Hardly any mainland French towns wake to more frost than Fontans
In July the day’s top temperature is typically 24.8°C. From frosty January to warm July, readings climb 28°C. Summers stay cool: July afternoons here are cooler than in 75% of mainland French towns. Waterproofs come out on about 108 days a year, each with 1 mm of rain or more.
These are the figures of Météo-France’s Saugues station, 27 km north-east; at that distance they describe the area more than the town.
A year in Fontans at a glance
Each month’s typical high and low in °C, at the Saugues station.
What a year in Fontans feels like
Typical highs and lows by season and by month, from Météo-France’s 1991–2020 normals at Saugues.
About 766 mm of rain a year
May is the wettest month and February the driest. About 23 days a year bring 10 mm or more. 5th wettest of 4 towns of 2,500+ in Lozère.
Rain by month
Millimeters
Sunshine by month
Hours of sunshine at Mende
A frosty town: 128 frosts and 50 days of 25°C a year
On about 128 nights a year the air drops to 0°C or below, and on about 18 days it stays below freezing all day. About 50 days a year reach 25°C, and 13 reach 30°C.
Day counts are Météo-France’s 1991–2020 normals at Saugues: a frost is a night of 0°C or below, a summer day (jour d’été) 25°C or more, a hot day (forte chaleur) 30°C or more.
The Météo-France station at Saugues
Saugues is 27 km north-east of Fontans. Every figure on this page is the station’s, not a measurement in Fontans itself.
| Station (Météo-France number) | Saugues (43234001) |
| Distance from the town | 27 km north-east |
| Station altitude | 940 m |
| Town altitude (its center) | 964 m |
| Period | 1991–2020 |
| Nearest station of any kind | 13 km |
| Sunshine measured at | Mende, 24 km away |
TownRatings matches each commune to one station with at least 24 years of temperature and rain records: the nearest, counting every 100 m of height difference as 10 km, never across the sea.
How Fontans compares
Against the 4,385 towns of 2,500 or more in mainland France, each read from its own matched station. The dots are the other towns of 2,500+ in Lozère.
Nearby towns’ climate
The nearest towns of 2,500+ within 29 km, each with its own matched station.
| Town | Station | July high | January low | Rain a year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fontans | Saugues | 24.8°C | −3.3°C | 766 mm |
| Saint-Chély-d'Apcher 10 km | Fau de Peyre | 22.0°C 2.8°C cooler | −2.6°C 0.7°C milder | 955 mm |
| Marvejols 22 km | Montrodat | 26.7°C 1.9°C warmer | −1.6°C 1.7°C milder | 818 mm |
| Mende 26 km | Mende-Ville | 26.6°C 1.8°C warmer | −1.3°C 2°C milder | 846 mm |
Fontans weather by month
Average daily high and low, mean temperature and rain, 1991–2020, at the Saugues station; sunshine at Mende.
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Rain | Sun (hours) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 5.1°C | −3.3°C | 0.9°C | 48 mm | 95 |
| February | 6.1°C | −3.5°C | 1.3°C | 40 mm | 120 |
| March | 10.1°C | −1.3°C | 4.4°C | 41 mm | 170 |
| April | 13.1°C | 0.7°C | 6.9°C | 65 mm | 185 |
| May | 17.5°C | 4.3°C | 10.9°C | 81 mm | 213 |
| June | 21.9°C | 7.7°C | 14.8°C | 78 mm | 254 |
| July | 24.8°C | 9.1°C | 16.9°C | 68 mm | 293 |
| August | 24.6°C | 8.8°C | 16.7°C | 66 mm | 281 |
| September | 19.7°C | 5.9°C | 12.8°C | 74 mm | 210 |
| October | 14.8°C | 4.1°C | 9.5°C | 77 mm | 150 |
| November | 8.9°C | 0.2°C | 4.6°C | 77 mm | 88 |
| December | 5.9°C | −2.4°C | 1.8°C | 50 mm | 98 |
| Year | 14.4°C | 2.5°C | 8.5°C | 766 mm | 2,157 |
Where Fontans’s numbers come from
Averages over 30 years, not a forecast.
- Temperature, rain and day counts: Météo-France’s fiche climatologique for Saugues, 27 km away: statistics for 1991–2020.
- Which station: among stations with at least 24 of the 30 years of temperature and rain, the nearest to the commune’s population-weighted center, counting each 100 m of height difference as 10 km; mainland towns use mainland stations and each overseas département its own.
- Altitudes: the town’s from IGN’s RGE ALTI® at its population-weighted center; the station’s from Météo-France.
- Sunshine: the nearest station with at least 10 years of sunshine records, Mende, 24 km away.
- Comparisons: every town of 2,500 or more in mainland France, read the same way; the dots are the towns of 2,500+ in Lozère.
Météo-France fiches climatologiques · IGN RGE ALTI®. Licence Ouverte 2.0.
Questions about Fontans’s climate
How warm does Fontans get in summer?
July is the warmest month, with average highs of 24.8°C. About 50 days a year reach 25°C, fewer than 68% of mainland French towns, and about 13 reach 30°C.
How cold does Fontans get in winter?
February nights average −3.5°C. The air drops to 0°C or below on about 128 nights a year, and about 18 days a year stay below freezing all day.
How much rain does Fontans get?
About 766 mm a year, more than 53% of mainland French towns. May is the wettest month (81 mm) and February the driest (40 mm).
How sunny is it?
The nearest Météo-France station that records sunshine, Mende (24 km away), averages 2,157 hours of sunshine a year.
Are these figures for Fontans itself?
No: they are the normals of the Météo-France station matched to Fontans, Saugues, 27 km away. France publishes its climate normals by station, not by commune; a valley, a hill or the sea can make a difference over a few kilometers.
Where do these figures come from?
Météo-France’s fiches climatologiques: 30-year averages (1991–2020) for each of its long-running stations, published as open data since 2024. They are normals, not a forecast.
Source: Météo-France, fiches climatologiques, 1991–2020 statistics (station SAUGUES, edited 15/10/2026); altitude: IGN, RGE ALTI®. Licence Ouverte 2.0. Today’s forecast for Fontans →
Contains public sector information under the Licence Ouverte / Open Licence 2.0 (Etalab): INSEE, DGFiP, the Interior Ministry’s statistics service (SSMSI), the Ministry of Education (DEPP), the Health Ministry’s statistics service (DREES) and the Housing Ministry (Carte des loyers). Commune boundaries: IGN Admin Express.