Wrangell, Alaska climate: Normal weather by month, frost dates and records
Wrangell's normal year runs from 29°F January nights to 64°F July afternoons. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 7.2°C, January lows of −2°C, July highs of 18°C.
- NOAA stationWrangell Airport
- Station IDUSC00509919
- Location56.47°N 132.39°W
- Elevation56 ft (17 m)
- Population2,064
On October 23, the normal high in Wrangell is 47°F and the normal low 39°F.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Wrangell.
- Jan 36° 29°
- Feb 39° 30°
- Mar 42° 32°
- Apr 50° 37°
- May 58° 44°
- Jun 61° 49°
- Jul 64° 52°
- Aug 63° 52°
- Sep 58° 48°
- Oct 49° 41°
- Nov 41° 35°
- Dec 37° 31°
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 Wrangell each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 64°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of 29°F.
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 36°F | 29°F | 32.5°F | – | <1 | 19 | 7 h 30 min |
| February | 39°F | 30°F | 34.3°F | – | <1 | 17 | 9 h 30 min |
| March | 42°F | 32°F | 37.3°F | – | <1 | 14 | 11 h 40 min |
| April | 50°F | 37°F | 43.4°F | – | <1 | 5 | 14 h 10 min |
| May | 58°F | 44°F | 50.8°F | – | <1 | <1 | 16 h 20 min |
| June | 61°F | 49°F | 55.3°F | – | <1 | <1 | 17 h 40 min |
| July | 64°F | 52°F | 58.0°F | – | <1 | <1 | 17 h 10 min |
| August | 63°F | 52°F | 57.5°F | – | <1 | <1 | 15 h 10 min |
| September | 58°F | 48°F | 52.7°F | – | <1 | <1 | 12 h 50 min |
| October | 49°F | 41°F | 45.2°F | – | <1 | 2 | 10 h 30 min |
| November | 41°F | 35°F | 37.8°F | – | <1 | 10 | 8 h 10 min |
| December | 37°F | 31°F | 33.9°F | – | <1 | 17 | 6 h 50 min |
| Year (annual) | 50°F | 40°F | 44.9°F | – | <1 | 83 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 2°C | −2°C | 0.3°C |
| February | 4°C | −1°C | 1.3°C |
| March | 6°C | 0°C | 2.9°C |
| April | 10°C | 3°C | 6.3°C |
| May | 14°C | 7°C | 10.4°C |
| June | 16°C | 10°C | 12.9°C |
| July | 18°C | 11°C | 14.4°C |
| August | 17°C | 11°C | 14.2°C |
| September | 14°C | 9°C | 11.5°C |
| October | 10°C | 5°C | 7.3°C |
| November | 5°C | 1°C | 3.2°C |
| December | 3°C | −1°C | 1.1°C |
NOAA publishes no 1991-2020 snowfall normal for this station, and no record within 25 miles keeps one, so snow is left out here rather than estimated.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00509919; 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 Wrangell?
No month's normal high reaches 65°F in Wrangell: the warmest is July at 64°F.
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 USC00509919.
When is the last frost in Wrangell?
In Wrangell, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after April 11 in half of years and after April 29 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before November 1 in half of years and before October 13 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 111 year in 10 after April 29; 9 in 10 after March 26
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- November 11 year in 10 before October 13; 9 in 10 before November 19
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 202 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 239 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after March 24 in half of springs and before November 18 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Wrangell in zone 7b across its 2 ZIP code areas (7b in 99929, the largest). By the map's own method, the average of each year's coldest night over 1991-2020, Wrangell's NOAA station is in zone 7b: the coldest night of a typical year reaches 7°F (17 complete years).
Frost dates for every NOAA station in Alaska · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USC00509919; 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.
What hardiness zone is each Wrangell ZIP code in?
The USDA's 2023 map gives each ZIP code area one zone. Wrangell's 2 ZIP code areas are all in zone 7b. Each ZIP's frost dates are in the frost tool.
Source: USDA 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map, ZIP listings: PRISM Group, Oregon State University, https://prism.oregonstate.edu, accessed October 8, 2026; ZIP areas in the place: Census Bureau 2020 ZCTA-to-place relationship file. A ZIP area counts when at least a tenth of its land (and 0.5 km²) lies in the place.
How hot and how cold does it get in Wrangell?
In a normal year in Wrangell, a 90°F day is rare and 83 nights fall to 32°F or colder.
- Days at 90°F or more
- fewer than 1a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- fewer than 1a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 83a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 22high of 32°F or less
The highest temperature in this station's record (since 1917) is 92°F, on July 25, 1934; the lowest is −10°F, on January 29, 1947.
The wettest calendar year on that record is 2011, with 113.98 in; the snowiest season is 1951–52, with 151.0 inches.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USC00509919; records: ACIS (NOAA Regional Climate Centers), station USC00509919. Records use complete months only; a month missing more than three days is left out.
How sunny is Wrangell?
Over a year 57% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds in the area around Wrangell, 2.4 kWh per square metre a day. May is the sunniest month (62%) and November the cloudiest (48%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 48% | 0.5 |
| February | 58% | 1.2 |
| March | 58% | 2.3 |
| April | 61% | 3.6 |
| May | 62% | 4.6 |
| June | 57% | 4.7 |
| July | 54% | 4.1 |
| August | 57% | 3.5 |
| September | 54% | 2.4 |
| October | 52% | 1.3 |
| November | 48% | 0.6 |
| December | 48% | 0.3 |
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 Wrangell need?
A normal year in Wrangell brings 7,317 heating degree days, 36% more than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 4 cooling degree days, 100% fewer than the median (908). Nine months need 300 or more heating degree days, a monthly mean of about 55°F or colder. For gardens and crops, NOAA counts 821 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 1,006 | 0 |
| February | 860 | 0 |
| March | 859 | 0 |
| April | 647 | 0 |
| May | 440 | 0 |
| June | 295 | 2 |
| July | 219 | 1 |
| August | 232 | 1 |
| September | 369 | 0 |
| October | 612 | 0 |
| November | 815 | 0 |
| December | 964 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 7,317 | 4 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00509919. 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 Wrangell's climate compare?
Wrangell is warmer than 78 of the other 84 places with their own NOAA record in Alaska. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 44.9°F is warmer than 19%.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 normals for every station PlainClimate covers.
Questions about Wrangell's climate
What is the coldest month in Wrangell?
January, with a normal high of 36°F and a normal low of 29°F. The warmest is July (64°F by day, 52°F at night).
What plant hardiness zone is Wrangell in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Wrangell in zone 7b across its 2 ZIP code areas (7b in 99929, the largest). By the same method at Wrangell's NOAA station, the coldest night of a typical year reaches 7°F (17 years, 1991-2020): zone 7b.
How late can frost come in Wrangell?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after April 11; in one year in ten it comes after April 29. Waiting until April 29 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- Alaska climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Petersburg, AK31 miles from this station, 43.0°F a year
- Point Baker, AK48 miles from this station, 43.7°F a year
- Thorne Bay, AK54 miles from this station, 44.2°F a year
- Klawock, AK67 miles from this station, 45.2°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made