Richwood, West Virginia climate: Normal weather by month, frost dates and records
Richwood's normal year runs from 20°F January nights to 78°F July afternoons, with 55.8 inches of precipitation and 100 inches of snow a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 9.9°C, January lows of −7°C, July highs of 25°C, 1,418 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationRichwood (1 mi SSE)
- Station IDUSC00467513
- Location38.21°N 80.52°W
- Elevation3,090 ft (942 m)
- Population1,607
On October 23, the normal high in Richwood is 60°F and the normal low 40°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 28%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Richwood.
- Jan 38° 20°
- Feb 41° 22°
- Mar 48° 29°
- Apr 60° 39°
- May 68° 48°
- Jun 74° 56°
- Jul 78° 60°
- Aug 77° 59°
- Sep 72° 53°
- Oct 63° 43°
- Nov 51° 33°
- Dec 42° 25°
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 Richwood each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 78°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of 20°F. The most precipitation falls in July (5.99 in), the least in October (3.57 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 38°F | 20°F | 28.7°F | 4.32 | 26.1 | 15 | <1 | 26 | 9 h 50 min |
| February | 41°F | 22°F | 31.1°F | 3.95 | 21.9 | 13 | <1 | 23 | 10 h 50 min |
| March | 48°F | 29°F | 38.8°F | 5.29 | 16.0 | 13 | <1 | 19 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 60°F | 39°F | 49.6°F | 4.77 | 5.3 | 11 | <1 | 9 | 13 h 10 min |
| May | 68°F | 48°F | 58.3°F | 5.83 | 0.0 | 12 | <1 | 1 | 14 h 10 min |
| June | 74°F | 56°F | 65.0°F | 5.16 | 0.0 | 11 | <1 | <1 | 14 h 50 min |
| July | 78°F | 60°F | 68.7°F | 5.99 | 0.0 | 11 | <1 | <1 | 14 h 40 min |
| August | 77°F | 59°F | 67.7°F | 4.38 | 0.0 | 9 | <1 | <1 | 13 h 40 min |
| September | 72°F | 53°F | 62.5°F | 4.17 | 0.0 | 8 | <1 | <1 | 12 h 30 min |
| October | 63°F | 43°F | 52.6°F | 3.57 | 1.1 | 8 | <1 | 5 | 11 h 20 min |
| November | 51°F | 33°F | 42.0°F | 3.87 | 7.5 | 10 | <1 | 15 | 10 h 10 min |
| December | 42°F | 25°F | 33.6°F | 4.54 | 22.1 | 13 | <1 | 24 | 9 h 30 min |
| Year (annual) | 59°F | 41°F | 49.9°F | 55.84 | 100.0 | 133 | <1 | 122 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 3°C | −7°C | −1.8°C | 110 mm | 66 cm |
| February | 5°C | −6°C | −0.5°C | 100 mm | 56 cm |
| March | 9°C | −2°C | 3.8°C | 134 mm | 41 cm |
| April | 16°C | 4°C | 9.8°C | 121 mm | 13 cm |
| May | 20°C | 9°C | 14.6°C | 148 mm | 0 cm |
| June | 23°C | 13°C | 18.3°C | 131 mm | 0 cm |
| July | 25°C | 15°C | 20.4°C | 152 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 25°C | 15°C | 19.8°C | 111 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 22°C | 12°C | 16.9°C | 106 mm | 0 cm |
| October | 17°C | 6°C | 11.4°C | 91 mm | 3 cm |
| November | 11°C | 0°C | 5.6°C | 98 mm | 19 cm |
| December | 6°C | −4°C | 0.9°C | 115 mm | 56 cm |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00467513; 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 Richwood?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in May, June, July, August and September. Of those, September has the fewest days with rain (8).
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 USC00467513.
When is the last frost in Richwood?
In Richwood, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after April 30 in half of years and after May 17 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before October 18 in half of years and before October 1 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 301 year in 10 after May 17; 9 in 10 after April 14
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- October 181 year in 10 before October 1; 9 in 10 before November 1
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 171 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 194 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after April 16 in half of springs and before October 29 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Richwood in zone 6b in ZIP code 26261, the nearest ZIP area.
Frost dates for every NOAA station in West Virginia · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USC00467513; 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 Richwood?
In a normal year in Richwood, a 90°F day is rare, 122 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 133 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- fewer than 1a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- fewer than 1a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 122a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 36high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 133a normal year
- Days with 1 inch of snow or more
- 30a normal year
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USC00467513.
How sunny is Richwood?
Over a year 69% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds in the area around Richwood, 3.9 kWh per square metre a day. August is the sunniest month (76%) and January the cloudiest (56%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 56% | 1.8 |
| February | 58% | 2.5 |
| March | 63% | 3.6 |
| April | 67% | 4.8 |
| May | 68% | 5.3 |
| June | 74% | 6.0 |
| July | 74% | 5.8 |
| August | 76% | 5.3 |
| September | 75% | 4.4 |
| October | 69% | 3.2 |
| November | 68% | 2.3 |
| December | 57% | 1.6 |
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 Richwood need?
A normal year in Richwood brings 5,873 heating degree days, 9% more than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 395 cooling degree days, 56% 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 2,635 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 1,124 | 0 |
| February | 948 | 0 |
| March | 814 | 0 |
| April | 466 | 6 |
| May | 232 | 25 |
| June | 71 | 69 |
| July | 18 | 134 |
| August | 25 | 110 |
| September | 119 | 44 |
| October | 390 | 7 |
| November | 692 | 1 |
| December | 975 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 5,873 | 395 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00467513. 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.
How does Richwood's climate compare?
Richwood is warmer than 7 of the other 62 places with their own NOAA record in West Virginia, and wetter than 53. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 49.9°F is warmer than 40%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Richwood is Dfb: continental, 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 Richwood share this climate record?
3 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.
- Craigsville, WV1,584 people · 11 mi NW
- Camden-on-Gauley, WV120 people · 12 mi N
- Fenwick, WV45 people · 4 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 Richwood's climate
What is the coldest month in Richwood?
January, with a normal high of 38°F and a normal low of 20°F. The warmest is July (78°F by day, 60°F at night).
Does it snow in Richwood?
Yes: 100 inches in a normal year, falling on 31 days with 0.1 inch or more, the most in January (26.1 inches).
What is the rainiest month in Richwood?
July, with 5.99 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is October with 3.57 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Richwood in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Richwood in zone 6b in ZIP code 26261, the nearest ZIP area.
How late can frost come in Richwood?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after April 30; in one year in ten it comes after May 17. Waiting until May 17 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- West Virginia climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Rupert, WV16 miles from this station, 48.1°F a year
- Mount Nebo (1 mi S), WV18 miles from this station, 50.2°F a year
- Summersville, WV21 miles from this station, 51.6°F a year
- Buckeye, WV21 miles from this station, 50.0°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made