Las Cruces climate — normals and trends
Las Cruces (United States) has a cold desert climate (BWk) under the Köppen-Geiger classification. Its mean annual temperature is 17.2 °C and it receives 216 mm of precipitation per year.
These figures are normals computed over 86 complete calendar years, from 1940 to 2025, using ERA5 reanalysis data from the Copernicus programme.
The warmest month is July (27.5 °C on average) and the coldest is January (5.9 °C). Rainfall peaks in August.
Las Cruces averages 43 frost days, 116 hot days (≥ 30 °C) and 43 rainy days per year.
Las Cruces has warmed by +2.7 °C between 1940 and 2025, or +0.32 °C per decade. This trend is statistically significant.
The number of frost days there went from about 59 to 27 per year over the period.
The hottest day of the period reached 43.3 °C (on 26 June 1994) and the coldest -24.6 °C (on 29 January 1948).
Data from ERA5 reanalysis (Copernicus Climate Change Service), redistributed under a CC-BY 4.0 licence. Normals are recomputed whenever the archive is updated.
Climate normals · ERA5
Las CrucesNew Mexico
- coords
- 32.31°, -106.78°
- period
- 1940–2025 · 86 yrs
Mean daily temperature
17.2°C
Average daily high
24.0°C
Average daily low
10.4°C
Annual rainfall
216mm
Sunshine / day
11.3h
Mean relative humidity
39%
Average peak wind
17.8km/h
Seasonal range
21.6°C
Frost days (< 0 °C)
43 d/yr
Hot days (≥ 30 °C)
116 d/yr
Rainy days (≥ 1 mm)
43 d/yr
Annual snowfall
6.5 cm
Average feels-like high
21.3 °C
Average feels-like low
7.7 °C
Average peak gust
36.8 km/h
Tropical nights (≥ 20 °C)
56 d/yr
Solar radiation
21.3 MJ/m²
Has the climate changed?
One stripe per year, 1940 to 2025
+2.7 °C
since 1940
+0.3 °C per decade · r² = 0.60 · p = < 0.001
Trend fitted by linear regression (ordinary least squares) on annual means. A trend is shown only when it is statistically significant (p < 0.05).
A climograph overlays rainfall (bars) and temperature (line): the standard reading in climatology, where you can see at a glance whether the warm season is also the dry one.
Records for the period
Hottest day
43.3 °C
26 June 1994
Coldest day
-24.6 °C
29 January 1948
Wettest day
50 mm
5 August 1970
Windiest day
57.8 km/h
30 December 2010
Strongest gust
122.8 km/h
30 December 2010
Hottest feels-like
43.7 °C
27 June 1994
Coldest feels-like
-29.4 °C
29 January 1948
Snowiest day
10.2 cm
17 January 1947
Sunniest day
13.9 h
22 June 2025
Normals computed over complete calendar years 1940–2025.
A specific year
Pick a year and see how it compares to normal — warmer, drier or more extreme than usual?
Across the whole year
Month by month
| High | vs. normal | Precipitation | vs. normal | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 11.4 °C | -1.2 °C | 4 mm | -11 mm |
| Feb | 20.8 °C | +5.0 °C | 0 mm | -12 mm |
| Mar | 21.6 °C | +1.9 °C | 2 mm | -7 mm |
| Apr | 25.7 °C | +1.2 °C | 5 mm | -2 mm |
| May | 29.9 °C | +0.6 °C | 2 mm | -6 mm |
| Jun | 35.5 °C | +1.2 °C | 31 mm | +18 mm |
| Jul | 34.4 °C | +0.5 °C | 42 mm | +9 mm |
| Aug | 35.3 °C | +2.6 °C | 9 mm | -25 mm |
| Sep | 30.7 °C | +0.9 °C | 28 mm | -2 mm |
| Oct | 26.6 °C | +2.2 °C | 37 mm | +13 mm |
| Nov | 21.2 °C | +3.7 °C | 11 mm | -2 mm |
| Dec | 18.5 °C | +5.5 °C | 5 mm | -12 mm |
The year's extremes
What was the weather like that day?
Your birthday, a wedding, a memorable trip: discover the actual weather for any date since 1940.
Frequently asked questions
What is the climate of Las Cruces?
Las Cruces has a cold desert climate (Köppen BWk). Over 1940-2025, the average annual temperature is 17.2 °C and it receives 216 mm of precipitation per year.
What is the hottest day ever recorded in Las Cruces?
The hottest day measured in Las Cruces between 1940 and 2025 was 26 June 1994, reaching 43.3 °C.
What is the coldest day in Las Cruces?
The coldest day measured in Las Cruces between 1940 and 2025 was 29 January 1948, at -24.6 °C.
Does it snow in Las Cruces?
Yes. Las Cruces gets on average 6.5 cm of snow per year and has around 43 frost days.
Has the climate of Las Cruces warmed?
Yes: Las Cruces warmed by +2.7 °C between 1940 and 2025, a statistically significant trend.
What is the wettest day in Las Cruces?
The wettest day measured in Las Cruces between 1940 and 2025 was 5 August 1970, with 50 mm of rain in 24 hours.
What was the windiest day in Las Cruces?
The windiest day measured in Las Cruces between 1940 and 2025 was 30 December 2010, with winds reaching 57.8 km/h.
What is the warmest month in Las Cruces?
The warmest month in Las Cruces is July (27.5 °C on average); the coldest is January (5.9 °C).
How much does it rain in Las Cruces?
Las Cruces receives on average 216 mm of precipitation per year, spread over about 43 rainy days.
Is it sunny in Las Cruces?
Las Cruces gets on average 11.3 hours of sunshine per day, roughly 4,125 hours per year over 1940-2025.
What is the biggest single-day snowfall in Las Cruces?
The heaviest 24-hour snowfall measured in Las Cruces between 1940 and 2025 was 17 January 1947, with 10.2 cm.
Are there tropical nights in Las Cruces?
Yes: Las Cruces has on average 56 tropical nights per year (temperature staying above 20 °C), over 1940-2025.
What was the most extreme apparent temperature in Las Cruces?
In Las Cruces, between 1940 and 2025, the highest apparent temperature reached 43.7 °C on 27 June 1994, and the lowest was -29.4 °C on 29 January 1948.
Compare Las Cruces with another city
Pick a second city: its normals will be set against these, indicator by indicator.
Nearby cities
The climate around Las Cruces