Photo: Steve Hillebrand, US Fish & Wildlife Service · Public domainBettles gets about 98 inches of snow a winter, more than 97% of U.S. towns
A typical July afternoon reaches 70°, a January night drops to −19°, and about 98 inches of snow falls in a normal winter.
A year in Bettles at a glance
Each month’s typical high and low, and what it brings.
What stands out about Bettles’ climate
Compared with towns across the U.S., with Bettles’ place in Alaska beside it.
What a year in Bettles feels like
Typical highs and lows by season and by month, from NOAA’s 30-year normals.
About 94 frost-free days a year
In half of years the last 32° night comes by May 22 and the first by August 24. Frost and day counts come from NOAA’s station at Bettles Airport, 1.0 miles from the town’s center, at about the same height.
The 2023 USDA map puts Bettles’ center in zone 1b: the coldest night of a typical winter, averaged over 1991–2020, reaches about −53°. Plant labels use the zone; frost dates tell you when to plant.
Freezing nights by month
Average nights at or below 32°
About 98 inches of snow a winter
Snow, measured at Bettles Airport, is heaviest from November through December, about 19 inches a month. Precipitation (rain plus melted snow) adds up to 16 inches a year; August is the wettest month and April the driest. Rain or snow falls on about 129 days a year.
Rain + melted snow by month
Inches of water
Snowfall by month
Inches of snow
Heating and cooling a home in Bettles
Nearly all of the work is heating: a normal year has almost no cooling days. Months averaging under 55° run from August through May.
Degree days add up how far each day’s average falls below (heating) or rises above (cooling) 65° over a year. NOAA normals at Bettles Airport.
Living with Bettles’ climate
What the numbers mean for a garden, a free afternoon and a bad-weather day.
94 frost-free days in zone 1b. The last frost comes by May 22 in half of years, so many gardeners wait a week or two past that to set out tomatoes. The first fall frost comes by Aug 24.
Months with highs of 62–84° and lows of 40° or more: June, July and August.
Parks & trails →Cold waves are 69% of the yearly building losses FEMA expects in Bettles from natural hazards, the largest share. Normals are averages; the hazards page covers the extremes.
Natural hazards →Bettles and similar climates
TownRatings has no climate map of the towns around Bettles yet.
Climates most like Bettles’, farther away
TownRatings’ own comparison of NOAA 1991–2020 normals, not a NOAA product: places of 5,000+ at least 150 miles away, one per state, closest on January low, July high, precipitation and snow.
| Town | Jan. low | July high | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bettles, AK | −19° | 70° | 16" | 98" |
| International Falls, MN | −5° | 78° | 28" | 73" |
| Minocqua, WI | 3° | 77° | 33" | 99" |
| Grand Forks, ND | −2° | 81° | 22" | 49" |
| Jackson, WY | 6° | 80° | 19" | 78" |
Temperatures and precipitation come from NOAA’s 5 km grid; snow and day counts from the stations named on this page.
How Bettles compares
Against 12,954 U.S. towns of 2,500 or more (one per 5 km climate cell), with Bettles’ place among Alaska’s.
Bettles weather by month
Highs, lows and precipitation from the nearest NOAA station; snow, wet days and snow on the ground from Bettles Airport. 1991–2020 normals.
| Month | High | Low | Rain + melt | Snow | Wet days | Snow on ground |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | −2° | −19° | 0.9" | 14.0" | 9 | 31 |
| February | 7° | −13° | 1.0" | 15.9" | 10 | 29 |
| March | 17° | −9° | 0.6" | 9.3" | 8 | 31 |
| April | 36° | 13° | 0.6" | 5.2" | 6 | 30 |
| May | 56° | 34° | 0.9" | 1.0" | 9 | 10 |
| June | 70° | 47° | 1.5" | 0.0" | 11 | 0 |
| July | 70° | 49° | 2.3" | 0.0" | 13 | 0 |
| August | 63° | 43° | 2.7" | 0.0" | 15 | 0 |
| September | 50° | 33° | 2.1" | 3.2" | 13 | 2 |
| October | 28° | 14° | 1.2" | 12.0" | 12 | 21 |
| November | 8° | −7° | 1.2" | 19.1" | 10 | 30 |
| December | 2° | −14° | 1.1" | 18.2" | 11 | 31 |
| Year | 34° | 14° | 16.0" | 97.9" | 129 | 214 |
Where Bettles’ numbers come from
Normals are 30-year averages, not a forecast. How TownRatings reads climate data →
- Temperatures and precipitation: NOAA’s 1991–2020 normals at the nearest station (NOAA’s grid doesn’t cover Alaska).
- Snow: Bettles Airport (NOAA station in town).
- Frost, freezing nights, 90° and 100° days, heating and cooling: Bettles Airport, 1.0 miles from the town’s center, at about the same height; the nearest station that passes our checks for distance, height and agreement with the grid.
- Growing zone: USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map, 2023. USDA Agricultural Research Service and PRISM Group, Oregon State University, prism.oregonstate.edu/phzm, accessed 8 Oct 2026.
- Storms and extremes: FEMA National Risk Index (expected annual losses to buildings).
Common questions about Bettles’ climate
What is the weather like in Bettles?
A typical July afternoon reaches 70°, a January night drops to −19°, and about 98 inches of snow falls in a normal winter. Colder January nights: first of 12,955 U.S. towns; cooler July afternoons than all but 82 U.S. towns.
How cold does it get in Bettles in winter?
January nights average −19°. About 239 nights a year reach 32° or below and 125 reach 0° or below.
How much snow does Bettles get?
About 98 inches in a normal winter at Bettles Airport, heaviest from November through December, about 19 inches a month, with snow on the ground about 214 days a year.
How hot does it get in Bettles?
July, with a typical high of 70°. 90° days are rare: none in a normal year at Bettles Airport.
When is the first and last frost in Bettles?
In half of years the last spring frost (32°) comes by May 22 and the first fall frost by August 24, about 94 frost-free days, at Bettles Airport.
What growing zone is Bettles in?
Zone 1b on the 2023 USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map: the coldest night of a typical winter reaches about −53°.
What is the best time of year to visit Bettles?
By one simple rule (highs of 62–84° and lows of 40° or more), June, July and August. The rule is ours, not NOAA’s; the month table has the numbers to judge by.
Neighbors talk weather
Gardens, snow, and the best days of the year in Bettles.
Source: NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020; USDA/PRISM 2023 hardiness zones; FEMA National Risk Index. Today’s forecast: National Weather Service.