Payson, AZ Climate: Temperature & Rain by Month
Annual temperature and rainfall from NOAA NCEI's 1991–2020 normals →; comfort score computed by PlainClimate
30-year climate normals (1991-2020) from Payson's primary NOAA station, PAYSON.
The climate verdict for Payson
Dryness leads the climate profile for Payson, Arizona, with 19.8 inches of precipitation a year. NOAA records an annual average of 57°F. Its climate comfort score of 64/100 (good) lands mid-pack nationally, exceeding 49% of station-mapped location scores.
- 57°F
- yearly average temperature, NOAA normal
- 64/100
- comfort score, above 49% of station-mapped location scores
- 19.8"
- annual precipitation · 19" snow
- 178 days
- frost-free growing season
Payson: NOAA 1991-2020 normals describe a typical year, not a forecast. Method: /methodology.
Normals record plate
Sheet USW00093139 · Payson, AZ 57°F mean · 19.8" precip
TEMP-MILD · RANK-UPPER · PHOTO-FINISH · PRCP-DRY · SWING-MID · COMF-MID · LOAD-HEAT · STN-1 · BOOK-FULL
- TEMP-MILD 57°F
- RANK-UPPER #4,597
- PHOTO-FINISH ≈ Cleveland
- PRCP-DRY 19.8"
- SWING-MID 36°F
- COMF-MID 64/100
- LOAD-HEAT 3,892 HDD
- STN-1 USW00093139
- BOOK-FULL 6/6 fields
Nearest mean-temperature peer: Cleveland, GA (+ 0.1 °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 AZ station list.
- Payson (this station) 57°F
- Cold Andrews, NC 57°F
- Hot Palomar Mtn Obsy, CA 57°F
- Near Cleveland, GA 57°F
- Near Tapoco, NC 57°F
Climate Living Index · Payson
Payson: 43/100 · grade D
Payson publishes 5 of 6 Living Index dimensions (NOAA annual/seasonal normals · NOAA daily multivariate normals); 1 missing weight rescale to 100.
PlainClimate-derived for Payson, not an official NOAA rating. Rankings still use Comfort Score 64/100 (separate formula). Breakpoints and limits.
| Dimension | Station value | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Annual temperature balance | 57.0°F · 10.5° from 67.5°F | 66/100 · C |
| Snowfall burden | 18.5 inches/year | 51/100 · D |
| Frost-free season | 178 days/year | 48/100 · D |
| Precipitation balance | 19.8 in · 15.2 from 35 in | 47/100 · D |
| Normal heat + freeze calendar | 204 calendar days | 12/100 · F |
Payson · 2026-08-04 · NOAA NCEI Climate Normals · method · Comfort Score method.
Payson is a temperate Köppen climate: Csa
Coldest-month mean 40.2°F and warmest-month mean 76.0°F place this station in temperate, dry-summer, hot summer climates (Csa). Class Csa is the Peel et al. (2007) label for this station's monthly mean temperature and precipitation normals: temperate, specifically temperate, dry-summer, hot summer.
- Köppen code
- Csa
- Group
- Temperate
- Warmest month
- 76.0°F
- Coldest month
- 40.2°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 · heating-led station
Where Payson sits across the climate record
Three NOAA fields for Payson's primary station, temperature, precipitation, and seasonal swing, are ranked against every station-mapped normal that carries the same field.
- Annual temperature
- 67th percentile warmth
- Mid-pack annual mean versus 6,861 station normals.
- Annual precipitation
- Drier than 73%
- Payson's annual total ranks in the drier third of 6,352 measured normals.
- Seasonal temperature swing
- Narrower than 80%
- Warmest-to-coldest month gap for Payson is compact versus 6,861 complete station-years.
How Payson compares across U.S. station-mapped locations
Payson's comfort score vs. all station-mapped locations
PlainClimate composite comfort index (1–100), NOAA 1991–2020 normals
64 49th percentile score exceeds 49% 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%). This entry sits in this band.
- 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
Payson's measured station temperature trend
MethodologyAcross 47 complete annual observations from 1952 to 2025, PAYSON warmed at a fitted rate of 0.24°C per decade. The line shows the fitted change relative to its first year, not raw year-to-year temperatures or a forecast.
- Payson primary station fitted change +0.24 °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 | 56°F (13°C) | 26°F (-3°C) | 41°F (5°C) | 2.3" | 4.7" | 27.1 | 0.0 |
| February | 59°F (15°C) | 28°F (-2°C) | 43°F (6°C) | 2.3" | 4.9" | 22.5 | 0.0 |
| March | 65°F (18°C) | 32°F (0°C) | 48°F (9°C) | 1.9" | 2.0" | 18.0 | 0.0 |
| April | 72°F (22°C) | 36°F (2°C) | 54°F (12°C) | 0.8" | 2.0" | 7.9 | 0.2 |
| May | 80°F (27°C) | 43°F (6°C) | 61°F (16°C) | 0.5" | 0.0" | 0.9 | 2.1 |
| June | 90°F (32°C) | 51°F (10°C) | 71°F (21°C) | 0.2" | 0.0" | 0.0 | 16.4 |
| July | 93°F (34°C) | 60°F (15°C) | 76°F (24°C) | 2.8" | 0.0" | 0.0 | 20.8 |
| August | 91°F (33°C) | 59°F (15°C) | 75°F (24°C) | 2.6" | 0.0" | 0.0 | 18.0 |
| September | 86°F (30°C) | 52°F (11°C) | 69°F (21°C) | 1.5" | 0.0" | 0.0 | 6.6 |
| October | 76°F (24°C) | 41°F (5°C) | 58°F (15°C) | 1.3" | 0.0" | 2.7 | 0.6 |
| November | 64°F (18°C) | 31°F (-1°C) | 48°F (9°C) | 1.5" | 1.3" | 18.6 | 0.0 |
| December | 55°F (13°C) | 26°F (-4°C) | 40°F (5°C) | 2.1" | 3.6" | 27.4 | 0.0 |
The year, day by day
Payson works both ends of the calendar. Normal highs climb to 93°F by July 4 and hold at or above 90°F on 75 dates, then normal lows drop to freezing or below on 129 dates, bottoming at 25°F around December 16.
When the heat sits
Normal highs reach 90°F from June 13 through August 26, covering 75 dates. The broader mild season, normal highs of 70°F or more, runs April 7 to November 2.
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 March 19, then returns to freezing around November 12, covering 129 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 6, when 36% of years recorded at least a hundredth of an inch. The driest is June 7 at 6%. Summed across the calendar, that is about 62 wet dates a year.
The widest day
June 11 carries the biggest normal gap between afternoon and dawn, 40°F between the normal high and the normal low.
Look up any date
Any date's 1991–2020 normal for Payson.
Where Payson Stands Nationally
Day-to-night contrast is extreme by national standards — the widest normal daily swing reaches about 40°F, sharper than nine in ten ranked stations see.
Heat is a defining feature of the normals calendar — the normal daily high reaches 90°F on roughly 75 days a year, more than four out of five ranked stations record.
Payson 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: 4.7"
5.3 days with precipitation
Snow: 4.9"
5.8 days with precipitation
Snow: 2.0"
5.0 days with precipitation
Snow: 2.0"
3.0 days with precipitation
2.6 days with precipitation
1.4 days with precipitation
8.8 days with precipitation
11.1 days with precipitation
5.0 days with precipitation
4.3 days with precipitation
Snow: 1.3"
3.9 days with precipitation
Snow: 3.6"
5.6 days with precipitation
Payson spreads its precipitation across the year
Neither half of the year dominates here: June through August take 28% of the annual total and December through February 34%, with neither reaching the 35% that would mark a distinct wet season. Payson has no dry season to plan around, though it does carry a 35.8°F seasonal spread.
The gap between the wettest and driest month still matters: July averages 2.8" and June 0.2". 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 Payson's precipitation splits across the calendar
About 62 days a year record measurable precipitation here, carrying 19.8" 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 Payson
Payson averages 18.5 inches of snowfall a year, with February the snowiest month on the normals, spread across roughly 6 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: 18.5 inches of depth.
- Days recording measurable snow: about 6 a year.
- At a rough ten-to-one melt ratio, snow accounts for on the order of 9% 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
October 24
50% probability date
Last Spring Freeze
April 29
50% probability date
Growing Season
178 days
Heating & Cooling Degree Days
Annual totals indicate energy demand for heating and cooling
Heating Degree Days
3,892
Higher = more heating needed
Cooling Degree Days
1,004
Higher = more cooling needed
Warmest Month
July
Coldest Month
December
Nationwide similar cities
Other rankable U.S. places outside AZ closest to Payson 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 (57°F here).
- Bedford, VA 57°F · 0.0°F off
- Dimmitt, TX 57°F · 0.0°F off
- Evening Shade, AR 57°F · 0.0°F off
- Fort Scott, KS 57°F · 0.0°F off
Closest by annual precipitation
Nearest out-of-state peers by annual precipitation (19.8" here), excluding temperature-peer places.
- Ozona, TX 19.8" · 0.0" off
- Streeter, ND 19.8" · 0.0" off
- Sharon Springs, KS 19.9" · 0.0" off
- Colville, WA 19.9" · 0.1" off
Snow and freeze rhythm
When cold and snow define Payson
heating led · dry · mid swing
Payson's energy balance leans toward cold weather: 3,892 annual heating degree days against 1,004 for cooling. Its 35.8°F seasonal range still makes the monthly rows more useful than the annual average alone.
Payson's frost-free season lasts about 178 days, a middle-length window whose endpoints matter more than the annual average. It describes freeze probability, not year-specific planting conditions.
-
1. Payson coldest normal
December
The coldest month still averages 40°F (5°C), above freezing, so this calendar has no hard winter.
-
2. Payson typical freeze period
January through December
The station reports average freezing days from January through December.
-
3. Payson snow peak
February
Payson averages 18.5 inches of snow a year, with February the snowiest month on the normals.
Questions about Payson's climate
How much snow does Payson get? ▼
How many days above 90°F does Payson get? ▼
How much energy does heating and cooling require in Payson? ▼
Data Sources
Data source: NOAA U.S. Climate Normals v1.0.1 (1991-2020). All figures on this page are from Payson's primary station: PAYSON (USW00093139). 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 an incorporated place (GEOID 0453700). Match rule for Payson: 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 Payson 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.