Somerset, Virginia climate: Climate normals at a NOAA weather station
Somerset's normal year runs from 24°F January nights to 87°F July afternoons, with 45.0 inches of precipitation and 16 inches of snow a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 13.1°C, January lows of −4°C, July highs of 31°C, 1,143 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationSomerset
- Station IDUSC00447904
- Location38.25°N 78.27°W
- Elevation510 ft (155 m)
On October 23, the normal high in Somerset is 66°F and the normal low 41°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 29%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Somerset.
- Jan 45° 24°
- Feb 48° 26°
- Mar 56° 33°
- Apr 68° 43°
- May 75° 53°
- Jun 83° 62°
- Jul 87° 65°
- Aug 86° 64°
- Sep 79° 56°
- Oct 69° 44°
- Nov 58° 34°
- Dec 49° 28°
Each month: normal high (large) and low, °F. Fill: the month's normal mean, colder blue to hotter red.
What is the weather like at Somerset each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 87°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of 24°F. The most precipitation falls in June (4.80 in), the least in February (2.70 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 45°F | 24°F | 34.5°F | 2.99 | 3.4 | 9 | <1 | 25 | 9 h 50 min |
| February | 48°F | 26°F | 37.3°F | 2.70 | 6.1 | 9 | <1 | 22 | 10 h 50 min |
| March | 56°F | 33°F | 44.7°F | 3.62 | 1.7 | 10 | <1 | 16 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 68°F | 43°F | 55.1°F | 3.53 | 0.2 | 12 | <1 | 4 | 13 h 10 min |
| May | 75°F | 53°F | 63.9°F | 4.57 | 0.0 | 13 | 1 | <1 | 14 h 10 min |
| June | 83°F | 62°F | 72.4°F | 4.80 | 0.0 | 13 | 5 | <1 | 14 h 50 min |
| July | 87°F | 65°F | 76.2°F | 3.95 | 0.0 | 12 | 12 | <1 | 14 h 40 min |
| August | 86°F | 64°F | 74.8°F | 3.65 | 0.0 | 11 | 9 | <1 | 13 h 40 min |
| September | 79°F | 56°F | 67.8°F | 4.56 | 0.0 | 10 | 3 | <1 | 12 h 30 min |
| October | 69°F | 44°F | 56.2°F | 3.64 | 0.0 | 9 | <1 | 4 | 11 h 20 min |
| November | 58°F | 34°F | 46.1°F | 3.47 | 0.4 | 8 | <1 | 15 | 10 h 10 min |
| December | 49°F | 28°F | 38.1°F | 3.51 | 3.7 | 10 | <1 | 23 | 9 h 30 min |
| Year (annual) | 67°F | 44°F | 55.6°F | 44.99 | 15.5 | 125 | 30 | 109 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 7°C | −4°C | 1.4°C | 76 mm | 9 cm |
| February | 9°C | −3°C | 2.9°C | 69 mm | 15 cm |
| March | 14°C | 0°C | 7.1°C | 92 mm | 4 cm |
| April | 20°C | 6°C | 12.8°C | 90 mm | 1 cm |
| May | 24°C | 12°C | 17.7°C | 116 mm | 0 cm |
| June | 28°C | 17°C | 22.4°C | 122 mm | 0 cm |
| July | 31°C | 19°C | 24.6°C | 100 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 30°C | 18°C | 23.8°C | 93 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 26°C | 13°C | 19.9°C | 116 mm | 0 cm |
| October | 20°C | 7°C | 13.4°C | 92 mm | 0 cm |
| November | 14°C | 1°C | 7.8°C | 88 mm | 1 cm |
| December | 9°C | −2°C | 3.4°C | 89 mm | 9 cm |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00447904; 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.
Which months are mildest at Somerset?
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 USC00447904.
When is the last frost at Somerset?
In Somerset, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after April 17 in half of years and after May 6 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before October 22 in half of years and before October 9 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 171 year in 10 after May 6; 9 in 10 after April 1
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- October 221 year in 10 before October 9; 9 in 10 before November 3
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 188 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 210 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after April 3 in half of springs and before November 1 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Somerset in zone 7a in ZIP code 22738, the nearest ZIP area. By the map's own method, the average of each year's coldest night over 1991-2020, the station is in zone 7a: the coldest night of a typical year reaches 2°F (17 complete years).
Frost dates for every NOAA station in Virginia · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USC00447904; 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 at Somerset?
In a normal year in Somerset, 30 days a year reach 90°F, 109 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 125 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 30a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- fewer than 1a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 109a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 8high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 125a normal year
- Days with 1 inch of snow or more
- 5a normal year
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USC00447904.
How sunny is it at Somerset?
Over a year 74% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds at Somerset, 4.1 kWh per square metre a day. July is the sunniest month (78%) and January the cloudiest (69%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 69% | 2.2 |
| February | 70% | 3.0 |
| March | 70% | 4.0 |
| April | 72% | 5.0 |
| May | 71% | 5.5 |
| June | 77% | 6.2 |
| July | 78% | 6.0 |
| August | 78% | 5.3 |
| September | 75% | 4.4 |
| October | 74% | 3.4 |
| November | 75% | 2.5 |
| December | 70% | 1.9 |
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 many heating and cooling degree days does Somerset record?
A normal year at Somerset brings 4,551 heating degree days, 15% fewer than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 1,150 cooling degree days, 27% more than the median (908). Six months need 300 or more heating degree days, a monthly mean of about 55°F or colder. For gardens and crops, NOAA counts 3,803 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 947 | 0 |
| February | 776 | 0 |
| March | 632 | 2 |
| April | 318 | 21 |
| May | 117 | 83 |
| June | 13 | 237 |
| July | 1 | 348 |
| August | 3 | 305 |
| September | 54 | 136 |
| October | 289 | 18 |
| November | 568 | 1 |
| December | 834 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 4,551 | 1,150 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00447904. 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.
Have recent years at Somerset been warmer than normal?
2025 averaged 56.1°F, 0.5°F above the 1991-2020 normal of 55.6°F. 4 of the 5 complete years since 2021 ran warmer than the normal.
| Year | Mean | Against normal | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 56.8°F | +1.2°F | – | – |
| 2022 | 55.3°F | −0.3°F | – | – |
| 2023 | 56.8°F | +1.2°F | 38.73 | 0.0 |
| 2024 | 57.6°F | +2.0°F | 43.67 | – |
| 2025 | 56.1°F | +0.5°F | 45.58 | – |
Source: observed years: ACIS, station USC00447904. A year counts only with all twelve months complete.
How does Somerset's climate compare?
Somerset is warmer than 38 of the 81 places with their own NOAA record in Virginia, and wetter than 31. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 55.6°F is warmer than 62%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Somerset 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 Somerset share this climate record?
4 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.
- Ruckersville, VA1,314 people · 6 mi W
- Barboursville, VA747 people · 5 mi S
- Stanardsville, VA363 people · 10 mi W
- Madison, VA210 people · 9 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 Somerset's climate
What is the coldest month at Somerset?
January, with a normal high of 45°F and a normal low of 24°F. The warmest is July (87°F by day, 65°F at night).
Does it snow at Somerset?
Yes: 16 inches in a normal year, falling on 7 days with 0.1 inch or more, the most in February (6.1 inches).
What is the rainiest month at Somerset?
June, with 4.80 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is February with 2.70 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Somerset in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Somerset in zone 7a in ZIP code 22738, the nearest ZIP area. By the same method at the station, the coldest night of a typical year reaches 2°F (17 years, 1991-2020): zone 7a.
How late can frost come at Somerset?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after April 17; in one year in ten it comes after May 6. Waiting until May 6 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- Virginia climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Piedmont Research Station, VA8 miles from this station, 56.1°F a year
- Charlottesville, VA12 miles from this station, 58.7°F a year
- Monticello, VA19 miles from this station, 55.7°F a year
- Louisa, VA20 miles from this station, 55.8°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made