Seward, AK Climate: Temperature & Rain by Month
Average temperature and precipitation from NOAA NCEI 1991–2020 normals →, with a derived climate comfort score
30-year climate normals (1991-2020) from Seward's primary NOAA station, SEWARD AP - 3 stations mapped to the area.
The climate verdict for Seward
Water is the standout signal in Seward, Alaska: 69.7 inches of precipitation in a normal year. Against that wet profile, NOAA records an annual average of 40°F. At 28/100 (below average) the climate comfort score falls in the bottom third of the station-mapped U.S. score corpus, exceeding only 0% of scores.
- 40°F
- yearly average temperature, NOAA normal
- 28/100
- comfort score, above 0% of station-mapped location scores
- 69.7"
- precipitation, annual total
- 158 days
- frost-free days per growing season
Seward: NOAA 1991-2020 normals describe a typical year, not a forecast. Method: /methodology.
Normals record plate
Sheet USW00026438 · Seward, AK 40°F mean · 69.7" precip
TEMP-COOL · RANK-COOL · PHOTO-FINISH · PRCP-WET · SWING-MID · COMF-LOW · LOAD-HEAT · STN-MULTI · BOOK-FULL
- TEMP-COOL 40°F
- RANK-COOL #412
- PHOTO-FINISH ≈ Waverly
- PRCP-WET 69.7"
- SWING-MID 30°F
- COMF-LOW 28/100
- LOAD-HEAT 8,960 HDD
- STN-MULTI USW00026438
- BOOK-FULL 6/6 fields
Nearest mean-temperature peer: Waverly, CO (+ 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 AK station list.
- Seward (this station) 40°F
- Cold Florissant Foss…, CO 40°F
- Hot Monte Vista, CO 40°F
- Near Waverly, CO 40°F
- Near Lake City, CO 40°F
Seward sits in Alaska, the #1 coldest U.S. state at 33.5°F statewide annual average - see all 50 coldest states ranked by NOAA normals
Climate Living Index · Seward
Seward: 16/100 · grade F
Seward publishes 4 of 6 Living Index dimensions (NOAA annual/seasonal normals · NOAA daily multivariate normals); 2 missing weights rescale to 100.
PlainClimate-derived for Seward, not an official NOAA rating. Rankings still use Comfort Score 28/100 (separate formula). Breakpoints and limits.
| Dimension | Station value | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Frost-free season | 158 days/year | 32/100 · F |
| Normal heat + freeze calendar | 173 calendar days | 30/100 · F |
| Annual temperature balance | 40.4°F · 27.1° from 67.5°F | 5/100 · F |
| Precipitation balance | 69.7 in · 34.7 from 35 in | 0/100 · F |
Seward · 2026-08-04 · NOAA NCEI Climate Normals · method · Comfort Score method.
Seward is a continental Köppen climate: Dfc
Coldest-month mean 26.2°F and warmest-month mean 56.2°F place this station in continental, no dry season, cool summer climates (Dfc). Class Dfc is the Peel et al. (2007) label for this station's monthly mean temperature and precipitation normals: continental, specifically continental, no dry season, cool summer.
- Köppen code
- Dfc
- Group
- Continental
- Warmest month
- 56.2°F
- Coldest month
- 26.2°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 Seward sits across the climate record
Three NOAA fields for Seward's primary station, temperature, precipitation, and seasonal swing, are ranked against every station-mapped normal that carries the same field.
- Annual temperature
- Cooler than 94%
- Among 6,861 stations, Seward sits in the cooler third of annual means.
- Annual precipitation
- Top 2% wettest
- Seward's annual total ranks in the wetter third of 6,352 measured normals.
- Seasonal temperature swing
- Narrower than 90%
- Warmest-to-coldest month gap for Seward is compact versus 6,861 complete station-years.
How Seward compares across U.S. station-mapped locations
Seward's comfort score vs. all station-mapped locations
PlainClimate composite comfort index (1–100), NOAA 1991–2020 normals
28 0th percentile score exceeds 0% 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%). This entry sits in this band.
- 30–40: 280 station-mapped locations (5%). Above this entry.
- 40–50: 1,113 station-mapped locations (18%). Above this entry.
- 50–60: 1,329 station-mapped locations (21%). Above this entry.
- 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
Seward's measured station temperature trend
MethodologyAcross 78 complete annual observations from 1910 to 2024, SEWARD AP warmed at a fitted rate of 0.09°C per decade. The line shows the fitted change relative to its first year, not raw year-to-year temperatures or a forecast.
- Seward primary station fitted change +0.09 °C/decade
Monthly Temperatures
Average daily high and low temperatures by month
| Month | Avg High | Avg Low | Mean | Precip | Snow | Freeze Days | 90°F+ Days |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 31°F (0°C) | 21°F (-6°C) | 26°F (-3°C) | 6.5" | N/A | 25.4 | 0.0 |
| February | 34°F (1°C) | 24°F (-5°C) | 29°F (-2°C) | 6.3" | N/A | 22.2 | 0.0 |
| March | 37°F (3°C) | 25°F (-4°C) | 31°F (0°C) | 3.9" | N/A | 25.2 | 0.0 |
| April | 45°F (7°C) | 32°F (0°C) | 39°F (4°C) | 4.3" | N/A | 13.4 | 0.0 |
| May | 53°F (12°C) | 39°F (4°C) | 46°F (8°C) | 3.5" | N/A | 1.7 | 0.0 |
| June | 59°F (15°C) | 46°F (8°C) | 52°F (11°C) | 2.3" | N/A | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| July | 62°F (17°C) | 50°F (10°C) | 56°F (13°C) | 3.1" | N/A | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| August | 62°F (17°C) | 50°F (10°C) | 56°F (13°C) | 5.4" | N/A | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| September | 56°F (13°C) | 43°F (6°C) | 50°F (10°C) | 9.9" | N/A | 0.6 | 0.0 |
| October | 46°F (8°C) | 35°F (2°C) | 40°F (5°C) | 8.7" | N/A | 9.7 | 0.0 |
| November | 36°F (2°C) | 27°F (-3°C) | 31°F (0°C) | 7.6" | N/A | 21.6 | 0.0 |
| December | 33°F (1°C) | 23°F (-5°C) | 28°F (-2°C) | 8.2" | N/A | 25.9 | 0.0 |
The year, day by day
Summer here tops out rather than builds: the warmest normal high is 63°F around July 31, short of 90°F on every date, while 173 dates carry a normal low at or below freezing, the coldest 21°F near January 11.
The freezing stretch
The normal low stays at or below 32°F into April 14, then returns to freezing around October 25, covering 173 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 September 17, when 57% of years recorded at least a hundredth of an inch. The driest is June 23 at 37%. Summed across the calendar, that is about 171 wet dates a year.
The widest day
May 23 carries the biggest normal gap between afternoon and dawn, 14°F between the normal high and the normal low.
Look up any date
Any date's 1991–2020 normal for Seward.
Where Seward Stands Nationally
This is one of the wettest normals climates ranked: about 70 inches of precipitation in a normal year, a total fewer than one station in ten surpasses.
Among the steadiest day-night climates ranked: even the widest normal daily swing holds to roughly 14°F.
Seward earns 2 nationally notable standings (outer quintiles) against 6,860 NOAA 1991–2020 normals stations; only those extremes render.
Monthly Precipitation
Average monthly rainfall and snowfall
13.6 days with precipitation
13.8 days with precipitation
12.4 days with precipitation
14.2 days with precipitation
13.5 days with precipitation
11.1 days with precipitation
13.4 days with precipitation
15.2 days with precipitation
17.1 days with precipitation
16.6 days with precipitation
14.0 days with precipitation
15.9 days with precipitation
Seward spreads its precipitation across the year
Neither half of the year dominates here: June through August take 16% of the annual total and December through February 30%, with neither reaching the 35% that would mark a distinct wet season. Seward has no dry season to plan around, though it does carry a 30°F seasonal spread.
The gap between the wettest and driest month still matters: September averages 9.9" and June 2.3". The three wettest months together take 38% 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 Seward, it arrives in quantity
69.7" of precipitation falls across only about 171 wet days here, averaging 0.41 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 171 a year, 47% of all days
- Average depth per wet day
- 0.41 inches
- Most wet days
- September, about 17
- Fewest wet days
- June, about 11
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 7
50% probability date
Last Spring Freeze
May 2
50% probability date
Growing Season
158 days
Heating & Cooling Degree Days
Annual totals indicate energy demand for heating and cooling
Heating Degree Days
8,960
Higher = more heating needed
Cooling Degree Days
9
Higher = more cooling needed
Warmest Month
July
Coldest Month
January
Nationwide similar cities
Other rankable U.S. places outside AK closest to Seward 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 (40°F here).
- Bruno, MN 40°F · 0.0°F off
- Covington, MI 40°F · 0.0°F off
- Florence, WI 40°F · 0.0°F off
- Hinckley, MN 40°F · 0.0°F off
Closest by annual precipitation
Nearest out-of-state peers by annual precipitation (69.7" here), excluding temperature-peer places.
- Moss Bluff, LA 69.3" · 0.4" off
- Astoria, OR 70.3" · 0.6" off
- Langlois, OR 70.3" · 0.6" off
- Chalmette, LA 70.4" · 0.7" off
Data-derived climate profile
How Seward's climate pattern fits together
heating led · wet · low swing
Heating is the larger measured load in Seward, at 8,960 degree days versus 9 for cooling. Unlike a strongly continental record, however, its 30.0°F month-to-month range is compact; persistent cool-season demand matters more than a dramatic summer-to-winter reversal.
Seward's frost-free season lasts about 158 days, a middle-length window whose endpoints matter more than the annual average. It describes freeze probability, not year-specific planting conditions.
Seward's 30.0°F seasonal spread is compact even though precipitation is abundant. July and January mark the typical warm and cold ends of the calendar. The annual average is 40°F. Temperature is relatively steady; the monthly rows show how rain and snow observations vary across the calendar.
Alongside its heating load, Seward carries 69.7 inches of precipitation in a normal year, inside PlainClimate's wet range. Snowfall is not added to the interpretation because its annual value is missing. That distinction matters because a wet annual total can arrive as rain, snow, or a mixture at different times.
These labels group NOAA 1991-2020 normals from Seward'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 Seward, not an official NOAA class or a year-ahead forecast.
Questions about Seward's climate
How much rain does Seward get? ▼
How cold does Seward get in winter? ▼
How much energy does heating and cooling require in Seward? ▼
Data Sources
Data source: NOAA U.S. Climate Normals v1.0.1 (1991-2020). All figures on this page are from Seward's primary station: SEWARD AP (USW00026438). 3 NOAA stations are mapped to the Seward 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 0268560). Match rule for Seward: 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 Seward 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.