West Plains, Missouri climate: Normal weather by month, frost dates and records
West Plains's normal year runs from 25°F January nights to 89°F July afternoons, with 47.3 inches of precipitation a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 13.9°C, January lows of −4°C, July highs of 31°C, 1,200 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationWest Plains Municipal Airport
- Station IDUSW00053901
- Location36.88°N 91.90°W
- Elevation1,223 ft (373 m)
- Population12,704
On October 14, the normal high in West Plains is 70°F and the normal low 47°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 33%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for West Plains.
- Jan 44° 25°
- Feb 50° 28°
- Mar 59° 36°
- Apr 69° 46°
- May 76° 55°
- Jun 84° 63°
- Jul 89° 67°
- Aug 88° 66°
- Sep 81° 57°
- Oct 70° 46°
- Nov 57° 36°
- Dec 47° 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 in West Plains each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 89°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of 25°F. The most precipitation falls in May (5.55 in), the least in January (2.63 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 44°F | 25°F | 34.5°F | 2.63 | 8 | <1 | 24 | 9 h 50 min |
| February | 50°F | 28°F | 38.9°F | 3.11 | 9 | <1 | 20 | 10 h 50 min |
| March | 59°F | 36°F | 47.6°F | 4.41 | 11 | <1 | 11 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 69°F | 46°F | 57.4°F | 5.31 | 10 | <1 | 2 | 13 h 10 min |
| May | 76°F | 55°F | 65.6°F | 5.55 | 13 | 1 | <1 | 14 h 10 min |
| June | 84°F | 63°F | 73.9°F | 4.04 | 10 | 5 | <1 | 14 h 40 min |
| July | 89°F | 67°F | 77.9°F | 4.21 | 11 | 15 | <1 | 14 h 30 min |
| August | 88°F | 66°F | 76.9°F | 3.36 | 10 | 13 | <1 | 13 h 40 min |
| September | 81°F | 57°F | 69.1°F | 3.09 | 10 | 4 | <1 | 12 h 30 min |
| October | 70°F | 46°F | 57.9°F | 4.08 | 10 | <1 | 2 | 11 h 20 min |
| November | 57°F | 36°F | 46.6°F | 4.34 | 9 | <1 | 11 | 10 h 10 min |
| December | 47°F | 28°F | 37.5°F | 3.12 | 8 | <1 | 21 | 9 h 40 min |
| Year (annual) | 68°F | 46°F | 57.0°F | 47.25 | 119 | 37 | 92 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 7°C | −4°C | 1.4°C | 67 mm |
| February | 10°C | −2°C | 3.8°C | 79 mm |
| March | 15°C | 2°C | 8.7°C | 112 mm |
| April | 21°C | 8°C | 14.1°C | 135 mm |
| May | 25°C | 13°C | 18.7°C | 141 mm |
| June | 29°C | 17°C | 23.3°C | 103 mm |
| July | 31°C | 20°C | 25.5°C | 107 mm |
| August | 31°C | 19°C | 24.9°C | 85 mm |
| September | 27°C | 14°C | 20.6°C | 78 mm |
| October | 21°C | 8°C | 14.4°C | 104 mm |
| November | 14°C | 2°C | 8.1°C | 110 mm |
| December | 8°C | −2°C | 3.1°C | 79 mm |
NOAA publishes no 1991-2020 snowfall normal for this station. West Plains's own co-op station West Plains station does: 9 inches of snow in a normal year (see the other stations below).
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USW00053901; 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 West Plains?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in April, May, June, September and October. Of those, September has the fewest days with rain (10).
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 USW00053901.
When is the last frost in West Plains?
In West Plains, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after April 8 in half of years and after April 26 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before October 25 in half of years and before October 14 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 81 year in 10 after April 26; 9 in 10 after March 23
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- October 251 year in 10 before October 14; 9 in 10 before November 8
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 199 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 221 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after March 28 in half of springs and before November 4 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts West Plains in zone 7a in ZIP code 65775, the nearest ZIP area. By the map's own method, the average of each year's coldest night over 1991-2020, West Plains's NOAA station is in zone 7a: the coldest night of a typical year reaches 2°F (23 complete years).
Frost dates for every NOAA station in Missouri · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USW00053901; 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 West Plains?
In a normal year in West Plains, 37 days a year reach 90°F (2 of them 100°F or more), 92 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 119 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 37a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- 2a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 92a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 12high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 119a normal year
The highest temperature in this station's record (since 1996) is 108°F, on August 3, 2011; the lowest is −8°F, on February 16, 2021.
The wettest calendar year on that record is 2019, with 61.84 in.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USW00053901; records: ACIS (NOAA Regional Climate Centers), station USW00053901. Records use complete months only; a month missing more than three days is left out.
How sunny is West Plains?
Over a year 76% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds in the area around West Plains, 4.4 kWh per square metre a day. July is the sunniest month (82%) and February the cloudiest (67%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 70% | 2.4 |
| February | 67% | 3.0 |
| March | 70% | 4.1 |
| April | 73% | 5.2 |
| May | 74% | 5.8 |
| June | 82% | 6.7 |
| July | 82% | 6.4 |
| August | 82% | 5.7 |
| September | 81% | 4.9 |
| October | 76% | 3.6 |
| November | 74% | 2.7 |
| December | 68% | 2.1 |
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 West Plains need?
A normal year in West Plains brings 4,264 heating degree days, 21% fewer than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 1,369 cooling degree days, 51% more than the median (908). Five months need 300 or more heating degree days, a monthly mean of about 55°F or colder. For gardens and crops, NOAA counts 4,206 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 945 | 0 |
| February | 731 | 0 |
| March | 545 | 4 |
| April | 253 | 24 |
| May | 83 | 102 |
| June | 5 | 271 |
| July | 0 | 400 |
| August | 1 | 371 |
| September | 40 | 163 |
| October | 253 | 32 |
| November | 554 | 2 |
| December | 852 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 4,264 | 1,369 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USW00053901. 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 West Plains been warmer than normal lately?
2025 averaged 58.0°F, 1.0°F above the 1991-2020 normal of 57.0°F. 4 of the 4 complete years since 2021 ran warmer than the normal.
| Year | Mean | Against normal | Precip. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 58.5°F | +1.5°F | 46.11 |
| 2022 | 57.6°F | +0.6°F | 44.61 |
| 2023 | 58.8°F | +1.8°F | 38.66 |
| 2025 | 58.0°F | +1.0°F | 48.18 |
Source: observed years: ACIS, station USW00053901. A year counts only with all twelve months complete.
How does West Plains's climate compare?
West Plains is warmer than 111 of the other 133 places with their own NOAA record in Missouri, and wetter than 102. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 57.0°F is warmer than 66%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, West Plains 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 West Plains share this climate record?
2 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.
- Willow Springs, MO2,219 people · 8 mi NW
- Pomona, MO243 people · 1 mi SW
Source: Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer (place centers) and Vintage 2024 population estimates. Distance and direction from the station to each place's center.
What do West Plains's other NOAA stations record?
One more NOAA station keeps 1991-2020 normals in or near West Plains. This page uses West Plains Municipal Airport; the other differs by site and elevation:
| Station | From this station | Elevation | Year | Jan low | Jul high | Precip. | Snow | Last frost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| West Plains station USC00238880 | 11 mi S | 1,105 ft | 55.6°F | 22°F | 89°F | 49.4 | 9 | April 16 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 normals for each station. Last frost: the median last spring date of 32°F.
Questions about West Plains's climate
What is the coldest month in West Plains?
January, with a normal high of 44°F and a normal low of 25°F. The warmest is July (89°F by day, 67°F at night).
Does it snow in West Plains?
Yes. NOAA publishes no 1991-2020 snowfall normal for West Plains's NOAA station; West Plains's own co-op station West Plains station records 9 inches of snow in a normal year.
What is the rainiest month in West Plains?
May, with 5.55 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is January with 2.63 in.
What plant hardiness zone is West Plains in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts West Plains in zone 7a in ZIP code 65775, the nearest ZIP area. By the same method at West Plains's NOAA station, the coldest night of a typical year reaches 2°F (23 years, 1991-2020): zone 7a.
How late can frost come in West Plains?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after April 8; in one year in ten it comes after April 26. Waiting until April 26 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- Missouri climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Dora (3 mi SE), MO19 miles from this station, 57.0°F a year
- Summersville, MO24 miles from this station, 56.0°F a year
- Gentryville, MO25 miles from this station, 56.2°F a year
- Mountain Grove, MO27 miles from this station, 55.2°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made