Detroit, MI climate: monthly averages and frost dates
Detroit, MI has cold winters and warm summers by this site's scale, with moderate annual precipitation. The figures are the 1991–2020 climate normals for NOAA station USW00094847 (DETROIT METRO AP), 16 mi (25 km) in a straight line from the city's center point (US Census).
- Warmest month high
- 83.7°F
- July
- Coldest month mean
- 25.8°F
- January
- Precipitation
- 34.3 in
- per year
- Snowfall
- 45.0 in
- per year
- Median last frost
- April 20
- 32°F, spring
- Median first frost
- October 27
- 32°F, autumn
Monthly averages in Detroit
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Mean °F | Precip. in | Snow in | Days ≥0.01 in | Days ≥90°F | Nights ≤32°F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 32.3 | 19.2 | 25.8 | 2.23 | 14.0 | 13.4 | 0.0 | 27.2 |
| February | 35.2 | 20.8 | 28.0 | 2.08 | 12.5 | 11.0 | 0.0 | 25.1 |
| March | 45.9 | 28.6 | 37.2 | 2.43 | 6.2 | 11.1 | 0.0 | 21.0 |
| April | 58.7 | 39.1 | 48.9 | 3.26 | 1.5 | 12.5 | 0.0 | 6.2 |
| May | 70.3 | 50.2 | 60.3 | 3.72 | 0.0 | 12.9 | 0.5 | 0.3 |
| June | 79.7 | 60.2 | 69.9 | 3.26 | 0.0 | 10.7 | 3.2 | 0.0 |
| July | 83.7 | 64.4 | 74.1 | 3.51 | 0.0 | 10.5 | 5.3 | 0.0 |
| August | 81.4 | 63.2 | 72.3 | 3.26 | 0.0 | 9.7 | 2.7 | 0.0 |
| September | 74.4 | 55.5 | 64.9 | 3.22 | 0.0 | 9.5 | 1.2 | 0.0 |
| October | 62.0 | 44.0 | 53.0 | 2.53 | 0.0 | 10.6 | 0.0 | 1.9 |
| November | 48.6 | 33.9 | 41.2 | 2.57 | 1.9 | 11.0 | 0.0 | 13.7 |
| December | 37.2 | 25.3 | 31.3 | 2.25 | 8.9 | 13.1 | 0.0 | 24.2 |
| Year | 59.1 | 42.0 | 50.6 | 34.32 | 45.0 | 136.0 | 13.0 | 119.5 |
How cold is winter in Detroit?
Winters in Detroit are cold by this site's scale (coldest-month mean 20 to under 32°F). The coldest month is January, with a mean temperature of 25.8°F (−3.4°C), a normal daily high of 32.3°F (0.2°C) and a normal daily low of 19.2°F (−7.1°C).
The station averages 119.5 nights a year at or below 32°F and 41.8 days when the high stays at or below 32°F.
The normal daily low is at or below freezing in December to March.
How hot is summer in Detroit?
Summers in Detroit are warm by this site's scale (hottest-month high 80 to under 90°F). July has the highest normal daily high, 83.7°F (28.7°C), with nights averaging 64.4°F (18.0°C).
The high reaches 90°F or more on 13.0 days in a normal year.
What is the wettest month in Detroit?
Detroit gets 34.32 in (872 mm) of precipitation in a normal year, which this site classes as moderate (20 to under 40 in a year). The wettest month is May with 3.72 in (94 mm); the driest is February with 2.08 in (53 mm).
Measurable precipitation (0.01 in or more) falls on 136.0 days a year.
Does it snow in Detroit?
Normal annual snowfall in Detroit is 45.0 in (114 cm), which this site classes as heavy (36 to under 72 in a year).
January is the snowiest month, with 14.0 in (36 cm).
A day with 1.0 in or more of snowfall comes 13.6 times a year on average.
Which months are mild in Detroit?
5 months in Detroit meet this site's comfort thresholds (normal high 65–85°F, low 45°F or higher, fewer than 10 days with 0.10 in or more of precipitation): May to September.
Thresholds and their limits: methodology.
Frost dates and growing season in Detroit
In Detroit the median last spring night at or below 32°F is April 20, and the median first autumn one is October 27 (NOAA P50 dates). NOAA's median length of the freeze-free season is 188 days. NOAA takes that median over each year's own season, so it need not equal the 190 days between the two median dates.
There is still a 10% chance of a 32°F night on or after May 8, and a 10% chance that the first one has come by October 14.
The chance that the last spring 32°F night comes on or after April 6 is 90%.
For a hard freeze (28°F or lower) the median dates are April 8 in spring and November 7 in autumn.
| Chance | Last spring 32°F night on or after | First autumn 32°F night by | Freeze-free season, days |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10% | May 8 | October 14 | 207 |
| 20% | May 2 | October 19 | 201 |
| 30% | April 28 | October 22 | 196 |
| 40% | April 23 | October 25 | 192 |
| 50% | April 20 | October 27 | 188 |
| 60% | April 17 | October 30 | 184 |
| 70% | April 15 | November 1 | 180 |
| 80% | April 12 | November 5 | 174 |
| 90% | April 6 | November 9 | 167 |
| Threshold | Median last date (spring) | Median first date (autumn or winter) | Median season, days |
|---|---|---|---|
| 36°F | May 2 | October 15 | 165 |
| 32°F | April 20 | October 27 | 188 |
| 28°F | April 8 | November 7 | 212 |
| 24°F | March 29 | November 19 | 235 |
| 20°F | March 19 | November 29 | 256 |
| 16°F | March 11 | December 10 | 275 |
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 100% | 100% | 100% | 97% | 24% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 64% | 100% | 100% |
Nearby and similar places
Of the places on this site, the closest to Detroit by station distance are Indianapolis, IN at 233 mi (374 km), Chicago, IL at 236 mi (381 km) and Buffalo, NY at 239 mi (384 km).
Among places whose winter, summer and precipitation words are each within one band of Detroit's (winter: cold, summer: warm, precipitation: moderate), the closest monthly temperature and precipitation patterns are Chicago, IL, Burlington, VT and Buffalo, NY.
Compared with Indianapolis, IN, Detroit's peak-month normal high is 1.5°F (0.8°C) lower, its coldest-month mean is 2.7°F (1.5°C) lower, and its annual precipitation is 9.31 in less.
| Place | Listed as | Station distance | Coldest mean °F | Warmest high °F | Precip. in/yr | Snow in/yr | Last frost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Detroit, MI | this page | – | 25.8 | 83.7 | 34.3 | 45.0 | April 20 |
| Indianapolis, IN | nearby | 233 mi (374 km) | 28.5 | 85.2 | 43.6 | 25.5 | April 15 |
| Chicago, IL | nearby, similar | 236 mi (381 km) | 25.2 | 84.5 | 37.9 | 38.4 | April 16 |
| Buffalo, NY | nearby, similar | 239 mi (384 km) | 25.5 | 80.2 | 40.7 | 95.4 | April 24 |
| Burlington, VT | similar | 534 mi (859 km) | 20.9 | 82.4 | 37.5 | 87.5 | April 29 |
How nearby and similar places are chosen: methodology.
Source and station
The data for Detroit come from NOAA station DETROIT METRO AP, MI US (USW00094847) at 42.2314, -83.3308, elevation 631 ft (192 m). It lies 16 mi (25 km) in a straight line from the center point of Detroit city, the “internal point” in the US Census 2024 Gazetteer.
Each monthly normal used here rests on at least 25 years of data from 1991–2020 (NOAA's per-field year counts).
NOAA completeness flags on the monthly fields used here:
- S: Standard: meets WMO standards for data availability for 24 or more years.
Cite the data as:
Palecki, Michael; Durre, Imke; Applequist, Scott; Arguez, Anthony; Lawrimore, Jay (2021). U.S. Climate Normals 2020: U.S. Monthly Climate Normals (1991-2020). Station USW00094847 (DETROIT METRO AP, MI US). NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. Dataset. https://doi.org/10.25921/wck8-er13. Accessed 2026-10-09.
Palecki, Michael; Durre, Imke; Applequist, Scott; Arguez, Anthony; Lawrimore, Jay (2021). U.S. Climate Normals 2020: U.S. Annual/Seasonal Climate Normals (1991-2020). Station USW00094847 (DETROIT METRO AP, MI US). NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. Dataset. https://doi.org/10.25921/4ek7-fk11. Accessed 2026-10-09.
Files used: monthly normals CSV, annual/seasonal normals CSV (retrieved 2026-10-09). The values on this page as JSON: /us/mi/detroit/data.json.