Placitas, NM Climate: Temperature & Rain by Month
Pulled from NOAA NCEI 1991–2020 normals →: climate measurements used in PlainClimate's documented score
30-year climate normals (1991-2020) from Placitas's primary NOAA station, PLACITAS 4W.
The climate verdict for Placitas
Dryness leads the climate profile for Placitas, New Mexico, with 10.9 inches of precipitation a year. NOAA records an annual average of 56°F. Its climate comfort score of 68/100 (good) lands mid-pack nationally, exceeding 56% of station-mapped location scores.
- 56°F
- annual average temperature (NOAA normal)
- 68/100
- comfort score, above 56% of station-mapped location scores
- 10.9"
- annual precipitation · 11" snow
- 190 days
- frost-free growing season
Placitas: NOAA 1991-2020 normals describe a typical year, not a forecast. Method: /methodology.
Normals record plate
Sheet USC00296911 · Placitas, NM 56°F mean · 10.9" precip
TEMP-MILD · RANK-UPPER · PHOTO-FINISH · PRCP-ARID · SWING-MID · COMF-MID · LOAD-HEAT · STN-1 · BOOK-FULL
- TEMP-MILD 56°F
- RANK-UPPER #4,322
- PHOTO-FINISH ≈ Louisa
- PRCP-ARID 10.9"
- SWING-MID 42°F
- COMF-MID 68/100
- LOAD-HEAT 4,490 HDD
- STN-1 USC00296911
- BOOK-FULL 6/6 fields
Nearest mean-temperature peer: Louisa, VA (+ 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 NM station list.
- Placitas (this station) 56°F
- Cold Heidelberg, KY 56°F
- Hot Louisa, VA 56°F
- Near Meteor Crater, AZ 56°F
- Near London Locks, WV 56°F
Climate Living Index · Placitas
Placitas: 42/100 · grade D
Placitas publishes 5 of 6 Living Index dimensions (NOAA annual/seasonal normals · NOAA daily multivariate normals); 1 missing weight rescale to 100.
PlainClimate-derived for Placitas, not an official NOAA rating. Rankings still use Comfort Score 68/100 (separate formula). Breakpoints and limits.
| Dimension | Station value | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Annual temperature balance | 55.7°F · 11.8° from 67.5°F | 62/100 · C |
| Snowfall burden | 10.7 inches/year | 62/100 · C |
| Frost-free season | 190 days/year | 57/100 · C |
| Normal heat + freeze calendar | 181 calendar days | 24/100 · F |
| Precipitation balance | 10.9 in · 24.1 from 35 in | 15/100 · F |
Placitas · 2026-08-04 · NOAA NCEI Climate Normals · method · Comfort Score method.
Placitas's normals sit in a dry climate class: BSk
Precipitation is low relative to temperature but above true desert thresholds: cold semi-arid steppe (BSk). Class BSk is the Peel et al. (2007) label for this station's monthly mean temperature and precipitation normals: dry (arid or semi-arid), specifically cold semi-arid steppe.
- Köppen code
- BSk
- Group
- Dry (arid or semi-arid)
- Warmest month
- 76.9°F
- Coldest month
- 35.0°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 Placitas sits across the climate record
Three NOAA fields for Placitas's primary station, temperature, precipitation, and seasonal swing, are ranked against every station-mapped normal that carries the same field.
- Annual temperature
- 63rd percentile warmth
- Mid-pack annual mean versus 6,861 station normals.
- Annual precipitation
- Drier than 92%
- Placitas's annual total ranks in the drier third of 6,352 measured normals.
- Seasonal temperature swing
- 44th percentile swing
- Typical seasonal amplitude versus 6,861 complete station-years.
How Placitas compares across U.S. station-mapped locations
Placitas's comfort score vs. all station-mapped locations
PlainClimate composite comfort index (1–100), NOAA 1991–2020 normals
68 Top 44% score exceeds 56% 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
Monthly Temperatures
Average daily high and low temperatures by month
| Month | Avg High | Avg Low | Mean | Precip | Snow | Freeze Days | 90°F+ Days |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 47°F (8°C) | 24°F (-5°C) | 36°F (2°C) | 0.5" | 2.7" | 27.6 | 0.0 |
| February | 53°F (12°C) | 28°F (-2°C) | 40°F (5°C) | 0.5" | 2.0" | 21.7 | 0.0 |
| March | 62°F (16°C) | 33°F (0°C) | 47°F (8°C) | 0.7" | 1.5" | 16.1 | 0.0 |
| April | 71°F (22°C) | 40°F (4°C) | 55°F (13°C) | 0.7" | 0.3" | 4.9 | 0.0 |
| May | 79°F (26°C) | 49°F (9°C) | 64°F (18°C) | 0.6" | 0.0" | 0.6 | 2.8 |
| June | 89°F (32°C) | 58°F (14°C) | 74°F (23°C) | 0.6" | 0.0" | 0.0 | 18.3 |
| July | 91°F (33°C) | 63°F (17°C) | 77°F (25°C) | 1.7" | 0.0" | 0.0 | 20.8 |
| August | 89°F (32°C) | 60°F (16°C) | 75°F (24°C) | 1.9" | 0.0" | 0.0 | 16.1 |
| September | 82°F (28°C) | 53°F (12°C) | 68°F (20°C) | 1.1" | 0.0" | 0.2 | 3.7 |
| October | 71°F (22°C) | 41°F (5°C) | 56°F (13°C) | 1.1" | 0.1" | 3.9 | 0.1 |
| November | 56°F (13°C) | 31°F (-1°C) | 43°F (6°C) | 0.8" | 1.2" | 16.8 | 0.0 |
| December | 46°F (8°C) | 24°F (-4°C) | 35°F (2°C) | 0.7" | 2.9" | 26.1 | 0.0 |
The year, day by day
Placitas works both ends of the calendar. Normal highs climb to 92°F by June 30 and hold at or above 90°F on 57 dates, then normal lows drop to freezing or below on 124 dates, bottoming at 22°F around January 1.
When the heat sits
Normal highs reach 90°F from June 16 through August 11, covering 57 dates. The broader mild season, normal highs of 70°F or more, runs April 12 to October 18.
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 13, then returns to freezing around November 11, covering 124 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 29, when 28% of years recorded at least a hundredth of an inch. The driest is January 3 at 7%. Summed across the calendar, that is about 46 wet dates a year.
The widest day
June 11 carries the biggest normal gap between afternoon and dawn, 32°F between the normal high and the normal low.
Look up any date
Any date's 1991–2020 normal for Placitas.
Where Placitas Stands Nationally
Aridity defines the water calendar: about 11 inches in a normal year lands this among the driest tenth of ranked stations.
Placitas earns one nationally notable standing (outer quintile) against 6,860 NOAA 1991–2020 normals stations, middle-of-the-pack metrics stay silent here.
Monthly Precipitation
Average monthly rainfall and snowfall
Snow: 2.7"
2.1 days with precipitation
Snow: 2.0"
2.8 days with precipitation
Snow: 1.5"
3.2 days with precipitation
Snow: 0.3"
2.4 days with precipitation
2.7 days with precipitation
2.8 days with precipitation
8.1 days with precipitation
8.0 days with precipitation
4.8 days with precipitation
Snow: 0.1"
4.0 days with precipitation
Snow: 1.2"
2.5 days with precipitation
Snow: 2.9"
2.3 days with precipitation
Placitas runs a summer-peaked wet season
39% of Placitas'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 August at 1.9", on a 41.9°F seasonal spread. 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: August, July, September, taking 44% of the annual total between them.
- Driest month: February at 0.5".
- Winter share: 15% 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.
How Placitas's precipitation splits across the calendar
About 46 days a year record measurable precipitation here, carrying 10.9" between them, or roughly 0.24 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.
Snow reaches Placitas, but rarely amounts to much
The normals record 10.7 inches of snow a year here, most likely in December. 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 5 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
October 23
50% probability date
Last Spring Freeze
April 16
50% probability date
Growing Season
190 days
Heating & Cooling Degree Days
Annual totals indicate energy demand for heating and cooling
Heating Degree Days
4,490
Higher = more heating needed
Cooling Degree Days
1,128
Higher = more cooling needed
Warmest Month
July
Coldest Month
December
Nationwide similar cities
Other rankable U.S. places outside NM closest to Placitas 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 (56°F here).
- Alton, MO 56°F · 0.0°F off
- Boonville, MO 56°F · 0.0°F off
- Festus, MO 56°F · 0.0°F off
- Hamlin, WV 56°F · 0.0°F off
Closest by annual precipitation
Nearest out-of-state peers by annual precipitation (10.9" here), excluding temperature-peer places.
- Dubois, WY 10.9" · 0.0" off
- Eureka, NV 10.9" · 0.0" off
- Paradise Valley, NV 10.9" · 0.0" off
- Hartline, WA 10.9" · 0.0" off
Scarce-water calendar
Where Placitas's limited precipitation lands
heating led · dry · mid swing
Placitas's energy balance leans toward cold weather: 4,490 annual heating degree days against 1,128 for cooling. Its 41.9°F seasonal range still makes the monthly rows more useful than the annual average alone.
Placitas's frost-free season lasts about 190 days, a middle-length window whose endpoints matter more than the annual average. It describes freeze probability, not year-specific planting conditions.
July and December mark the typical warm and cold ends of the calendar in Placitas's middle-range seasonal profile. The measured spread is 41.9°F. The annual average is 56°F. Neither the annual mean nor one extreme month represents the full calendar on its own.
Placitas's cold-season load does not imply a wet climate. Annual precipitation is 10.9 inches, which places the station in PlainClimate's dry range. Annual snowfall totals 10.7 inches. The snowfall and rainfall fields should be read separately rather than inferred from temperature.
Placitas wettest normal
August
August concentrates the scarce annual total (10.9 inches).
Placitas driest normal
February
February is typically driest; arid stations are defined by when water is absent, not by a four-season grid.
Questions about Placitas's climate
How dry is Placitas? ▼
How many days above 90°F does Placitas get? ▼
How much energy does heating and cooling require in Placitas? ▼
Data Sources
Data source: NOAA U.S. Climate Normals v1.0.1 (1991-2020). All figures on this page are from Placitas's primary station: PLACITAS 4W (USC00296911). For informational purposes only.
Place identity: U.S. Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer places. The exact name-and-state crosswalk returns more than one Census place, so PlainClimate leaves the place identity unresolved. Because Placitas hits multiple Gazetteer rows, PlainClimate refuses to pick one and shows the unresolved badge instead of inventing a GEOID.
On this page every temperature, precipitation, and derived score for Placitas 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.