Photo: Federal Aviation Administration, Alaskan Region · Public domainKwethluk sits near the bottom of U.S. towns for July heat
The coldest hours of a January night bottom out at 1° on average. The year swings widely: the coldest month’s nights and the warmest month’s afternoons are 62° apart. Its January nights bite harder than in almost every U.S. town. Comfortable outdoor weather, highs of 62–64°, belongs to June and July.
A year in Kwethluk at a glance
Each month’s typical high and low, and what it brings.
What stands out about Kwethluk’s climate
Compared with towns across the U.S., with Kwethluk’s place in Alaska beside it.
What a year in Kwethluk feels like
Typical highs and lows by season and by month, from NOAA’s 30-year normals.
About 122 frost-free days a year
In half of years the last 32° night comes by May 21 and the first by September 22. Frost and day counts come from NOAA’s station at Bethel Airport, 13 miles from the town’s center, at about the same height.
The 2023 USDA map puts Kwethluk’s center in zone 4a: the coldest night of a typical winter, averaged over 1991–2020, reaches about −30°. 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 Bethel Airport, is heaviest from November through December, about 13 inches a month. Precipitation (rain plus melted snow) adds up to 20 inches a year; August is the wettest month and March the driest. Rain or snow falls on about 151 days a year.
Rain + melted snow by month
Inches of water
Snowfall by month
Inches of snow
Heating and cooling a home in Kwethluk
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 Bethel Airport.
Living with Kwethluk’s climate
What the numbers mean for a garden, a free afternoon and a bad-weather day.
122 frost-free days in zone 4a. The last frost comes by May 21 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 22.
Months with highs of 62–84° and lows of 40° or more: June and July. 1.4 miles of trails are waiting.
Parks & trails →Cold waves are 88% of the yearly building losses FEMA expects in Kwethluk from natural hazards, the largest share. Normals are averages; the hazards page covers the extremes.
Natural hazards →Kwethluk and similar climates
TownRatings has no climate map of the towns around Kwethluk yet.
Climates most like Kwethluk’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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kwethluk, AK | 1° | 64° | 20" | 64" |
| Superior, WI | 6° | 76° | 30" | 56" |
| Duluth, MN | 5° | 76° | 30" | 56" |
| 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 Kwethluk compares
Against 12,954 U.S. towns of 2,500 or more (one per 5 km climate cell), with Kwethluk’s place among Alaska’s.
Kwethluk weather by month
Highs, lows and precipitation from the nearest NOAA station; snow, wet days and snow on the ground from Bethel Airport. 1991–2020 normals.
| Month | High | Low | Rain + melt | Snow | Wet days | Snow on ground |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 13° | 1° | 0.8" | 9.4" | 9 | 30 |
| February | 20° | 7° | 0.9" | 8.1" | 10 | 27 |
| March | 22° | 7° | 0.7" | 8.8" | 9 | 29 |
| April | 37° | 21° | 0.8" | 6.0" | 10 | 15 |
| May | 52° | 34° | 1.2" | 1.9" | 12 | 1 |
| June | 62° | 45° | 1.8" | 0.0" | 13 | 0 |
| July | 64° | 49° | 2.6" | 0.0" | 16 | 0 |
| August | 61° | 47° | 3.4" | 0.0" | 18 | 0 |
| September | 53° | 39° | 2.9" | 0.5" | 17 | 0 |
| October | 38° | 26° | 1.8" | 3.9" | 13 | 5 |
| November | 24° | 13° | 1.8" | 13.2" | 14 | 19 |
| December | 16° | 4° | 1.1" | 12.2" | 11 | 28 |
| Year | 38° | 24° | 19.7" | 64.0" | 151 | 153 |
Where Kwethluk’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: Bethel Airport.
- Frost, freezing nights, 90° and 100° days, heating and cooling: Bethel Airport, 13 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 Kwethluk’s climate
What is the weather like in Kwethluk?
A typical July afternoon reaches 64°, a January night drops to 1°, and about 64 inches of snow falls in a normal winter. Colder January nights than all but 67 U.S. towns; cooler July afternoons than all but 15 U.S. towns.
How cold does it get in Kwethluk in winter?
January nights average 1°. About 214 nights a year reach 32° or below and 58 reach 0° or below.
How much snow does Kwethluk get?
About 64 inches in a normal winter at Bethel Airport, heaviest from November through December, about 13 inches a month, with snow on the ground about 153 days a year.
How hot does it get in Kwethluk?
July, with a typical high of 64°. 90° days are rare: none in a normal year at Bethel Airport.
When is the first and last frost in Kwethluk?
In half of years the last spring frost (32°) comes by May 21 and the first fall frost by September 22, about 122 frost-free days, at Bethel Airport.
What growing zone is Kwethluk in?
Zone 4a on the 2023 USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map: the coldest night of a typical winter reaches about −30°.
What is the best time of year to visit Kwethluk?
By one simple rule (highs of 62–84° and lows of 40° or more), June and July. 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 Kwethluk.
Source: NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020; USDA/PRISM 2023 hardiness zones; FEMA National Risk Index. Today’s forecast: National Weather Service.