U.S. Frost Dates by Weather Station

NOAA station USC00256075 · Nebraska

Frost Dates near North Platte, NE

NOAA weather station North Platte Experiment Farm (USC00256075), Nebraska · elevation 3025 ft (922 m) · hardiness zone 5b*

North Platte is the nearest town to the station (4.7 mi away) in GeoNames (CC BY 4.0). The dates below are measured at the station, not in the town itself.

  • Lower-risk planting dateafter May 15only 1 spring in 10 still has a frost later
  • Typical last frostMay 350% chance of a frost after it
  • Typical first fall frostOctober 1050% chance of a frost before it
  • Frost-free season158 daystypical year, 32°F
  • Hardiness zone5bcalculated*

The year at a glance

Frost season near North Platte, NESpring: a frost after April 19 in 9 years out of 10, after May 3 in half of the years, after May 15 in 1 year out of 10. Fall: the first frost comes before September 26 in 1 year out of 10, before October 10 in half of the years, before October 23 in 9 years out of 10. Typical frost-free season: 158 days.JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLast frost ~May 3First frost ~Oct 10Frost season near North Platte, NESpring: a frost after April 19 in 9 years out of 10, after May 3 in half of the years, after May 15 in 1 year out of 10. Fall: the first frost comes before September 26 in 1 year out of 10, before October 10 in half of the years, before October 23 in 9 years out of 10. Typical frost-free season: 158 days.JFMAMJJASONDLast frost ~May 3First frost ~Oct 10
frost likely chance fading 90% → 10% frost-free in a typical yearThe year at a glance. Blue: frost is likely; the gradient fades as the chance drops from 90% to 10%; green: the frost-free part of a typical year.Today

Frost dates (32°F)

Probability of frost, based on 29 years of NOAA records (1991–2020 normals)
ChanceLast frost in spring afterFirst frost in fall before
10% (unlikely)May 15September 26
50% (typical)May 3October 10
90% (likely)April 19October 23
Frost-free season (32°F, 50% chance)
158 days
Hard frost (28°F), last in spring, 50% chance after
April 25
Hard frost (28°F), first in fall, 50% chance before
October 19

The last 15 years (2006–2020 normals)

Typical last frost May 4 (1 day later than the 30-year normal), typical first fall frost October 13 (3 days later). Frost-free season 161 days.

A shorter, more recent NOAA period. The 30-year normals above remain the main reference: 15 years carry more year-to-year noise.

Add these dates to your calendar Yearly reminders for the typical last frost, the lower-risk planting date and the typical first fall frost (.ics).

How the chance of frost changes with the date

Spring near North Platte: chance of a frost after this dateSpring, chance of a frost after the date: 10% May 15, 20% May 11, 30% May 8, 40% May 5, 50% May 3, 60% May 1, 70% April 29, 80% April 26, 90% April 19. Observed last spring frost in recent years: 2021 April 25, 2022 May 22, 2023 May 3.Spring: last frostChance of a frost after this date10%50%90%May 1May 15May 3Apr 192021: April 252022: May 222023: May 3Fall near North Platte: chance of a frost before this dateFall, chance of a frost before the date: 10% September 26, 20% October 1, 30% October 4, 40% October 6, 50% October 10, 60% October 12, 70% October 15, 80% October 18, 90% October 23. Observed first fall frost in recent years: 2021 October 15, 2022 October 17, 2023 October 7.Fall: first frostChance of a frost before this date10%50%90%Oct 1Nov 1Sep 26Oct 10Oct 232021: October 152022: October 172023: October 7
Two charts, because spring and fall answer different questions: in spring, the chance that a frost still comes after a date; in fall, the chance that the first frost has already come before it. NOAA publishes these odds from 10% to 90%, so the lines stop there. ◆ marks the actual date in each recent year.

What actually happened in recent years

Observed dates of the last spring and first fall frost (32°F) at this station; ◆ marks them on the charts above
YearLast spring frostFirst fall frost
2021April 25October 15
2022May 22October 17
2023May 3October 7
2024incomplete recordno data
2025no datano data
2026no dataseason not over yet

What these dates mean

In the North Platte area, the cautious fall date for finishing the harvest of tender crops is September 26. That date carries only a 10 % chance that a light frost has already arrived, so it is a low-risk point to conclude harvesting before frost risk rises sharply.

For spring planting, the cautious date to set out tender crops is May 15, when the chance of a light frost later than that date is just 10 %. The 50% dates—May 3 for spring and October 10 for fall—mark the points at which a light frost is equally likely to have occurred or not, giving a statistical midpoint for gardeners.

Hard frosts, recorded at 28 °F, are more damaging than light frosts at 32 °F; the 50% hard-frost dates are April 25 in spring and October 19 in fall.

How to read the probabilities

The dates are probabilities from 30 years of weather, not a forecast for this year.

  • Spring: "10% after May 15" means that in about one spring out of ten a frost still happens after that date. The 90% date is the earliest: a frost after it happens in most years.
  • Fall: "10% before September 26" means that in about one fall out of ten the first frost arrives before that date.
  • 50% is the typical date: half of the years are earlier, half are later.
  • A light frost (32°F) damages tender plants; a hard frost (28°F) also stops most hardy vegetables.

Nearby weather stations

Map of weather stations near North Platte, NENumbered nearest stations: 1 — North Platte (Airport), NE — 6 mi; 2 — Hershey, NE — 12 mi; 3 — Wallace, NE — 28 mi; 4 — Stapleton, NE — 29 mi; 5 — Gothenburg, NE — 32 mi.25 mi · 40 km1. North Platte (Airport), NE — 6 mi12. Hershey, NE — 12 mi23. Wallace, NE — 28 mi34. Stapleton, NE — 29 mi45. Gothenburg, NE — 32 mi5
  1. North Platte (Airport), NE 6 mi (10 km)
  2. Hershey, NE 12 mi (20 km)
  3. Wallace, NE 28 mi (45 km)
  4. Stapleton, NE 29 mi (46 km)
  5. Gothenburg, NE 32 mi (52 km)

Sources

* Hardiness zone 5b: zone derived from PRISM 2023 grid at the station location (not the official USDA map). Source data: PRISM Group, Oregon State University.

Station coordinates: 41.0569, -100.7494.