Photo: Andrei from New York City/Juneau, U.S.A. · CC BY 2.0Few U.S. towns have cooler summers than Utqiaġvik
January mornings start at about −18°. The seasons are far apart: from a winter night to a summer afternoon the average spans 66°. Winter nights are cold: in January they are colder than in almost every U.S. town.
A year in Utqiaġvik at a glance
Each month’s typical high and low, and what it brings.
What stands out about Utqiaġvik’s climate
Compared with towns across the U.S., with Utqiaġvik’s place in Alaska beside it.
What a year in Utqiaġvik feels like
Typical highs and lows by season and by month, from NOAA’s 30-year normals.
A freeze is possible in every month
About 300 nights a year fall to 32° or below, and 148 to 0° or below. Frost and day counts come from NOAA’s station at Barrow Post Rogers Airport, 1.4 miles from the town’s center, at about the same height.
The 2023 USDA map puts Utqiaġvik’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 46 inches of snow a winter
Snow, measured at Barrow Post Rogers Airport, falls mostly in October. Precipitation (rain plus melted snow) adds up to 5 inches a year; August is the wettest month and January the driest. Rain or snow falls on about 98 days a year.
Rain + melted snow by month
Inches of water
Snowfall by month
Inches of snow
Heating and cooling a home in Utqiaġvik
Nearly all of the work is heating: a normal year has almost no cooling days. Months averaging under 55° run from every month of the year.
Degree days add up how far each day’s average falls below (heating) or rises above (cooling) 65° over a year. NOAA normals at Barrow Post Rogers Airport.
Living with Utqiaġvik’s climate
What the numbers mean for a garden, a free afternoon and a bad-weather day.
Zone 2b, and frost can come in any month. The longest frost-free stretch in half of years is about 26 days.
4.8 miles of trails are waiting.
Parks & trails →Cold waves are 86% of the yearly building losses FEMA expects in Utqiaġvik from natural hazards, the largest share. Normals are averages; the hazards page covers the extremes.
Natural hazards →Utqiaġvik and similar climates
TownRatings has no climate map of the towns around Utqiaġvik yet.
Climates most like Utqiaġvik’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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Utqiaġvik, AK | −18° | 48° | 5" | 46" |
| Superior, WI | 6° | 76° | 30" | 56" |
| International Falls, MN | −5° | 78° | 28" | 73" |
| Gladstone, MI | 11° | 76° | 31" | 47" |
| North Elba, NY | 4° | 72° | 52" | 104" |
Temperatures and precipitation come from NOAA’s 5 km grid; snow and day counts from the stations named on this page.
How Utqiaġvik compares
Against 12,954 U.S. towns of 2,500 or more (one per 5 km climate cell), with Utqiaġvik’s place among Alaska’s.
Utqiaġvik weather by month
Highs, lows and precipitation from the nearest NOAA station; snow, wet days and snow on the ground from Barrow Post Rogers Airport. 1991–2020 normals.
| Month | High | Low | Rain + melt | Snow | Wet days | Snow on ground |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | −5° | −18° | 0.1" | 3.5" | 5 | 31 |
| February | −6° | −18° | 0.2" | 3.5" | 6 | 29 |
| March | −4° | −17° | 0.2" | 2.9" | 5 | 31 |
| April | 11° | −3° | 0.2" | 3.6" | 5 | 30 |
| May | 27° | 19° | 0.3" | 3.4" | 6 | 24 |
| June | 41° | 31° | 0.4" | 0.7" | 6 | 2 |
| July | 48° | 36° | 1.0" | 0.2" | 10 | 0 |
| August | 45° | 35° | 1.1" | 0.8" | 12 | 0 |
| September | 37° | 30° | 0.8" | 4.1" | 14 | 5 |
| October | 26° | 17° | 0.5" | 10.3" | 14 | 26 |
| November | 12° | 0° | 0.4" | 7.8" | 10 | 30 |
| December | 0° | −12° | 0.2" | 5.0" | 7 | 31 |
| Year | 19° | 8° | 5.4" | 45.8" | 98 | 238 |
Where Utqiaġvik’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: Barrow Post Rogers Airport (NOAA station in town).
- Frost, freezing nights, 90° and 100° days, heating and cooling: Barrow Post Rogers Airport, 1.4 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 Utqiaġvik’s climate
What is the weather like in Utqiaġvik?
A typical July afternoon reaches 48°, a January night drops to −18°, and about 46 inches of snow falls in a normal winter. Colder January nights than all but 1 U.S. town; cooler July afternoons: first of 12,954 U.S. towns.
How cold does it get in Utqiaġvik in winter?
February nights average −18°. About 300 nights a year reach 32° or below and 148 reach 0° or below.
How much snow does Utqiaġvik get?
About 46 inches in a normal winter at Barrow Post Rogers Airport, most of it in October, with snow on the ground about 238 days a year.
How hot does it get in Utqiaġvik?
July, with a typical high of 48°. 90° days are rare: none in a normal year at Barrow Post Rogers Airport.
When is the first and last frost in Utqiaġvik?
There is no reliable frost-free season: at Barrow Post Rogers Airport, every month has nights at 32° or below, about 300 a year. In half of years the longest stretch without a freeze is about 26 days.
What growing zone is Utqiaġvik 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 Utqiaġvik?
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 Utqiaġvik.
Source: NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020; USDA/PRISM 2023 hardiness zones; FEMA National Risk Index. Today’s forecast: National Weather Service.