Upton, WY 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 Upton's primary NOAA station, UPTON.
The climate verdict for Upton
Dryness leads the climate profile for Upton, Wyoming, with 16.2 inches of precipitation a year. NOAA records an annual average of 45°F. At 39/100 (below average) the climate comfort score falls in the bottom third of the station-mapped U.S. score corpus, exceeding only 4% of scores.
- 45°F
- average temperature, NOAA 1991-2020 normal
- 39/100
- comfort score, above 4% of station-mapped location scores
- 16.2"
- annual precipitation · 46" snow
- 126 days
- growing season, frost-free days
Upton: NOAA 1991-2020 normals describe a typical year, not a forecast. Method: /methodology.
Normals record plate
Sheet USC00489205 · Upton, WY 45°F mean · 16.2" precip
TEMP-COOL · RANK-COOL · PHOTO-FINISH · PRCP-DRY · SWING-WIDE · COMF-LOW · LOAD-HEAT · STN-1 · BOOK-FULL
- TEMP-COOL 45°F
- RANK-COOL #1,235
- PHOTO-FINISH ≈ Rochester
- PRCP-DRY 16.2"
- SWING-WIDE 51°F
- COMF-LOW 39/100
- LOAD-HEAT 7,875 HDD
- STN-1 USC00489205
- BOOK-FULL 6/6 fields
Nearest mean-temperature peer: Rochester, MN (+ 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 WY station list.
- Upton (this station) 45°F
- Cold Estherville, IA 45°F
- Hot Rochester, MN 45°F
- Near New Hampton, IA 45°F
- Near Cedar, MN 45°F
Upton sits in Wyoming, the #5 coldest U.S. state at 43.3°F statewide annual average - see all 50 coldest states ranked by NOAA normals
Climate Living Index · Upton
Upton: 21/100 · grade F
Upton publishes 5 of 6 Living Index dimensions (NOAA annual/seasonal normals · NOAA daily multivariate normals); 1 missing weight rescale to 100.
PlainClimate-derived for Upton, not an official NOAA rating. Rankings still use Comfort Score 39/100 (separate formula). Breakpoints and limits.
| Dimension | Station value | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Precipitation balance | 16.2 in · 18.8 from 35 in | 33/100 · F |
| Snowfall burden | 46.4 inches/year | 23/100 · F |
| Annual temperature balance | 44.8°F · 22.7° from 67.5°F | 19/100 · F |
| Normal heat + freeze calendar | 193 calendar days | 18/100 · F |
| Frost-free season | 126 days/year | 10/100 · F |
Upton · 2026-08-04 · NOAA NCEI Climate Normals · method · Comfort Score method.
Upton'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
- 71.8°F
- Coldest month
- 21.0°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 Upton sits across the climate record
Three NOAA fields for Upton's primary station, temperature, precipitation, and seasonal swing, are ranked against every station-mapped normal that carries the same field.
- Annual temperature
- Cooler than 82%
- Among 6,861 stations, Upton sits in the cooler third of annual means.
- Annual precipitation
- Drier than 80%
- Upton's annual total ranks in the drier third of 6,352 measured normals.
- Seasonal temperature swing
- Wider than 83%
- Warmest-to-coldest month gap for Upton is large versus 6,861 complete station-years.
How Upton compares across U.S. station-mapped locations
Upton's comfort score vs. all station-mapped locations
PlainClimate composite comfort index (1–100), NOAA 1991–2020 normals
39 4th percentile score exceeds 4% 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%). This entry sits in this band.
- 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
Upton's measured station temperature trend
MethodologyAcross 54 complete annual observations from 1955 to 2024, UPTON warmed at a fitted rate of 0.24°C per decade. The line shows the fitted change relative to its first year, not raw year-to-year temperatures or a forecast.
- Upton primary station fitted change +0.24 °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 | 33°F (0°C) | 10°F (-12°C) | 21°F (-6°C) | 0.5" | 8.2" | 30.7 | 0.0 |
| February | 35°F (2°C) | 12°F (-11°C) | 23°F (-5°C) | 0.5" | 8.1" | 27.5 | 0.0 |
| March | 47°F (8°C) | 22°F (-6°C) | 35°F (1°C) | 0.8" | 6.2" | 26.7 | 0.0 |
| April | 56°F (13°C) | 30°F (-1°C) | 43°F (6°C) | 1.8" | 5.3" | 17.4 | 0.0 |
| May | 65°F (19°C) | 40°F (4°C) | 53°F (11°C) | 2.8" | 0.7" | 5.6 | 0.3 |
| June | 77°F (25°C) | 49°F (10°C) | 63°F (17°C) | 2.6" | 0.1" | 0.1 | 3.5 |
| July | 87°F (31°C) | 57°F (14°C) | 72°F (22°C) | 2.1" | 0.0" | 0.0 | 12.4 |
| August | 85°F (30°C) | 54°F (12°C) | 70°F (21°C) | 1.4" | 0.0" | 0.1 | 11.4 |
| September | 75°F (24°C) | 44°F (7°C) | 60°F (15°C) | 1.2" | 0.1" | 1.9 | 3.3 |
| October | 59°F (15°C) | 32°F (0°C) | 45°F (7°C) | 1.5" | 3.1" | 14.3 | 0.1 |
| November | 44°F (6°C) | 20°F (-7°C) | 32°F (0°C) | 0.6" | 6.3" | 27.1 | 0.0 |
| December | 33°F (1°C) | 10°F (-12°C) | 22°F (-6°C) | 0.5" | 8.3" | 30.6 | 0.0 |
The year, day by day
Summer here tops out rather than builds: the warmest normal high is 88°F around July 25, short of 90°F on every date, while 193 dates carry a normal low at or below freezing, the coldest 9°F near January 1.
The freezing stretch
The normal low stays at or below 32°F into April 25, then returns to freezing around October 16, covering 193 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 May 29, when 34% of years recorded at least a hundredth of an inch. The driest is November 22 at 11%. Summed across the calendar, that is about 69 wet dates a year.
The widest day
September 3 carries the biggest normal gap between afternoon and dawn, 32°F between the normal high and the normal low.
Look up any date
Any date's 1991–2020 normal for Upton.
Where Upton Stands Nationally
Freezing is routine here by normals standards — the normal low reaches 32°F or colder on about 193 nights a year, more than most ranked stations.
Upton earns one nationally notable standing (outer quintile) against 6,860 NOAA 1991–2020 normals stations, middle-of-the-pack metrics stay silent here.
Monthly Precipitation
Average monthly rainfall and snowfall
Snow: 8.2"
4.3 days with precipitation
Snow: 8.1"
4.3 days with precipitation
Snow: 6.2"
4.6 days with precipitation
Snow: 5.3"
8.1 days with precipitation
Snow: 0.7"
9.5 days with precipitation
Snow: 0.1"
8.9 days with precipitation
6.8 days with precipitation
5.1 days with precipitation
Snow: 0.1"
4.4 days with precipitation
Snow: 3.1"
5.3 days with precipitation
Snow: 6.3"
3.2 days with precipitation
Snow: 8.3"
4.4 days with precipitation
Upton runs a summer-peaked wet season
38% of Upton'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 May at 2.8", on a wide 50.8°F gap between its warmest and coldest month. 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.
- Wettest three months: May, June, July, taking 47% of the annual total between them.
- Driest month: December at 0.5".
- Winter share: 8% falls in December, January and February.
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.
How Upton's precipitation splits across the calendar
About 69 days a year record measurable precipitation here, carrying 16.2" between them, or roughly 0.23 inches on a typical wet day. That sits in the middle band: neither the many-light-days pattern of the Pacific Northwest and the Great Lakes, nor the few-heavy-events pattern of the Gulf and the desert Southwest.
A wet day is one recording at least 0.01 inches. These are 1991-2020 normals: they describe an average year and say nothing about the heaviest single storm on record.
Winter brings real snow to Upton
Upton averages 46.4 inches of snowfall a year, with December the snowiest month on the normals, spread across roughly 21 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.
- Annual snowfall: 46.4 inches of depth.
- Days recording measurable snow: about 21 a year.
- At a rough ten-to-one melt ratio, snow accounts for on the order of 29% of the year's precipitation.
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
September 23
50% probability date
Last Spring Freeze
May 20
50% probability date
Growing Season
126 days
Heating & Cooling Degree Days
Annual totals indicate energy demand for heating and cooling
Heating Degree Days
7,875
Higher = more heating needed
Cooling Degree Days
528
Higher = more cooling needed
Warmest Month
July
Coldest Month
January
Nationwide similar cities
Other rankable U.S. places outside WY closest to Upton 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 (45°F here).
- Dannemora, NY 45°F · 0.0°F off
- Estherville, IA 45°F · 0.0°F off
- Hamilton, MT 45°F · 0.0°F off
- Harrison, NE 45°F · 0.0°F off
Closest by annual precipitation
Nearest out-of-state peers by annual precipitation (16.2" here), excluding temperature-peer places.
- Milton Freewater, OR 16.1" · 0.0" off
- Genoa, CO 16.2" · 0.0" off
- Lamar, CO 16.2" · 0.0" off
- Plains, TX 16.2" · 0.0" off
Snow and freeze rhythm
When cold and snow define Upton
heating led · dry · mid swing
Upton's energy balance leans toward cold weather: 7,875 annual heating degree days against 528 for cooling. Its 50.8°F seasonal range still makes the monthly rows more useful than the annual average alone.
Only about 126 days are frost-free in a normal year. That short interval is consistent with the cold-season signal, but the measure does not predict the exact first or last freeze in any one year.
-
1. Upton coldest normal
January
Averaging 21°F (-6°C), this month sits below freezing for the month as a whole, not merely overnight.
-
2. Upton typical freeze period
January through December
The station reports average freezing days from January through December.
-
3. Upton snow peak
December
Upton averages 46.4 inches of snow a year, with December the snowiest month on the normals.
Questions about Upton's climate
How much snow does Upton get? ▼
How many days above 90°F does Upton get? ▼
How much energy does heating and cooling require in Upton? ▼
Data Sources
Data source: NOAA U.S. Climate Normals v1.0.1 (1991-2020). All figures on this page are from Upton's primary station: UPTON (USC00489205). 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 5679125). Match rule for Upton: 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 Upton 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.