Climate and average weather in Battle Creek

In Battle Creek, the summers are warm, showery, and partly cloudy and the winters are very cold, snowy, and mostly cloudy.

Best: mid May to early October

Over the course of the year, the temperature in Battle Creek typically varies from 19°F to 81°F, and is rarely below -0°F or above 89°F. July is the hottest month of the year, while January is the coldest.

Based on the travel score, the best time of year to visit Battle Creek for warm-weather activities is from mid May to early October.

Hottest
Jul
81°
Coldest
Jan
19°
Wettest
May
4.2 in
Driest
Feb
2.2 in
Rain / yr
38.4 in
129 wet days
Daylight
8.9–15.1 h
shortest–longest
Elevation
837 ft
42.3°N
Clearest
Sep
54% cloud

Battle Creek is city in Calhoun County, Michigan, United States.

Density
456/km²
people per km²
Founded
1831

Air quality: WHO Ambient Air Quality Database. Density & description: Wikidata (CC0), GeoNames.

Battle Creek weather by month, at a glance

The whole year in one picture — sky, rain, humidity, temperature and travel score. Click any band to jump to its full chart.

Each stripe is one measure across the whole year, stacked so a single day reads top to bottom. The sky band runs overcast grey on top down to clear blue at the base — more blue means sunnier — followed by the rainfall curve, the humidity band, a temperature strip that tints each stretch of the year by how warm its average high is, and the travel-score line at the foot. Scan straight down any date to read that day across every measure at once; the score climbs highest around mid May to early October.

Temperature through the year

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Daily average highs and lows in Battle Creek, from 1991–2020 of climate data. The shaded bands show the range most days fall in — 10th to 90th percentile.

The hot season lasts 4.3 months, from May 18 to September 25, with daily high temperatures above 69°F. The hottest month of the year in Battle Creek is July, with an average high of 81°F and low of 63°F.

The cool season lasts 3.2 months, from December 1 to March 6, with daily high temperatures below 40°F. The coldest month of the year in Battle Creek is January, with an average low of 19°F and high of 31°F.

Days typically run about 16°F warmer than nights, with the widest day–night swing (around 19°F) in May.

20°40°60°80°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Avg high (°F)Avg low (°F)
Jan3119
Feb3419
Mar4528
Apr5839
May6849
Jun7859
Jul8163
Aug7961
Sep7354
Oct6043
Nov4633
Dec3624

How hot and cold Battle Creek really feels

Feels-like highFeels-like lowactual air temp

The felt-temperature range through the year — heat index on the day's high (summer humidity), wind chill on the night's low (winter wind). The dashed lines are the plain thermometer; the gap is how much hotter or colder it really feels.

On the coldest nights, wind chill pulls the feels-like down to about 6°F (around January 23), with roughly 165 freezing days a year (feels-like at or below 32°F) 74 of them bitterly cold — worst in January.

20°40°60°80°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Feels-like high (°F)Air high (°F)Feels-like low (°F)Air low (°F)
Jan3131819
Feb3434919
Mar45452028
Apr58583339
May68684749
Jun78785959
Jul82816363
Aug79796161
Sep72735354
Oct60603843
Nov46462633
Dec36361524

Average hourly temperature in Battle Creek

A compact picture of the whole year, hour by hour: each column is a day, each row an hour, and the color is the modeled average temperature. Darker overlays mark night, lighter ones the civil-twilight hours around sunrise and sunset.

Read left to right for the day of the year and top to bottom for the hour of the day; the color is the modeled temperature, cool blues through to hot reds on the same scale as the other charts. A vertical slice is a single day's swing — coolest just before dawn, warmest in the mid-afternoon — while a horizontal slice follows one hour across the seasons. The darker overlay marks night and the lighter one the twilight around sunrise and sunset. Colors run warmest on July afternoons, near 81°F, and coldest before dawn in January, near 19°F.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec12 AM2 AM4 AM6 AM8 AM10 AM12 PM2 PM4 PM6 PM8 PM10 PM12 AM

Battle Creek weather by month

Every month at a glance. Click a month for its detailed page.

MonthHigh / Low (°F)Rainfall (inches)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan31° / 19°2.7119.59.30.0
Feb34° / 19°2.28.16.310.30.0
Mar45° / 28°2.610.14.211.61.0
Apr58° / 39°3.812.31.313.13.9
May68° / 49°4.213.1014.45.8
Jun78° / 59°4.111.60156.4
Jul81° / 63°3.711.4014.86.3
Aug79° / 61°3.610.7013.76.6
Sep73° / 54°3.09.6012.36.8
Oct60° / 43°3.310.70.210.84.7
Nov46° / 33°2.89.92.89.61.3
Dec36° / 24°2.410.87.590.0

Chance of rain

How likely it is to rain on a typical day, and how that shifts across the wetter and drier seasons.

Battle Creek gets about 38.4 in of precipitation a year. On a typical day the chance of rain is often wet, but that rises and falls sharply with the seasons.

The wetter season lasts 3.3 months, from around Mar 28 to Jul 5, peaking in May at about 43% chance on a given day. The drier stretch runs the rest of the year, bottoming out around Feb 9.

May is the wettest month by volume, with 4.2 in over about 13 wet days; February is the driest, with 2.2 in. Some of the cold-season precipitation falls as snow.

0%10%20%30%40%50%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecdrierwetterdriermostly drysome rainoften wetvery wetMay 10 · 43%Feb 9 · 27%
Rain on a day (%)Rain days
Jan3511
Feb298
Mar3310
Apr4112
May4213
Jun3912
Jul3711
Aug3511
Sep3210
Oct3411
Nov3310
Dec3511

Monthly rainfall

Over a full year, Battle Creek collects about 38.4 in of rain across 129 wet days — roughly 3.2 in in an average month.

It doesn’t fall evenly. May is the wettest month with 4.2 in, while February is the driest at just 2.2 in. The three wettest months alone bring about 32% of the year’s total, and some of the cold-season precipitation falls as snow.

012345JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec2.72.22.63.84.24.13.73.63.03.32.82.4
Rainfall (in)Rain daysSnow days
Jan2.71110
Feb2.286
Mar2.6104
Apr3.8121
May4.2130
Jun4.1120
Jul3.7110
Aug3.6110
Sep3.0100
Oct3.3110
Nov2.8103
Dec2.4118

Snow in Battle Creek

Average snowy days through the year, the snow-season span, and estimated snowfall — for ski trips and the perennial 'will there be snow at Christmas?' question.

Battle Creek averages about 32 snowy days a year. Snow season runs roughly Oct 27 to Apr 25 — about 6 months.

January is snowiest, with roughly 9 days of snow and an estimated 14 in of snowfall. Over the year that adds up to an estimated 49 in of snow.

0510JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecsnow seasonsnow seasonJan 18
Snow daysSnowfall (in)
Jan1014
Feb611
Mar46
Apr12
May00
Jun00
Jul00
Aug00
Sep00
Oct00
Nov35
Dec811

Clouds and sunshine

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

How often the daytime sky is clear, partly cloudy or overcast.

In Battle Creek, the average share of the sky covered by clouds shows significant seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The clearer part of the year begins around May 3 and lasts for 5.7 months, ending around October 22. The clearest month is July, when the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 55% of the time on average.

The cloudier part of the year begins around October 23 and lasts for 6.3 months, ending around May 2. The cloudiest month is January, when it is overcast or mostly cloudy 83% of the time.

0%100%10%90%20%80%30%70%40%60%50%50%60%40%70%30%80%20%90%10%100%0%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecSep 4 · 56%Jan 4 · 15%clearmostly clearpartly cloudymostly cloudyovercastcloudierclearercloudier
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
Jan1783
Feb2674
Mar3367
Apr3565
May4060
Jun4753
Jul5545
Aug5248
Sep5347
Oct4258
Nov2971
Dec1882

Daylight, sunrise and sunset

DaylightNight

Hours of daylight through the year, with sunrise and sunset times.

The gold band is daylight — sunrise runs along its lower edge, sunset along the upper — so it widens toward summer and pinches toward winter, with night the dark area above and below. The longest day, around June 13, brings about 15 h 06 min of light; the shortest, around December 13, only 8 h 54 min — a swing of roughly 6 h 12 min.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AMJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
Jan9.38:135:27
Feb10.37:476:04
Mar11.67:016:40
Apr13.16:077:15
May14.45:257:49
Jun15.05:098:13
Jul14.85:228:11
Aug13.75:537:37
Sep12.36:276:43
Oct10.87:015:51
Nov9.67:395:13
Dec9.08:095:04

Sunny days

How many genuinely sunny days each month brings — days the sky stays clear or mostly clear — banded into plain-language zones.

Battle Creek averages about 7 sunny days a month — counting the days the sky stays clear or mostly clear — with a clear seasonal swing between 3 and 11 days.

The sunnier stretch runs 5.5 months, from around May 8 to Oct 20. The sunniest month is September, with roughly 11 sunny days (mixed).

The greyest month is January, down near 3 sunny days — about 73% fewer than the September peak.

051015JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecgreyersunniergreyergloomymixedSep 511 daysJan 123 days
Sunny daysSky
Jan3Gloomy
Feb4Gloomy
Mar7Gloomy
Apr7Gloomy
May8Gloomy
Jun9Mixed
Jul10Mixed
Aug10Mixed
Sep11Mixed
Oct9Mixed
Nov5Gloomy
Dec4Gloomy

Humidity comfort

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

Share of days at each humidity comfort level, based on the dew point — the measure that tracks how muggy it actually feels.

Humidity comfort is graded by the dew point — the temperature at which the air would be fully saturated — because it tracks how muggy it actually feels far better than relative humidity does. A low dew point feels dry and crisp; a high one feels sticky and oppressive no matter the reading on a humidity gauge.

In Battle Creek, how humid it feels changes dramatically over the year.

The more humid part of the year lasts 4.0 months, from around May 24 to September 21. The muggiest month is July, when the air feels humid, muggy or worse about 60% of the time.

The most comfortable stretch runs from around September 22 to May 23, and March is the most comfortable month — the air is dry or comfortable 100% of the time.

0%10%20%30%40%50%60%70%80%90%100%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecMar 6 · 100%Jul 21 · 37%oppressivemuggyhumiddrycomfortablecomfortablehumidcomfortable
Dry (%)Comfortable (%)Humid (%)Muggy (%)Oppressive (%)
Jan1000000
Feb1000000
Mar991000
Apr954100
May7513830
Jun372223162
Jul182227249
Aug202625236
Sep54211491
Oct907310
Nov981000
Dec1000000

Wind

Average wind speed through the year, banded into plain-language speed zones so a number reads as 'breezy' or 'calm' without knowing the scale.

This is the average sustained wind speed at the standard 10 metres above open ground — the steady flow a weather station reports, not the sharper gusts that come and go, which can run half again as fast. It's the number that says whether a place is generally breezy or calm.

Across the year, average wind speed in Battle Creek is typically light breeze, near 8 mph, and varies little with the seasons.

The windier part of the year lasts 7.4 months, from around Oct 6 to May 18. The windiest month is April, averaging about 8 mph (light breeze).

The calmer part of the year runs from around May 19 to Oct 5, with August the calmest month at about 6 mph.

051015JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecwindiercalmerwindiercalmlight breezebreezyApr 11 · 9 mphAug 6 · 6 mph
Wind speed (mph)Feels
Jan8light breeze
Feb8light breeze
Mar8light breeze
Apr8light breeze
May8light breeze
Jun7calm
Jul6calm
Aug6calm
Sep7calm
Oct8light breeze
Nov8light breeze
Dec8light breeze

Best time to visit Battle Creek

TravelBeach/poolTemperatureCloudsPrecipitation

To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Battle Creek throughout the year, we compute two travel scores — one for general sightseeing, one for beach and pool weather.

Around late May, Battle Creek is still near the start of its best-weather window — great conditions with the peak-season crowds not yet at full swing.

Inferred from the travel-score curve; month-by-month visitor numbers are a planned addition.

The travel score favors clear, rainless days with daytime highs between 64°F and 82°F. Based on this score, the best time of year to visit Battle Creek for general outdoor tourist activities is from mid May to early October, with a peak score in the first week of September.

0246810JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbest timetravel scoretemperaturecloudsprecipitationSep 6 · 7.1

The travel score (filled area), and its constituents: the temperature score (red line), the cloud cover score (blue line), and the precipitation score (green line).

Travel score (0–10)Rating
Jan0.0poor
Feb0.0poor
Mar1.1poor
Apr3.9fair
May5.8good
Jun6.4good
Jul6.3good
Aug6.6good
Sep6.7good
Oct4.7fair
Nov1.3poor
Dec0.0poor

The beach/pool score favors clear, rainless days with daytime highs between 75°F and 93°F. Based on this score, the best time of year to visit Battle Creek for hot-weather activities is from early June to mid September, with a peak score in the second week of July.

024681012JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbest timebeach/pool scoretemperaturecloudsprecipitationJul 10 · 6.6

The beach/pool score (filled area), and its constituents: the temperature score (red line), the cloud cover score (blue line), and the precipitation score (green line).

What to pack for Battle Creek, by month

EssentialRecommendedOptional

Month by month, what's worth putting in the bag — from the temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind. Tap a month for a quick packing note.

For a warm-season trip around July (highs near 81°F), the essentials are light clothes, rain gear and sun protection. In the cold season around January (highs near 31°F), pack a warm layer, a heavy coat and rain gear.

Light clothing
Warm layer
Winter coat
Rain gear
Sun protection
Windbreaker

In July, Battle Creek sees daytime highs around 81°F and nights near 63°F. Pack light clothes and sun protection. Worth having: rain gear. About 11 days see rain.

UV index (midday) in Battle Creek by month

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV index through the year, shaded by the WHO exposure levels — how much sun protection each month calls for.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Battle Creek peaks around June 21 at about 9 (very high) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 20 at about 1 (low).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 8 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLowModerateHighVery highHighModerateLowJun 21UV 9Dec 20UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan2Low
Feb2Moderate
Mar4Moderate
Apr6High
May7High
Jun9Very high
Jul9Very high
Aug8Very high
Sep6High
Oct3Moderate
Nov2Moderate
Dec1Low

Average hourly UV index in Battle Creek

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Modeled clear-sky UV for every hour of every day — when in the day sun protection actually matters.

The whole year hour by hour: each column is a day, each row an hour, and the color is the modeled clear-sky UV index — the midday peak scaled down as the sun sits lower in the sky. Darker overlays mark night, lighter ones the civil-twilight hours around sunrise and sunset.

UV falls off far faster than brightness as the sun drops, so even in June the burn window is concentrated in the middle of the day: about 8.5 hours a day reach index 3 (protection recommended), and 5.5 hours reach 6 or more. Mornings and late afternoons stay comparatively gentle year round.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec12 AM2 AM4 AM6 AM8 AM10 AM12 PM2 PM4 PM6 PM8 PM10 PM12 AM
UV ≥ 3 (h/day)UV ≥ 6 (h/day)
Jan00
Feb00
Mar40
Apr60
May7.53.5
Jun8.55.5
Jul8.55.5
Aug7.54
Sep5.50
Oct20
Nov00
Dec00

Air quality in Battle Creek by month

GoodModeratePoorUnhealthyVery unhealthy

Average fine-particle pollution (PM2.5) through the year — so you can see which months the air is worst, not just the yearly average.

Air quality in Battle Creek is worst in July — around 16 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 2.1× the cleanest month (October, 8 µg/m³).

Modeled monthly averages (CAMS reanalysis, 2015–2024).

01020JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecGoodModerateGoodJul 1515 µg/m³Oct 228 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan10Good
Feb12Good
Mar13Moderate
Apr12Moderate
May14Moderate
Jun15Moderate
Jul16Moderate
Aug15Moderate
Sep11Good
Oct8Good
Nov8Good
Dec9Good
Almanac & agriculture

Growing season

Chance of a frost-free dayTypical season (≥50%)

The growing season in Battle Creek typically lasts about 237 days, from around March 27 to November 18 — the span where a frost-free day is more likely than not. It is reliably frost-free from April 26 to October 17.

0%25%50%75%100%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecgrowing seasonMar 2750%Apr 2690%Oct 1790%Nov 1850%
Frost-free chance (%)Frost nights
Jan1331
Feb1328
Mar3631
Apr7823
May980
Jun1000
Jul1000
Aug1000
Sep990
Oct9012
Nov5430
Dec2331

Growing degree days

Degree days (base 50°F)Frost-free shaded

Growing degree days tally heat above 50°F: each day adds however many degrees its average temperature runs over that threshold, and cold days add nothing. Battle Creek banks about 2,618 degree days a year, and the running total — which growers use to time plantings and predict maturity — climbs fastest around July.

01,0002,0003,000JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Growing degree days (°F·days)
Jan0
Feb0
Mar0
Apr18
May276
Jun557
Jul686
Aug624
Sep390
Oct68
Nov0
Dec0

Solar energy

Average daily shortwave solar energy reaching the ground, banded into brightness zones so the number means something at a glance.

Solar energy is how much sunlight actually reaches the ground each day, measured in kilowatt-hours per square metre (kWh/m²) — the combined effect of how long the sun is up, how high it climbs, and how much cloud gets in the way. It's the raw fuel a solar panel has to work with: for scale, 1 kWh/m² a day is dim and wintry, while 7+ is desert-bright.

Battle Creek receives about 4.0 kWh/m² a day of solar energy on average — moderate — with a clear seasonal swing between 1.4 and 6.5 kWh/m².

The brighter stretch of the year lasts 6.3 months, from around Mar 15 to Sep 23. The brightest month is July, averaging about 6.2 kWh/m² (intense).

The dimmest month is December, down near 1.4 kWh/m² — roughly 77% less than the July peak.

012345678JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecdimmerbrighterdimmerdimmoderatebrightintenseJul 16.5 kWhDec 191.4 kWh
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
Jan1.7Dim
Feb2.7Moderate
Mar4.0Moderate
Apr4.9Bright
May5.7Bright
Jun6.3Intense
Jul6.3Intense
Aug5.3Bright
Sep4.3Bright
Oct2.9Moderate
Nov1.8Dim
Dec1.4Dim

Where is Battle Creek?

Battle Creek sits at 42.3°N, 85.2°W, 837 ft above sea level, in United States. The nearest listed city is Kalamazoo, 21 mi away.

Topography around Battle Creek

How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 2, 10 and 50 miles of Battle Creek.

Within 2 miles, the terrain around Battle Creek has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 190 ft around an average of 879 ft above sea level; within 10 miles, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 325 ft; within 50 miles, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 712 ft.

The land around Battle Creek is covered by trees (50%) and artificial surfaces (33%) within 2 miles, trees (57%) and cropland (21%) within 10 miles, and trees (45%) and cropland (39%) within 50 miles.

2 miles
190 ft
10 miles
325 ft
50 miles
712 ft
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwaterwetland
Nearby: Kalamazoo 21 mi · Portage 22 mi · Jackson 40 mi · Holt 40 mi · Waverly 40 mi · Lansing 43 mi · Kentwood 45 mi · East Lansing 46 mi

United States travel facts

Power plugs
Type A / B
120 V · 60 Hz
Prices
≈ 100% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$90,027
2025
Happiness
6.8 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
98%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
5.8
per 100k, 2023
Road deaths
12.7
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
High
World Bank
Religion
Protestant 47%unaffiliated 23%Roman Catholic 21%Jewish 2%

Sources: World Bank, US State Department, World Happiness Report, WHO/UNICEF, EF EPI, CIA World Factbook.

Data sources

Temperature, precipitation, cloud, humidity, wind and solar figures are a 1991–2020 climatology for Battle Creek (42.3173°, -85.1782°, elevation 837 ft), computed from hourly ERA5 reanalysis — contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information. Sun figures are astronomical calculations, not observations. City data © GeoNames, CC BY 4.0. Map outlines from Natural Earth (public domain); interactive map © Google. UV index is derived from CAMS (Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service) clear-sky UV data — contains modified Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service information. Monthly air-quality (PM2.5) seasonality is from the CAMS EAC4 reanalysis (Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service), scaled to the WHO annual mean where available. Topography is sampled from the Copernicus DEM GLO-90 elevation model (© ESA/Airbus) and ESA WorldCover 2021 land cover (CC BY 4.0).