% of the year's precipitation.
NOAA 1991-2020 normals. The ten-to-one ratio is a convention, not a measurement: real ratios vary with temperature, so treat the share as an order of magnitude rather than an exact split.
Frost Dates & Growing Season
First Fall Freeze
September 25
50% probability date
Last Spring Freeze
June 5
50% probability date
Growing Season
112 days
Heating & Cooling Degree Days
Annual totals indicate energy demand for heating and cooling
Heating Degree Days
6,939
Higher = more heating needed
Cooling Degree Days
154
Higher = more cooling needed
Warmest Month
July
Coldest Month
January
Nationwide similar cities
Other rankable U.S. places outside NM closest to Mcgaffey 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 (46°F here).
- Binghamton, NY 46°F · 0.0°F off
- Chewelah, WA 46°F · 0.0°F off
- Delanson, NY 46°F · 0.0°F off
- Douglas, WY 46°F · 0.0°F off
Closest by annual precipitation
Nearest out-of-state peers by annual precipitation (19.7" here), excluding temperature-peer places.
- Bethel, AK 19.7" · 0.0" off
- Ashton, ID 19.7" · 0.0" off
- Amarillo, TX 19.7" · 0.0" off
- Benkelman, NE 19.7" · 0.0" off
Snow and freeze rhythm
When cold and snow define Mcgaffey
heating led · dry · mid swing
Mcgaffey's energy balance leans toward cold weather: 6,939 annual heating degree days against 154 for cooling. Its 38.9°F seasonal range still makes the monthly rows more useful than the annual average alone.
Only about 112 days are frost-free in a normal year. That short interval is consistent with the cold-season signal, but the measure does not predict the exact first or last freeze in any one year.
-
1. Mcgaffey coldest normal
January
The monthly mean of 28°F (-2°C) sits near freezing, so cold nights and above-freezing afternoons share the same month.
-
2. Mcgaffey typical freeze period
January through December
The station reports average freezing days from January through December.
-
3. Mcgaffey snow peak
December
Mcgaffey averages 42.1 inches of snow a year, with December the snowiest month on the normals.
Questions about Mcgaffey's climate
How much snow does Mcgaffey get? ▼
How cold does Mcgaffey get in winter? ▼
How much energy does heating and cooling require in Mcgaffey? ▼
Data Sources
Data source: NOAA U.S. Climate Normals v1.0.1 (1991-2020). All figures on this page are from Mcgaffey's primary station: MCGAFFEY 5 SE (USC00295560). 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 a census-designated place (GEOID 3545890), not an incorporated municipality. Match rule for Mcgaffey: 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 Mcgaffey 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.