Northway, AK Climate: Temperature & Rain by Month
Explore NOAA NCEI's 1991–2020 climate normals → and a clearly labeled PlainClimate comfort calculation
30-year climate normals (1991-2020) from Northway's primary NOAA station, NORTHWAY AP.
The climate verdict for Northway
Winter sets the terms in Northway, Alaska. A pronounced 73.2°F seasonal swing and heating demand above twice the cooling total frame an annual average of 25°F. At 39/100 (below average) the climate comfort score falls in the bottom third of the station-mapped U.S. score corpus, exceeding only 4% of scores.
- 25°F
- annual average temperature (NOAA normal)
- 39/100
- comfort score, above 4% of station-mapped location scores
- 11.3"
- annual precipitation · 43" snow
- 98 days
- frost-free growing season
Northway: NOAA 1991-2020 normals describe a typical year, not a forecast. Method: /methodology.
Normals record plate
Sheet USW00026412 · Northway, AK 25°F mean · 11.3" precip
TEMP-COLD · RANK-COOL · PHOTO-FINISH · PRCP-ARID · SWING-WIDE · COMF-LOW · LOAD-HEAT · STN-1 · BOOK-FULL
- TEMP-COLD 25°F
- RANK-COOL #1
- PHOTO-FINISH ≈ Kotzebue Ralph…
- PRCP-ARID 11.3"
- SWING-WIDE 73°F
- COMF-LOW 39/100
- LOAD-HEAT 14,679 HDD
- STN-1 USW00026412
- BOOK-FULL 6/6 fields
Nearest mean-temperature peer: Kotzebue Ralph Wein, AK ( -0.7 °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 AK station list.
- Hot Glennallen, AK 26°F
- Near Tanana Calhoun…, AK 26°F
- Northway (this station) 25°F
- Cold Bettles, AK 24°F
- Near Kotzebue Ralph…, AK 24°F
Northway sits in Alaska, the #1 coldest U.S. state at 33.5°F statewide annual average - see all 50 coldest states ranked by NOAA normals
Climate Living Index · Northway
Northway: 14/100 · grade F
Northway publishes all six Living Index dimensions from NOAA annual/seasonal normals · NOAA daily multivariate normals · NOAA hourly normals.
PlainClimate-derived for Northway, not an official NOAA rating. Rankings still use Comfort Score 39/100 (separate formula). Breakpoints and limits.
| Dimension | Station value | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Summer moisture balance | 44.4°F mean dew point | 59/100 · C |
| Snowfall burden | 42.9 inches/year | 25/100 · F |
| Precipitation balance | 11.3 in · 23.7 from 35 in | 16/100 · F |
| Annual temperature balance | 24.7°F · 42.8° from 67.5°F | 0/100 · F |
| Frost-free season | 98 days/year | 0/100 · F |
| Normal heat + freeze calendar | 237 calendar days | 0/100 · F |
Northway · 2026-08-04 · NOAA NCEI Climate Normals · method · Comfort Score method.
Northway is a continental Köppen climate: Dwc
Coldest-month mean -13.3°F and warmest-month mean 59.9°F place this station in continental, dry-winter, cool summer climates (Dwc). Class Dwc is the Peel et al. (2007) label for this station's monthly mean temperature and precipitation normals: continental, specifically continental, dry-winter, cool summer.
- Köppen code
- Dwc
- Group
- Continental
- Warmest month
- 59.9°F
- Coldest month
- -13.3°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 Northway sits across the climate record
Three NOAA fields for Northway's primary station, temperature, precipitation, and seasonal swing, are ranked against every station-mapped normal that carries the same field.
- Annual temperature
- Cooler than 100%
- Among 6,861 stations, Northway sits in the cooler third of annual means.
- Annual precipitation
- Drier than 91%
- Northway's annual total ranks in the drier third of 6,352 measured normals.
- Seasonal temperature swing
- Wider than 99%
- Warmest-to-coldest month gap for Northway is large versus 6,861 complete station-years.
How Northway compares across U.S. station-mapped locations
Northway's comfort score vs. all station-mapped locations
PlainClimate composite comfort index (1–100), NOAA 1991–2020 normals
39 4th percentile score exceeds 4% 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%). This entry sits in this band.
- 40–50: 1,113 station-mapped locations (18%). Above this entry.
- 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
Northway's measured station temperature trend
MethodologyAcross 77 complete annual observations from 1943 to 2023, NORTHWAY AP warmed at a fitted rate of 0.27°C per decade. The line shows the fitted change relative to its first year, not raw year-to-year temperatures or a forecast.
- Northway primary station fitted change +0.27 °C/decade
Monthly Temperatures
Average daily high and low temperatures by month
| Month | Avg High | Avg Low | Mean | Precip | Snow | Freeze Days | 90°F+ Days |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | -4°F (-20°C) | -22°F (-30°C) | -13°F (-25°C) | 0.3" | 6.3" | 31.0 | 0.0 |
| February | 8°F (-13°C) | -16°F (-27°C) | -4°F (-20°C) | 0.2" | 5.2" | 28.0 | 0.0 |
| March | 25°F (-4°C) | -8°F (-22°C) | 8°F (-13°C) | 0.1" | 3.5" | 31.0 | 0.0 |
| April | 45°F (7°C) | 17°F (-8°C) | 31°F (0°C) | 0.2" | 1.2" | 29.2 | 0.0 |
| May | 61°F (16°C) | 34°F (1°C) | 47°F (8°C) | 1.0" | 1.8" | 13.3 | 0.0 |
| June | 70°F (21°C) | 45°F (7°C) | 57°F (14°C) | 2.3" | 0.0" | 0.4 | 0.1 |
| July | 72°F (22°C) | 48°F (9°C) | 60°F (16°C) | 2.9" | 0.0" | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| August | 67°F (19°C) | 44°F (6°C) | 55°F (13°C) | 1.8" | 0.0" | 1.2 | 0.0 |
| September | 55°F (13°C) | 32°F (0°C) | 43°F (6°C) | 1.1" | 1.9" | 15.8 | 0.0 |
| October | 32°F (0°C) | 14°F (-10°C) | 23°F (-5°C) | 0.5" | 6.1" | 30.5 | 0.0 |
| November | 8°F (-13°C) | -9°F (-23°C) | -1°F (-18°C) | 0.5" | 9.8" | 30.0 | 0.0 |
| December | -2°F (-19°C) | -19°F (-28°C) | -11°F (-24°C) | 0.3" | 7.1" | 31.0 | 0.0 |
The year, day by day
Summer here tops out rather than builds: the warmest normal high is 72°F around July 4, short of 90°F on every date, while 237 dates carry a normal low at or below freezing, the coldest -23°F near January 8.
The freezing stretch
The normal low stays at or below 32°F into May 9, then returns to freezing around September 16, covering 237 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 July 10, when 47% of years recorded at least a hundredth of an inch. The driest is April 2 at 9%. Summed across the calendar, that is about 94 wet dates a year.
The widest day
March 20 carries the biggest normal gap between afternoon and dawn, 34°F between the normal high and the normal low.
Look up any date
Any date's 1991–2020 normal for Northway.
Where Northway Stands Nationally
Winters bite deep and often: the normal nightly low dips to freezing or below on around 237 nights a year, placing this among the most frost-prone tenth of ranked stations.
Aridity defines the water calendar: about 11 inches in a normal year lands this among the driest tenth of ranked stations.
Northway 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: 6.3"
5.5 days with precipitation
Snow: 5.2"
3.5 days with precipitation
Snow: 3.5"
3.4 days with precipitation
Snow: 1.2"
3.0 days with precipitation
Snow: 1.8"
8.2 days with precipitation
12.4 days with precipitation
15.0 days with precipitation
13.4 days with precipitation
Snow: 1.9"
9.1 days with precipitation
Snow: 6.1"
7.9 days with precipitation
Snow: 9.8"
7.2 days with precipitation
Snow: 7.1"
5.7 days with precipitation
Northway runs a summer-peaked wet season
62% of Northway's yearly precipitation falls in June, July and August alone, against the 25% an evenly spread year would give those three months. The wettest month is July at 2.9", on a wide 73.2°F gap between its warmest and coldest month. Warm-season convection and, across the Southwest, the North American monsoon produce this shape: rain arrives in short heavy bursts during the hottest part of the year rather than as long cool-season soaking.
- Wettest three months: July, June, August, taking 62% of the annual total between them.
- Driest month: March at 0.1".
- Winter share: 8% falls in December, January and February.
Shares are computed from this station's own 1991-2020 monthly precipitation normals. A summer-peaked label means the June-August share reaches 35%; it describes timing across an average year, not any single season, and says nothing about how heavy an individual storm can be.
Northway is dry, and what does fall arrives gently
Only about 94 days a year record measurable precipitation here, 26% of the calendar, and they carry 11.3" between them. At roughly 0.12 inches on an average wet day, this is not the damp drizzle of a marine climate; it is an arid record in which precipitation is both uncommon and light when it appears.
The wettest month by count is July at about 15 wet days; the driest is April at about 3.
A low per-event average in a dry record is a statement about typical days only. Arid regions can still take a large share of a year's total from a single convective storm, which a normal cannot show.
A wet day is one recording at least 0.01 inches. These are 1991-2020 normals: they describe an average year, not the extremes within it.
Winter brings real snow to Northway
Northway averages 42.9 inches of snowfall a year, with November the snowiest month on the normals, spread across roughly 50 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: 42.9 inches of depth.
- Days recording measurable snow: about 50 a year.
- At a rough ten-to-one melt ratio, snow accounts for on the order of 38% 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 1
50% probability date
Last Spring Freeze
May 26
50% probability date
Growing Season
98 days
Heating & Cooling Degree Days
Annual totals indicate energy demand for heating and cooling
Heating Degree Days
14,679
Higher = more heating needed
Cooling Degree Days
19
Higher = more cooling needed
Warmest Month
July
Coldest Month
January
Humidity & Wind
Monthly averages from hourly observations
| Month | Humidity | Wind (mph) | Clear Sky % | Overcast % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 88% | 1.5 | 15% | 36% |
| February | 81% | 2.7 | 16% | 28% |
| March | 64% | 3.9 | 13% | 25% |
| April | 57% | 4.8 | 11% | 28% |
| May | 56% | 5.0 | 27% | 33% |
| June | 63% | 4.6 | N/A | N/A |
| July | 68% | 4.2 | N/A | N/A |
| August | 74% | 3.7 | 24% | 37% |
| September | 79% | 3.5 | 12% | 37% |
| October | 85% | 2.7 | N/A | N/A |
| November | 92% | 1.5 | N/A | N/A |
| December | 96% | 1.2 | 17% | 39% |
Nationwide similar cities
Other rankable U.S. places outside AK closest to Northway 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 (25°F here).
- Cooke City, MT 34°F · 9.5°F off
- Crested Butte, CO 34°F · 9.5°F off
- Silver Gate, MT 34°F · 9.6°F off
- Stanley, ID 34°F · 9.7°F off
Closest by annual precipitation
Nearest out-of-state peers by annual precipitation (11.3" here), excluding temperature-peer places.
- Madera, CA 11.3" · 0.0" off
- Payette, ID 11.3" · 0.0" off
- Waterville, WA 11.3" · 0.0" off
- Murphy, ID 11.3" · 0.0" off
Snow and freeze rhythm
When cold and snow define Northway
heating led · dry · high swing
Winter and seasonal range jointly define this record. Northway logs 14,679 heating degree days, more than twice its 19 cooling total, while the typical coldest-to-warmest-month gap reaches 73.2°F. The annual mean therefore compresses two materially different seasons.
Only about 98 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. Northway coldest normal
January
Averaging -13°F (-25°C), this month sits below freezing for the month as a whole, not merely overnight.
-
2. Northway typical freeze period
January through December
The station reports average freezing days from January through December.
-
3. Northway snow peak
November
Northway averages 42.9 inches of snow a year, with November the snowiest month on the normals.
Questions about Northway's climate
How much snow does Northway get? ▼
How cold does Northway get in winter? ▼
How much energy does heating and cooling require in Northway? ▼
Data Sources
Data source: NOAA U.S. Climate Normals v1.0.1 (1991-2020). All figures on this page are from Northway's primary station: NORTHWAY AP (USW00026412). 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 0256220), not an incorporated municipality. Match rule for Northway: 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 Northway 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.