Princeton, Missouri climate: Normal weather by month, frost dates and records
Princeton's normal year runs from 15°F January nights to 86°F July afternoons, with 38.0 inches of precipitation a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 10.6°C, January lows of −10°C, July highs of 30°C, 965 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationPrinceton
- Station IDUSC00236866
- Location40.40°N 93.58°W
- Elevation980 ft (299 m)
- From the centerunder 1 mile
- Population983
On October 22, the normal high in Princeton is 63°F and the normal low 40°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 25%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Princeton.
- Jan 34° 15°
- Feb 39° 18°
- Mar 51° 29°
- Apr 63° 39°
- May 72° 50°
- Jun 81° 61°
- Jul 86° 65°
- Aug 84° 63°
- Sep 77° 54°
- Oct 65° 42°
- Nov 51° 30°
- Dec 38° 20°
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 Princeton each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 86°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of 15°F. The most precipitation falls in June (5.60 in), the least in January (1.10 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 34°F | 15°F | 24.2°F | 1.10 | 6 | <1 | 29 | 9 h 40 min |
| February | 39°F | 18°F | 28.5°F | 1.23 | 6 | <1 | 24 | 10 h 40 min |
| March | 51°F | 29°F | 40.1°F | 2.23 | 7 | <1 | 19 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 63°F | 39°F | 50.9°F | 4.24 | 10 | <1 | 6 | 13 h 10 min |
| May | 72°F | 50°F | 61.2°F | 5.05 | 12 | 1 | <1 | 14 h 20 min |
| June | 81°F | 61°F | 71.1°F | 5.60 | 11 | 4 | <1 | 15 h |
| July | 86°F | 65°F | 75.6°F | 3.86 | 9 | 10 | <1 | 14 h 50 min |
| August | 84°F | 63°F | 73.6°F | 4.25 | 9 | 7 | <1 | 13 h 50 min |
| September | 77°F | 54°F | 65.3°F | 3.81 | 7 | 3 | <1 | 12 h 30 min |
| October | 65°F | 42°F | 53.6°F | 3.29 | 8 | <1 | 5 | 11 h 10 min |
| November | 51°F | 30°F | 40.2°F | 1.90 | 6 | <1 | 17 | 10 h |
| December | 38°F | 20°F | 29.1°F | 1.42 | 5 | <1 | 27 | 9 h 20 min |
| Year (annual) | 62°F | 41°F | 51.1°F | 37.98 | 95 | 24 | 127 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 1°C | −10°C | −4.3°C | 28 mm |
| February | 4°C | −8°C | −1.9°C | 31 mm |
| March | 11°C | −2°C | 4.5°C | 57 mm |
| April | 17°C | 4°C | 10.5°C | 108 mm |
| May | 22°C | 10°C | 16.2°C | 128 mm |
| June | 27°C | 16°C | 21.7°C | 142 mm |
| July | 30°C | 19°C | 24.2°C | 98 mm |
| August | 29°C | 17°C | 23.1°C | 108 mm |
| September | 25°C | 12°C | 18.5°C | 97 mm |
| October | 18°C | 5°C | 12.0°C | 84 mm |
| November | 10°C | −1°C | 4.6°C | 48 mm |
| December | 3°C | −7°C | −1.6°C | 36 mm |
NOAA publishes no 1991-2020 snowfall normal for this station. The nearest record that keeps one, Trenton (22 miles away), gets 17 inches of snow in a normal year; elevation and distance can change that.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00236866; 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 Princeton?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in May, June, August, September and October. Of those, September has the fewest days with rain (7).
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 USC00236866.
When is the last frost in Princeton?
In Princeton, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after April 25 in half of years and after May 8 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before October 15 in half of years and before September 30 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 251 year in 10 after May 8; 9 in 10 after April 11
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- October 151 year in 10 before September 30; 9 in 10 before October 29
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 174 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 195 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after April 14 in half of springs and before October 26 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Princeton in zone 5b in ZIP code 64673, the nearest ZIP area.
Frost dates for every NOAA station in Missouri · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USC00236866; USDA 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map, ZIP listings: PRISM Group, Oregon State University, https://prism.oregonstate.edu, accessed October 8, 2026. 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 Princeton?
In a normal year in Princeton, 24 days a year reach 90°F (1 of them 100°F or more), 127 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 95 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 24a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- 1a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 127a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 37high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 95a normal year
The highest temperature in this station's record (since 1893) is 111°F, on July 24, 1901; the lowest is −28°F, on February 13, 1905.
The wettest calendar year on that record is 1961, with 52.79 in; the snowiest season is 1959–60, with 57.0 inches.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USC00236866; records: ACIS (NOAA Regional Climate Centers), station USC00236866. Records use complete months only; a month missing more than three days is left out.
How sunny is Princeton?
Over a year 75% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds in the area around Princeton, 4.1 kWh per square metre a day. July is the sunniest month (82%) and January the cloudiest (66%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 66% | 2.0 |
| February | 70% | 2.9 |
| March | 68% | 3.8 |
| April | 70% | 4.9 |
| May | 72% | 5.7 |
| June | 78% | 6.4 |
| July | 82% | 6.4 |
| August | 80% | 5.6 |
| September | 81% | 4.7 |
| October | 74% | 3.2 |
| November | 72% | 2.3 |
| December | 68% | 1.8 |
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 Princeton need?
A normal year in Princeton brings 6,012 heating degree days, 12% more than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 991 cooling degree days, 9% more 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 3,378 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 1,266 | 0 |
| February | 1,022 | 0 |
| March | 774 | 2 |
| April | 429 | 7 |
| May | 174 | 56 |
| June | 20 | 204 |
| July | 2 | 329 |
| August | 6 | 272 |
| September | 95 | 105 |
| October | 370 | 15 |
| November | 743 | 0 |
| December | 1,113 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 6,012 | 991 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00236866. 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 Princeton been warmer than normal lately?
2022 averaged 50.0°F, 1.1°F below the 1991-2020 normal of 51.1°F. 1 of the 2 complete years since 2021 ran warmer than the normal.
| Year | Mean | Against normal | Precip. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 52.3°F | +1.2°F | – |
| 2022 | 50.0°F | −1.1°F | 31.03 |
Over 37 complete years from 1955 to 2023, the station's annual mean temperature rose at a fitted 1.9°F per century (+0.11°C per decade). A fitted rate summarizes the whole record; single years swing well above and below it.
Source: observed years: ACIS, station USC00236866; trend: NOAA GHCN-Monthly v4. A year counts only with all twelve months complete.
How does Princeton's climate compare?
Princeton is warmer than 4 of the other 133 places with their own NOAA record in Missouri, and wetter than 5. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 51.1°F is warmer than 45%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Princeton is Dfa: continental, 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 Princeton 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.
- Lineville, IA194 people · 13 mi N
- Newtown, MO110 people · 13 mi E
- Ravanna, MO62 people · 8 mi NE
- Harris, MO59 people · 14 mi SE
- Pleasanton, IA32 people · 15 mi NW
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 Princeton's climate
What is the coldest month in Princeton?
January, with a normal high of 34°F and a normal low of 15°F. The warmest is July (86°F by day, 65°F at night).
Does it snow in Princeton?
Yes. NOAA publishes no 1991-2020 snowfall normal for Princeton's NOAA station; the nearest record that keeps one, Trenton (22 miles away), records 17 inches of snow in a normal year.
What is the rainiest month in Princeton?
June, with 5.60 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is January with 1.10 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Princeton in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Princeton in zone 5b in ZIP code 64673, the nearest ZIP area.
How late can frost come in Princeton?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after April 25; in one year in ten it comes after May 8. Waiting until May 8 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- Missouri climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Spickard, MO12 miles from this station, 51.4°F a year
- Trenton, MO22 miles from this station, 52.8°F a year
- Leon, IA23 miles from this station, 49.6°F a year
- Lamoni, IA23 miles from this station, 51.6°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made