Salem, MO Climate: Temperature & Rain by Month
Annual temperature and rainfall from NOAA NCEI's 1991–2020 normals →; comfort score computed by PlainClimate
30-year climate normals (1991-2020) from Salem's primary NOAA station, SALEM 10 W - 2 stations mapped to the area.
The climate verdict for Salem
Salem, Missouri has a mixed annual climate rather than one dominant extreme. Its NOAA normal shows an annual average of 54°F. Its climate comfort score of 64/100 (good) lands mid-pack nationally, exceeding 49% of station-mapped location scores.
- 54°F
- average temperature, NOAA 1991-2020 normal
- 64/100
- comfort score, above 49% of station-mapped location scores
- 44.0"
- annual precipitation
- 174 days
- frost-free days per growing season
Salem: NOAA 1991-2020 normals describe a typical year, not a forecast. Method: /methodology.
Normals record plate
Sheet USW00023909 · Salem, MO 54°F mean · 44.0" precip
TEMP-COOL · RANK-MID · PHOTO-FINISH · PRCP-MID · SWING-MID · COMF-MID · LOAD-HEAT · STN-MULTI · BOOK-FULL
- TEMP-COOL 54°F
- RANK-MID #3,979
- PHOTO-FINISH ≈ Saint Albans
- PRCP-MID 44.0"
- SWING-MID 43°F
- COMF-MID 64/100
- LOAD-HEAT 4,895 HDD
- STN-MULTI USW00023909
- BOOK-FULL 6/6 fields
Nearest mean-temperature peer: Saint Albans, WV (+ 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 MO station list.
- Salem (this station) 54°F
- Cold Parkersburg Woo…, WV 54°F
- Hot Winchester, VA 54°F
- Near Saint Albans, WV 54°F
- Near New York Jfk, NY 54°F
Climate Living Index · Salem
Salem: 60/100 · grade C
Salem publishes 4 of 6 Living Index dimensions (NOAA annual/seasonal normals · NOAA daily multivariate normals); 2 missing weights rescale to 100.
PlainClimate-derived for Salem, not an official NOAA rating. Rankings still use Comfort Score 64/100 (separate formula). Breakpoints and limits.
| Dimension | Station value | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Precipitation balance | 44.0 in · 9.0 from 35 in | 68/100 · C |
| Normal heat + freeze calendar | 120 calendar days | 65/100 · C |
| Annual temperature balance | 54.3°F · 13.2° from 67.5°F | 57/100 · C |
| Frost-free season | 174 days/year | 45/100 · D |
Salem · 2026-08-04 · NOAA NCEI Climate Normals · method · Comfort Score method.
Salem is a continental Köppen climate: Dfa
Coldest-month mean 31.8°F and warmest-month mean 75.2°F place this station in continental, no dry season, hot summer climates (Dfa). Class Dfa is the Peel et al. (2007) label for this station's monthly mean temperature and precipitation normals: continental, specifically continental, no dry season, hot summer.
- Köppen code
- Dfa
- Group
- Continental
- Warmest month
- 75.2°F
- Coldest month
- 31.8°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 Salem sits across the climate record
Three NOAA fields for Salem's primary station, temperature, precipitation, and seasonal swing, are ranked against every station-mapped normal that carries the same field.
- Annual temperature
- 58th percentile warmth
- Mid-pack annual mean versus 6,861 station normals.
- Annual precipitation
- 66th percentile wetness
- Neither arid nor torrential versus 6,352 station totals.
- Seasonal temperature swing
- 50th percentile swing
- Typical seasonal amplitude versus 6,861 complete station-years.
How Salem compares across U.S. station-mapped locations
Salem's comfort score vs. all station-mapped locations
PlainClimate composite comfort index (1–100), NOAA 1991–2020 normals
64 49th percentile score exceeds 49% 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 | 43°F (6°C) | 21°F (-6°C) | 32°F (0°C) | 2.6" | N/A | 26.6 | 0.0 |
| February | 47°F (9°C) | 24°F (-4°C) | 36°F (2°C) | 2.8" | N/A | 22.5 | 0.0 |
| March | 58°F (14°C) | 32°F (0°C) | 45°F (7°C) | 3.9" | N/A | 15.8 | 0.0 |
| April | 68°F (20°C) | 42°F (6°C) | 55°F (13°C) | 4.7" | N/A | 6.1 | 0.2 |
| May | 75°F (24°C) | 51°F (11°C) | 63°F (17°C) | 5.3" | N/A | 0.9 | 0.4 |
| June | 83°F (28°C) | 60°F (16°C) | 71°F (22°C) | 4.1" | N/A | 0.0 | 3.5 |
| July | 87°F (31°C) | 63°F (17°C) | 75°F (24°C) | 3.7" | N/A | 0.0 | 11.1 |
| August | 86°F (30°C) | 61°F (16°C) | 74°F (23°C) | 3.6" | N/A | 0.0 | 9.4 |
| September | 80°F (26°C) | 53°F (12°C) | 66°F (19°C) | 3.4" | N/A | 0.1 | 3.2 |
| October | 69°F (21°C) | 42°F (5°C) | 55°F (13°C) | 3.5" | N/A | 6.1 | 0.1 |
| November | 56°F (13°C) | 33°F (0°C) | 44°F (7°C) | 4.0" | N/A | 16.4 | 0.0 |
| December | 46°F (8°C) | 24°F (-4°C) | 35°F (2°C) | 2.6" | N/A | 25.1 | 0.0 |
The year, day by day
Summer here tops out rather than builds: the warmest normal high is 88°F around July 26, short of 90°F on every date, while 120 dates carry a normal low at or below freezing, the coldest 20°F near January 7.
The freezing stretch
The normal low stays at or below 32°F into March 16, then returns to freezing around November 18, covering 120 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 May 13, when 43% of years recorded at least a hundredth of an inch. The driest is September 19 at 25%. Summed across the calendar, that is about 117 wet dates a year.
The widest day
October 7 carries the biggest normal gap between afternoon and dawn, 28°F between the normal high and the normal low.
Look up any date
Any date's 1991–2020 normal for Salem.
Monthly Precipitation
Average monthly rainfall and snowfall
8.2 days with precipitation
10.9 days with precipitation
13.0 days with precipitation
11.2 days with precipitation
13.5 days with precipitation
9.0 days with precipitation
9.0 days with precipitation
9.1 days with precipitation
7.4 days with precipitation
8.5 days with precipitation
8.5 days with precipitation
9.1 days with precipitation
Salem spreads its precipitation across the year
Neither half of the year dominates here: June through August take 26% of the annual total and December through February 18%, with neither reaching the 35% that would mark a distinct wet season. Salem has no dry season to plan around, though it does carry a 43.4°F seasonal spread.
The gap between the wettest and driest month still matters: May averages 5.3" and December 2.6". The three wettest months together take 32% 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.
When it rains in Salem, it arrives in quantity
44.0" of precipitation falls across only about 117 wet days here, averaging 0.37 inches each. Fewer days carry more water: the year's total is delivered in comparatively heavy events rather than persistent damp.
- Days with measurable precipitation
- about 117 a year, 32% of all days
- Average depth per wet day
- 0.37 inches
- Most wet days
- May, about 14
- Fewest wet days
- September, about 7
A wet day is one recording at least 0.01 inches. These are 1991-2020 normals: they describe an average year, and a per-day average is not a forecast of any individual storm.
Frost Dates & Growing Season
First Fall Freeze
October 14
50% probability date
Last Spring Freeze
April 23
50% probability date
Growing Season
174 days
Heating & Cooling Degree Days
Annual totals indicate energy demand for heating and cooling
Heating Degree Days
4,895
Higher = more heating needed
Cooling Degree Days
1,028
Higher = more cooling needed
Warmest Month
July
Coldest Month
January
Nationwide similar cities
Other rankable U.S. places outside MO closest to Salem 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 (54°F here).
- Battle Mountain, NV 54°F · 0.0°F off
- Bedford, IN 54°F · 0.0°F off
- Beloit, KS 54°F · 0.0°F off
- Caesars Head, SC 54°F · 0.0°F off
Closest by annual precipitation
Nearest out-of-state peers by annual precipitation (44.0" here), excluding temperature-peer places.
- Effingham, IL 44.0" · 0.0" off
- Beltsville, MD 44.0" · 0.0" off
- Coudersport, PA 44.0" · 0.0" off
- Gastonia, NC 44.0" · 0.1" off
Data-derived climate profile
How Salem's climate pattern fits together
heating led · moderate · mid swing
Salem's energy balance leans toward cold weather: 4,895 annual heating degree days against 1,028 for cooling. Its 43.4°F seasonal range still makes the monthly rows more useful than the annual average alone.
Salem's frost-free season lasts about 174 days, a middle-length window whose endpoints matter more than the annual average. It describes freeze probability, not year-specific planting conditions.
July and January mark the typical warm and cold ends of the calendar in Salem's middle-range seasonal profile. The measured spread is 43.4°F. The annual average is 54°F. Neither the annual mean nor one extreme month represents the full calendar on its own.
Salem's 44.0 inches of annual precipitation falls in PlainClimate's middle band, so “wet” or “dry” is not the leading description. Snowfall is not added to the interpretation because its annual value is missing. Temperature balance and the calendar distribution carry more information than the annual moisture label alone.
These labels group NOAA 1991-2020 normals from Salem's primary station, so the winter figures are a thirty-year average and not a floor: a single hard season can run well below them. Treat each band as a descriptive range for Salem, not an official NOAA class or a year-ahead forecast.
Questions about Salem's climate
How much rain does Salem get? ▼
How cold does Salem get in winter? ▼
How much energy does heating and cooling require in Salem? ▼
Data Sources
Data source: NOAA U.S. Climate Normals v1.0.1 (1991-2020). All figures on this page are from Salem's primary station: SALEM 10 W (USW00023909). 2 NOAA stations are mapped to the Salem area; the primary station's record is used for consistency. For informational purposes only.
Place identity: U.S. Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer places. The 2024 Census Gazetteer identifies the exact name-and-state match as an incorporated place (GEOID 2965234). Match rule for Salem: exact normalized name + state only, no fuzzy expansion, so nearby differently spelled facilities stay unmatched.
On this page every temperature, precipitation, and derived score for Salem 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.