North Wilkesboro, North Carolina climate: Normal weather by month, frost dates and records
North Wilkesboro's normal year runs from 27°F January nights to 87°F July afternoons, with 51.7 inches of precipitation and 6 inches of snow a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 14.0°C, January lows of −3°C, July highs of 31°C, 1,313 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationNorth Wilkesboro
- Station IDUSC00316256
- Location36.16°N 81.15°W
- Elevation1,120 ft (341 m)
- Population4,412
On October 14, the normal high in North Wilkesboro is 71°F and the normal low 46°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 30%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for North Wilkesboro.
- Jan 48° 27°
- Feb 52° 29°
- Mar 60° 36°
- Apr 70° 44°
- May 77° 53°
- Jun 84° 62°
- Jul 87° 66°
- Aug 85° 65°
- Sep 79° 58°
- Oct 71° 46°
- Nov 60° 35°
- Dec 51° 30°
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 North Wilkesboro each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 87°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of 27°F. The most precipitation falls in August (5.09 in), the least in February (3.31 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 48°F | 27°F | 37.6°F | 4.40 | 2.0 | 10 | <1 | 24 | 10 h |
| February | 52°F | 29°F | 40.7°F | 3.31 | 1.4 | 10 | <1 | 21 | 10 h 50 min |
| March | 60°F | 36°F | 47.8°F | 4.38 | 0.3 | 12 | <1 | 14 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 70°F | 44°F | 56.8°F | 4.72 | 0.0 | 11 | <1 | 4 | 13 h |
| May | 77°F | 53°F | 65.2°F | 4.47 | 0.0 | 12 | 1 | <1 | 14 h |
| June | 84°F | 62°F | 72.9°F | 4.93 | 0.0 | 13 | 7 | <1 | 14 h 40 min |
| July | 87°F | 66°F | 76.5°F | 4.48 | 0.0 | 14 | 12 | <1 | 14 h 20 min |
| August | 85°F | 65°F | 75.0°F | 5.09 | 0.0 | 13 | 8 | <1 | 13 h 30 min |
| September | 79°F | 58°F | 68.7°F | 4.25 | 0.0 | 11 | 3 | <1 | 12 h 30 min |
| October | 71°F | 46°F | 58.0°F | 3.83 | 0.0 | 9 | <1 | 4 | 11 h 20 min |
| November | 60°F | 35°F | 47.5°F | 3.48 | 0.0 | 9 | <1 | 16 | 10 h 20 min |
| December | 51°F | 30°F | 40.3°F | 4.36 | 1.9 | 11 | <1 | 22 | 9 h 40 min |
| Year (annual) | 69°F | 46°F | 57.2°F | 51.70 | 5.6 | 134 | 32 | 104 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 9°C | −3°C | 3.1°C | 112 mm | 5 cm |
| February | 11°C | −1°C | 4.8°C | 84 mm | 4 cm |
| March | 16°C | 2°C | 8.8°C | 111 mm | 1 cm |
| April | 21°C | 6°C | 13.8°C | 120 mm | 0 cm |
| May | 25°C | 12°C | 18.4°C | 114 mm | 0 cm |
| June | 29°C | 17°C | 22.7°C | 125 mm | 0 cm |
| July | 31°C | 19°C | 24.7°C | 114 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 30°C | 18°C | 23.9°C | 129 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 26°C | 14°C | 20.4°C | 108 mm | 0 cm |
| October | 21°C | 8°C | 14.4°C | 97 mm | 0 cm |
| November | 16°C | 2°C | 8.6°C | 88 mm | 0 cm |
| December | 11°C | −1°C | 4.6°C | 111 mm | 5 cm |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00316256; 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 North Wilkesboro?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in April, May, June, September and October. Of those, October has the fewest days with rain (9).
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 USC00316256.
When is the last frost in North Wilkesboro?
In North Wilkesboro, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after April 10 in half of years and after April 26 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before October 29 in half of years and before October 16 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 101 year in 10 after April 26; 9 in 10 after March 25
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- October 291 year in 10 before October 16; 9 in 10 before November 10
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 201 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 226 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after March 27 in half of springs and before November 8 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts North Wilkesboro in zone 7b in ZIP code 28697, the nearest ZIP area. By the map's own method, the average of each year's coldest night over 1991-2020, North Wilkesboro's NOAA station is in zone 7b: the coldest night of a typical year reaches 8°F (27 complete years).
Frost dates for every NOAA station in North Carolina · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USC00316256; 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 North Wilkesboro?
In a normal year in North Wilkesboro, 32 days a year reach 90°F, 104 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 134 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 32a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- fewer than 1a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 104a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 4high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 134a normal year
- Days with 1 inch of snow or more
- 2a normal year
The highest temperature in this station's record (since 1955) is 102°F, on June 8, 1999; the lowest is −9°F, on January 21, 1985.
The wettest calendar year on that record is 2020, with 79.75 in; the snowiest season is 1965–66, with 35.7 inches.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USC00316256; records: ACIS (NOAA Regional Climate Centers), station USC00316256. Records use complete months only; a month missing more than three days is left out.
How sunny is North Wilkesboro?
Over a year 72% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds in the area around North Wilkesboro, 4.2 kWh per square metre a day. August is the sunniest month (75%) and February the cloudiest (66%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 68% | 2.4 |
| February | 66% | 3.0 |
| March | 69% | 4.1 |
| April | 72% | 5.2 |
| May | 71% | 5.7 |
| June | 75% | 6.1 |
| July | 74% | 5.8 |
| August | 75% | 5.3 |
| September | 74% | 4.6 |
| October | 74% | 3.6 |
| November | 75% | 2.8 |
| December | 68% | 2.1 |
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 North Wilkesboro need?
A normal year in North Wilkesboro brings 4,000 heating degree days, 26% fewer than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 1,201 cooling degree days, 32% more than 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 4,013 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 849 | 0 |
| February | 679 | 0 |
| March | 537 | 2 |
| April | 266 | 18 |
| May | 89 | 95 |
| June | 9 | 246 |
| July | 1 | 355 |
| August | 1 | 311 |
| September | 38 | 149 |
| October | 240 | 23 |
| November | 528 | 1 |
| December | 764 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 4,000 | 1,201 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00316256. 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 North Wilkesboro been warmer than normal lately?
2024 averaged 59.5°F, 2.3°F above the 1991-2020 normal of 57.2°F. 4 of the 4 complete years since 2021 ran warmer than the normal.
| Year | Mean | Against normal | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 58.6°F | +1.4°F | 40.39 | 2.1 |
| 2022 | 57.9°F | +0.7°F | 57.52 | 4.3 |
| 2023 | 58.9°F | +1.7°F | 57.47 | 0.0 |
| 2024 | 59.5°F | +2.3°F | 61.51 | 0.0 |
Over 61 complete years from 1956 to 2025, the station's annual mean temperature rose at a fitted 4.1°F per century (+0.23°C per decade). A fitted rate summarizes the whole record; single years swing well above and below it.
Source: observed years: ACIS, station USC00316256; trend: NOAA GHCN-Monthly v4. A year counts only with all twelve months complete.
How does North Wilkesboro's climate compare?
North Wilkesboro is warmer than 30 of the other 130 places with their own NOAA record in North Carolina, and wetter than 72. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 57.2°F is warmer than 67%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, North Wilkesboro 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 North Wilkesboro share this climate record?
5 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.
- Wilkesboro, NC3,620 people · 2 mi SW
- Cricket, NC2,512 people · 2 mi W
- Mulberry, NC2,134 people · 4 mi N
- Fairplains, NC1,876 people · 2 mi N
- Hays, NC1,355 people · 6 mi N
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 North Wilkesboro's climate
What is the coldest month in North Wilkesboro?
January, with a normal high of 48°F and a normal low of 27°F. The warmest is July (87°F by day, 66°F at night).
Does it snow in North Wilkesboro?
Yes: 6 inches in a normal year, falling on 3 days with 0.1 inch or more, the most in January (2.0 inches).
What is the rainiest month in North Wilkesboro?
August, with 5.09 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is February with 3.31 in.
What plant hardiness zone is North Wilkesboro in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts North Wilkesboro in zone 7b in ZIP code 28697, the nearest ZIP area. By the same method at North Wilkesboro's NOAA station, the coldest night of a typical year reaches 8°F (27 years, 1991-2020): zone 7b.
How late can frost come in North Wilkesboro?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after April 10; in one year in ten it comes after April 26. Waiting until April 26 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- North Carolina climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- West Kerr Scott Resv, NC5 miles from this station, 57.8°F a year
- Taylorsville, NC17 miles from this station, 58.3°F a year
- Elkin, NC17 miles from this station, 56.0°F a year
- Transou, NC19 miles from this station, 50.4°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made