Photo: Petty Officer 1st Class Shawn Eggert · Public domainFew U.S. towns have cooler summers than Kotzebue
January mornings start at about −8°. Winter nights are cold: in January they are colder than in almost every U.S. town. A year here swings 69° from midwinter lows to midsummer highs. The frost-free window for a garden runs roughly June 5 to September 24.
A year in Kotzebue at a glance
Each month’s typical high and low, and what it brings.
What stands out about Kotzebue’s climate
Compared with towns across the U.S., with Kotzebue’s place in Alaska beside it.
What a year in Kotzebue feels like
Typical highs and lows by season and by month, from NOAA’s 30-year normals.
About 110 frost-free days a year
In half of years the last 32° night comes by June 5 and the first by September 24. Frost and day counts come from NOAA’s station at Kotzebue Ralph Wein Airport, 4 miles from the town’s center, at about the same height.
The 2023 USDA map puts Kotzebue’s center in zone 3a: the coldest night of a typical winter, averaged over 1991–2020, reaches about −38°. Plant labels use the zone; frost dates tell you when to plant.
Freezing nights by month
Average nights at or below 32°
About 64 inches of snow a winter
Snow, measured at Kotzebue Ralph Wein Airport, falls mostly in February and December. Precipitation (rain plus melted snow) adds up to 11 inches a year; August is the wettest month and May the driest. Rain or snow falls on about 113 days a year.
Rain + melted snow by month
Inches of water
Snowfall by month
Inches of snow
Heating and cooling a home in Kotzebue
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 Kotzebue Ralph Wein Airport.
Living with Kotzebue’s climate
What the numbers mean for a garden, a free afternoon and a bad-weather day.
110 frost-free days in zone 3a. The last frost comes by Jun 5 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 24.
7.4 miles of trails are waiting.
Parks & trails →Cold waves are 91% of the yearly building losses FEMA expects in Kotzebue from natural hazards, the largest share. Normals are averages; the hazards page covers the extremes.
Natural hazards →Kotzebue and similar climates
TownRatings has no climate map of the towns around Kotzebue yet.
Climates most like Kotzebue’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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kotzebue, AK | −8° | 60° | 11" | 64" |
| Superior, WI | 6° | 76° | 30" | 56" |
| International Falls, MN | −5° | 78° | 28" | 73" |
| Gladstone, MI | 11° | 76° | 31" | 47" |
| Woodland Park, CO | 11° | 77° | 22" | 134" |
Temperatures and precipitation come from NOAA’s 5 km grid; snow and day counts from the stations named on this page.
How Kotzebue compares
Against 12,954 U.S. towns of 2,500 or more (one per 5 km climate cell), with Kotzebue’s place among Alaska’s.
Kotzebue weather by month
Highs, lows and precipitation from the nearest NOAA station; snow, wet days and snow on the ground from Kotzebue Ralph Wein Airport. 1991–2020 normals.
| Month | High | Low | Rain + melt | Snow | Wet days | Snow on ground |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 5° | −8° | 0.6" | 9.4" | 9 | 31 |
| February | 9° | −6° | 0.9" | 13.1" | 10 | 29 |
| March | 9° | −6° | 0.5" | 6.4" | 7 | 31 |
| April | 24° | 9° | 0.6" | 4.7" | 7 | 29 |
| May | 39° | 27° | 0.4" | 1.2" | 7 | 18 |
| June | 53° | 42° | 0.6" | 0.0" | 6 | 0 |
| July | 60° | 51° | 1.6" | 0.0" | 11 | 0 |
| August | 57° | 48° | 2.1" | 0.0" | 14 | 0 |
| September | 48° | 39° | 1.4" | 0.6" | 12 | 0 |
| October | 31° | 23° | 1.1" | 5.9" | 12 | 11 |
| November | 16° | 6° | 0.8" | 11.0" | 10 | 26 |
| December | 9° | −4° | 0.7" | 11.9" | 10 | 30 |
| Year | 30° | 18° | 11.4" | 64.2" | 113 | 206 |
Where Kotzebue’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: Kotzebue Ralph Wein Airport.
- Frost, freezing nights, 90° and 100° days, heating and cooling: Kotzebue Ralph Wein Airport, 4 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 Kotzebue’s climate
What is the weather like in Kotzebue?
A typical July afternoon reaches 60°, a January night drops to −8°, and about 64 inches of snow falls in a normal winter. Colder January nights than all but 9 U.S. towns; cooler July afternoons than all but 4 U.S. towns.
How cold does it get in Kotzebue in winter?
January nights average −8°. About 236 nights a year reach 32° or below and 101 reach 0° or below.
How much snow does Kotzebue get?
About 64 inches in a normal winter at Kotzebue Ralph Wein Airport, most of it in February and December, with snow on the ground about 206 days a year.
How hot does it get in Kotzebue?
July, with a typical high of 60°. 90° days are rare: none in a normal year at Kotzebue Ralph Wein Airport.
When is the first and last frost in Kotzebue?
In half of years the last spring frost (32°) comes by June 5 and the first fall frost by September 24, about 110 frost-free days, at Kotzebue Ralph Wein Airport.
What growing zone is Kotzebue in?
Zone 3a on the 2023 USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map: the coldest night of a typical winter reaches about −38°.
What is the best time of year to visit Kotzebue?
No month meets the simple rule we use (highs of 62–84° and lows of 40° or more). 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 Kotzebue.
Source: NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020; USDA/PRISM 2023 hardiness zones; FEMA National Risk Index. Today’s forecast: National Weather Service.