Wheaton, Minnesota climate: Normal weather by month, frost dates and records
Wheaton's normal year runs from 3°F January nights to 82°F July afternoons, with 25.3 inches of precipitation and 43 inches of snow a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 6.6°C, January lows of −16°C, July highs of 28°C, 643 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationWheaton
- Station IDUSC00218907
- Location45.81°N 96.50°W
- Elevation1,018 ft (310 m)
- From the centerunder 1 mile
- Population1,334
On October 23, the normal high in Wheaton is 54°F and the normal low 34°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 23%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Wheaton.
- Jan 20° 3°
- Feb 25° 6°
- Mar 38° 20°
- Apr 55° 33°
- May 69° 47°
- Jun 78° 59°
- Jul 82° 62°
- Aug 81° 60°
- Sep 73° 50°
- Oct 58° 37°
- Nov 41° 23°
- Dec 26° 10°
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 Wheaton each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 82°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of 3°F. The most precipitation falls in June (4.22 in), the least in February (0.71 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 20°F | 3°F | 11.4°F | 0.78 | 8.0 | 6 | <1 | 31 | 9 h |
| February | 25°F | 6°F | 15.5°F | 0.71 | 9.0 | 5 | <1 | 27 | 10 h 20 min |
| March | 38°F | 20°F | 28.9°F | 1.18 | 7.1 | 6 | <1 | 26 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 55°F | 33°F | 43.9°F | 2.30 | 5.3 | 7 | <1 | 14 | 13 h 30 min |
| May | 69°F | 47°F | 57.7°F | 2.80 | 0.0 | 9 | 1 | 1 | 14 h 50 min |
| June | 78°F | 59°F | 68.4°F | 4.22 | 0.0 | 10 | 3 | <1 | 15 h 40 min |
| July | 82°F | 62°F | 72.4°F | 3.52 | 0.0 | 10 | 5 | <1 | 15 h 20 min |
| August | 81°F | 60°F | 70.1°F | 2.72 | 0.0 | 8 | 3 | <1 | 14 h 10 min |
| September | 73°F | 50°F | 61.5°F | 2.90 | 0.0 | 7 | 1 | <1 | 12 h 40 min |
| October | 58°F | 37°F | 47.2°F | 2.27 | 1.0 | 8 | <1 | 10 | 11 h |
| November | 41°F | 23°F | 31.6°F | 1.08 | 3.9 | 5 | <1 | 25 | 9 h 30 min |
| December | 26°F | 10°F | 17.7°F | 0.82 | 8.6 | 6 | <1 | 31 | 8 h 40 min |
| Year (annual) | 54°F | 34°F | 43.9°F | 25.30 | 42.9 | 85 | 12 | 166 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | −7°C | −16°C | −11.4°C | 20 mm | 20 cm |
| February | −4°C | −14°C | −9.2°C | 18 mm | 23 cm |
| March | 3°C | −7°C | −1.7°C | 30 mm | 18 cm |
| April | 13°C | 1°C | 6.6°C | 58 mm | 13 cm |
| May | 20°C | 8°C | 14.3°C | 71 mm | 0 cm |
| June | 26°C | 15°C | 20.2°C | 107 mm | 0 cm |
| July | 28°C | 17°C | 22.4°C | 89 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 27°C | 15°C | 21.2°C | 69 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 23°C | 10°C | 16.4°C | 74 mm | 0 cm |
| October | 14°C | 3°C | 8.4°C | 58 mm | 3 cm |
| November | 5°C | −5°C | −0.2°C | 27 mm | 10 cm |
| December | −4°C | −12°C | −7.9°C | 21 mm | 22 cm |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00218907; 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 Wheaton?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in May, June, July, August and September. Of those, September has the fewest days with rain (7).
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 USC00218907.
When is the last frost in Wheaton?
In Wheaton, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after May 1 in half of years and after May 12 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before October 9 in half of years and before September 26 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 11 year in 10 after May 12; 9 in 10 after April 18
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- October 91 year in 10 before September 26; 9 in 10 before October 23
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 160 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 179 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after April 21 in half of springs and before October 20 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Wheaton in zone 4b in ZIP code 56296, the nearest ZIP area. By the map's own method, the average of each year's coldest night over 1991-2020, Wheaton's NOAA station is in zone 4b: the coldest night of a typical year reaches −23°F (27 complete years).
Frost dates for every NOAA station in Minnesota · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USC00218907; 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 Wheaton?
In a normal year in Wheaton, 12 days a year reach 90°F, 166 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 85 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 12a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- fewer than 1a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 166a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 83high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 85a normal year
- Days with 1 inch of snow or more
- 14a normal year
The highest temperature in this station's record (since 1914) is 113°F, on July 16, 1936; the lowest is −38°F, on January 13, 1916.
The wettest calendar year on that record is 2007, with 33.31 in; the snowiest season is 2010–11, with 78.5 inches.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USC00218907; records: ACIS (NOAA Regional Climate Centers), station USC00218907. Records use complete months only; a month missing more than three days is left out.
How sunny is Wheaton?
Over a year 76% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds in the area around Wheaton, 4.0 kWh per square metre a day. July is the sunniest month (83%) and December the cloudiest (65%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 78% | 1.9 |
| February | 82% | 3.0 |
| March | 73% | 3.9 |
| April | 72% | 4.9 |
| May | 71% | 5.6 |
| June | 76% | 6.3 |
| July | 83% | 6.6 |
| August | 81% | 5.5 |
| September | 78% | 4.2 |
| October | 70% | 2.7 |
| November | 70% | 1.8 |
| December | 65% | 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 Wheaton need?
A normal year in Wheaton brings 8,323 heating degree days, 55% more than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 666 cooling degree days, 27% fewer than the median (908). Seven months need 300 or more heating degree days, a monthly mean of about 55°F or colder. For gardens and crops, NOAA counts 2,648 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 1,661 | 0 |
| February | 1,387 | 0 |
| March | 1,118 | 0 |
| April | 636 | 1 |
| May | 262 | 36 |
| June | 43 | 145 |
| July | 9 | 238 |
| August | 22 | 182 |
| September | 163 | 59 |
| October | 557 | 5 |
| November | 1,001 | 0 |
| December | 1,465 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 8,323 | 666 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00218907. 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 Wheaton been warmer than normal lately?
2025 averaged 43.9°F, equal to the 1991-2020 normal of 43.9°F. 2 of the 4 complete years since 2022 ran warmer than the normal.
| Year | Mean | Against normal | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 41.0°F | −2.9°F | 21.92 | 44.4 |
| 2023 | 44.0°F | +0.1°F | 26.75 | 56.4 |
| 2024 | 46.3°F | +2.4°F | 25.77 | 17.7 |
| 2025 | 43.9°F | at normal | 30.60 | 31.4 |
Over 81 complete years from 1915 to 2025, the station's annual mean temperature rose at a fitted 2.8°F per century (+0.16°C per decade). A fitted rate summarizes the whole record; single years swing well above and below it.
Source: observed years: ACIS, station USC00218907; trend: NOAA GHCN-Monthly v4. A year counts only with all twelve months complete.
How does Wheaton's climate compare?
Wheaton is warmer than 75 of the other 128 places with their own NOAA record in Minnesota, and wetter than 13. 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, Wheaton is Dfa: continental, 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 Wheaton share this climate record?
3 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.
- Herman, MN386 people · 17 mi E
- Dumont, MN71 people · 7 mi SE
- Norcross, MN49 people · 15 mi E
Source: Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer (place centers) and Vintage 2024 population estimates. Distance and direction from the station to each place's center.
Questions about Wheaton's climate
What is the coldest month in Wheaton?
January, with a normal high of 20°F and a normal low of 3°F. The warmest is July (82°F by day, 62°F at night).
Does it snow in Wheaton?
Yes: 43 inches in a normal year, falling on 23 days with 0.1 inch or more, the most in February (9.0 inches).
What is the rainiest month in Wheaton?
June, with 4.22 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is February with 0.71 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Wheaton in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Wheaton in zone 4b in ZIP code 56296, the nearest ZIP area. By the same method at Wheaton's NOAA station, the coldest night of a typical year reaches −23°F (27 years, 1991-2020): zone 4b.
How late can frost come in Wheaton?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after May 1; in one year in ten it comes after May 12. Waiting until May 12 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- Minnesota climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- White Rock Dam, MN5 miles from this station, 42.8°F a year
- Victor (4 mi N), SD17 miles from this station, 42.3°F a year
- Browns Valley, MN22 miles from this station, 43.0°F a year
- Sisseton, SD25 miles from this station, 44.0°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made