Crested Butte Denver and Rio Grande Railroad Depot · Photo: Int77345 · CC BY-SA 4.0Crested Butte gets about 171 inches of snow a winter, more than all but 34 U.S. towns
In July the day’s top temperature is typically 75°. Summers stay cool: July afternoons here are cooler than in 98% of U.S. towns. Compared with 1901–2000, the average now sits 1.6° higher. Homes need heating from October to May, the months averaging under 50°.
A year in Crested Butte at a glance
Each month’s typical high and low, and what it brings.
What stands out about Crested Butte’s climate
Compared with towns across the U.S., with Crested Butte’s place in Colorado beside it.
What a year in Crested Butte feels like
Typical highs and lows by season and by month, from NOAA’s 30-year normals.
About 113 frost-free days a year
In half of years the last 32° night comes by June 2 and the first by September 23. Day counts come from NOAA’s station at Crested Butte, CO, 0.4 miles from the town’s center, at about the same height; frost dates and degree days from Aspen 1sw, CO, 23 miles away.
The 2023 USDA map puts Crested Butte’s center in zone 3b: the coldest night of a typical winter, averaged over 1991–2020, reaches about −31°. Plant labels use the zone; frost dates tell you when to plant.
Freezing nights by month
Average nights at or below 32°
About 171 inches of snow a winter
Snow, measured at Aspen 1sw, CO, falls mostly in January, February, March and December. Precipitation (rain plus melted snow) adds up to 24 inches a year; January is the wettest month and June the driest. Rain or snow falls on about 133 days a year.
Rain + melted snow by month
Inches of water
Snowfall by month
Inches of snow
Heating and cooling a home in Crested Butte
Nearly all of the work is heating: a normal year has almost no cooling days. Months averaging under 55° run from September through June.
Degree days add up how far each day’s average falls below (heating) or rises above (cooling) 65° over a year. NOAA normals at Aspen 1sw, CO.
Living with Crested Butte’s climate
What the numbers mean for a garden, a free afternoon and a bad-weather day.
113 frost-free days in zone 3b. The last frost comes by Jun 2 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 23.
Months with highs of 62–84° and lows of 40° or more: July and August. 2.5 miles of trails are waiting.
Parks & trails →Of the yearly building losses FEMA expects in Crested Butte from natural hazards, avalanches are the largest share (68%). Normals are averages; the hazards page covers the extremes.
Natural hazards →Crested Butte and similar climates
TownRatings has no climate map of the towns around Crested Butte yet.
Climates most like Crested Butte’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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crested Butte, CO | 4° | 75° | 24" | 171" |
| Ishpeming, MI | 5° | 77° | 33" | 197" |
| Minocqua, WI | 3° | 77° | 33" | 99" |
| Hermantown, MN | 2° | 77° | 31" | 90" |
| Snyderville, UT | 18° | 80° | 26" | 153" |
Temperatures and precipitation come from NOAA’s 5 km grid; snow and day counts from the stations named on this page.
Warmer than it used to be
The last 30 years in Crested Butte averaged 1.6° warmer than the 1900s. The biggest change is in March (+3.0°).
A bigger shift than in 66% of U.S. towns.
Change by month
The two periods overlap (1991–2000 is in both), which makes the gap a little smaller than it would be between separate periods.
How Crested Butte compares
Against 12,954 U.S. towns of 2,500 or more (one per 5 km climate cell), with Crested Butte’s place among Colorado’s.
Crested Butte weather by month
Highs, lows and precipitation from NOAA’s grid at Crested Butte’s center; snow, wet days and snow on the ground from Aspen 1sw, CO. 1991–2020 normals.
| Month | High | Low | Rain + melt | Snow | Wet days | Snow on ground | 30-yr range |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 29° | 4° | 2.7" | 28.1" | 13 | 31 | 10° – 22° |
| February | 33° | 7° | 2.5" | 28.3" | 13 | 29 | 14° – 26° |
| March | 41° | 14° | 2.2" | 26.9" | 11 | 30 | 22° – 33° |
| April | 48° | 22° | 2.1" | 20.9" | 13 | 18 | 30° – 41° |
| May | 58° | 31° | 1.6" | 7.0" | 11 | 3 | 39° – 49° |
| June | 70° | 38° | 0.9" | 0.4" | 7 | 0 | 49° – 58° |
| July | 75° | 44° | 1.9" | 0.0" | 11 | 0 | 55° – 63° |
| August | 72° | 42° | 1.9" | 0.0" | 13 | 0 | 55° – 61° |
| September | 66° | 35° | 1.9" | 1.0" | 10 | 0 | 45° – 55° |
| October | 54° | 26° | 1.8" | 10.2" | 9 | 5 | 35° – 45° |
| November | 40° | 15° | 2.1" | 20.5" | 10 | 21 | 20° – 35° |
| December | 29° | 5° | 2.4" | 27.5" | 12 | 31 | 13° – 24° |
| Year | 51° | 24° | 23.9" | 170.8" | 133 | 168 |
How much a month can swing
A normal is an average. November swings the most: from 1991 to 2020 its average ranged from 20° to 35°. August is the most reliable, staying within 6°.
Where Crested Butte’s numbers come from
Normals are 30-year averages, not a forecast. How TownRatings reads climate data →
- Temperatures and precipitation: NOAA’s gridded 1991–2020 normals for the 5 km cell at Crested Butte’s center.
- Snow: Aspen 1sw, CO.
- Frost dates, heating and cooling: Aspen 1sw, CO, 23 miles away.
- Freezing nights, 90° and 100° days: Crested Butte, CO, 0.4 miles from the town’s center, at about the same height; no station nearby passes every check; this is the nearest one in the same valley, flagged above.
- 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.
- Then and now: NOAA’s gridded normals for 1901–2000 at the same cell.
- Storms and extremes: FEMA National Risk Index (expected annual losses to buildings).
Common questions about Crested Butte’s climate
What is the weather like in Crested Butte?
A typical July afternoon reaches 75°, a January night drops to 4°, and about 171 inches of snow falls in a normal winter. Colder January nights than all but 142 U.S. towns; cooler July afternoons than 98% of U.S. towns.
How cold does it get in Crested Butte in winter?
January nights average 4°. About 269 nights a year reach 32° or below and 75 reach 0° or below. In the coldest January of the last 30 years the month averaged 10°.
How much snow does Crested Butte get?
About 171 inches in a normal winter at Aspen 1sw, CO, most of it in January, February, March and December, with snow on the ground about 168 days a year.
How hot does it get in Crested Butte?
July, with a typical high of 75°. 90° days are rare: none in a normal year at Aspen 1sw, CO.
When is the first and last frost in Crested Butte?
In half of years the last spring frost (32°) comes by June 2 and the first fall frost by September 23, about 113 frost-free days, at Aspen 1sw, CO.
What growing zone is Crested Butte in?
Zone 3b on the 2023 USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map: the coldest night of a typical winter reaches about −31°.
What is the best time of year to visit Crested Butte?
By one simple rule (highs of 62–84° and lows of 40° or more), July and August. The rule is ours, not NOAA’s; the month table has the numbers to judge by.
Is Crested Butte getting warmer?
Yes: 1991–2020 averaged 1.6° warmer than 1901–2000 on NOAA’s grid. A bigger shift than 66% of U.S. towns.
Neighbors talk weather
Gardens, snow, and the best days of the year in Crested Butte.
Source: NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020 and 1901–2000; USDA/PRISM 2023 hardiness zones; FEMA National Risk Index. Today’s forecast: National Weather Service.