Climateby Month

Galena, IL climate by month

NOAA 1991-2020 normals · 632 ft elevation

Summers in Galena are warm and often humid; winters are very cold and snowy. Highs peak at 85°F in July and fall to 29°F in January. Wet days are spread through the year, from about 8 to 13 a month. Normal snowfall is about 38 in a year. The most comfortable time to visit is May.

Warmest month
85°F
July normal high
Coldest month
12°F
January normal low
Wet days a year
116
39.6 in of precipitation
Snow a year
37.9 in
normal snowfall

How warm is Galena?

Normal highs range from 29°F in January to 85°F in July.

0°20°40°60°80°100° January: normal high 29°F (-2°C), low 12°F (-11°C) 29° 12° February: normal high 34°F (1°C), low 15°F (-9°C) March: normal high 46°F (8°C), low 26°F (-3°C) April: normal high 59°F (15°C), low 37°F (3°C) May: normal high 71°F (22°C), low 48°F (9°C) June: normal high 81°F (27°C), low 59°F (15°C) July: normal high 85°F (29°C), low 63°F (17°C) 85° 63° August: normal high 83°F (28°C), low 61°F (16°C) September: normal high 76°F (24°C), low 52°F (11°C) October: normal high 63°F (17°C), low 41°F (5°C) November: normal high 47°F (8°C), low 29°F (-2°C) December: normal high 34°F (1°C), low 19°F (-7°C) JFMAMJJASOND

Bars run from the normal low to the normal high for each month.

How rainy is Galena?

May has the most wet days (about 13); the year brings about 40 in of precipitation.

January: 9 wet days February: 8 wet days 8 March: 9 wet days April: 11 wet days May: 13 wet days 13 June: 12 wet days July: 9 wet days August: 10 wet days September: 9 wet days October: 9 wet days November: 8 wet days December: 9 wet days JFMAMJJASOND

Wet day: at least 0.01 in of rain or melted snow, counted from daily records 1991-2020.

How much does it snow?

Normal snowfall is 37.9 in a year, most of it in January.

January: 10.3 in of snow 10.3 February: 9.0 in of snow March: 5.1 in of snow April: 1.3 in of snow May: 0.3 in of snow June: 0.0 in of snow 0.0 July: 0.0 in of snow August: 0.0 in of snow September: 0.0 in of snow October: 0.4 in of snow November: 2.0 in of snow December: 9.5 in of snow JFMAMJJASOND

How humid is Galena?

Muggy days peak in July, at about 13 days.

January: 0 muggy days 0 February: 0 muggy days March: 0 muggy days April: 0 muggy days May: 1 muggy days June: 7 muggy days July: 13 muggy days 13 August: 11 muggy days September: 3 muggy days October: 0 muggy days November: 0 muggy days December: 0 muggy days JFMAMJJASOND

Muggy day: daily mean dew point of 65°F or higher, from hourly observations 1991-2020 at Dubuque Regional Airport, 14 mi W of the city center.

How much daylight?

Daylight ranges from about 9.1 hours in December to 15.2 hours in June.

January: 9.5 hours of daylight February: 10.6 hours of daylight March: 11.9 hours of daylight April: 13.4 hours of daylight May: 14.6 hours of daylight June: 15.2 hours of daylight 15.2 July: 14.9 hours of daylight August: 13.8 hours of daylight September: 12.5 hours of daylight October: 11.1 hours of daylight November: 9.8 hours of daylight December: 9.1 hours of daylight 9.1 JFMAMJJASOND
See all numbers
Monthly climate normals and day counts for Galena, 1991-2020
MonthHighLowPrecip.Wet daysSnowMuggy daysDaylight
January 29°F12°F 1.2 in9 10.3 in 0 9.5 h
February 34°F15°F 1.5 in8 9.0 in 0 10.6 h
March 46°F26°F 2.3 in9 5.1 in 0 11.9 h
April 59°F37°F 3.9 in11 1.3 in 0 13.4 h
May 71°F48°F 4.4 in13 0.3 in 1 14.6 h
June 81°F59°F 6.0 in12 0.0 in 7 15.2 h
July 85°F63°F 4.9 in9 0.0 in 13 14.9 h
August 83°F61°F 4.2 in10 0.0 in 11 13.8 h
September 76°F52°F 3.9 in9 0.0 in 3 12.5 h
October 63°F41°F 3.0 in9 0.4 in 0 11.1 h
November 47°F29°F 2.5 in8 2.0 in 0 9.8 h
December 34°F19°F 1.8 in9 9.5 in 0 9.1 h

High and low: NOAA 1991-2020 normal daily high and low. Wet days: at least 0.01 in of rain or melted snow. Muggy days: daily mean dew point 65°F or higher.

Best months to visit Galena

By our comfort score, the best month is May.

Comfort score by month (0-100) and its parts, in days per month
MonthScoreComfortableNotable rainHot or cold
Jan 260427
Feb 300421
Mar 442512
Apr 60872
May 701481
Jun 62984
Jul 57567
Aug 59764
Sep 661462
Oct 591161
Nov 40259
Dec 270523

Score = 40 × share of comfortable days + 25 × share of days without notable rain + 20 × share of days neither hot (90°F+) nor cold (high 40°F or below) + 15 × daylight. How the score works.

Frost dates in Galena

The last spring frost typically comes around Apr 25, and the first fall frost around Oct 16, leaving 172 frost-free days in a typical year.

Frost and freeze dates for Galena
Typical date1 year in 10
Last spring frost (32°F)Apr 25after May 11
First fall frost (32°F)Oct 16before Oct 1
Last hard freeze (28°F)Apr 13after May 2
First hard freeze (28°F)Oct 27before Oct 13
Frost-free season172 daysunder 152 days

"Typical" is the date with a 50% chance of a later spring frost (or earlier fall frost). Planting after the "1 year in 10" spring date gives a 90% chance of no further frost. The Old Farmer's Almanac publishes 30% dates, which fall between our typical and 1-in-10 dates.

Station: Bellevue L&D 12 (USC00130608), NOAA 1991-2020 freeze probabilities. Frost dates for every city in Illinois.

Hottest and coldest readings, 1991-2020

The highest reading was 103°F (July 7, 2012); the lowest was -35°F (January 17, 2009).

From the temperature station's daily records with NOAA quality flags removed. Not an all-time record.

Near Galena

Similar climates elsewhere

Where the numbers come from

  • Temperature and frost dates: Bellevue L&D 12 (USC00130608), 11 mi S of the city center, 603 ft . NOAA normals and daily records, 1991-2020.
  • Rain, snowfall and snow depth: Galena (USC00113312), 2.5 mi ESE of the city center, 822 ft (190 ft higher than the city). NOAA normals and daily records, 1991-2020.
  • Humidity and wind by hour: Dubuque Rgnl Airport (USW00094908), 14 mi W of the city center, 1,056 ft (424 ft higher than the city). NOAA normals and daily records, 1991-2020.
  • Daily humidity and wind: Dubuque Regional Airport (725470-94908), 14 mi W of the city center, 1,040 ft (408 ft higher than the city). Hourly observations, 1991-2020.
  • Not available for this location: cloud cover (no station close enough or similar enough in elevation).

Distances from the city center (USGS). Methodology · Report an error