Virginia City, Montana climate: Normal weather by month, frost dates and records
Virginia City's normal year runs from 14°F December nights to 83°F July afternoons, with 15.7 inches of precipitation and 65 inches of snow a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 6.6°C, December lows of −10°C, July highs of 28°C, 398 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationVirginia City
- Station IDUSC00248597
- Location45.29°N 111.95°W
- Elevation5,773 ft (1,760 m)
- From the centerunder 1 mile
- Population252
On October 23, the normal high in Virginia City is 54°F and the normal low 29°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 21%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Virginia City.
- Jan 37° 15°
- Feb 39° 15°
- Mar 47° 22°
- Apr 54° 29°
- May 64° 37°
- Jun 73° 43°
- Jul 83° 50°
- Aug 81° 49°
- Sep 71° 41°
- Oct 58° 31°
- Nov 44° 21°
- Dec 35° 14°
Each month: normal high (large) and low, °F. Fill: the month's normal mean, colder blue to hotter red.
What is the weather like in Virginia City each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 83°F; December the coldest, with normal lows of 14°F. The most precipitation falls in June (2.74 in), the least in February (0.59 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 37°F | 15°F | 26.0°F | 0.67 | 11.2 | 6 | <1 | 30 | 9 h 10 min |
| February | 39°F | 15°F | 27.1°F | 0.59 | 8.0 | 6 | <1 | 27 | 10 h 20 min |
| March | 47°F | 22°F | 34.7°F | 0.93 | 6.6 | 6 | <1 | 28 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 54°F | 29°F | 41.4°F | 1.75 | 10.7 | 10 | <1 | 23 | 13 h 30 min |
| May | 64°F | 37°F | 50.4°F | 2.37 | 4.3 | 11 | <1 | 10 | 14 h 50 min |
| June | 73°F | 43°F | 57.9°F | 2.74 | 0.2 | 12 | 1 | 2 | 15 h 40 min |
| July | 83°F | 50°F | 66.2°F | 1.33 | 0.0 | 8 | 4 | <1 | 15 h 20 min |
| August | 81°F | 49°F | 64.9°F | 1.14 | 0.0 | 8 | 2 | <1 | 14 h 10 min |
| September | 71°F | 41°F | 56.3°F | 1.19 | 0.2 | 6 | <1 | 3 | 12 h 40 min |
| October | 58°F | 31°F | 44.5°F | 1.35 | 3.6 | 7 | <1 | 17 | 11 h |
| November | 44°F | 21°F | 32.6°F | 0.82 | 7.7 | 7 | <1 | 27 | 9 h 30 min |
| December | 35°F | 14°F | 24.6°F | 0.77 | 12.2 | 7 | <1 | 30 | 8 h 50 min |
| Year (annual) | 57°F | 31°F | 43.9°F | 15.65 | 64.7 | 93 | 6 | 198 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 3°C | −9°C | −3.3°C | 17 mm | 28 cm |
| February | 4°C | −9°C | −2.7°C | 15 mm | 20 cm |
| March | 8°C | −5°C | 1.5°C | 24 mm | 17 cm |
| April | 12°C | −2°C | 5.2°C | 44 mm | 27 cm |
| May | 18°C | 3°C | 10.2°C | 60 mm | 11 cm |
| June | 23°C | 6°C | 14.4°C | 70 mm | 1 cm |
| July | 28°C | 10°C | 19.0°C | 34 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 27°C | 9°C | 18.3°C | 29 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 22°C | 5°C | 13.5°C | 30 mm | 1 cm |
| October | 14°C | 0°C | 6.9°C | 34 mm | 9 cm |
| November | 7°C | −6°C | 0.3°C | 21 mm | 20 cm |
| December | 2°C | −10°C | −4.1°C | 20 mm | 31 cm |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00248597; 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.
When is the best weather to visit Virginia City?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in June, July, August 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 USC00248597.
When is the last frost in Virginia City?
In Virginia City, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after June 4 in half of years and after June 23 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before September 18 in half of years and before September 3 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
- June 41 year in 10 after June 23; 9 in 10 after May 17
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- September 181 year in 10 before September 3; 9 in 10 before October 2
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 106 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 137 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after May 14 in half of springs and before October 1 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Virginia City in zone 5a in ZIP code 59755, the nearest ZIP area. By the map's own method, the average of each year's coldest night over 1991-2020, Virginia City's NOAA station is in zone 5a: the coldest night of a typical year reaches −18°F (24 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 USC00248597; 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 in Virginia City?
In a normal year in Virginia City, 6 days a year reach 90°F, 198 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 93 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 6a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- fewer than 1a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 198a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 33high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 93a normal year
- Days with 1 inch of snow or more
- 28a normal year
The highest temperature in this station's record (since 1893) is 103°F, on July 25, 1919; the lowest is −40°F, on January 19, 1963.
The wettest calendar year on that record is 1962, with 21.25 in; the snowiest season is 1983–84, with 117.4 inches.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USC00248597; records: ACIS (NOAA Regional Climate Centers), station USC00248597. Records use complete months only; a month missing more than three days is left out.
How sunny is Virginia City?
Over a year 74% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds in the area around Virginia City, 4.1 kWh per square metre a day. July is the sunniest month (84%) and December the cloudiest (63%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 69% | 1.7 |
| February | 73% | 2.8 |
| March | 70% | 3.8 |
| April | 66% | 4.8 |
| May | 67% | 5.6 |
| June | 75% | 6.6 |
| July | 84% | 7.2 |
| August | 83% | 6.1 |
| September | 79% | 4.6 |
| October | 69% | 2.9 |
| November | 66% | 1.8 |
| December | 63% | 1.3 |
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 much heating and cooling does Virginia City need?
A normal year in Virginia City brings 7,856 heating degree days, 46% more than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 183 cooling degree days, 80% 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 1,599 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 1,211 | 0 |
| February | 1,060 | 0 |
| March | 941 | 0 |
| April | 708 | 0 |
| May | 454 | 1 |
| June | 230 | 16 |
| July | 54 | 91 |
| August | 69 | 67 |
| September | 269 | 8 |
| October | 636 | 0 |
| November | 974 | 0 |
| December | 1,252 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 7,856 | 183 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00248597. 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.
Has Virginia City been warmer than normal lately?
2025 averaged 44.8°F, 0.9°F above the 1991-2020 normal of 43.9°F. 2 of the 3 complete years since 2023 ran warmer than the normal.
| Year | Mean | Against normal | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 41.6°F | −2.3°F | 19.96 | 63.5 |
| 2024 | 44.2°F | +0.3°F | 16.18 | 87.1 |
| 2025 | 44.8°F | +0.9°F | 15.12 | 56.0 |
Over 85 complete years from 1878 to 2025, the station's annual mean temperature rose at a fitted 0.8°F per century (+0.04°C per decade). A fitted rate summarizes the whole record; single years swing well above and below it.
Source: observed years: ACIS, station USC00248597; trend: NOAA GHCN-Monthly v4. A year counts only with all twelve months complete.
How does Virginia City's climate compare?
Virginia City is warmer than 71 of the other 140 places with their own NOAA record in Montana, and wetter than 88. 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, Virginia City is Dfb: continental, no dry season, warm 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.
Questions about Virginia City's climate
What is the coldest month in Virginia City?
December, with a normal high of 35°F and a normal low of 14°F. The warmest is July (83°F by day, 50°F at night).
Does it snow in Virginia City?
Yes: 65 inches in a normal year, falling on 33 days with 0.1 inch or more, the most in December (12.2 inches).
What is the rainiest month in Virginia City?
June, with 2.74 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is February with 0.59 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Virginia City in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Virginia City in zone 5a in ZIP code 59755, the nearest ZIP area. By the same method at Virginia City's NOAA station, the coldest night of a typical year reaches −18°F (24 years, 1991-2020): zone 5a.
How late can frost come in Virginia City?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after June 4; in one year in ten it comes after June 23. Waiting until June 23 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- Montana climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Laurin (2 mi NE), MT9 miles from this station, 43.0°F a year
- Ennis, MT12 miles from this station, 42.7°F a year
- Alder (19 mi S), MT15 miles from this station, 40.8°F a year
- Alder (17 mi S), MT16 miles from this station, 42.5°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made