Scottsbluff, Nebraska climate: Normal weather by month, frost dates and records
Scottsbluff's normal year runs from 14°F December nights to 91°F July afternoons, with 15.7 inches of precipitation and 43 inches of snow a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 9.9°C, December lows of −10°C, July highs of 33°C, 398 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationScottsbluff W B Heilig Field Airport
- Station IDUSW00024028
- Location41.87°N 103.59°W
- Elevation3,945 ft (1,202 m)
- Population14,323
On October 23, the normal high in Scottsbluff is 62°F and the normal low 31°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 21%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Scottsbluff.
- Jan 42° 15°
- Feb 45° 17°
- Mar 55° 25°
- Apr 62° 33°
- May 72° 44°
- Jun 84° 54°
- Jul 91° 60°
- Aug 89° 57°
- Sep 80° 47°
- Oct 65° 34°
- Nov 52° 23°
- Dec 42° 14°
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 Scottsbluff each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 91°F; December the coldest, with normal lows of 14°F. The most precipitation falls in May (2.78 in), the least in January (0.39 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. | Snow | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 42°F | 15°F | 28.3°F | 0.39 | 5.3 | 5 | <1 | 31 | 9 h 30 min |
| February | 45°F | 17°F | 30.8°F | 0.56 | 7.5 | 6 | <1 | 27 | 10 h 30 min |
| March | 55°F | 25°F | 39.9°F | 1.00 | 6.8 | 7 | <1 | 26 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 62°F | 33°F | 47.5°F | 1.92 | 5.2 | 9 | <1 | 15 | 13 h 20 min |
| May | 72°F | 44°F | 57.7°F | 2.78 | 0.9 | 12 | 2 | 3 | 14 h 30 min |
| June | 84°F | 54°F | 68.7°F | 2.54 | 0.0 | 11 | 8 | <1 | 15 h 10 min |
| July | 91°F | 60°F | 75.3°F | 1.66 | 0.0 | 8 | 18 | <1 | 15 h |
| August | 89°F | 57°F | 73.0°F | 1.24 | 0.0 | 7 | 15 | <1 | 14 h |
| September | 80°F | 47°F | 63.5°F | 1.22 | 0.3 | 7 | 6 | 1 | 12 h 30 min |
| October | 65°F | 34°F | 49.3°F | 1.23 | 3.5 | 7 | <1 | 14 | 11 h 10 min |
| November | 52°F | 23°F | 37.2°F | 0.59 | 5.2 | 5 | <1 | 27 | 9 h 50 min |
| December | 42°F | 14°F | 28.0°F | 0.52 | 7.8 | 5 | <1 | 31 | 9 h 10 min |
| Year (annual) | 65°F | 35°F | 49.9°F | 15.65 | 42.5 | 89 | 49 | 174 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 5°C | −9°C | −2.1°C | 10 mm | 13 cm |
| February | 7°C | −8°C | −0.7°C | 14 mm | 19 cm |
| March | 13°C | −4°C | 4.4°C | 25 mm | 17 cm |
| April | 17°C | 0°C | 8.6°C | 49 mm | 13 cm |
| May | 22°C | 6°C | 14.3°C | 71 mm | 2 cm |
| June | 29°C | 12°C | 20.4°C | 65 mm | 0 cm |
| July | 33°C | 15°C | 24.1°C | 42 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 32°C | 14°C | 22.8°C | 31 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 27°C | 8°C | 17.5°C | 31 mm | 1 cm |
| October | 18°C | 1°C | 9.6°C | 31 mm | 9 cm |
| November | 11°C | −5°C | 2.9°C | 15 mm | 13 cm |
| December | 5°C | −10°C | −2.2°C | 13 mm | 20 cm |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USW00024028; 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 Scottsbluff?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in May, June and September. Of those, September has the fewest days with rain (7).
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 USW00024028.
When is the last frost in Scottsbluff?
In Scottsbluff, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after May 5 in half of years and after May 18 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before October 4 in half of years and before September 21 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 51 year in 10 after May 18; 9 in 10 after April 25
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- October 41 year in 10 before September 21; 9 in 10 before October 15
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 149 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 167 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after April 28 in half of springs and before October 13 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Scottsbluff in zone 5b in ZIP code 69341, the nearest ZIP area. By the map's own method, the average of each year's coldest night over 1991-2020, Scottsbluff's NOAA station is in zone 5a: the coldest night of a typical year reaches −16°F (30 complete years); the map interpolates between stations and terrain, so the station and the ZIP area can differ by half a zone.
Frost dates for every NOAA station in Nebraska · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USW00024028; 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.
How hot and how cold does it get in Scottsbluff?
In a normal year in Scottsbluff, 49 days a year reach 90°F (6 of them 100°F or more), 174 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 89 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 49a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- 6a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 174a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 27high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 89a normal year
- Days with 1 inch of snow or more
- 13a normal year
The highest temperature in Scottsbluff's official record (kept by the National Weather Service since 1893) is 110°F, on July 11, 1939; the lowest is −46°F, on February 6, 1899.
The wettest calendar year on that record is 1915, with 27.48 in; the snowiest season is 2009–10, with 81.9 inches.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USW00024028; records: ACIS (NOAA Regional Climate Centers), NWS threaded record BFFthr. Records use complete months only; a month missing more than three days is left out.
How humid and windy is Scottsbluff, and how clear are its skies?
The summer (June-August) dew point averages 53°F. The muggiest month is July, with an average dew point of 56°F; the driest air comes in December (15°F). March is the windiest month (11.3 mph on average), and June has the most clear or nearly clear hours (81%).
| Month | Dew point | Humidity | Afternoon humidity | Wind | Clear or few clouds | Overcast |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 17°F | 63% | 42% | 9.8 mph | 64% | 23% |
| February | 18°F | 59% | 35% | 10.6 mph | 65% | 24% |
| March | 26°F | 54% | 31% | 11.3 mph | 60% | 25% |
| April | 35°F | 56% | 34% | 11.1 mph | 59% | 25% |
| May | 47°F | 59% | 36% | 10.2 mph | 65% | 19% |
| June | 53°F | 54% | 29% | 9.0 mph | 81% | 7% |
| July | 56°F | 60% | 32% | 7.9 mph | 79% | 9% |
| August | 51°F | 56% | 28% | 8.0 mph | 81% | 9% |
| September | 39°F | 58% | 30% | 8.8 mph | 76% | 15% |
| October | 27°F | 60% | 35% | 9.2 mph | 69% | 21% |
| November | 18°F | 61% | 39% | 9.5 mph | 70% | 20% |
| December | 15°F | 65% | 48% | 9.5 mph | 69% | 21% |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 hourly normals, station USW00024028. Monthly averages of all hours; afternoon humidity at 3 p.m. local standard time; sky as the share of hours NOAA's observations rate clear or few clouds (a dash where NOAA publishes no sky value).
How sunny is Scottsbluff?
Over a year 80% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds in the area around Scottsbluff, 4.6 kWh per square metre a day. August is the sunniest month (86%) and April the cloudiest (73%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 79% | 2.4 |
| February | 75% | 3.2 |
| March | 76% | 4.4 |
| April | 73% | 5.4 |
| May | 75% | 6.3 |
| June | 84% | 7.3 |
| July | 86% | 7.1 |
| August | 86% | 6.3 |
| September | 85% | 5.1 |
| October | 79% | 3.6 |
| November | 79% | 2.5 |
| December | 75% | 2.0 |
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 Scottsbluff need?
A normal year in Scottsbluff brings 6,312 heating degree days, 17% more than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 853 cooling degree days, 6% 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 | 1,138 | 0 |
| February | 957 | 0 |
| March | 777 | 0 |
| April | 528 | 1 |
| May | 255 | 29 |
| June | 45 | 157 |
| July | 4 | 322 |
| August | 12 | 262 |
| September | 126 | 81 |
| October | 490 | 2 |
| November | 834 | 0 |
| December | 1,147 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 6,312 | 853 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USW00024028. 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 Scottsbluff been warmer than normal lately?
2025 averaged 51.1°F, 1.2°F above the 1991-2020 normal of 49.9°F. 5 of the 5 complete years since 2021 ran warmer than the normal.
| Year | Mean | Against normal | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 51.4°F | +1.5°F | 12.32 | 61.6 |
| 2022 | 50.0°F | +0.1°F | 9.83 | 46.4 |
| 2023 | 50.2°F | +0.3°F | 22.22 | 45.3 |
| 2024 | 52.5°F | +2.6°F | 11.65 | 23.6 |
| 2025 | 51.1°F | +1.2°F | 16.98 | 26.4 |
Over 106 complete years from 1904 to 2025, the station's annual mean temperature rose at a fitted 3.1°F per century (+0.17°C per decade). A fitted rate summarizes the whole record; single years swing well above and below it.
Source: observed years: ACIS, station USW00024028; trend: NOAA GHCN-Monthly v4. A year counts only with all twelve months complete.
How does Scottsbluff's climate compare?
Scottsbluff is warmer than 66 of the other 136 places with their own NOAA record in Nebraska, and wetter than 4. 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, Scottsbluff 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 Scottsbluff 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.
- Gering, NE8,554 people · 5 mi SW
- Terrytown, NE1,045 people · 4 mi W
- Melbeta, NE110 people · 7 mi SE
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 Scottsbluff's other NOAA stations record?
One more NOAA station keeps 1991-2020 normals in or near Scottsbluff. This page uses Scottsbluff W B Heilig Field Airport; the other differs by site and elevation:
| Station | From this station | Elevation | Year | Jan low | Jul high | Precip. | Snow | Last frost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Scottsbluff (1 mi E) USC00257667 | 2 mi W | 3,909 ft | 49.1°F | 15°F | 89°F | 15.6 | 40 | May 8 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 normals for each station. Last frost: the median last spring date of 32°F.
Questions about Scottsbluff's climate
What is the coldest month in Scottsbluff?
December, with a normal high of 42°F and a normal low of 14°F. The warmest is July (91°F by day, 60°F at night).
Does it snow in Scottsbluff?
Yes: 43 inches in a normal year, falling on 26 days with 0.1 inch or more, the most in December (7.8 inches).
What is the rainiest month in Scottsbluff?
May, with 2.78 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is January with 0.39 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Scottsbluff in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Scottsbluff in zone 5b in ZIP code 69341, the nearest ZIP area. By the same method at Scottsbluff's NOAA station, the coldest night of a typical year reaches −16°F (30 years, 1991-2020): zone 5a.
How late can frost come in Scottsbluff?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after May 5; in one year in ten it comes after May 18. Waiting until May 18 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- Scottsbluff in OctoberThis month day by day, its records and recent years
- Nebraska climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Minatare, NE6 miles from this station, 49.2°F a year
- Mitchell, NE7 miles from this station, 49.0°F a year
- Harrisburg (12 mi WNW), NE25 miles from this station, 47.4°F a year
- Plainsview Ranch, NE27 miles from this station, 48.2°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made