Rifle Garfield County, CO Climate: Temperature & Rain by Month
Temperature and precipitation from NOAA NCEI 1991–2020 normals →, plus PlainClimate's derived comfort score
30-year climate normals (1991-2020) from Rifle Garfield County's primary NOAA station, RIFLE GARFIELD CO AP.
The climate verdict for Rifle Garfield County
Dryness leads the climate profile for Rifle Garfield County, Colorado, with 10.7 inches of precipitation a year. NOAA records an annual average of 49°F. At 52/100 (moderate) the climate comfort score falls in the bottom third of the station-mapped U.S. score corpus, exceeding only 24% of scores.
- 49°F
- yearly average temperature, NOAA normal
- 52/100
- comfort score, above 24% of station-mapped location scores
- 10.7"
- precipitation, annual total
- 146 days
- frost-free days per growing season
Rifle Garfield County: NOAA 1991-2020 normals describe a typical year, not a forecast. Method: /methodology.
Normals record plate
Sheet USW00003016 · Rifle Garfield County, CO 49°F mean · 10.7" precip
TEMP-COOL · RANK-COOL · PHOTO-FINISH · PRCP-ARID · SWING-WIDE · COMF-LOW · LOAD-HEAT · STN-1 · BOOK-FULL
- TEMP-COOL 49°F
- RANK-COOL #2,470
- PHOTO-FINISH ≈ Lockport
- PRCP-ARID 10.7"
- SWING-WIDE 49°F
- COMF-LOW 52/100
- LOAD-HEAT 6,398 HDD
- STN-1 USW00003016
- BOOK-FULL 6/6 fields
Nearest mean-temperature peer: Lockport, NY (+ 0 °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 CO station list.
- Rifle Garfield… (this station) 49°F
- Hot Milan, MI 49°F
- Near Lockport, NY 49°F
- Near Ravenna, OH 49°F
- Near Twin Falls Sun…, ID 49°F
Climate Living Index · Rifle Garfield County
Rifle Garfield County: 19/100 · grade F
Rifle Garfield County publishes 4 of 6 Living Index dimensions (NOAA annual/seasonal normals · NOAA daily multivariate normals); 2 missing weights rescale to 100.
PlainClimate-derived for Rifle Garfield County, not an official NOAA rating. Rankings still use Comfort Score 52/100 (separate formula). Breakpoints and limits.
| Dimension | Station value | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Annual temperature balance | 49.1°F · 18.4° from 67.5°F | 36/100 · F |
| Frost-free season | 146 days/year | 22/100 · F |
| Precipitation balance | 10.7 in · 24.3 from 35 in | 14/100 · F |
| Normal heat + freeze calendar | 222 calendar days | 4/100 · F |
Rifle Garfield County · 2026-08-04 · NOAA NCEI Climate Normals · method · Comfort Score method.
Rifle Garfield County'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
- 73.7°F
- Coldest month
- 25.1°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 Rifle Garfield County sits across the climate record
Three NOAA fields for Rifle Garfield County's primary station, temperature, precipitation, and seasonal swing, are ranked against every station-mapped normal that carries the same field.
- Annual temperature
- 36th percentile warmth
- Mid-pack annual mean versus 6,861 station normals.
- Annual precipitation
- Drier than 92%
- Rifle Garfield County's annual total ranks in the drier third of 6,352 measured normals.
- Seasonal temperature swing
- Wider than 76%
- Warmest-to-coldest month gap for Rifle Garfield County is large versus 6,861 complete station-years.
How Rifle Garfield County compares across U.S. station-mapped locations
Rifle Garfield County's comfort score vs. all station-mapped locations
PlainClimate composite comfort index (1–100), NOAA 1991–2020 normals
52 24th percentile score exceeds 24% 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%). This entry sits in this band.
- 60–70: 1,236 station-mapped locations (20%). Above this entry.
- 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 | Freeze Days | 90°F+ Days |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 37°F (3°C) | 13°F (-10°C) | 25°F (-4°C) | 0.7" | 30.7 | 0.0 |
| February | 44°F (6°C) | 20°F (-7°C) | 32°F (0°C) | 0.6" | 26.9 | 0.0 |
| March | 55°F (13°C) | 27°F (-3°C) | 41°F (5°C) | 0.8" | 25.7 | 0.0 |
| April | 63°F (17°C) | 33°F (0°C) | 48°F (9°C) | 1.0" | 14.0 | 0.0 |
| May | 74°F (24°C) | 40°F (5°C) | 57°F (14°C) | 1.1" | 3.3 | 1.2 |
| June | 86°F (30°C) | 48°F (9°C) | 67°F (20°C) | 0.7" | 0.1 | 12.6 |
| July | 92°F (33°C) | 55°F (13°C) | 74°F (23°C) | 1.0" | 0.0 | 22.5 |
| August | 89°F (32°C) | 54°F (12°C) | 71°F (22°C) | 1.1" | 0.0 | 14.9 |
| September | 80°F (27°C) | 45°F (7°C) | 63°F (17°C) | 1.3" | 0.8 | 2.6 |
| October | 66°F (19°C) | 34°F (1°C) | 50°F (10°C) | 1.3" | 13.4 | 0.0 |
| November | 50°F (10°C) | 23°F (-5°C) | 37°F (3°C) | 0.6" | 27.0 | 0.0 |
| December | 37°F (3°C) | 14°F (-10°C) | 26°F (-4°C) | 0.6" | 30.6 | 0.0 |
The year, day by day
Rifle Garfield County works both ends of the calendar. Normal highs climb to 93°F by July 16 and hold at or above 90°F on 45 dates, then normal lows drop to freezing or below on 177 dates, bottoming at 12°F around January 1.
When the heat sits
Normal highs reach 90°F from June 28 through August 11, covering 45 dates. The broader mild season, normal highs of 70°F or more, runs May 7 to October 7.
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 April 13, then returns to freezing around October 20, covering 177 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 4, when 29% of years recorded at least a hundredth of an inch. The driest is June 11 at 17%. Summed across the calendar, that is about 86 wet dates a year.
The widest day
June 23 carries the biggest normal gap between afternoon and dawn, 39°F between the normal high and the normal low.
Look up any date
Any date's 1991–2020 normal for Rifle Garfield County.
Where Rifle Garfield County Stands Nationally
Aridity defines the water calendar: about 11 inches in a normal year lands this among the driest tenth of ranked stations.
Day-to-night contrast is extreme by national standards — the widest normal daily swing reaches about 39°F, sharper than nine in ten ranked stations see.
Rifle Garfield County earns 2 nationally notable standings (outer quintiles) against 6,860 NOAA 1991–2020 normals stations; only those extremes render.
Monthly Precipitation
Average monthly rainfall
7.2 days with precipitation
6.6 days with precipitation
7.2 days with precipitation
8.0 days with precipitation
7.5 days with precipitation
4.5 days with precipitation
8.0 days with precipitation
9.0 days with precipitation
7.3 days with precipitation
7.3 days with precipitation
6.2 days with precipitation
7.1 days with precipitation
Rifle Garfield County spreads its precipitation across the year
Neither half of the year dominates here: June through August take 25% of the annual total and December through February 17%, with neither reaching the 35% that would mark a distinct wet season. Rifle Garfield County has no dry season to plan around, though it does carry a wide 48.6°F gap between its warmest and coldest month.
The gap between the wettest and driest month still matters: September averages 1.3" and December 0.6". The three wettest months together take 35% 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.
Rifle Garfield County is dry, and what does fall arrives gently
Only about 86 days a year record measurable precipitation here, 24% of the calendar, and they carry 10.7" between them. At roughly 0.12 inches on an average wet day, this is not the damp drizzle of a marine climate; it is an arid record in which precipitation is both uncommon and light when it appears.
The wettest month by count is August at about 9 wet days; the driest is June at about 5.
A low per-event average in a dry record is a statement about typical days only. Arid regions can still take a large share of a year's total from a single convective storm, which a normal cannot show.
A wet day is one recording at least 0.01 inches. These are 1991-2020 normals: they describe an average year, not the extremes within it.
Frost Dates & Growing Season
First Fall Freeze
October 4
50% probability date
Last Spring Freeze
May 11
50% probability date
Growing Season
146 days
Heating & Cooling Degree Days
Annual totals indicate energy demand for heating and cooling
Heating Degree Days
6,398
Higher = more heating needed
Cooling Degree Days
631
Higher = more cooling needed
Warmest Month
July
Coldest Month
January
Nationwide similar cities
Other rankable U.S. places outside CO closest to Rifle Garfield County 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 (49°F here).
- Arlington, WA 49°F · 0.0°F off
- Crystal Lake, IL 49°F · 0.0°F off
- Greenfield, IA 49°F · 0.0°F off
- Lockport, NY 49°F · 0.0°F off
Closest by annual precipitation
Nearest out-of-state peers by annual precipitation (10.7" here), excluding temperature-peer places.
- Castleford, ID 10.7" · 0.0" off
- Hazelton, ID 10.7" · 0.0" off
- Joplin, MT 10.8" · 0.0" off
- Tulelake, CA 10.7" · 0.0" off
Scarce-water calendar
Where Rifle Garfield County's limited precipitation lands
heating led · dry · mid swing
Rifle Garfield County's energy balance leans toward cold weather: 6,398 annual heating degree days against 631 for cooling. Its 48.6°F seasonal range still makes the monthly rows more useful than the annual average alone.
Only about 146 days are frost-free in a normal year. That short interval is consistent with the cold-season signal, but the measure does not predict the exact first or last freeze in any one year.
July and January mark the typical warm and cold ends of the calendar in Rifle Garfield County's middle-range seasonal profile. The measured spread is 48.6°F. The annual average is 49°F. Neither the annual mean nor one extreme month represents the full calendar on its own.
Rifle Garfield County's cold-season load does not imply a wet climate. Annual precipitation is 10.7 inches, which places the station in PlainClimate's dry range. Snowfall is not added to the interpretation because its annual value is missing. The snowfall and rainfall fields should be read separately rather than inferred from temperature.
Rifle Garfield County wettest normal
September
September concentrates the scarce annual total (10.7 inches).
Rifle Garfield County driest normal
December
December is typically driest; arid stations are defined by when water is absent, not by a four-season grid.
Questions about Rifle Garfield County's climate
How dry is Rifle Garfield County? ▼
How many days above 90°F does Rifle Garfield County get? ▼
How much energy does heating and cooling require in Rifle Garfield County? ▼
Data Sources
Data source: NOAA U.S. Climate Normals v1.0.1 (1991-2020). All figures on this page are from Rifle Garfield County's primary station: RIFLE GARFIELD CO AP (USW00003016). For informational purposes only.
Place identity: U.S. Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer places. The conservative exact name-and-state crosswalk finds no Census place match, so PlainClimate treats this as a station-mapped location and does not claim it is a municipality. No exact Gazetteer row for Rifle Garfield County; facility counts that depend on place identity are therefore an upper bound, not a municipal census.
On this page every temperature, precipitation, and derived score for Rifle Garfield County 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.