Wheeling, West Virginia climate: Normal weather by month, frost dates and records
Wheeling's normal year runs from 22°F January nights to 83°F July afternoons, with 37.5 inches of precipitation a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 11.2°C, January lows of −5°C, July highs of 28°C, 954 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationWheeling Ohio County Airport
- Station IDUSW00014894
- Location40.18°N 80.65°W
- Elevation1,179 ft (359 m)
- Population26,060
On October 23, the normal high in Wheeling is 61°F and the normal low 42°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 38%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Wheeling.
- Jan 37° 22°
- Feb 40° 24°
- Mar 50° 31°
- Apr 63° 42°
- May 72° 51°
- Jun 79° 59°
- Jul 83° 63°
- Aug 82° 62°
- Sep 75° 55°
- Oct 64° 45°
- Nov 51° 35°
- Dec 41° 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 Wheeling each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 83°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of 22°F. The most precipitation falls in June (4.14 in), the least in February (2.15 in).
Each month has its own page with the day-by-day normals, the month's records and its recent years:
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 37°F | 22°F | 29.6°F | 2.75 | 13 | <1 | 25 | 9 h 40 min |
| February | 40°F | 24°F | 32.3°F | 2.15 | 11 | <1 | 23 | 10 h 40 min |
| March | 50°F | 31°F | 40.5°F | 2.99 | 13 | <1 | 18 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 63°F | 42°F | 52.0°F | 3.14 | 14 | <1 | 5 | 13 h 10 min |
| May | 72°F | 51°F | 61.2°F | 4.00 | 14 | <1 | <1 | 14 h 20 min |
| June | 79°F | 59°F | 68.9°F | 4.14 | 14 | 1 | <1 | 15 h |
| July | 83°F | 63°F | 73.1°F | 3.35 | 13 | 4 | <1 | 14 h 50 min |
| August | 82°F | 62°F | 71.7°F | 3.74 | 13 | 3 | <1 | 13 h 50 min |
| September | 75°F | 55°F | 65.1°F | 3.21 | 12 | 1 | <1 | 12 h 30 min |
| October | 64°F | 45°F | 54.2°F | 2.81 | 12 | <1 | 2 | 11 h 10 min |
| November | 51°F | 35°F | 43.2°F | 2.65 | 10 | <1 | 12 | 10 h |
| December | 41°F | 28°F | 34.4°F | 2.62 | 13 | <1 | 23 | 9 h 20 min |
| Year (annual) | 61°F | 43°F | 52.2°F | 37.55 | 152 | 8 | 108 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 3°C | −5°C | −1.3°C | 70 mm |
| February | 5°C | −4°C | 0.2°C | 55 mm |
| March | 10°C | 0°C | 4.7°C | 76 mm |
| April | 17°C | 5°C | 11.1°C | 80 mm |
| May | 22°C | 11°C | 16.2°C | 102 mm |
| June | 26°C | 15°C | 20.5°C | 105 mm |
| July | 28°C | 17°C | 22.8°C | 85 mm |
| August | 28°C | 16°C | 22.1°C | 95 mm |
| September | 24°C | 13°C | 18.4°C | 82 mm |
| October | 18°C | 7°C | 12.3°C | 71 mm |
| November | 11°C | 2°C | 6.2°C | 67 mm |
| December | 5°C | −2°C | 1.3°C | 67 mm |
NOAA publishes no 1991-2020 snowfall normal for this station. The nearest record that keeps one, Pike Island(lock & Dam) (3 miles away), gets 15 inches of snow in a normal year; elevation and distance can change that.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USW00014894; 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 Wheeling?
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 (12).
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 USW00014894.
When is the last frost in Wheeling?
In Wheeling, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after April 23 in half of years and after May 10 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before October 25 in half of years and before October 10 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 231 year in 10 after May 10; 9 in 10 after April 6
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- October 251 year in 10 before October 10; 9 in 10 before November 8
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 185 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 210 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after April 8 in half of springs and before November 5 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Wheeling in zone 6b in ZIP code 26003. By the map's own method, the average of each year's coldest night over 1991-2020, Wheeling's NOAA station is in zone 7a: the coldest night of a typical year reaches 0°F (22 complete years); the map interpolates between stations and terrain, so the station and the ZIP area can differ by half a zone.
Frost dates for every NOAA station in West Virginia · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USW00014894; 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 Wheeling?
In a normal year in Wheeling, 8 days a year reach 90°F, 108 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 152 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 8a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- fewer than 1a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 108a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 33high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 152a normal year
The highest temperature in Wheeling's official record (kept by the National Weather Service since 1881) is 106°F, on July 22, 1934; the lowest is −26°F, on February 27, 1934.
The wettest calendar year on that record is 2018, with 57.65 in; the snowiest season is 1977–78, with 46.5 inches.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USW00014894; records: ACIS (NOAA Regional Climate Centers), NWS threaded record HLGthr. Records use complete months only; a month missing more than three days is left out.
How sunny is Wheeling?
Over a year 69% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds in the area around Wheeling, 3.8 kWh per square metre a day. August is the sunniest month (78%) and December the cloudiest (52%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 53% | 1.6 |
| February | 59% | 2.4 |
| March | 61% | 3.4 |
| April | 67% | 4.6 |
| May | 70% | 5.4 |
| June | 74% | 5.9 |
| July | 77% | 5.9 |
| August | 78% | 5.3 |
| September | 76% | 4.3 |
| October | 67% | 2.9 |
| November | 65% | 2.0 |
| December | 52% | 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 Wheeling need?
A normal year in Wheeling brings 5,419 heating degree days, 1% more than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 782 cooling degree days, 14% 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 3,229 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 1,096 | 0 |
| February | 917 | 0 |
| March | 761 | 2 |
| April | 399 | 10 |
| May | 169 | 53 |
| June | 31 | 148 |
| July | 3 | 254 |
| August | 7 | 215 |
| September | 83 | 84 |
| October | 349 | 15 |
| November | 654 | 0 |
| December | 950 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 5,419 | 782 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USW00014894. 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 Wheeling been warmer than normal lately?
2025 averaged 53.2°F, 1.0°F above the 1991-2020 normal of 52.2°F. 5 of the 5 complete years since 2021 ran warmer than the normal.
| Year | Mean | Against normal | Precip. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 54.1°F | +1.9°F | 38.85 |
| 2022 | 52.8°F | +0.6°F | 39.66 |
| 2023 | 54.9°F | +2.7°F | 32.79 |
| 2024 | 56.6°F | +4.4°F | 29.18 |
| 2025 | 53.2°F | +1.0°F | 32.32 |
Source: observed years: ACIS, station USW00014894. A year counts only with all twelve months complete.
How does Wheeling's climate compare?
Wheeling is warmer than 21 of the other 62 places with their own NOAA record in West Virginia, and wetter than 2. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 52.2°F is warmer than 50%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Wheeling 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 Wheeling share this climate record?
12 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.
- Mingo Junction, OH3,250 people · 10 mi N
- West Liberty, WV1,434 people · 3 mi E
- Brilliant, OH1,065 people · 6 mi N
- Claysville, PA718 people · 13 mi E
- West Alexander, PA572 people · 9 mi SE
- Rayland, OH382 people · 2 mi W
- Windsor Heights, WV339 people · 1 mi NW
- Valley Grove, WV271 people · 7 mi SE
- New Alexandria, OH225 people · 8 mi N
- Taylorstown, PA186 people · 14 mi E
- Bloomingdale, OH135 people · 15 mi NW
- West Middletown, PA108 people · 13 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.
What do Wheeling's other NOAA stations record?
One more NOAA station keeps 1991-2020 normals in or near Wheeling. This page uses Wheeling Ohio County Airport; the other differs by site and elevation:
| Station | From this station | Elevation | Year | Jan low | Jul high | Precip. | Snow | Last frost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wheeling station USC00469482 | 9 mi SW | 645 ft | 53.1°F | 22°F | 85°F | 41.9 | – | April 20 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 normals for each station. Last frost: the median last spring date of 32°F.
Questions about Wheeling's climate
What is the coldest month in Wheeling?
January, with a normal high of 37°F and a normal low of 22°F. The warmest is July (83°F by day, 63°F at night).
Does it snow in Wheeling?
Yes. NOAA publishes no 1991-2020 snowfall normal for Wheeling's NOAA station; the nearest record that keeps one, Pike Island(lock & Dam) (3 miles away), records 15 inches of snow in a normal year.
What is the rainiest month in Wheeling?
June, with 4.14 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is February with 2.15 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Wheeling in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Wheeling in zone 6b in ZIP code 26003. By the same method at Wheeling's NOAA station, the coldest night of a typical year reaches 0°F (22 years, 1991-2020): zone 7a.
How late can frost come in Wheeling?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after April 23; in one year in ten it comes after May 10. Waiting until May 10 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- Wheeling in OctoberThis month day by day, its records and recent years
- West Virginia climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Pike Island(lock & Dam), WV4 miles from this station, 52.4°F a year
- Steubenville, OH14 miles from this station, 50.9°F a year
- Moundsville, WV19 miles from this station, 52.4°F a year
- Cadiz, OH20 miles from this station, 50.8°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made