Milstead, Alabama climate: Climate normals at a NOAA weather station
Milstead's normal year runs from 34°F January nights to 90°F July afternoons, with 54.0 inches of precipitation and less than an inch of snow (0.3 in) a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 17.3°C, January lows of 1°C, July highs of 32°C, 1,371 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationMilstead
- Station IDUSC00015439
- Location32.44°N 85.89°W
- Elevation215 ft (66 m)
On October 22, the normal high in Milstead is 75°F and the normal low 49°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 20%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Milstead.
- Jan 57° 34°
- Feb 61° 36°
- Mar 68° 42°
- Apr 75° 49°
- May 83° 59°
- Jun 88° 66°
- Jul 90° 70°
- Aug 90° 69°
- Sep 86° 64°
- Oct 77° 52°
- Nov 67° 41°
- Dec 59° 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 at Milstead each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 90°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of 34°F. The most precipitation falls in March (5.25 in), the least in October (3.12 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 57°F | 34°F | 45.3°F | 5.07 | 11 | <1 | 16 | 10 h 10 min |
| February | 61°F | 36°F | 48.6°F | 4.73 | 9 | <1 | 12 | 11 h |
| March | 68°F | 42°F | 55.2°F | 5.25 | 9 | <1 | 5 | 12 h |
| April | 75°F | 49°F | 62.2°F | 4.55 | 7 | <1 | 1 | 13 h |
| May | 83°F | 59°F | 70.6°F | 4.65 | 7 | 4 | <1 | 13 h 50 min |
| June | 88°F | 66°F | 77.1°F | 4.22 | 10 | 14 | <1 | 14 h 20 min |
| July | 90°F | 70°F | 80.1°F | 5.03 | 11 | 20 | <1 | 14 h 10 min |
| August | 90°F | 69°F | 79.5°F | 4.38 | 10 | 18 | <1 | 13 h 20 min |
| September | 86°F | 64°F | 74.7°F | 3.56 | 8 | 9 | <1 | 12 h 20 min |
| October | 77°F | 52°F | 64.4°F | 3.12 | 6 | <1 | <1 | 11 h 30 min |
| November | 67°F | 41°F | 53.8°F | 4.34 | 7 | <1 | 6 | 10 h 30 min |
| December | 59°F | 36°F | 47.4°F | 5.08 | 9 | <1 | 14 | 10 h |
| Year (annual) | 75°F | 51°F | 63.2°F | 53.98 | 104 | 66 | 54 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 14°C | 1°C | 7.4°C | 129 mm |
| February | 16°C | 2°C | 9.2°C | 120 mm |
| March | 20°C | 6°C | 12.9°C | 133 mm |
| April | 24°C | 10°C | 16.8°C | 116 mm |
| May | 28°C | 15°C | 21.4°C | 118 mm |
| June | 31°C | 19°C | 25.1°C | 107 mm |
| July | 32°C | 21°C | 26.7°C | 128 mm |
| August | 32°C | 21°C | 26.4°C | 111 mm |
| September | 30°C | 18°C | 23.7°C | 90 mm |
| October | 25°C | 11°C | 18.0°C | 79 mm |
| November | 19°C | 5°C | 12.1°C | 110 mm |
| December | 15°C | 2°C | 8.6°C | 129 mm |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00015439; 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.
Which months are mildest at Milstead?
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 (6).
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 USC00015439.
When is the last frost at Milstead?
In Milstead, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after March 25 in half of years and after April 13 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before November 8 in half of years and before October 26 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
- March 251 year in 10 after April 13; 9 in 10 after March 3
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- November 81 year in 10 before October 26; 9 in 10 before November 27
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 228 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 255 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after March 10 in half of springs and before November 21 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Milstead in zone 8b in ZIP code 36075, the nearest ZIP area. By the map's own method, the average of each year's coldest night over 1991-2020, the station is in zone 8b: the coldest night of a typical year reaches 17°F (16 complete years).
Frost dates for every NOAA station in Alabama · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USC00015439; 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 at Milstead?
In a normal year in Milstead, 66 days a year reach 90°F (3 of them 100°F or more), 54 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 104 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 66a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- 3a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 54a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 1high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 104a normal year
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USC00015439.
How sunny is it at Milstead?
Over a year 78% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds at Milstead, 4.6 kWh per square metre a day. May is the sunniest month (82%) and February the cloudiest (70%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 74% | 2.8 |
| February | 70% | 3.4 |
| March | 74% | 4.5 |
| April | 79% | 5.7 |
| May | 82% | 6.3 |
| June | 80% | 6.2 |
| July | 81% | 6.1 |
| August | 80% | 5.5 |
| September | 80% | 4.9 |
| October | 80% | 4.1 |
| November | 79% | 3.2 |
| December | 71% | 2.5 |
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 many heating and cooling degree days does Milstead record?
A normal year at Milstead brings 2,551 heating degree days, 53% fewer than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 1,942 cooling degree days, 2.1 times the median (908). Five months need 300 or more heating degree days, a monthly mean of about 55°F or colder. For gardens and crops, NOAA counts 5,465 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 612 | 1 |
| February | 462 | 2 |
| March | 316 | 12 |
| April | 135 | 53 |
| May | 24 | 197 |
| June | 0 | 365 |
| July | 0 | 470 |
| August | 0 | 448 |
| September | 4 | 293 |
| October | 105 | 86 |
| November | 348 | 12 |
| December | 547 | 3 |
| Year (annual) | 2,551 | 1,942 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00015439. 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 Milstead's climate compare?
Milstead is warmer than 38 of the 80 places with their own NOAA record in Alabama, and wetter than 8. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 63.2°F is warmer than 83%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Milstead is Cfa: temperate, 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 Milstead share this climate record?
10 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.
- Tuskegee, AL8,653 people · 12 mi E
- Wetumpka, AL7,667 people · 20 mi W
- Redland, AL5,231 people · 15 mi W
- Tallassee, AL4,715 people · 6 mi N
- Emerald Mountain, AL3,387 people · 12 mi W
- Blue Ridge, AL1,375 people · 18 mi W
- Eclectic, AL1,213 people · 16 mi NW
- Reeltown, AL690 people · 10 mi NE
- Franklin, AL568 people · 6 mi E
- Shorter, AL366 people · 5 mi SW
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 Milstead's climate
What is the coldest month at Milstead?
January, with a normal high of 57°F and a normal low of 34°F. The warmest is July (90°F by day, 70°F at night).
Does it snow at Milstead?
Rarely: NOAA's normal is 0.3 inch a year.
What is the rainiest month at Milstead?
March, with 5.25 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is October with 3.12 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Milstead in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Milstead in zone 8b in ZIP code 36075, the nearest ZIP area. By the same method at the station, the coldest night of a typical year reaches 17°F (16 years, 1991-2020): zone 8b.
How late can frost come at Milstead?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after March 25; in one year in ten it comes after April 13. Waiting until April 13 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- Alabama climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Auburn, AL27 miles from this station, 63.6°F a year
- Camp Hill, AL30 miles from this station, 61.2°F a year
- Opelika, AL30 miles from this station, 62.3°F a year
- Union Springs, AL30 miles from this station, 63.4°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made