Climateby Month

Topeka, KS climate by month

NOAA 1991-2020 normals · 948 ft elevation

Summers in Topeka are hot and oppressively humid; winters are cold. Highs peak at 90°F in July and fall to 40°F in January. The wettest month is May (about 12 wet days) and the driest is December (about 6). Normal snowfall is about 17 in a year. The most comfortable time to visit is April, May and October.

Warmest month
90°F
July normal high
Coldest month
20°F
January normal low
Wet days a year
98
36.5 in of precipitation
Snow a year
17.1 in
normal snowfall

How warm is Topeka?

Normal highs range from 40°F in January to 90°F in July.

20°40°60°80°100° January: normal high 40°F (4°C), low 20°F (-7°C) 40° 20° February: normal high 46°F (8°C), low 24°F (-4°C) March: normal high 57°F (14°C), low 34°F (1°C) April: normal high 67°F (19°C), low 44°F (7°C) May: normal high 76°F (24°C), low 55°F (13°C) June: normal high 86°F (30°C), low 65°F (18°C) July: normal high 90°F (32°C), low 69°F (21°C) 90° 69° August: normal high 89°F (32°C), low 67°F (19°C) September: normal high 81°F (27°C), low 58°F (14°C) October: normal high 69°F (21°C), low 45°F (7°C) November: normal high 55°F (13°C), low 33°F (1°C) December: normal high 44°F (7°C), low 24°F (-4°C) JFMAMJJASOND

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

How rainy is Topeka?

May has the most wet days (about 12); the year brings about 37 in of precipitation.

January: 6 wet days February: 6 wet days March: 8 wet days April: 10 wet days May: 12 wet days 12 June: 11 wet days July: 9 wet days August: 9 wet days September: 8 wet days October: 8 wet days November: 6 wet days December: 6 wet days 6 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 17.1 in a year, most of it in February.

January: 4.6 in of snow February: 5.2 in of snow 5.2 March: 1.7 in of snow April: 0.1 in of snow May: 0.0 in of snow 0.0 June: 0.0 in of snow 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: 1.0 in of snow December: 4.1 in of snow JFMAMJJASOND

How humid is Topeka?

Muggy days peak in July, at about 22 days.

January: 0 muggy days 0 February: 0 muggy days March: 0 muggy days April: 0 muggy days May: 3 muggy days June: 15 muggy days July: 22 muggy days 22 August: 20 muggy days September: 7 muggy days October: 1 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 Philip Billard Municipal Airport, 3.2 mi ENE of the city center.

How much daylight?

Daylight ranges from about 9.5 hours in December to 14.9 hours in June.

January: 9.8 hours of daylight February: 10.8 hours of daylight March: 12.0 hours of daylight April: 13.2 hours of daylight May: 14.3 hours of daylight June: 14.9 hours of daylight 14.9 July: 14.6 hours of daylight August: 13.7 hours of daylight September: 12.4 hours of daylight October: 11.2 hours of daylight November: 10.1 hours of daylight December: 9.5 hours of daylight 9.5 JFMAMJJASOND
See all numbers
Monthly climate normals and day counts for Topeka, 1991-2020
MonthHighLowPrecip.Wet daysSnowMuggy daysDaylight
January 40°F20°F 0.9 in6 4.6 in 0 9.8 h
February 46°F24°F 1.3 in6 5.2 in 0 10.8 h
March 57°F34°F 2.3 in8 1.7 in 0 12.0 h
April 67°F44°F 3.8 in10 0.1 in 0 13.2 h
May 76°F55°F 5.2 in12 0.0 in 3 14.3 h
June 86°F65°F 4.9 in11 0.0 in 15 14.9 h
July 90°F69°F 4.0 in9 0.0 in 22 14.6 h
August 89°F67°F 4.5 in9 0.0 in 20 13.7 h
September 81°F58°F 3.5 in8 0.0 in 7 12.4 h
October 69°F45°F 2.9 in8 0.4 in 1 11.2 h
November 55°F33°F 1.8 in6 1.0 in 0 10.1 h
December 44°F24°F 1.5 in6 4.1 in 0 9.5 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 Topeka

By our comfort score, the best months are April, May and October.

Comfort score by month (0-100) and its parts, in days per month
MonthScoreComfortableNotable rainHot or cold
Jan 361216
Feb 433311
Mar 57953
Apr 681471
May 671382
Jun 523710
Jul 441617
Aug 442615
Sep 581055
Oct 651551
Nov 51734
Dec 381312

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 Topeka

The last spring frost typically comes around Apr 12, and the first fall frost around Oct 23, leaving 191 frost-free days in a typical year.

Frost and freeze dates for Topeka
Typical date1 year in 10
Last spring frost (32°F)Apr 12after Apr 27
First fall frost (32°F)Oct 23before Oct 8
Last hard freeze (28°F)Mar 31after Apr 16
First hard freeze (28°F)Nov 1before Oct 19
Frost-free season191 daysunder 171 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: Topeka Muni Airport (USW00013996), NOAA 1991-2020 freeze probabilities. Frost dates for every city in Kansas.

Hottest and coldest readings, 1991-2020

The highest reading was 112°F (August 2, 2011); the lowest was -11°F (February 2, 1996).

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

Near Topeka

Similar climates elsewhere

Where the numbers come from

  • Temperature, rain, snowfall, snow depth, frost dates, humidity and wind by hour and cloud cover: Topeka Muni Airport (USW00013996), 3.2 mi ENE of the city center, 876 ft (72 ft lower than the city). NOAA normals and daily records, 1991-2020.
  • Daily humidity and wind: Philip Billard Municipal Airport (724560-13996), 3.2 mi ENE of the city center, 880 ft (68 ft lower than the city). Hourly observations, 1991-2020.

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