Rocky Mount, Virginia climate: Normal weather by month, frost dates and records
Rocky Mount's normal year runs from 26°F January nights to 87°F July afternoons, with 49.2 inches of precipitation and 13 inches of snow a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 13.4°C, January lows of −3°C, July highs of 30°C, 1,249 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationRocky Mount
- Station IDUSC00447338
- Location36.98°N 79.90°W
- Elevation1,315 ft (401 m)
- Population4,971
On October 14, the normal high in Rocky Mount is 70°F and the normal low 45°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 31%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Rocky Mount.
- Jan 47° 26°
- Feb 51° 27°
- Mar 59° 34°
- Apr 70° 42°
- May 76° 52°
- Jun 83° 60°
- Jul 87° 65°
- Aug 85° 63°
- Sep 79° 56°
- Oct 70° 44°
- Nov 59° 34°
- Dec 50° 29°
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 Rocky Mount each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 87°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of 26°F. The most precipitation falls in September (5.00 in), the least in February (3.11 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 47°F | 26°F | 36.7°F | 3.88 | 3.6 | 10 | <1 | 23 | 9 h 50 min |
| February | 51°F | 27°F | 39.0°F | 3.11 | 4.9 | 9 | <1 | 21 | 10 h 50 min |
| March | 59°F | 34°F | 46.2°F | 3.99 | 2.5 | 10 | <1 | 15 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 70°F | 42°F | 55.6°F | 4.07 | 0.2 | 11 | <1 | 5 | 13 h 10 min |
| May | 76°F | 52°F | 63.9°F | 4.49 | 0.0 | 12 | 1 | <1 | 14 h 10 min |
| June | 83°F | 60°F | 71.8°F | 4.86 | 0.0 | 11 | 5 | <1 | 14 h 40 min |
| July | 87°F | 65°F | 75.7°F | 4.49 | 0.0 | 13 | 10 | <1 | 14 h 30 min |
| August | 85°F | 63°F | 74.1°F | 4.10 | 0.0 | 12 | 7 | <1 | 13 h 40 min |
| September | 79°F | 56°F | 67.3°F | 5.00 | 0.0 | 10 | 2 | <1 | 12 h 30 min |
| October | 70°F | 44°F | 56.7°F | 3.40 | 0.0 | 9 | <1 | 3 | 11 h 20 min |
| November | 59°F | 34°F | 46.3°F | 3.66 | 0.0 | 9 | <1 | 15 | 10 h 10 min |
| December | 50°F | 29°F | 39.5°F | 4.13 | 1.4 | 10 | <1 | 21 | 9 h 40 min |
| Year (annual) | 68°F | 44°F | 56.1°F | 49.18 | 12.6 | 126 | 26 | 104 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 8°C | −3°C | 2.6°C | 99 mm | 9 cm |
| February | 10°C | −3°C | 3.9°C | 79 mm | 12 cm |
| March | 15°C | 1°C | 7.9°C | 101 mm | 6 cm |
| April | 21°C | 5°C | 13.1°C | 103 mm | 1 cm |
| May | 25°C | 11°C | 17.7°C | 114 mm | 0 cm |
| June | 28°C | 16°C | 22.1°C | 123 mm | 0 cm |
| July | 30°C | 18°C | 24.3°C | 114 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 30°C | 17°C | 23.4°C | 104 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 26°C | 13°C | 19.6°C | 127 mm | 0 cm |
| October | 21°C | 7°C | 13.7°C | 86 mm | 0 cm |
| November | 15°C | 1°C | 7.9°C | 93 mm | 0 cm |
| December | 10°C | −2°C | 4.2°C | 105 mm | 4 cm |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00447338; 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 Rocky Mount?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in April, May, June, September and October. Of those, October has the fewest days with rain (9).
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 USC00447338.
When is the last frost in Rocky Mount?
In Rocky Mount, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after April 20 in half of years and after May 8 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before October 25 in half of years and before October 11 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 201 year in 10 after May 8; 9 in 10 after April 1
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- October 251 year in 10 before October 11; 9 in 10 before November 5
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 188 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 214 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after April 3 in half of springs and before November 3 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Rocky Mount in zone 7b in ZIP code 24151, the nearest ZIP area.
Frost dates for every NOAA station in Virginia · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USC00447338; 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 Rocky Mount?
In a normal year in Rocky Mount, 26 days a year reach 90°F, 104 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 126 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 26a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- fewer than 1a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 104a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 5high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 126a normal year
- Days with 1 inch of snow or more
- 4a normal year
The highest temperature in this station's record (since 1894) is 103°F, on June 30, 1936; the lowest is −11°F, on January 21, 1985.
The wettest calendar year on that record is 2020, with 77.22 in; the snowiest season is 1917–18, with 43.0 inches.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USC00447338; records: ACIS (NOAA Regional Climate Centers), station USC00447338. Records use complete months only; a month missing more than three days is left out.
How sunny is Rocky Mount?
Over a year 76% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds in the area around Rocky Mount, 4.3 kWh per square metre a day. June is the sunniest month (80%) and February the cloudiest (71%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 74% | 2.5 |
| February | 71% | 3.2 |
| March | 72% | 4.2 |
| April | 76% | 5.4 |
| May | 75% | 5.8 |
| June | 80% | 6.3 |
| July | 79% | 6.0 |
| August | 78% | 5.4 |
| September | 75% | 4.5 |
| October | 76% | 3.6 |
| November | 77% | 2.8 |
| December | 72% | 2.2 |
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 Rocky Mount need?
A normal year in Rocky Mount brings 4,290 heating degree days, 20% fewer than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 1,066 cooling degree days, 17% more than the median (908). Five months need 300 or more heating degree days, a monthly mean of about 55°F or colder. For gardens and crops, NOAA counts 3,754 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 877 | 0 |
| February | 728 | 0 |
| March | 585 | 2 |
| April | 297 | 17 |
| May | 112 | 78 |
| June | 13 | 215 |
| July | 1 | 333 |
| August | 2 | 284 |
| September | 50 | 119 |
| October | 273 | 17 |
| November | 562 | 1 |
| December | 791 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 4,290 | 1,066 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00447338. 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 Rocky Mount been warmer than normal lately?
2024 averaged 57.1°F, 1.0°F above the 1991-2020 normal of 56.1°F. 3 of the 4 complete years since 2021 ran warmer than the normal.
| Year | Mean | Against normal | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 56.4°F | +0.3°F | 37.37 | 9.5 |
| 2022 | 55.1°F | −1.0°F | 53.63 | 12.5 |
| 2023 | 56.6°F | +0.5°F | 46.18 | 1.0 |
| 2024 | 57.1°F | +1.0°F | 49.90 | 2.0 |
Over 36 complete years from 1963 to 2024, the station's annual mean temperature rose at a fitted 4.8°F per century (+0.27°C per decade). A fitted rate summarizes the whole record; single years swing well above and below it.
Source: observed years: ACIS, station USC00447338; trend: NOAA GHCN-Monthly v4. A year counts only with all twelve months complete.
How does Rocky Mount's climate compare?
Rocky Mount is warmer than 42 of the other 80 places with their own NOAA record in Virginia, and wetter than 62. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 56.1°F is warmer than 64%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Rocky Mount is Cfa: temperate, 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 Rocky Mount share this climate record?
7 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.
- North Shore, VA3,708 people · 16 mi NE
- Westlake Corner, VA1,824 people · 15 mi NE
- Ferrum, VA1,622 people · 6 mi SW
- Union Hall, VA1,468 people · 12 mi E
- Penhook, VA1,253 people · 14 mi E
- Henry Fork, VA843 people · 1 mi E
- Boones Mill, VA260 people · 10 mi N
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 Rocky Mount's climate
What is the coldest month in Rocky Mount?
January, with a normal high of 47°F and a normal low of 26°F. The warmest is July (87°F by day, 65°F at night).
Does it snow in Rocky Mount?
Yes: 13 inches in a normal year, falling on 6 days with 0.1 inch or more, the most in February (4.9 inches).
What is the rainiest month in Rocky Mount?
September, with 5.00 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is February with 3.11 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Rocky Mount in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Rocky Mount in zone 7b in ZIP code 24151, the nearest ZIP area.
How late can frost come in Rocky Mount?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after April 20; 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
- Virginia climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Copper Hill, VA15 miles from this station, 51.2°F a year
- Philpott Dam 2, VA16 miles from this station, 57.1°F a year
- Martinsville, VA19 miles from this station, 56.0°F a year
- Floyd, VA22 miles from this station, 51.4°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made