Willard (4 mi SW), North Carolina climate: Climate normals at a NOAA weather station
Willard (4 mi SW)'s normal year runs from 32°F January nights to 89°F July afternoons, with 55.9 inches of precipitation and less than an inch of snow (0.8 in) a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 16.4°C, January lows of 0°C, July highs of 32°C, 1,419 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationWillard (4 mi SW)
- Station IDUSC00319423
- Location34.66°N 78.05°W
- Elevation55 ft (17 m)
On October 22, the normal high in Willard (4 mi SW) is 73°F and the normal low 48°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 22%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Willard (4 mi SW).
- Jan 56° 32°
- Feb 59° 35°
- Mar 66° 40°
- Apr 75° 48°
- May 81° 56°
- Jun 87° 65°
- Jul 89° 69°
- Aug 87° 67°
- Sep 82° 62°
- Oct 74° 51°
- Nov 65° 40°
- Dec 58° 35°
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 Willard (4 mi SW) each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 89°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of 32°F. The most precipitation falls in August (7.12 in), the least in February (3.18 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 56°F | 32°F | 43.8°F | 3.94 | 9 | <1 | 14 | 10 h |
| February | 59°F | 35°F | 46.9°F | 3.18 | 8 | <1 | 11 | 11 h |
| March | 66°F | 40°F | 53.1°F | 3.70 | 9 | <1 | 5 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 75°F | 48°F | 61.2°F | 3.97 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 13 h |
| May | 81°F | 56°F | 68.5°F | 4.01 | 8 | 4 | <1 | 14 h |
| June | 87°F | 65°F | 75.6°F | 5.44 | 10 | 14 | <1 | 14 h 30 min |
| July | 89°F | 69°F | 78.6°F | 6.29 | 12 | 20 | <1 | 14 h 20 min |
| August | 87°F | 67°F | 77.3°F | 7.12 | 11 | 15 | <1 | 13 h 30 min |
| September | 82°F | 62°F | 72.2°F | 6.93 | 9 | 5 | <1 | 12 h 30 min |
| October | 74°F | 51°F | 62.5°F | 4.27 | 7 | <1 | 1 | 11 h 20 min |
| November | 65°F | 40°F | 52.8°F | 3.41 | 7 | <1 | 5 | 10 h 20 min |
| December | 58°F | 35°F | 46.6°F | 3.59 | 8 | <1 | 13 | 9 h 50 min |
| Year (annual) | 73°F | 50°F | 61.6°F | 55.85 | 104 | 60 | 49 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 13°C | 0°C | 6.6°C | 100 mm |
| February | 15°C | 1°C | 8.3°C | 81 mm |
| March | 19°C | 4°C | 11.7°C | 94 mm |
| April | 24°C | 9°C | 16.2°C | 101 mm |
| May | 27°C | 14°C | 20.3°C | 102 mm |
| June | 30°C | 18°C | 24.2°C | 138 mm |
| July | 32°C | 20°C | 25.9°C | 160 mm |
| August | 31°C | 20°C | 25.2°C | 181 mm |
| September | 28°C | 17°C | 22.3°C | 176 mm |
| October | 24°C | 10°C | 16.9°C | 108 mm |
| November | 19°C | 5°C | 11.6°C | 87 mm |
| December | 14°C | 2°C | 8.1°C | 91 mm |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00319423; 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 Willard (4 mi SW)?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in March, April, May, September, October and November. Of those, October 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 USC00319423.
When is the last frost at Willard (4 mi SW)?
In Willard (4 mi SW), the last spring frost (32°F) comes after April 2 in half of years and after April 16 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before November 5 in half of years and before October 24 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 21 year in 10 after April 16; 9 in 10 after March 15
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- November 51 year in 10 before October 24; 9 in 10 before November 21
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 217 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 243 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after March 20 in half of springs and before November 15 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Willard (4 mi SW) in zone 8a in ZIP code 28478, the nearest ZIP area. By the map's own method, the average of each year's coldest night over 1991-2020, the station is in zone 8a: the coldest night of a typical year reaches 15°F (20 complete years).
Frost dates for every NOAA station in North Carolina · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USC00319423; 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 at Willard (4 mi SW)?
In a normal year in Willard (4 mi SW), 60 days a year reach 90°F (2 of them 100°F or more), 49 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 104 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 60a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- 2a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 49a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- fewer than 1high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 104a normal year
The highest temperature in this station's record (since 1907) is 105°F, on June 21, 1933; the lowest is −8°F, on December 25, 1989.
The wettest calendar year on that record is 1996, with 71.24 in; the snowiest season is 1979–80, with 19.5 inches.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USC00319423; records: ACIS (NOAA Regional Climate Centers), station USC00319423. Records use complete months only; a month missing more than three days is left out.
How sunny is it at Willard (4 mi SW)?
Over a year 78% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds at Willard (4 mi SW), 4.5 kWh per square metre a day. July is the sunniest month (81%) and February the cloudiest (73%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 76% | 2.8 |
| February | 73% | 3.4 |
| March | 75% | 4.5 |
| April | 79% | 5.7 |
| May | 79% | 6.1 |
| June | 81% | 6.3 |
| July | 81% | 6.1 |
| August | 79% | 5.4 |
| September | 77% | 4.7 |
| October | 78% | 3.8 |
| November | 79% | 3.0 |
| December | 75% | 2.4 |
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 Willard (4 mi SW) record?
A normal year at Willard (4 mi SW) brings 2,833 heating degree days, 47% fewer than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 1,624 cooling degree days, 79% 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 4,999 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 659 | 0 |
| February | 508 | 2 |
| March | 375 | 8 |
| April | 158 | 44 |
| May | 40 | 150 |
| June | 3 | 321 |
| July | 0 | 423 |
| August | 0 | 383 |
| September | 10 | 226 |
| October | 136 | 58 |
| November | 373 | 8 |
| December | 573 | 2 |
| Year (annual) | 2,833 | 1,624 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00319423. 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.
How does Willard (4 mi SW)'s climate compare?
Willard (4 mi SW) is warmer than 94 of the 131 places with their own NOAA record in North Carolina, and wetter than 97. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 61.6°F is warmer than 79%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Willard (4 mi SW) 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 Willard (4 mi SW) 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.
- Burgaw, NC3,825 people · 10 mi SE
- Watha, NC221 people · 5 mi E
- Harrells, NC163 people · 10 mi NW
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 Willard (4 mi SW)'s climate
What is the coldest month at Willard (4 mi SW)?
January, with a normal high of 56°F and a normal low of 32°F. The warmest is July (89°F by day, 69°F at night).
Does it snow at Willard (4 mi SW)?
Rarely: NOAA's normal is 0.8 inch a year.
What is the rainiest month at Willard (4 mi SW)?
August, with 7.12 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is February with 3.18 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Willard (4 mi SW) in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Willard (4 mi SW) in zone 8a in ZIP code 28478, the nearest ZIP area. By the same method at the station, the coldest night of a typical year reaches 15°F (20 years, 1991-2020): zone 8a.
How late can frost come at Willard (4 mi SW)?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after April 2; in one year in ten it comes after April 16. Waiting until April 16 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- North Carolina climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Wallace, NC6 miles from this station, 62.0°F a year
- Moores Creek National Battlefield, NC14 miles from this station, 62.7°F a year
- Warsaw, NC24 miles from this station, 59.2°F a year
- Clinton, NC29 miles from this station, 61.5°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made