Climate · Grants

Grants, NM climate

Grants has chilly winters and warm summers, with very little rain. A typical July afternoon reaches 89°, a January night drops to 16°, and about 8 inches of snow falls in a normal winter.

NOAA 1991-2020 climate normals Updated once a decade
July high
89°
262nd hottest of 528 New Mexico towns
January low
16°
85th coldest of 528 New Mexico towns
Rain + melted snow
10 in
134th driest of 528 New Mexico towns
Snow a winter
8 in
170th least snowy of 506 New Mexico towns
A normal year

What a year in Grants feels like

Winter

49° / 17°
Typical high / low · 4 days with an inch or more of snow

Spring

68° / 32°
Typical high / low · Last frost around May 24

Summer

88° / 53°
Typical high / low · 31 days reach 90° in a normal year

Fall

69° / 35°
Typical high / low · First frost around Oct 1
Best months to be outsideSepHighs of 62–84° and lows of 40° or more
Month by month

Grants weather by month

Average highs, lows, rain and snow for every month, from NOAA’s 1991–2020 normals.

MonthHighLowRain + meltSnowWet daysSnow on ground30-yr range
January48°16°0.5" 2.2"41 26° – 38°
February52°20°0.4" 1.2"41 31° – 42°
March60°25°0.5" 0.5"30 39° – 47°
April67°31°0.4" 0.3"30 45° – 54°
May77°40°0.5" 030 54° – 64°
June88°50°0.4" 030 64° – 73°
July89°56°1.8" 090 69° – 77°
August86°54°2.0" 0100 68° – 74°
September80°47°1.2" 060 59° – 66°
October70°34°0.8" 0.3"50 49° – 57°
November57°23°0.7" 0.6"40 34° – 47°
December47°16°0.6" 2.8"42 26° – 38°
Year68°34°9.8"7.9"574

“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 Grants

Grants gets 10 inches of rain and melted snow a year. August is the wettest month and February the driest. Rain or snow falls on about 57 days a year.

10 in
Rain + melted snow a year
Less rain than 98% of U.S. towns
8 in
Snow in a normal winter
Less snow than 75% of U.S. towns
4 days
With 1"+ of snow on the ground
Fewer than 74% of U.S. towns

Rain + melted snow by month

Inches of water
2.0"

Snowfall by month

Inches of snow
2.8"
Frost & the growing season

About 129 frost-free days a year

In half of years the last 32° night comes by May 24 and the first one by October 1. That leaves about 129 frost-free days for gardens, shorter than 95% of U.S. towns.

192
nights at or below 32° in a normal year
6
nights below 0° in a normal year
31
days that reach 90° in a normal year

Freezing nights by month

Average nights at or below 32°

90° days by month

Average days at 90° or more
Heating & cooling

Heating and cooling a home in Grants

Engineers use “degree days” to estimate how hard a furnace or air conditioner works. In Grants, 93% of that work is heating and 7% is cooling, so the furnace matters far more than the air conditioner.

93%heating
5,863 heating degree daysMore heating than 52% of U.S. towns
435 cooling degree daysLess cooling than 82% 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 Grants

Grants and its neighbors

Grants borders 3 towns with climate data. January nights across them vary by 0.8°. Milan has the coldest January nights (15°) and Mount Taylor the hottest July afternoons (90°). Grants’s January low is 16° and its July high 89°.

Broadview: January low 15°, July high 89°Golden Acres: January low 15°, July high 89°San Rafael: January low 16°, July high 89°Milan: January low 15°, July high 89°Mount Taylor: January low 16°, July high 90°Grants: January low 16°, July high 89° GrantsSan RafaelMilanMount Taylor
ColderMilder15° to 16°
Milan15.4° −0.6°
San Rafael15.5° −0.5°
Grants16.0°
Mount Taylor16.2° +0.2°

Temperatures and rain come from NOAA’s 5 km grid, so each town gets its own value.

Compared with other towns

How Grants compares

Summer heat89° July high
Hotter than 76% of U.S. towns262nd hottest of 528 New Mexico towns
Winter cold16° January low
Colder than 66% of U.S. towns85th coldest of 528 New Mexico towns
Precipitation10" a year
Drier than 98% of U.S. towns134th driest of 528 New Mexico towns
Snow8" a winter
Less snow than 75% of U.S. towns170th least snowy of 506 New Mexico towns
Growing season129 frost-free days
Shorter than 95% of U.S. towns83rd shortest of 518 New Mexico towns

Compared with every U.S. town and city on TownTapestry, each counted once.

Then and now

Warmer than it used to be

+1.3°1991–2020 average vs. the 20th century (1901–2000)

The last 30 years in Grants averaged 1.3° warmer than the 1900s. The biggest change is in March (+2.4°). The shift is larger than in 58% of U.S. towns.

❄️ Winter+1.3° now 33°, was 32°
🌷 Spring+1.5° now 50°, was 49°
☀️ Summer+1.4° now 71°, was 69°
🍂 Fall+1.1° now 52°, was 51°

Change by month1991–2020 average minus 1901–2000 average, at Grants’s spot on NOAA’s grid

Year to year

How much a month can swing

A normal is an average, and real years wander around it. November swings the most: between 1991 and 2020 its average temperature ranged from 34° to 47°. August is the most reliable, staying within 6°.

Coldest to warmest month in 30 yearsNormal
Questions

Common questions about Grants’s climate

What is the coldest month in Grants?

December, with a typical high of 47° and a low of 16°.

What is the hottest month in Grants?

July, with a typical high of 89° and a low of 56°. About 31 days a year reach 90°.

How much snow does Grants get?

About 8 inches in a normal winter, most of it in December.

When is the first frost in Grants?

In half of years the first 32° night comes by October 1, and the last spring frost by May 24.

What is the rainiest month in Grants?

August, with 2.0 inches of rain and melted snow. The year totals 10 inches.

Temperatures and rainfall come from NOAA’s gridded climate normals for Grants itself (about a 3-mile square). Snow, frost dates and day counts come from NOAA’s weather station at Grants Airport, NM (4 mi, snow) and Grants Milan Municipal Airport, NM (4 mi, frost, heat and degree days). Normals are 30-year averages, not a forecast. Source: NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020 and 1901–2000.

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