Valentine, Montana climate: Climate normals at a NOAA weather station
Valentine's normal year runs from 6°F January nights to 86°F July afternoons, with 14.6 inches of precipitation and 33 inches of snow a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 6.6°C, January lows of −14°C, July highs of 30°C, 371 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationValentine
- Station IDUSC00248498
- Location47.34°N 108.50°W
- Elevation2,905 ft (885 m)
On October 22, the normal high in Valentine is 56°F and the normal low 27°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 16%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Valentine.
- Jan 33° 6°
- Feb 36° 10°
- Mar 47° 19°
- Apr 57° 29°
- May 66° 39°
- Jun 75° 49°
- Jul 86° 54°
- Aug 85° 52°
- Sep 74° 42°
- Oct 59° 30°
- Nov 45° 18°
- Dec 35° 9°
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 Valentine each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 86°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of 6°F. The most precipitation falls in May (2.90 in), the least in February (0.40 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 33°F | 6°F | 19.5°F | 0.57 | 7.1 | 4 | <1 | 31 | 8 h 50 min |
| February | 36°F | 10°F | 23.0°F | 0.40 | 5.1 | 4 | <1 | 27 | 10 h 10 min |
| March | 47°F | 19°F | 33.1°F | 0.62 | 4.8 | 5 | <1 | 29 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 57°F | 29°F | 43.0°F | 1.25 | 2.7 | 7 | <1 | 20 | 13 h 30 min |
| May | 66°F | 39°F | 52.8°F | 2.90 | 0.5 | 10 | <1 | 6 | 15 h |
| June | 75°F | 49°F | 62.0°F | 2.58 | 0.0 | 11 | 2 | <1 | 15 h 50 min |
| July | 86°F | 54°F | 69.8°F | 1.56 | 0.0 | 7 | 12 | <1 | 15 h 40 min |
| August | 85°F | 52°F | 68.5°F | 1.40 | 0.0 | 6 | 12 | <1 | 14 h 20 min |
| September | 74°F | 42°F | 57.6°F | 1.16 | 0.0 | 6 | 3 | 3 | 12 h 40 min |
| October | 59°F | 30°F | 44.3°F | 1.16 | 1.8 | 5 | <1 | 19 | 11 h |
| November | 45°F | 18°F | 31.6°F | 0.51 | 4.3 | 4 | <1 | 28 | 9 h 20 min |
| December | 35°F | 9°F | 22.0°F | 0.49 | 6.8 | 4 | <1 | 31 | 8 h 30 min |
| Year (annual) | 58°F | 30°F | 43.9°F | 14.60 | 33.1 | 72 | 29 | 193 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 0°C | −14°C | −6.9°C | 14 mm | 18 cm |
| February | 2°C | −12°C | −5.0°C | 10 mm | 13 cm |
| March | 8°C | −7°C | 0.6°C | 16 mm | 12 cm |
| April | 14°C | −2°C | 6.1°C | 32 mm | 7 cm |
| May | 19°C | 4°C | 11.6°C | 74 mm | 1 cm |
| June | 24°C | 9°C | 16.7°C | 66 mm | 0 cm |
| July | 30°C | 12°C | 21.0°C | 40 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 30°C | 11°C | 20.3°C | 36 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 23°C | 5°C | 14.2°C | 29 mm | 0 cm |
| October | 15°C | −1°C | 6.8°C | 29 mm | 5 cm |
| November | 7°C | −8°C | −0.2°C | 13 mm | 11 cm |
| December | 2°C | −13°C | −5.6°C | 12 mm | 17 cm |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00248498; 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 Valentine?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in May, June and September. Of those, September has the fewest days with rain (6).
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 USC00248498.
When is the last frost at Valentine?
In Valentine, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after May 18 in half of years and after May 31 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before September 21 in half of years and before September 7 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 181 year in 10 after May 31; 9 in 10 after May 7
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- September 211 year in 10 before September 7; 9 in 10 before October 2
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 124 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 144 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after May 7 in half of springs and before September 29 in half of autumns.
By the USDA's method, the average of each year's coldest night over 1991-2020, the station is in plant hardiness zone 3b: the coldest night of a typical year reaches −31°F (30 complete years).
Frost dates for every NOAA station in Montana · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USC00248498; 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 Valentine?
In a normal year in Valentine, 29 days a year reach 90°F (3 of them 100°F or more), 193 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 72 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 29a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- 3a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 193a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 47high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 72a normal year
- Days with 1 inch of snow or more
- 14a normal year
The highest temperature in this station's record (since 1907) is 111°F, on July 13, 2026; the lowest is −50°F, on January 11, 1909.
The wettest calendar year on that record is 1986, with 20.19 in; the snowiest season is 1996–97, with 54.5 inches.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USC00248498; records: ACIS (NOAA Regional Climate Centers), station USC00248498. Records use complete months only; a month missing more than three days is left out.
How sunny is it at Valentine?
Over a year 77% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds at Valentine, 4.0 kWh per square metre a day. July is the sunniest month (87%) and December the cloudiest (67%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 73% | 1.6 |
| February | 75% | 2.6 |
| March | 72% | 3.7 |
| April | 70% | 4.8 |
| May | 72% | 5.8 |
| June | 77% | 6.6 |
| July | 87% | 7.1 |
| August | 85% | 5.9 |
| September | 79% | 4.3 |
| October | 73% | 2.7 |
| November | 71% | 1.7 |
| December | 67% | 1.2 |
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 Valentine record?
A normal year at Valentine brings 8,058 heating degree days, 50% more than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 411 cooling degree days, 55% fewer than the median (908). Eight months need 300 or more heating degree days, a monthly mean of about 55°F or colder. For gardens and crops, NOAA counts 2,051 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 1,412 | 0 |
| February | 1,176 | 0 |
| March | 989 | 0 |
| April | 660 | 0 |
| May | 384 | 6 |
| June | 135 | 45 |
| July | 30 | 178 |
| August | 48 | 156 |
| September | 248 | 26 |
| October | 643 | 1 |
| November | 1,002 | 0 |
| December | 1,331 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 8,058 | 411 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00248498. 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 Valentine been warmer than normal?
2025 averaged 44.5°F, 0.6°F above the 1991-2020 normal of 43.9°F. 2 of the 3 complete years since 2022 ran warmer than the normal.
| Year | Mean | Against normal | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 42.9°F | −1.0°F | 13.95 | 27.1 |
| 2023 | 45.6°F | +1.7°F | 14.90 | 32.2 |
| 2025 | 44.5°F | +0.6°F | 14.47 | – |
Over 39 complete years from 1985 to 2025, the station's annual mean temperature rose at a fitted 1.2°F per century (+0.07°C per decade). A fitted rate summarizes the whole record; single years swing well above and below it.
Source: observed years: ACIS, station USC00248498; trend: NOAA GHCN-Monthly v4. A year counts only with all twelve months complete.
How does Valentine's climate compare?
Valentine is warmer than 71 of the 141 places with their own NOAA record in Montana, and wetter than 62. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 43.9°F is warmer than 15%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Valentine 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.
Questions about Valentine's climate
What is the coldest month at Valentine?
January, with a normal high of 33°F and a normal low of 6°F. The warmest is July (86°F by day, 54°F at night).
Does it snow at Valentine?
Yes: 33 inches in a normal year, falling on 15 days with 0.1 inch or more, the most in January (7.1 inches).
What is the rainiest month at Valentine?
May, with 2.90 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is February with 0.40 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Valentine in?
By the same method at the station, the coldest night of a typical year reaches −31°F (30 years, 1991-2020): zone 3b.
How late can frost come at Valentine?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after May 18; in one year in ten it comes after May 31. Waiting until May 31 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- Montana climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Roy, MT19 miles from this station, 45.4°F a year
- Sand Creek, MT20 miles from this station, 44.8°F a year
- Grass Range, MT26 miles from this station, 45.5°F a year
- Flatwillow (4 mi ENE), MT36 miles from this station, 46.5°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made