PlainClimate
NOAA 1991–2020 normals Census-designated place · exact match 1 NOAA station · Primary-station record

Mojave, CA 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 Mojave's primary NOAA station, MOJAVE.

The climate verdict for Mojave

Dryness leads the climate profile for Mojave, California, with 5.8 inches of precipitation a year. NOAA records an annual average of 63°F. It scores 77/100 for climate comfort (good), putting it in the top third of station-mapped location scores and exceeding 70% of them.

63°F
annual average temperature (NOAA normal)
77/100
comfort score, above 70% of station-mapped location scores
5.8"
annual precipitation · 1" snow
247 days
frost-free growing season

Mojave: NOAA 1991-2020 normals describe a typical year, not a forecast. Method: /methodology.

Normals record plate

Sheet USC00045756 · Mojave, CA 63°F mean · 5.8" precip

TEMP-MILD · RANK-UPPER · PHOTO-FINISH · PRCP-ARID · SWING-MID · COMF-TOP · LOAD-MIX · STN-1 · BOOK-FULL

Nearest mean-temperature peer: Antioch Pumping Plt, CA (+ 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 CA station list.

Climate Living Index · Mojave

Mojave: 64/100 · grade C

Mojave publishes 5 of 6 Living Index dimensions (NOAA annual/seasonal normals · NOAA daily multivariate normals); 1 missing weight rescale to 100.

C
64/100Climate Living Index

PlainClimate-derived for Mojave, not an official NOAA rating. Rankings still use Comfort Score 77/100 (separate formula). Breakpoints and limits.

Mojave Living Index dimension scores
DimensionStation valueScore
Frost-free season 247 days/year 88/100 · A
Annual temperature balance 62.5°F · 5.0° from 67.5°F 85/100 · A
Snowfall burden 1.2 inches/year 81/100 · B
Normal heat + freeze calendar 123 calendar days 63/100 · C
Precipitation balance 5.8 in · 29.2 from 35 in 3/100 · F

Mojave · 2026-08-04 · NOAA NCEI Climate Normals · method · Comfort Score method.

Mojave's normals sit in a dry climate class: BWk

Annual precipitation falls well below the aridity threshold for this temperature regime, so the normals classify as cold desert (BWk). Class BWk is the Peel et al. (2007) label for this station's monthly mean temperature and precipitation normals: dry (arid or semi-arid), specifically cold desert.

Köppen code
BWk
Group
Dry (arid or semi-arid)
Warmest month
83.1°F
Coldest month
44.2°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 · balanced station

Where Mojave sits across the climate record

Three NOAA fields for Mojave's primary station, temperature, precipitation, and seasonal swing, are ranked against every station-mapped normal that carries the same field.

Annual temperature
Top 19% warmest
Among 6,861 stations, Mojave sits in the warmer third of annual means.
Annual precipitation
Drier than 99%
Mojave'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 Mojave compares across U.S. station-mapped locations

Mojave's comfort score vs. all station-mapped locations

PlainClimate composite comfort index (1–100), NOAA 1991–2020 normals

77 Top 30% score exceeds 70% 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%). Below this entry. 50–60: 1,329 station-mapped locations (21%). Below this entry. 60–70: 1,236 station-mapped locations (20%). Below this entry. 70–80: 650 station-mapped locations (11%). This entry sits in this band. 80–90: 921 station-mapped locations (15%). Above this entry. 90–100: 564 station-mapped locations (9%). Above this entry. This location 0 100 every station-mapped location, bucketed by value
  1. 0–10: 0 station-mapped locations (0%). Below this entry.
  2. 10–20: 0 station-mapped locations (0%). Below this entry.
  3. 20–30: 96 station-mapped locations (2%). Below this entry.
  4. 30–40: 280 station-mapped locations (5%). Below this entry.
  5. 40–50: 1,113 station-mapped locations (18%). Below this entry.
  6. 50–60: 1,329 station-mapped locations (21%). Below this entry.
  7. 60–70: 1,236 station-mapped locations (20%). Below this entry.
  8. 70–80: 650 station-mapped locations (11%). This entry sits in this band.
  9. 80–90: 921 station-mapped locations (15%). Above this entry.
  10. 90–100: 564 station-mapped locations (9%). Above this entry.

Source NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, PlainClimate comfort index · 1991–2020

Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more station-mapped locations. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.

Monthly Temperatures

Average daily high and low temperatures by month

Month Avg High Avg Low Mean
January 58°F (14°C) 33°F (0°C) 45°F (7°C)
February 60°F (16°C) 35°F (2°C) 48°F (9°C)
March 67°F (19°C) 40°F (5°C) 53°F (12°C)
April 72°F (22°C) 45°F (7°C) 58°F (15°C)
May 81°F (27°C) 53°F (12°C) 67°F (19°C)
June 91°F (33°C) 64°F (18°C) 77°F (25°C)
July 97°F (36°C) 69°F (21°C) 83°F (28°C)
August 97°F (36°C) 67°F (20°C) 82°F (28°C)
September 90°F (32°C) 61°F (16°C) 75°F (24°C)
October 78°F (26°C) 49°F (10°C) 64°F (18°C)
November 66°F (19°C) 39°F (4°C) 52°F (11°C)
December 57°F (14°C) 32°F (0°C) 44°F (7°C)

The year, day by day

Mojave works both ends of the calendar. Normal highs climb to 99°F by July 28 and hold at or above 90°F on 95 dates, then normal lows drop to freezing or below on 28 dates, bottoming at 31°F around December 21.

Normal daily high and low temperature for Mojave, January through December Peaks 99°F around July 28. Bottoms 31°F around December 21. 25 35 45 55 65 75 85 95 105 freezing JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Normal daily high and low across the calendar year. NOAA 1991–2020 daily normals, MOJAVE.

When the heat sits

Normal highs reach 90°F from June 12 through September 14, covering 95 dates. The broader mild season, normal highs of 70°F or more, runs April 6 to November 7.

This counts calendar dates whose 1991–2020 normal high reaches 90°F. It is a smaller number than the 90°F+ day counts in the monthly table above, which measure how often the threshold was actually crossed in a typical year. A date can average 88°F and still exceed 90°F in half of all years.

The freezing stretch

The normal low stays at or below 32°F into January 7, then returns to freezing around December 11, covering 28 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 February 21, when 14% of years recorded at least a hundredth of an inch. The driest is June 8 at 1%. Summed across the calendar, that is about 21 wet dates a year.

The widest day

August 19 carries the biggest normal gap between afternoon and dawn, 30°F between the normal high and the normal low.

Look up any date

Any date's 1991–2020 normal for Mojave.

Where Mojave Stands Nationally

Summers here run among the most heat-heavy normals calendars in the country: on about 95 days a year the normal daily high itself reaches 90°F — a count fewer than one station in ten exceeds.

Aridity defines the water calendar: about 6 inches in a normal year lands this among the driest tenth of ranked stations.

Mojave 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

January 1.1"

Snow: 0.5"

3.9 days with precipitation

February 1.5"

Snow: 0.1"

4.2 days with precipitation

March 0.8"

Snow: 0.2"

2.8 days with precipitation

April 0.2"

1.5 days with precipitation

May 0.1"

0.7 days with precipitation

June 0.0"

0.2 days with precipitation

July 0.2"

0.3 days with precipitation

August 0.2"

0.4 days with precipitation

September 0.1"

0.4 days with precipitation

October 0.4"

1.4 days with precipitation

November 0.3"

1.6 days with precipitation

December 0.8"

Snow: 0.4"

2.8 days with precipitation

Mojave's wet season runs through the cold months

December, January and February carry 59% of the year's precipitation here, while June through August contribute 7%. That is the cool-season-dominant pattern of the West Coast and the higher inland West, where storm tracks swing south in winter and summer turns dry; the thermometer meanwhile shows a 38.9°F seasonal spread.

Wettest month
February, 1.5"
Driest month
June, 0.0"
Wettest three months
February, January, December (59% of the year)

Shares are computed from this station's own 1991-2020 monthly precipitation normals. A cool-season label means the December-February share reaches 35%. Where snow falls, the monthly figures above report liquid-equivalent precipitation, so a wet winter month is not necessarily a rainy one.

How Mojave's precipitation splits across the calendar

About 20 days a year record measurable precipitation here, carrying 5.8" between them, or roughly 0.29 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.

Wet days a year
20
Wettest month by days
February
Driest month by days
June

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.

Snow reaches Mojave, but rarely amounts to much

The normals record 1.2 inches of snow a year here, most likely in January. That is a real but marginal amount: enough that snow is part of the local record, not enough to define the winter.

A figure in this range usually reflects a handful of events that melt quickly rather than a season of accumulation; about 0 days a year record any measurable snow at all.

NOAA 1991-2020 normals. An average across thirty years can smooth away a single heavy winter, so a small annual figure does not mean a significant snowfall is impossible.

Frost Dates & Growing Season

First Fall Freeze

November 17

50% probability date

Last Spring Freeze

March 15

50% probability date

Growing Season

247 days

Heating & Cooling Degree Days

Annual totals indicate energy demand for heating and cooling

Heating Degree Days

2,902

Higher = more heating needed

Cooling Degree Days

2,018

Higher = more cooling needed

Warmest Month

July

Coldest Month

December

Nationwide similar cities

Other rankable U.S. places outside CA closest to Mojave 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 (63°F here).

Closest by annual precipitation

Nearest out-of-state peers by annual precipitation (5.8" here), excluding temperature-peer places.

California climate overview →

Scarce-water calendar

Where Mojave's limited precipitation lands

mixed demand · dry · mid swing

Local precipitation is sparse in this otherwise mixed profile. The station reports 5.8 inches annually, within PlainClimate's dry band. Annual snowfall totals 1.2 inches. The monthly distribution matters because the total alone does not reveal the timing.

July and December mark the typical warm and cold ends of the calendar in Mojave's middle-range seasonal profile. The measured spread is 38.9°F. The annual average is 63°F. Neither the annual mean nor one extreme month represents the full calendar on its own.

Heating and cooling both register in Mojave's normal, at 2,902 and 2,018 degree days respectively. Neither total exceeds the other by more than two to one, so the record is better read as a mixed-demand calendar than as heating-led or cooling-led.

Mojave has a long frost-free window of roughly 247 days, but the dry annual profile is a separate constraint. Growing-season length says when freezes are unlikely, not whether rainfall is sufficient.

Mojave wettest normal

February

February concentrates the scarce annual total (5.8 inches).

Mojave driest normal

June

June is typically driest; arid stations are defined by when water is absent, not by a four-season grid.

Questions about Mojave's climate

How dry is Mojave?
Mojave receives 5.8 inches of precipitation a year, spread across roughly 20 days that record any measurable amount. For reference, the contiguous United States averages near 30 inches. Based on NOAA 30-year climate normals (1991-2020).
How many days above 90°F does Mojave get?
Mojave averages about 110 days a year at or above 90°F, concentrated in July and the months either side of it. That is a count of days reaching the threshold, not a measure of how far above it they go.
How much energy does heating and cooling require in Mojave?
Mojave has 2,902 heating degree days and 2,018 cooling degree days annually, a fairly balanced heating/cooling split. Degree-day definitions: reading weather data.

Data Sources

Data source: NOAA U.S. Climate Normals v1.0.1 (1991-2020). All figures on this page are from Mojave's primary station: MOJAVE (USC00045756). 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 0648452), not an incorporated municipality. Match rule for Mojave: exact normalized name + state only, no fuzzy expansion, so nearby differently spelled facilities stay unmatched.

Data sourced from official public datasets. See our methodology for details. Retrieved and formatted by PlainClimate

On this page every temperature, precipitation, and derived score for Mojave 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.