Photo: Frank Kovalchek · CC BY 2.0Hardly any U.S. towns see harsher January nights than Chitina
Expect July afternoons of about 70°. In July, afternoons here are cooler than in almost every U.S. town. Temperatures cover 81° across the year, low to high. Seedlings are safe outdoors from about May 31, with the first autumn frost due around September 3.
A year in Chitina at a glance
Each month’s typical high and low, and what it brings.
What stands out about Chitina’s climate
Compared with towns across the U.S., with Chitina’s place in Alaska beside it.
What a year in Chitina feels like
Typical highs and lows by season and by month, from NOAA’s 30-year normals.
About 95 frost-free days a year
In half of years the last 32° night comes by May 31 and the first by September 3. Frost and day counts come from NOAA’s station at Silver Lake, AK, 2.5 miles from the town’s center, 140 ft lower.
The 2023 USDA map puts Chitina’s center in zone 2b: the coldest night of a typical winter, averaged over 1991–2020, reaches about −42°. Plant labels use the zone; frost dates tell you when to plant.
Freezing nights by month
Average nights at or below 32°
About 48 inches of snow a winter
Snow, measured at Silver Lake, AK, falls mostly in November. Precipitation (rain plus melted snow) adds up to 14 inches a year; August is the wettest month and April the driest. Rain or snow falls on about 59 days a year.
Rain + melted snow by month
Inches of water
Snowfall by month
Inches of snow
Heating and cooling a home in Chitina
Nearly all of the work is heating: a normal year has almost no cooling days. Months averaging under 55°: every month but July.
Degree days add up how far each day’s average falls below (heating) or rises above (cooling) 65° over a year. NOAA normals at Silver Lake, AK.
Living with Chitina’s climate
What the numbers mean for a garden, a free afternoon and a bad-weather day.
95 frost-free days in zone 2b. The last frost comes by May 31 in half of years, so many gardeners wait a week or two past that to set out tomatoes. The first fall frost comes by Sep 3.
Months with highs of 62–84° and lows of 40° or more: June, July and August. 21 miles of trails are waiting.
Parks & trails →Of the yearly building losses FEMA expects in Chitina from natural hazards, avalanches are the largest share (76%); heat waves, cold waves, winter storms and ice storms together are 3%. Normals are averages; the hazards page covers the extremes.
Natural hazards →Chitina and similar climates
TownRatings has no climate map of the towns around Chitina yet.
Climates most like Chitina’s, 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chitina, AK | −11° | 70° | 14" | 48" |
| International Falls, MN | −5° | 78° | 28" | 73" |
| Superior, WI | 6° | 76° | 30" | 56" |
| Grand Forks, ND | −2° | 81° | 22" | 49" |
| Gunnison, CO | 0° | 82° | 12" | 50" |
Temperatures and precipitation come from NOAA’s 5 km grid; snow and day counts from the stations named on this page.
How Chitina compares
Against 12,954 U.S. towns of 2,500 or more (one per 5 km climate cell), with Chitina’s place among Alaska’s.
Chitina weather by month
Highs, lows and precipitation from the nearest NOAA station; snow, wet days and snow on the ground from Silver Lake, AK. 1991–2020 normals.
| Month | High | Low | Rain + melt | Snow | Wet days | Snow on ground |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 5° | −11° | 0.8" | 10.0" | 4 | 28 |
| February | 20° | −4° | 0.8" | 6.0" | 3 | 27 |
| March | 31° | 1° | 0.4" | 4.1" | 2 | 27 |
| April | 46° | 19° | 0.2" | 0.8" | 1 | 15 |
| May | 58° | 31° | 0.8" | 0.2" | 4 | 0 |
| June | 67° | 41° | 0.8" | 0.0" | 4 | 0 |
| July | 70° | 45° | 2.0" | 0.0" | 8 | 0 |
| August | 67° | 42° | 2.2" | 0.0" | 8 | 0 |
| September | 55° | 33° | 2.1" | 0.3" | 8 | 0 |
| October | 40° | 21° | 1.4" | 6.2" | 7 | 8 |
| November | 18° | 1° | 1.5" | 11.5" | 6 | 22 |
| December | 10° | −7° | 1.4" | 9.3" | 5 | 30 |
| Year | 41° | 18° | 14.4" | 48.4" | 59 | 156 |
Where Chitina’s 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: Silver Lake, AK.
- Frost, freezing nights, 90° and 100° days, heating and cooling: Silver Lake, AK, 2.5 miles from the town’s center, 140 ft lower; 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 Chitina’s climate
What is the weather like in Chitina?
A typical July afternoon reaches 70°, a January night drops to −11°, and about 48 inches of snow falls in a normal winter. Colder January nights than all but 9 U.S. towns; cooler July afternoons than all but 78 U.S. towns.
How cold does it get in Chitina in winter?
January nights average −11°. About 246 nights a year reach 32° or below and 91 reach 0° or below.
How much snow does Chitina get?
About 48 inches in a normal winter at Silver Lake, AK, most of it in November, with snow on the ground about 156 days a year.
How hot does it get in Chitina?
July, with a typical high of 70°. 90° days are rare: none in a normal year at Silver Lake, AK.
When is the first and last frost in Chitina?
In half of years the last spring frost (32°) comes by May 31 and the first fall frost by September 3, about 95 frost-free days, at Silver Lake, AK.
What growing zone is Chitina in?
Zone 2b on the 2023 USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map: the coldest night of a typical winter reaches about −42°.
What is the best time of year to visit Chitina?
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 Chitina.
Source: NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020; USDA/PRISM 2023 hardiness zones; FEMA National Risk Index. Today’s forecast: National Weather Service.