Wichita has chilly winters and hot summers. A typical July afternoon reaches 93°, a January night drops to 22°, and about 13 inches of snow falls in a normal winter.
NOAA 1991-2020 climate normalsUpdated once a decade
☀️
July high
93°
459th hottest of 1,996 Kansas towns
❄️
January low
22°
354th mildest of 1,996 Kansas towns
💧
Rain + melted snow
35 in
716th wettest of 1,996 Kansas towns
🌨️
Snow a winter
13 in
854th least snowy of 1,996 Kansas towns
A normal year
What a year in Wichita feels like
❄️
Winter
46° / 24°
Typical high / low · 4 days with an inch or more of snow
🌷
Spring
68° / 45°
Typical high / low · Last frost around Apr 11
☀️
Summer
90° / 67°
Typical high / low · 65 days reach 90° in a normal year
🍂
Fall
70° / 47°
Typical high / low · First frost around Oct 29
10°
20°
40°
50°
60°
70°
80°
90°
100°
110°
32°
44°
22°
49°
26°
59°
35°
68°
44°
78°
55°
88°
65°
93°
69°
91°
68°
83°
59°
71°
47°
57°
34°
46°
25°
JanJFebFMarMAprAMayMJunJJulJAugASepSOctONovNDecD
32°, freezingBar runs from the typical overnight low up to the afternoon high
Best months to be outsideAprMaySepOctHighs of 62–84° and lows of 40° or more
Month by month
Wichita 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
30-yr range
January
44°
22°
0.8"
2.7"
5
3
28° – 44°
February
49°
26°
1.3"
3.6"
5
3
31° – 46°
March
59°
35°
2.3"
2.1"
7
1
40° – 58°
April
68°
44°
3.3"
0.2"
8
0
50° – 63°
May
78°
55°
5.2"
0
11
0
60° – 74°
June
88°
65°
5.0"
0
10
0
71° – 81°
July
93°
69°
4.2"
0
8
0
76° – 88°
August
91°
68°
4.0"
0
8
0
73° – 87°
September
83°
59°
2.8"
0
7
0
66° – 78°
October
71°
47°
3.0"
0.2"
7
0
51° – 65°
November
57°
34°
1.7"
0.8"
5
1
39° – 53°
December
46°
25°
1.2"
3.1"
5
3
24° – 41°
Year
69°
46°
34.9"
12.7"
87
12
“Wet days” have at least 0.01" of rain or melted snow. “Snow on ground” counts days with 1" or more. The 30-year range is the coldest and warmest that month’s average temperature got between 1991 and 2020.
Rain & snow
Rain and snow in Wichita
Wichita gets 35 inches of rain and melted snow a year. May is the wettest month and January the driest. Rain or snow falls on about 87 days a year. Snow covers the ground about 12 days of the year.
💧
35 in
Rain + melted snow a year
Less rain than 65% of U.S. towns
❄️
13 in
Snow in a normal winter
Less snow than 69% of U.S. towns
⛄
12 days
With 1"+ of snow on the ground
Fewer than 66% of U.S. towns
Rain + melted snow by month
Inches of water
5.2"
JFMAMJJASOND
Snowfall by month
Inches of snow
3.6"
JFMAMJJASOND
Frost & the growing season
About 199 frost-free days a year
In half of years the last 32° night comes by April 11 and the first one by October 29. That leaves about 199 frost-free days for gardens, longer than 72% of U.S. towns.
🌱 Apr 11
🍂 Oct 29
199 frost-free days
JFMAMJJASOND
🥶
103
nights at or below 32° in a normal year
🧊
<1
nights below 0° in a normal year
🔥
65
days that reach 90° in a normal year
Freezing nights by month
Average nights at or below 32°
JFMAMJJASOND
90° days by month
Average days at 90° or more
JFMAMJJASOND
Heating & cooling
Heating and cooling a home in Wichita
Engineers use “degree days” to estimate how hard a furnace or air conditioner works. In Wichita, 71% of that work is heating and 29% is cooling.
🔥
4,414 heating degree daysLess heating than 75% of U.S. towns
❄️
1,774 cooling degree daysMore cooling than 85% of U.S. towns
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.
Around Wichita
Wichita and its neighbors
Wichita borders 12 towns with climate data. January nights across them vary by 1.0°. Valley Center has the coldest January nights (22°) and Waco the hottest July afternoons (93°). Wichita’s January low is 22° and its July high 93°.
Compared with every U.S. town and city on TownTapestry, each counted once.
Then and now
Warmer than it used to be
+1.0°1991–2020 average vs. the 20th century (1901–2000)
The last 30 years in Wichita averaged 1.0° warmer than the 1900s. The biggest change is in January (+2.6°). The shift is smaller than in 67% of U.S. towns.
❄️ Winter+2.0°now 35°, was 33°
🌷 Spring+1.2°now 57°, was 55°
☀️ Summer+0.4°now 79°, was 79°
🍂 Fall+0.5°now 59°, was 58°
Change by month1991–2020 average minus 1901–2000 average, at Wichita’s spot on NOAA’s grid
+2.6°
−0.1°
JanJFebFMarMAprAMayMJunJJulJAugASepSOctONovNDecD
Year to year
How much a month can swing
A normal is an average, and real years wander around it. March swings the most: between 1991 and 2020 its average temperature ranged from 40° to 58°. June is the most reliable, staying within 10°.
10°
20°
30°
40°
50°
60°
70°
80°
90°
100°
JanJFebFMarMAprAMayMJunJJulJAugASepSOctONovNDecD
Coldest to warmest month in 30 yearsNormal
Questions
Common questions about Wichita’s climate
What is the coldest month in Wichita?
January, with a typical high of 44° and a low of 22°.
What is the hottest month in Wichita?
July, with a typical high of 93° and a low of 69°. About 65 days a year reach 90°.
How much snow does Wichita get?
About 13 inches in a normal winter, most of it in February.
When is the first frost in Wichita?
In half of years the first 32° night comes by October 29, and the last spring frost by April 11.
What is the rainiest month in Wichita?
May, with 5.2 inches of rain and melted snow. The year totals 35 inches.
📍Temperatures and rainfall come from NOAA’s gridded climate normals for Wichita itself (about a 3-mile square). Snow, frost dates and day counts come from NOAA’s weather station at Wichita, KS (6 mi) away. Normals are 30-year averages, not a forecast. Source: NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020 and 1901–2000.