Bettles, AK climate
Bettles has cold, snowy winters and cool summers, with very little rain. A typical July afternoon reaches 70°, a January night drops to -19°, and about 98 inches of snow falls in a normal winter.
NOAA 1991-2020 climate normals Updated once a decadeWhat a year in Bettles feels like
Winter
Spring
Summer
Fall
Bettles weather by month
Average highs, lows, rain and snow for every month, from NOAA’s 1991–2020 normals.
| Month | High | Low | Rain + melt | Snow | Wet days | Snow on ground |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | -2° | -19° | 0.9" | 14.0" | 9 | 31 |
| February | 7° | -13° | 1.0" | 15.9" | 10 | 29 |
| March | 17° | -9° | 0.6" | 9.3" | 8 | 31 |
| April | 36° | 13° | 0.6" | 5.2" | 6 | 30 |
| May | 56° | 34° | 0.9" | 1.0" | 9 | 10 |
| June | 70° | 47° | 1.5" | 0 | 11 | 0 |
| July | 70° | 49° | 2.3" | 0 | 13 | 0 |
| August | 63° | 43° | 2.7" | 0 | 15 | 0 |
| September | 50° | 33° | 2.1" | 3.2" | 13 | 2 |
| October | 28° | 14° | 1.2" | 12.0" | 12 | 21 |
| November | 8° | -7° | 1.2" | 19.1" | 10 | 30 |
| December | 2° | -14° | 1.1" | 18.2" | 11 | 31 |
| Year | 34° | 14° | 16.0" | 97.9" | 129 | 214 |
“Wet days” have at least 0.01" of rain or melted snow. “Snow on ground” counts days with 1" or more.
Rain and snow in Bettles
Bettles gets 16 inches of rain and melted snow a year. August is the wettest month and April the driest. Rain or snow falls on about 129 days a year. Snow covers the ground about 214 days of the year.
About 94 frost-free days a year
In half of years the last 32° night comes by May 22 and the first one by August 24. That leaves about 94 frost-free days for gardens, shorter than 99% of U.S. towns.
Heating and cooling a home in Bettles
Engineers use “degree days” to estimate how hard a furnace or air conditioner works. In Bettles, 100% of that work is heating and 0% is cooling, so the furnace matters far more than the air conditioner.
Degree days measure how far each day’s average temperature falls below or rises above 65°, added up over a year. Source: NOAA station normals.
How Bettles compares
Compared with every U.S. town and city on TownTapestry, each counted once.
Common questions about Bettles’s climate
What is the coldest month in Bettles?
January, with a typical high of -2° and a low of -19°.
What is the hottest month in Bettles?
July, with a typical high of 70° and a low of 49°.
How much snow does Bettles get?
About 98 inches in a normal winter, most of it in November.
When is the first frost in Bettles?
In half of years the first 32° night comes by August 24, and the last spring frost by May 22.
What is the rainiest month in Bettles?
August, with 2.7 inches of rain and melted snow. The year totals 16 inches.
NOAA’s gridded normals don’t cover this state, so temperatures and rainfall come from the nearest weather station. Snow, frost dates and day counts come from NOAA’s weather station at Bettles Airport, AK (1 mi) away. Normals are 30-year averages, not a forecast. Source: NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020.