Pecos, New Mexico climate: Normal weather by month, frost dates and records
Pecos's normal year runs from 18°F December nights to 85°F July afternoons, with 16.2 inches of precipitation and 26 inches of snow a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 10.0°C, December lows of −8°C, July highs of 30°C, 411 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationPecos National Monument
- Station IDUSC00296676
- Location35.55°N 105.69°W
- Elevation6,878 ft (2,096 m)
- Population1,372
On October 14, the normal high in Pecos is 68°F and the normal low 35°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 17%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Pecos.
- Jan 47° 18°
- Feb 50° 21°
- Mar 57° 26°
- Apr 64° 31°
- May 73° 39°
- Jun 84° 48°
- Jul 85° 54°
- Aug 83° 52°
- Sep 78° 45°
- Oct 67° 35°
- Nov 55° 25°
- Dec 47° 18°
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 Pecos each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 85°F; December the coldest, with normal lows of 18°F. The most precipitation falls in July (3.23 in), the least in February (0.62 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 47°F | 18°F | 32.3°F | 0.68 | 6.3 | 4 | <1 | 30 | 10 h |
| February | 50°F | 21°F | 35.5°F | 0.62 | 4.4 | 4 | <1 | 26 | 10 h 50 min |
| March | 57°F | 26°F | 41.3°F | 0.74 | 3.0 | 4 | <1 | 27 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 64°F | 31°F | 47.7°F | 0.72 | 1.0 | 4 | <1 | 19 | 13 h |
| May | 73°F | 39°F | 56.3°F | 1.01 | 0.0 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 14 h |
| June | 84°F | 48°F | 65.9°F | 1.23 | 0.0 | 5 | 7 | <1 | 14 h 30 min |
| July | 85°F | 54°F | 69.4°F | 3.23 | 0.0 | 13 | 9 | <1 | 14 h 20 min |
| August | 83°F | 52°F | 67.5°F | 3.03 | 0.0 | 12 | 5 | <1 | 13 h 30 min |
| September | 78°F | 45°F | 61.3°F | 1.71 | 0.0 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 12 h 30 min |
| October | 67°F | 35°F | 50.6°F | 1.20 | 0.6 | 5 | <1 | 12 | 11 h 20 min |
| November | 55°F | 25°F | 39.8°F | 1.03 | 3.7 | 4 | <1 | 25 | 10 h 20 min |
| December | 47°F | 18°F | 32.2°F | 0.97 | 7.3 | 4 | <1 | 30 | 9 h 50 min |
| Year (annual) | 66°F | 34°F | 50.0°F | 16.17 | 26.3 | 69 | 21 | 174 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 8°C | −8°C | 0.2°C | 17 mm | 16 cm |
| February | 10°C | −6°C | 1.9°C | 16 mm | 11 cm |
| March | 14°C | −4°C | 5.2°C | 19 mm | 8 cm |
| April | 18°C | 0°C | 8.7°C | 18 mm | 3 cm |
| May | 23°C | 4°C | 13.5°C | 26 mm | 0 cm |
| June | 29°C | 9°C | 18.8°C | 31 mm | 0 cm |
| July | 30°C | 12°C | 20.8°C | 82 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 28°C | 11°C | 19.7°C | 77 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 25°C | 7°C | 16.3°C | 43 mm | 0 cm |
| October | 19°C | 1°C | 10.3°C | 30 mm | 2 cm |
| November | 13°C | −4°C | 4.3°C | 26 mm | 9 cm |
| December | 8°C | −8°C | 0.1°C | 25 mm | 19 cm |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00296676; 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 Pecos?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in May, June, August, September and October. Of those, May has the fewest days with rain (4).
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 USC00296676.
When is the last frost in Pecos?
In Pecos, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after May 15 in half of years and after May 31 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before October 3 in half of years and before September 19 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
- May 151 year in 10 after May 31; 9 in 10 after May 2
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- October 31 year in 10 before September 19; 9 in 10 before October 15
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 138 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 159 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after May 4 in half of springs and before October 13 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Pecos in zone 6b in ZIP code 87535, the nearest ZIP area. By the map's own method, the average of each year's coldest night over 1991-2020, Pecos's NOAA station is in zone 6b: the coldest night of a typical year reaches −5°F (16 complete years).
Frost dates for every NOAA station in New Mexico · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USC00296676; 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 Pecos?
In a normal year in Pecos, 21 days a year reach 90°F, 174 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 69 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 21a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- fewer than 1a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 174a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 5high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 69a normal year
- Days with 1 inch of snow or more
- 9a normal year
The highest temperature in this station's record (since 1919) is 100°F, on June 26, 1994; the lowest is −29°F, on February 1, 1951.
The wettest calendar year on that record is 1991, with 24.66 in; the snowiest season is 1972–73, with 86.3 inches.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USC00296676; records: ACIS (NOAA Regional Climate Centers), station USC00296676. Records use complete months only; a month missing more than three days is left out.
How sunny is Pecos?
Over a year 84% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds in the area around Pecos, 5.4 kWh per square metre a day. October is the sunniest month (87%) and July the cloudiest (80%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 85% | 3.3 |
| February | 83% | 4.2 |
| March | 84% | 5.5 |
| April | 84% | 6.8 |
| May | 85% | 7.5 |
| June | 87% | 7.8 |
| July | 80% | 6.9 |
| August | 83% | 6.4 |
| September | 85% | 5.7 |
| October | 87% | 4.7 |
| November | 86% | 3.5 |
| December | 82% | 2.9 |
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 Pecos need?
A normal year in Pecos brings 5,796 heating degree days, 8% more than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 346 cooling degree days, 62% fewer than the median (908). Seven months need 300 or more heating degree days, a monthly mean of about 55°F or colder. For gardens and crops, NOAA counts 2,345 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 1,014 | 0 |
| February | 826 | 0 |
| March | 735 | 0 |
| April | 519 | 0 |
| May | 279 | 7 |
| June | 50 | 78 |
| July | 10 | 146 |
| August | 19 | 96 |
| September | 128 | 18 |
| October | 447 | 0 |
| November | 756 | 0 |
| December | 1,015 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 5,796 | 346 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00296676. 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 Pecos been warmer than normal lately?
2024 averaged 51.2°F, 1.2°F above the 1991-2020 normal of 50.0°F. 3 of the 4 complete years since 2021 ran warmer than the normal.
| Year | Mean | Against normal | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 50.7°F | +0.7°F | – | – |
| 2022 | 49.7°F | −0.3°F | – | – |
| 2023 | 50.3°F | +0.3°F | – | – |
| 2024 | 51.2°F | +1.2°F | – | – |
Over 34 complete years from 1944 to 2024, the station's annual mean temperature rose at a fitted 4.0°F per century (+0.22°C per decade). A fitted rate summarizes the whole record; single years swing well above and below it.
Source: observed years: ACIS, station USC00296676; trend: NOAA GHCN-Monthly v4. A year counts only with all twelve months complete.
How does Pecos's climate compare?
Pecos is warmer than 24 of the other 97 places with their own NOAA record in New Mexico, and wetter than 69. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 50.0°F is warmer than 40%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Pecos is Cfb: temperate, no dry season, warm 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 Pecos share this climate record?
9 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.
- Cañoncito, NM946 people · 9 mi W
- La Cueva, NM724 people · 3 mi NW
- Glorieta, NM559 people · 5 mi NW
- Rowe, NM555 people · 4 mi S
- East Pecos, NM529 people · 3 mi NE
- Cañada de los Alamos, NM487 people · 10 mi W
- North San Ysidro, NM323 people · 9 mi SE
- Lamy, NM115 people · 12 mi W
- Valencia, NM50 people · 6 mi W
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 Pecos's climate
What is the coldest month in Pecos?
December, with a normal high of 47°F and a normal low of 18°F. The warmest is July (85°F by day, 54°F at night).
Does it snow in Pecos?
Yes: 26 inches in a normal year, falling on 10 days with 0.1 inch or more, the most in December (7.3 inches).
What is the rainiest month in Pecos?
July, with 3.23 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is February with 0.62 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Pecos in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Pecos in zone 6b in ZIP code 87535, the nearest ZIP area. By the same method at Pecos's NOAA station, the coldest night of a typical year reaches −5°F (16 years, 1991-2020): zone 6b.
How late can frost come in Pecos?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after May 15; in one year in ten it comes after May 31. Waiting until May 31 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- New Mexico climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Santa Fe, NM23 miles from this station, 52.0°F a year
- Villanueva, NM27 miles from this station, 54.9°F a year
- Gascon, NM27 miles from this station, 45.6°F a year
- Stanley, NM29 miles from this station, 50.6°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made