PlainClimate
NOAA 1991–2020 normals Incorporated place · exact Census match 1 NOAA station · Primary-station record

Stratford, TX 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 Stratford's primary NOAA station, STRATFORD.

The climate verdict for Stratford

Dryness leads the climate profile for Stratford, Texas, with 17.1 inches of precipitation a year. NOAA records an annual average of 57°F. Its climate comfort score of 68/100 (good) lands mid-pack nationally, exceeding 56% of station-mapped location scores.

57°F
yearly average temperature, NOAA normal
68/100
comfort score, above 56% of station-mapped location scores
17.1"
annual precipitation · 17" snow
183 days
frost-free growing season

Stratford: NOAA 1991-2020 normals describe a typical year, not a forecast. Method: /methodology.

Normals record plate

Sheet USC00418692 · Stratford, TX 57°F mean · 17.1" precip

TEMP-MILD · RANK-UPPER · PHOTO-FINISH · PRCP-DRY · SWING-MID · COMF-MID · LOAD-HEAT · STN-1 · BOOK-FULL

Nearest mean-temperature peer: Mt Vernon Univ MO - SW Ctr, MO (+ 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 TX station list.

Stratford sits in Texas, the #4 hottest U.S. state at 66.2°F statewide annual average - see all 50 hottest states ranked by NOAA normals

Climate Living Index · Stratford

Stratford: 42/100 · grade D

Stratford publishes 5 of 6 Living Index dimensions (NOAA annual/seasonal normals · NOAA daily multivariate normals); 1 missing weight rescale to 100.

D
42/100Climate Living Index

PlainClimate-derived for Stratford, not an official NOAA rating. Rankings still use Comfort Score 68/100 (separate formula). Breakpoints and limits.

Stratford Living Index dimension scores
DimensionStation valueScore
Annual temperature balance 56.5°F · 11.0° from 67.5°F 65/100 · C
Frost-free season 183 days/year 52/100 · D
Snowfall burden 17.4 inches/year 52/100 · D
Precipitation balance 17.1 in · 17.9 from 35 in 36/100 · F
Normal heat + freeze calendar 202 calendar days 13/100 · F

Stratford · 2026-08-04 · NOAA NCEI Climate Normals · method · Comfort Score method.

Stratford's normals sit in a dry climate class: BSk

Precipitation is low relative to temperature but above true desert thresholds: cold semi-arid steppe (BSk). Class BSk is the Peel et al. (2007) label for this station's monthly mean temperature and precipitation normals: dry (arid or semi-arid), specifically cold semi-arid steppe.

Köppen code
BSk
Group
Dry (arid or semi-arid)
Warmest month
78.9°F
Coldest month
35.6°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 Stratford sits across the climate record

Three NOAA fields for Stratford's primary station, temperature, precipitation, and seasonal swing, are ranked against every station-mapped normal that carries the same field.

Annual temperature
65th percentile warmth
Mid-pack annual mean versus 6,861 station normals.
Annual precipitation
Drier than 78%
Stratford's annual total ranks in the drier third of 6,352 measured normals.
Seasonal temperature swing
50th percentile swing
Typical seasonal amplitude versus 6,861 complete station-years.

How Stratford compares across U.S. station-mapped locations

Stratford's comfort score vs. all station-mapped locations

PlainClimate composite comfort index (1–100), NOAA 1991–2020 normals

68 Top 44% score exceeds 56% 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. This location 0 100 every station-mapped location, bucketed by value
  1. 0–10: 0 station-mapped locations (0%). Below this entry.
  2. 10–20: 0 station-mapped locations (0%). Below this entry.
  3. 20–30: 96 station-mapped locations (2%). Below this entry.
  4. 30–40: 280 station-mapped locations (5%). Below this entry.
  5. 40–50: 1,113 station-mapped locations (18%). Below this entry.
  6. 50–60: 1,329 station-mapped locations (21%). Below this entry.
  7. 60–70: 1,236 station-mapped locations (20%). This entry sits in this band.
  8. 70–80: 650 station-mapped locations (11%). Above this entry.
  9. 80–90: 921 station-mapped locations (15%). Above this entry.
  10. 90–100: 564 station-mapped locations (9%). Above this entry.

Source NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, PlainClimate comfort index · 1991–2020

Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more station-mapped locations. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.

Stratford's measured station temperature trend

Methodology

Across 47 complete annual observations from 1912 to 2018, STRATFORD warmed at a fitted rate of 0.22°C per decade. The line shows the fitted change relative to its first year, not raw year-to-year temperatures or a forecast.

Stratford fitted annual mean temperature change, 1912-2018 Fitted station-temperature change from 1912 to 2018, relative to the fitted first year. The linear trend warmed at 0.22 °C per decade. -0.4°C +0.1°C +0.6°C +1.1°C +1.6°C +2.1°C +2.6°C 19201940196019802000
  • Stratford primary station fitted change +0.22 °C/decade
Source: NOAA GHCN-M v4, quality-controlled monthly mean temperature. PlainClimate fits ordinary least squares over complete calendar years; minimum 30 years, record must reach 2015 or later.

Monthly Temperatures

Average daily high and low temperatures by month

Month Avg High Avg Low Mean
January 50°F (10°C) 21°F (-6°C) 36°F (2°C)
February 54°F (12°C) 23°F (-5°C) 39°F (4°C)
March 63°F (17°C) 31°F (-1°C) 47°F (8°C)
April 71°F (22°C) 39°F (4°C) 55°F (13°C)
May 80°F (26°C) 49°F (9°C) 64°F (18°C)
June 90°F (32°C) 59°F (15°C) 75°F (24°C)
July 93°F (34°C) 64°F (18°C) 79°F (26°C)
August 91°F (33°C) 63°F (17°C) 77°F (25°C)
September 84°F (29°C) 55°F (13°C) 70°F (21°C)
October 73°F (23°C) 41°F (5°C) 57°F (14°C)
November 60°F (16°C) 30°F (-1°C) 45°F (7°C)
December 50°F (10°C) 22°F (-6°C) 36°F (2°C)

The year, day by day

Stratford works both ends of the calendar. Normal highs climb to 94°F by July 13 and hold at or above 90°F on 70 dates, then normal lows drop to freezing or below on 132 dates, bottoming at 21°F around January 1.

Normal daily high and low temperature for Stratford, January through December Peaks 94°F around July 13. Bottoms 21°F around January 1. 15 35 55 75 95 freezing JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Normal daily high and low across the calendar year. NOAA 1991–2020 daily normals, STRATFORD.

When the heat sits

Normal highs reach 90°F from June 16 through August 24, covering 70 dates. The broader mild season, normal highs of 70°F or more, runs April 13 to October 22.

This counts calendar dates whose 1991–2020 normal high reaches 90°F. It is a smaller number than the 90°F+ day counts in the monthly table above, which measure how often the threshold was actually crossed in a typical year. A date can average 88°F and still exceed 90°F in half of all years.

The freezing stretch

The normal low stays at or below 32°F into March 20, then returns to freezing around November 10, covering 132 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 July 29, when 19% of years recorded at least a hundredth of an inch. The driest is January 14 at 8%. Summed across the calendar, that is about 44 wet dates a year.

The widest day

April 5 carries the biggest normal gap between afternoon and dawn, 33°F between the normal high and the normal low.

Look up any date

Any date's 1991–2020 normal for Stratford.

Where Stratford Stands Nationally

Heat is a defining feature of the normals calendar — the normal daily high reaches 90°F on roughly 70 days a year, more than four out of five ranked stations record.

Daily temperature swings run wider than most of the country, peaking near 33°F between the normal high and low.

Stratford 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

January 0.5"

Snow: 4.6"

2.2 days with precipitation

February 0.4"

Snow: 1.8"

2.4 days with precipitation

March 1.1"

Snow: 4.1"

3.0 days with precipitation

April 1.4"

Snow: 0.4"

3.6 days with precipitation

May 2.1"

4.2 days with precipitation

June 2.5"

4.8 days with precipitation

July 2.5"

5.6 days with precipitation

August 2.7"

5.5 days with precipitation

September 1.0"

3.3 days with precipitation

October 1.7"

Snow: 0.4"

3.7 days with precipitation

November 0.6"

Snow: 2.7"

2.2 days with precipitation

December 0.6"

Snow: 3.4"

2.7 days with precipitation

Stratford runs a summer-peaked wet season

45% of Stratford's yearly precipitation falls in June, July and August alone, against the 25% an evenly spread year would give those three months. The wettest month is August at 2.7", on a 43.3°F seasonal spread. Warm-season convection and, across the Southwest, the North American monsoon produce this shape: rain arrives in short heavy bursts during the hottest part of the year rather than as long cool-season soaking.

Shares are computed from this station's own 1991-2020 monthly precipitation normals. A summer-peaked label means the June-August share reaches 35%; it describes timing across an average year, not any single season, and says nothing about how heavy an individual storm can be.

When it rains in Stratford, it arrives in quantity

17.1" of precipitation falls across only about 43 wet days here, averaging 0.40 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 43 a year, 12% of all days
Average depth per wet day
0.40 inches
Most wet days
July, about 6
Fewest wet days
January, about 2

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.

Winter brings real snow to Stratford

Stratford averages 17.4 inches of snowfall a year, with January the snowiest month on the normals, spread across roughly 5 days that record measurable snow. That is depth accumulating on the ground, which is why it can exceed the annual precipitation figure: precipitation counts the liquid the snow melts down to, and fresh snow is mostly air.

NOAA 1991-2020 normals. The ten-to-one ratio is a convention, not a measurement: real ratios vary with temperature, so treat the share as an order of magnitude rather than an exact split.

Frost Dates & Growing Season

First Fall Freeze

October 21

50% probability date

Last Spring Freeze

April 21

50% probability date

Growing Season

183 days

Heating & Cooling Degree Days

Annual totals indicate energy demand for heating and cooling

Heating Degree Days

4,481

Higher = more heating needed

Cooling Degree Days

1,399

Higher = more cooling needed

Warmest Month

July

Coldest Month

January

Nationwide similar cities

Other rankable U.S. places outside TX closest to Stratford 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 (57°F here).

Closest by annual precipitation

Nearest out-of-state peers by annual precipitation (17.1" here), excluding temperature-peer places.

Texas climate overview →

Snow and freeze rhythm

When cold and snow define Stratford

heating led · dry · mid swing

Stratford's energy balance leans toward cold weather: 4,481 annual heating degree days against 1,399 for cooling. Its 43.3°F seasonal range still makes the monthly rows more useful than the annual average alone.

Stratford's frost-free season lasts about 183 days, a middle-length window whose endpoints matter more than the annual average. It describes freeze probability, not year-specific planting conditions.

  1. 1. Stratford coldest normal

    January

    The monthly mean of 36°F (2°C) sits near freezing, so cold nights and above-freezing afternoons share the same month.

  2. 2. Stratford typical freeze period

    January through December

    The station reports average freezing days from January through December.

  3. 3. Stratford snow peak

    January

    Stratford averages 17.4 inches of snow a year, with January the snowiest month on the normals.

Questions about Stratford's climate

How much snow does Stratford get?
Stratford averages 17.4 inches of snow a year, most of it in January, within 17.1 inches of total precipitation. Snowfall is depth on the ground; the precipitation total counts its liquid equivalent, so the two are not additive.
How many days above 90°F does Stratford get?
Stratford averages about 71 days a year at or above 90°F, concentrated in July and the months either side of it. That is a count of days reaching the threshold, not a measure of how far above it they go.
How much energy does heating and cooling require in Stratford?
Stratford has 4,481 heating degree days and 1,399 cooling degree days annually, a heating-dominated climate. Degree-day definitions: reading weather data.

Data Sources

Data source: NOAA U.S. Climate Normals v1.0.1 (1991-2020). All figures on this page are from Stratford's primary station: STRATFORD (USC00418692). 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 4870544). Match rule for Stratford: exact normalized name + state only, no fuzzy expansion, so nearby differently spelled facilities stay unmatched.

Data sourced from official public datasets. See our methodology for details. Retrieved and formatted by PlainClimate

On this page every temperature, precipitation, and derived score for Stratford 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.