Santa Fe, New Mexico climate: Normal weather by month, frost dates and records
Santa Fe's normal year runs from 20°F December nights to 89°F July afternoons, with 10.7 inches of precipitation a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 11.1°C, December lows of −7°C, July highs of 31°C, 272 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationSanta Fe County Municipal Airport
- Station IDUSW00023049
- Location35.62°N 106.09°W
- Elevation6,344 ft (1,934 m)
- Population90,551
On October 23, the normal high in Santa Fe is 64°F and the normal low 35°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 17%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Santa Fe.
- Jan 44° 20°
- Feb 50° 23°
- Mar 59° 28°
- Apr 66° 34°
- May 76° 43°
- Jun 87° 52°
- Jul 89° 58°
- Aug 86° 56°
- Sep 80° 49°
- Oct 68° 38°
- Nov 54° 27°
- Dec 44° 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 Santa Fe each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 89°F; December the coldest, with normal lows of 20°F. The most precipitation falls in August (1.96 in), the least in February (0.35 in).
Each month has its own page with the day-by-day normals, the month's records and its recent years:
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 44°F | 20°F | 32.1°F | 0.45 | 4 | <1 | 30 | 10 h |
| February | 50°F | 23°F | 36.3°F | 0.35 | 4 | <1 | 27 | 10 h 50 min |
| March | 59°F | 28°F | 43.3°F | 0.66 | 5 | <1 | 24 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 66°F | 34°F | 50.2°F | 0.53 | 5 | <1 | 11 | 13 h |
| May | 76°F | 43°F | 59.7°F | 0.63 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 14 h |
| June | 87°F | 52°F | 69.7°F | 0.55 | 4 | 13 | <1 | 14 h 30 min |
| July | 89°F | 58°F | 73.1°F | 1.82 | 11 | 16 | <1 | 14 h 20 min |
| August | 86°F | 56°F | 71.1°F | 1.96 | 10 | 9 | <1 | 13 h 30 min |
| September | 80°F | 49°F | 64.5°F | 1.34 | 7 | 2 | <1 | 12 h 30 min |
| October | 68°F | 38°F | 52.6°F | 1.22 | 6 | <1 | 5 | 11 h 20 min |
| November | 54°F | 27°F | 40.2°F | 0.70 | 4 | <1 | 24 | 10 h 20 min |
| December | 44°F | 20°F | 31.6°F | 0.50 | 4 | <1 | 31 | 9 h 50 min |
| Year (annual) | 67°F | 37°F | 52.0°F | 10.71 | 66 | 41 | 153 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 7°C | −7°C | 0.1°C | 11 mm |
| February | 10°C | −5°C | 2.4°C | 9 mm |
| March | 15°C | −2°C | 6.3°C | 17 mm |
| April | 19°C | 1°C | 10.1°C | 13 mm |
| May | 24°C | 6°C | 15.4°C | 16 mm |
| June | 31°C | 11°C | 20.9°C | 14 mm |
| July | 31°C | 14°C | 22.8°C | 46 mm |
| August | 30°C | 13°C | 21.7°C | 50 mm |
| September | 27°C | 10°C | 18.1°C | 34 mm |
| October | 20°C | 3°C | 11.4°C | 31 mm |
| November | 12°C | −3°C | 4.6°C | 18 mm |
| December | 7°C | −7°C | −0.2°C | 13 mm |
NOAA publishes no 1991-2020 snowfall normal for this station. Santa Fe's own co-op station Santa Fe 2 does: 20 inches of snow in a normal year (see the other stations below).
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USW00023049; 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 Santa Fe?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in April, May, September and October. Of those, May has the fewest days with rain (4).
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 USW00023049.
When is the last frost in Santa Fe?
In Santa Fe, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after May 4 in half of years and after May 17 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before October 15 in half of years and before October 4 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
- May 41 year in 10 after May 17; 9 in 10 after April 22
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- October 151 year in 10 before October 4; 9 in 10 before October 25
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 164 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 183 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after April 23 in half of springs and before October 24 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Santa Fe in zones 6b to 7a across its 3 ZIP code areas (7a in 87507, the largest). By the map's own method, the average of each year's coldest night over 1991-2020, Santa Fe's NOAA station is in zone 7a: the coldest night of a typical year reaches 1°F (23 complete years).
Frost dates for every NOAA station in New Mexico · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USW00023049; USDA 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map, ZIP listings: PRISM Group, Oregon State University, https://prism.oregonstate.edu, accessed October 8, 2026; the station zone: ACIS daily lows, 1991-2020. A 10% date means one year in ten has a frost after it in spring or before it in autumn.
What hardiness zone is each Santa Fe ZIP code in?
The USDA's 2023 map gives each ZIP code area one zone. Santa Fe's 3 ZIP code areas run from zone 6b to 7a: 2 in 6b and 1 in 7a. Each ZIP's frost dates are in the frost tool.
Source: USDA 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map, ZIP listings: PRISM Group, Oregon State University, https://prism.oregonstate.edu, accessed October 8, 2026; ZIP areas in the place: Census Bureau 2020 ZCTA-to-place relationship file. A ZIP area counts when at least a tenth of its land (and 0.5 km²) lies in the place.
How hot and how cold does it get in Santa Fe?
In a normal year in Santa Fe, 41 days a year reach 90°F, 153 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 66 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 41a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- fewer than 1a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 153a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 7high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 66a normal year
The highest temperature in this station's record (since 1941) is 102°F, on June 27, 2013; the lowest is −18°F, on February 3, 2011.
The wettest calendar year on that record is 1949, with 14.79 in; the snowiest season is 1944–45, with 26.6 inches.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USW00023049; records: ACIS (NOAA Regional Climate Centers), station USW00023049. Records use complete months only; a month missing more than three days is left out.
How sunny is Santa Fe?
Over a year 86% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds in the area around Santa Fe, 5.5 kWh per square metre a day. June is the sunniest month (90%) and December the cloudiest (81%). Among the 459 U.S. places of 50,000 or more, that ranks tied 81st (with 7 others) in sunshine.
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 83% | 3.2 |
| February | 82% | 4.1 |
| March | 85% | 5.6 |
| April | 85% | 6.8 |
| May | 87% | 7.7 |
| June | 90% | 8.1 |
| July | 85% | 7.2 |
| August | 86% | 6.6 |
| September | 87% | 5.8 |
| October | 88% | 4.7 |
| November | 86% | 3.5 |
| December | 81% | 2.8 |
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 Santa Fe need?
A normal year in Santa Fe brings 5,385 heating degree days, 0% more than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 683 cooling degree days, 25% 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 2,950 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 1,020 | 0 |
| February | 802 | 0 |
| March | 673 | 0 |
| April | 446 | 0 |
| May | 189 | 23 |
| June | 17 | 158 |
| July | 1 | 252 |
| August | 3 | 192 |
| September | 72 | 57 |
| October | 385 | 1 |
| November | 744 | 0 |
| December | 1,034 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 5,385 | 683 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USW00023049. 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 Santa Fe been warmer than normal lately?
2025 averaged 54.5°F, 2.5°F above the 1991-2020 normal of 52.0°F. 4 of the 5 complete years since 2021 ran warmer than the normal.
| Year | Mean | Against normal | Precip. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 53.5°F | +1.5°F | 8.90 |
| 2022 | 51.6°F | −0.4°F | 12.09 |
| 2023 | 52.7°F | +0.7°F | 7.91 |
| 2024 | 54.6°F | +2.6°F | 10.28 |
| 2025 | 54.5°F | +2.5°F | 12.87 |
Source: observed years: ACIS, station USW00023049. A year counts only with all twelve months complete.
How does Santa Fe's climate compare?
Santa Fe is warmer than 36 of the other 97 places with their own NOAA record in New Mexico, and wetter than 24. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 52.0°F is warmer than 49%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Santa Fe is BSk: cold semi-arid steppe. 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 Santa Fe share this climate record?
19 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.
- Eldorado at Santa Fe, NM5,746 people · 11 mi SE
- La Cienega, NM3,780 people · 3 mi SW
- Agua Fria, NM2,842 people · 5 mi NE
- Tres Arroyos, NM1,870 people · 5 mi NE
- Las Campanas, NM1,792 people · 7 mi N
- Tano Road, NM1,581 people · 10 mi NE
- Tesuque, NM1,087 people · 13 mi NE
- Sunlit Hills, NM888 people · 10 mi E
- Valle Vista, NM759 people · 3 mi SE
- Santa Fe Foothills, NM710 people · 11 mi E
- Conejo, NM507 people · 8 mi E
- Peak Place, NM483 people · 15 mi NE
- Hyde Park, NM338 people · 13 mi NE
- La Tierra, NM329 people · 10 mi N
- Madrid, NM248 people · 15 mi S
- Arroyo Hondo, NM214 people · 8 mi E
- Encantado, NM140 people · 16 mi NE
- Los Cerrillos, NM115 people · 13 mi S
- Seton Village, NM29 people · 9 mi E
Source: Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer (place centers) and Vintage 2024 population estimates. Distance and direction from the station to each place's center.
What do Santa Fe's other NOAA stations record?
2 more NOAA stations keep 1991-2020 normals in or near Santa Fe. This page uses Santa Fe County Municipal Airport; the others differ by site and elevation:
| Station | From this station | Elevation | Year | Jan low | Jul high | Precip. | Snow | Last frost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Santa Fe 2 USC00298085 | 6 mi E | 6,756 ft | 50.0°F | 18°F | 86°F | 12.8 | 20 | May 14 |
| Santa Fe Seton USC00298088 | 9 mi E | 7,000 ft | 51.1°F | 21°F | 86°F | 14.7 | 28 | May 2 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 normals for each station. Last frost: the median last spring date of 32°F.
Questions about Santa Fe's climate
What is the coldest month in Santa Fe?
December, with a normal high of 44°F and a normal low of 20°F. The warmest is July (89°F by day, 58°F at night).
Does it snow in Santa Fe?
Yes. NOAA publishes no 1991-2020 snowfall normal for Santa Fe's NOAA station; Santa Fe's own co-op station Santa Fe 2 records 20 inches of snow in a normal year.
What is the rainiest month in Santa Fe?
August, with 1.96 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is February with 0.35 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Santa Fe in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Santa Fe in zones 6b to 7a across its 3 ZIP code areas (7a in 87507, the largest). By the same method at Santa Fe's NOAA station, the coldest night of a typical year reaches 1°F (23 years, 1991-2020): zone 7a.
How late can frost come in Santa Fe?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after May 4; 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
- Santa Fe in OctoberThis month day by day, its records and recent years
- New Mexico climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Cochiti, NM14 miles from this station, 55.9°F a year
- Los Alamos, NM22 miles from this station, 49.8°F a year
- Pecos, NM23 miles from this station, 50.0°F a year
- Española, NM27 miles from this station, 52.3°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made