Climate and average weather in Chico
In Chico, the summers are sweltering, dry, and clear and the winters are cool and partly cloudy.
Over the course of the year, the temperature in Chico typically varies from 40°F to 96°F, and is rarely below 32°F or above 104°F. July is the hottest month of the year, while December is the coldest.
Based on the travel score, the best times of year to visit Chico for warm-weather activities are from mid April to late May and late September to early November.
- Hottest
- Jul
- 96°
- Coldest
- Dec
- 40°
- Wettest
- Dec
- 7.9 in
- Driest
- Jul
- 0.0 in
- Rain / yr
- 39.8 in
- 71 wet days
- Daylight
- 9.2–14.8 h
- shortest–longest
- Elevation
- 197 ft
- 39.7°N
- Clearest
- Jul
- 11% cloud
Chico is city in Butte County, California, United States.
- Density
- 1,416/km²
- people per km²
- Founded
- 1860
Air quality: WHO Ambient Air Quality Database. Density & description: Wikidata (CC0), GeoNames.
Chico 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 April to late May.
Temperature through the year
Daily average highs and lows in Chico, from 1991–2020 of climate data. The shaded bands show the range most days fall in — 10th to 90th percentile.
The hot season lasts 3.6 months, from June 6 to September 24, with daily high temperatures above 86°F. The hottest month of the year in Chico is July, with an average high of 96°F and low of 67°F.
The cool season lasts 3.7 months, from November 16 to March 8, with daily high temperatures below 63°F. The coldest month of the year in Chico is December, with an average low of 40°F and high of 56°F.
Days typically run about 23°F warmer than nights, with the widest day–night swing (around 29°F) in August.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avg high (°F) | 57 | 60 | 64 | 70 | 80 | 89 | 96 | 94 | 88 | 77 | 64 | 56 |
| Avg low (°F) | 40 | 42 | 45 | 49 | 55 | 63 | 67 | 65 | 60 | 52 | 44 | 40 |
| Avg high (°F) | Avg low (°F) | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 57 | 40 |
| Feb | 60 | 42 |
| Mar | 64 | 45 |
| Apr | 70 | 49 |
| May | 80 | 55 |
| Jun | 89 | 63 |
| Jul | 96 | 67 |
| Aug | 94 | 65 |
| Sep | 88 | 60 |
| Oct | 77 | 52 |
| Nov | 64 | 44 |
| Dec | 56 | 40 |
How hot and cold Chico really feels
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 hottest afternoons, once humidity is folded in, Chico feels like about 96°F (around July 21). About 87 days a year carry some heat stress, peaking in July.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feels-like high (°F) | 57 | 60 | 64 | 70 | 79 | 89 | 96 | 94 | 88 | 77 | 64 | 56 |
| Air high (°F) | 57 | 60 | 64 | 70 | 80 | 89 | 96 | 94 | 88 | 77 | 64 | 56 |
| Feels-like low (°F) | 36 | 38 | 41 | 46 | 55 | 63 | 67 | 65 | 60 | 52 | 41 | 35 |
| Air low (°F) | 40 | 42 | 45 | 49 | 55 | 63 | 67 | 65 | 60 | 52 | 44 | 40 |
| Feels-like high (°F) | Air high (°F) | Feels-like low (°F) | Air low (°F) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 57 | 57 | 36 | 40 |
| Feb | 60 | 60 | 38 | 42 |
| Mar | 64 | 64 | 41 | 45 |
| Apr | 70 | 70 | 46 | 49 |
| May | 79 | 80 | 55 | 55 |
| Jun | 89 | 89 | 63 | 63 |
| Jul | 96 | 96 | 67 | 67 |
| Aug | 94 | 94 | 65 | 65 |
| Sep | 88 | 88 | 60 | 60 |
| Oct | 77 | 77 | 52 | 52 |
| Nov | 64 | 64 | 41 | 44 |
| Dec | 56 | 56 | 35 | 40 |
Average hourly temperature in Chico
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 96°F, and coldest before dawn in December, near 40°F.
Chico weather by month
Every month at a glance. Click a month for its detailed page.
| Month | High / Low (°F) | Rainfall (inches) | Wet days | Snow days | Daylight (hours) | Travel score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 57° / 40° | 7.2 | 11.2 | 0.5 | 9.5 | 3.9 |
| Feb | 60° / 42° | 6.9 | 10.2 | 0.7 | 10.4 | 4.6 |
| Mar | 64° / 45° | 5.9 | 10.9 | 0.4 | 11.7 | 5.8 |
| Apr | 70° / 49° | 2.9 | 7.4 | 0.2 | 13 | 7.0 |
| May | 80° / 55° | 1.9 | 5.1 | 0 | 14.2 | 7.6 |
| Jun | 89° / 63° | 0.6 | 1.8 | 0 | 14.8 | 5.2 |
| Jul | 96° / 67° | 0.0 | 0.1 | 0 | 14.5 | 3.2 |
| Aug | 94° / 65° | 0.1 | 0.3 | 0 | 13.6 | 3.7 |
| Sep | 88° / 60° | 0.3 | 1.2 | 0 | 12.3 | 5.8 |
| Oct | 77° / 52° | 2.0 | 3.8 | 0 | 10.9 | 8.1 |
| Nov | 64° / 44° | 4.1 | 8 | 0.2 | 9.8 | 5.9 |
| Dec | 56° / 40° | 7.9 | 11.4 | 0.5 | 9.2 | 3.7 |
Chance of rain
How likely it is to rain on a typical day, and how that shifts across the wetter and drier seasons.
Chico gets about 39.8 in of precipitation a year. On a typical day the chance of rain is some rain, but that rises and falls sharply with the seasons.
The wetter season lasts 5.7 months, from around Nov 3 to Apr 26, peaking in February at about 39% chance on a given day. The drier stretch runs the rest of the year, bottoming out around Jul 20.
December is the wettest month by volume, with 7.9 in over about 11 wet days; July is the driest, with 0.0 in.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rain on a day (%) | 36 | 37 | 34 | 26 | 16 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 12 | 27 | 37 |
| Rain days | 11 | 10 | 11 | 7 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 8 | 11 |
| Rain on a day (%) | Rain days | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 36 | 11 |
| Feb | 37 | 10 |
| Mar | 34 | 11 |
| Apr | 26 | 7 |
| May | 16 | 5 |
| Jun | 6 | 2 |
| Jul | 1 | 0 |
| Aug | 1 | 0 |
| Sep | 4 | 1 |
| Oct | 12 | 4 |
| Nov | 27 | 8 |
| Dec | 37 | 11 |
Monthly rainfall
Over a full year, Chico collects about 39.8 in of rain across 71 wet days — roughly 3.3 in in an average month.
It doesn’t fall evenly. December is the wettest month with 7.9 in, while July is the driest at just 0.0 in. The three wettest months alone bring about 55% of the year’s total, and some of the cold-season precipitation falls as snow.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rainfall (in) | 7.2 | 6.9 | 5.9 | 2.9 | 1.9 | 0.6 | 0.0 | 0.1 | 0.3 | 2.0 | 4.1 | 7.9 |
| Rain days | 11 | 10 | 11 | 7 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 8 | 11 |
| Snow days | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Rainfall (in) | Rain days | Snow days | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 7.2 | 11 | 1 |
| Feb | 6.9 | 10 | 1 |
| Mar | 5.9 | 11 | 0 |
| Apr | 2.9 | 7 | 0 |
| May | 1.9 | 5 | 0 |
| Jun | 0.6 | 2 | 0 |
| Jul | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Aug | 0.1 | 0 | 0 |
| Sep | 0.3 | 1 | 0 |
| Oct | 2.0 | 4 | 0 |
| Nov | 4.1 | 8 | 0 |
| Dec | 7.9 | 11 | 1 |
Clouds and sunshine
How often the daytime sky is clear, partly cloudy or overcast.
In Chico, 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 12 and lasts for 5.7 months, ending around October 31. The clearest month is August, when the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 95% of the time on average.
The cloudier part of the year begins around November 1 and lasts for 6.3 months, ending around May 11. The cloudiest month is January, when it is overcast or mostly cloudy 57% of the time.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clearer (%) | 43 | 45 | 49 | 58 | 69 | 84 | 94 | 95 | 91 | 78 | 56 | 44 |
| Cloudier (%) | 57 | 55 | 51 | 42 | 31 | 16 | 6 | 5 | 9 | 22 | 44 | 56 |
| Clearer (%) | Cloudier (%) | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 43 | 57 |
| Feb | 45 | 55 |
| Mar | 49 | 51 |
| Apr | 58 | 42 |
| May | 69 | 31 |
| Jun | 84 | 16 |
| Jul | 94 | 6 |
| Aug | 95 | 5 |
| Sep | 91 | 9 |
| Oct | 78 | 22 |
| Nov | 56 | 44 |
| Dec | 44 | 56 |
Daylight, sunrise and sunset
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 11, brings about 14 h 48 min of light; the shortest, around January 1, only 9 h 12 min — a swing of roughly 5 h 36 min.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daylight (h) | 9.5 | 10.4 | 11.7 | 13.0 | 14.2 | 14.8 | 14.5 | 13.6 | 12.3 | 10.9 | 9.8 | 9.2 |
| Sunrise (AM) | 7:32 | 7:09 | 6:27 | 5:36 | 4:58 | 4:44 | 4:56 | 5:24 | 5:54 | 6:24 | 6:59 | 7:27 |
| Sunset (PM) | 5:01 | 5:35 | 6:07 | 6:39 | 7:09 | 7:31 | 7:30 | 6:59 | 6:09 | 5:20 | 4:46 | 4:40 |
| Daylight (h) | Sunrise (AM) | Sunset (PM) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 9.5 | 7:32 | 5:01 |
| Feb | 10.4 | 7:09 | 5:35 |
| Mar | 11.7 | 6:27 | 6:07 |
| Apr | 13.0 | 5:36 | 6:39 |
| May | 14.2 | 4:58 | 7:09 |
| Jun | 14.8 | 4:44 | 7:31 |
| Jul | 14.5 | 4:56 | 7:30 |
| Aug | 13.6 | 5:24 | 6:59 |
| Sep | 12.3 | 5:54 | 6:09 |
| Oct | 10.9 | 6:24 | 5:20 |
| Nov | 9.8 | 6:59 | 4:46 |
| Dec | 9.2 | 7:27 | 4:40 |
Sunny days
How many genuinely sunny days each month brings — days the sky stays clear or mostly clear — banded into plain-language zones.
Chico averages about 17 sunny days a month — counting the days the sky stays clear or mostly clear — with a clear seasonal swing between 10 and 28 days.
The sunnier stretch runs 5.1 months, from around May 25 to Oct 27. The sunniest month is August, with roughly 27 sunny days (brilliant).
The greyest month is January, down near 10 sunny days — about 63% fewer than the August peak.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sunny days | 10 | 9 | 11 | 13 | 17 | 22 | 28 | 28 | 25 | 20 | 12 | 11 |
| Sky | Mixed | Mixed | Mixed | Mixed | Bright | Bright | Brilliant | Brilliant | Brilliant | Bright | Mixed | Mixed |
| Sunny days | Sky | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 10 | Mixed |
| Feb | 9 | Mixed |
| Mar | 11 | Mixed |
| Apr | 13 | Mixed |
| May | 17 | Bright |
| Jun | 22 | Bright |
| Jul | 28 | Brilliant |
| Aug | 28 | Brilliant |
| Sep | 25 | Brilliant |
| Oct | 20 | Bright |
| Nov | 12 | Mixed |
| Dec | 11 | Mixed |
Humidity comfort
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 Chico, the air stays dry or comfortable essentially all year. Even in August, the muggiest month, it feels humid or worse only about 1% of the time — humidity is not something you need to plan around here.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dry (%) | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 97 | 95 | 92 | 94 | 97 | 98 | 100 | 100 |
| Comfortable (%) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 5 | 8 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Humid (%) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Dry (%) | Comfortable (%) | Humid (%) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 100 | 0 | 0 |
| Feb | 100 | 1 | 0 |
| Mar | 100 | 0 | 0 |
| Apr | 100 | 0 | 0 |
| May | 97 | 3 | 0 |
| Jun | 95 | 5 | 0 |
| Jul | 92 | 8 | 0 |
| Aug | 94 | 5 | 1 |
| Sep | 97 | 2 | 0 |
| Oct | 98 | 2 | 0 |
| Nov | 100 | 0 | 0 |
| Dec | 100 | 0 | 0 |
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.
Wind in Chico is steady company: average speeds sit near 6 mph — calm — in every month of the year, with no meaningful windy or calm season.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wind speed (mph) | 6 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 7 |
| Feels | calm | calm | calm | calm | calm | calm | calm | calm | calm | calm | calm | calm |
| Wind speed (mph) | Feels | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 6 | calm |
| Feb | 7 | calm |
| Mar | 7 | calm |
| Apr | 6 | calm |
| May | 6 | calm |
| Jun | 6 | calm |
| Jul | 5 | calm |
| Aug | 5 | calm |
| Sep | 5 | calm |
| Oct | 6 | calm |
| Nov | 6 | calm |
| Dec | 7 | calm |
Hazard calendar for Chico
When the seasonal hazards worth planning around — the rainy season, tropical-cyclone risk and dust haze — are active through the year.
Chico's rainy season runs November–March, when most of the year's rain falls.
Best time to visit Chico
To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Chico throughout the year, we compute two travel scores — one for general sightseeing, one for beach and pool weather.
Around late May, Chico is still near the tail of its best-weather window — great conditions with the peak-season crowds already thinning.
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 times of year to visit Chico for general outdoor tourist activities run from mid April to late May and again from late September to mid November, with a peak score in the third week of October.
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).
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Travel score (0–10) | 3.9 | 4.6 | 5.8 | 7.0 | 7.5 | 5.2 | 3.2 | 3.7 | 5.8 | 8.0 | 5.9 | 3.7 |
| Rating | fair | fair | good | good | ideal | fair | poor | fair | good | ideal | good | fair |
| Travel score (0–10) | Rating | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 3.9 | fair |
| Feb | 4.6 | fair |
| Mar | 5.8 | good |
| Apr | 7.0 | good |
| May | 7.5 | ideal |
| Jun | 5.2 | fair |
| Jul | 3.2 | poor |
| Aug | 3.7 | fair |
| Sep | 5.8 | good |
| Oct | 8.0 | ideal |
| Nov | 5.9 | good |
| Dec | 3.7 | fair |
The beach/pool score favors clear, rainless days with daytime highs between 75°F and 93°F. Based on this score, the best times of year to visit Chico for hot-weather activities run from early May to mid July and again from early August to late October, with a peak score in the last week of September.
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 Chico, by month
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 96°F), the essentials are light clothes and sun protection. In the cold season around December (highs near 56°F), pack a warm layer and rain gear.
In July, Chico sees daytime highs around 96°F and nights near 67°F. Pack light clothes and sun protection.
UV index (midday) in Chico by month
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 Chico peaks around June 22 at about 10 (very high) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 13 at about 2 (low).
The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 9 months of the year.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UV index (midday) | 2 | 3 | 5 | 6 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 8 | 6 | 5 | 2 | 2 |
| Level | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | High | Very high | Very high | Very high | Very high | High | Moderate | Low | Low |
| UV index (midday) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 2 | Moderate |
| Feb | 3 | Moderate |
| Mar | 5 | Moderate |
| Apr | 6 | High |
| May | 9 | Very high |
| Jun | 10 | Very high |
| Jul | 10 | Very high |
| Aug | 8 | Very high |
| Sep | 6 | High |
| Oct | 5 | Moderate |
| Nov | 2 | Low |
| Dec | 2 | Low |
Average hourly UV index in Chico
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.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UV ≥ 3 (h/day) | 0 | 1.5 | 4.5 | 6 | 8 | 8.5 | 8.5 | 7.5 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| UV ≥ 6 (h/day) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 5.5 | 5.5 | 4.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| UV ≥ 3 (h/day) | UV ≥ 6 (h/day) | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 0 | 0 |
| Feb | 1.5 | 0 |
| Mar | 4.5 | 0 |
| Apr | 6 | 1 |
| May | 8 | 5 |
| Jun | 8.5 | 5.5 |
| Jul | 8.5 | 5.5 |
| Aug | 7.5 | 4.5 |
| Sep | 6 | 0 |
| Oct | 4 | 0 |
| Nov | 0 | 0 |
| Dec | 0 | 0 |
Air quality in Chico by month
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 Chico is worst in July — around 64 µg/m³ PM2.5 (unhealthy), about 8.2× the cleanest month (December, 8 µg/m³).
Modeled monthly averages (CAMS reanalysis, 2015–2024).
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | 9 | 11 | 13 | 13 | 10 | 10 | 64 | 59 | 63 | 17 | 37 | 8 |
| Level | Good | Good | Moderate | Moderate | Good | Good | Unhealthy | Unhealthy | Unhealthy | Moderate | Poor | Good |
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 9 | Good |
| Feb | 11 | Good |
| Mar | 13 | Moderate |
| Apr | 13 | Moderate |
| May | 10 | Good |
| Jun | 10 | Good |
| Jul | 64 | Unhealthy |
| Aug | 59 | Unhealthy |
| Sep | 63 | Unhealthy |
| Oct | 17 | Moderate |
| Nov | 37 | Poor |
| Dec | 8 | Good |
Growing season
Chico is mild enough that a frost-free day stays more likely than not even in midwinter. Nights are reliably above freezing from about January 4 to December 15 (346 days); outside that window a hard frost is an occasional risk.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Frost-free chance (%) | 93 | 96 | 99 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 98 | 90 |
| Frost nights | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| Frost-free chance (%) | Frost nights | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 93 | 3 |
| Feb | 96 | 0 |
| Mar | 99 | 0 |
| Apr | 100 | 0 |
| May | 100 | 0 |
| Jun | 100 | 0 |
| Jul | 100 | 0 |
| Aug | 100 | 0 |
| Sep | 100 | 0 |
| Oct | 100 | 0 |
| Nov | 98 | 0 |
| Dec | 90 | 10 |
Growing degree days
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. Chico banks about 4,967 degree days a year, and the running total — which growers use to time plantings and predict maturity — climbs fastest around July.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Growing degree days (°F·days) | 0 | 24 | 139 | 283 | 541 | 776 | 971 | 923 | 729 | 461 | 119 | 0 |
| Growing degree days (°F·days) | |
|---|---|
| Jan | 0 |
| Feb | 24 |
| Mar | 139 |
| Apr | 283 |
| May | 541 |
| Jun | 776 |
| Jul | 971 |
| Aug | 923 |
| Sep | 729 |
| Oct | 461 |
| Nov | 119 |
| Dec | 0 |
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.
Chico receives about 5.1 kWh/m² a day of solar energy on average — bright — with a clear seasonal swing between 1.9 and 8.3 kWh/m².
The brighter stretch of the year lasts 6.1 months, from around Mar 29 to Sep 29. The brightest month is July, averaging about 8.2 kWh/m² (intense).
The dimmest month is December, down near 1.9 kWh/m² — roughly 76% less than the July peak.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Solar energy (kWh/m²) | 2.1 | 3.1 | 4.4 | 6.0 | 7.2 | 8.1 | 8.2 | 7.4 | 5.9 | 4.1 | 2.6 | 1.9 |
| Level | Moderate | Moderate | Bright | Intense | Intense | Intense | Intense | Intense | Bright | Bright | Moderate | Dim |
| Solar energy (kWh/m²) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 2.1 | Moderate |
| Feb | 3.1 | Moderate |
| Mar | 4.4 | Bright |
| Apr | 6.0 | Intense |
| May | 7.2 | Intense |
| Jun | 8.1 | Intense |
| Jul | 8.2 | Intense |
| Aug | 7.4 | Intense |
| Sep | 5.9 | Bright |
| Oct | 4.1 | Bright |
| Nov | 2.6 | Moderate |
| Dec | 1.9 | Dim |
Where is Chico?
Chico sits at 39.7°N, 121.8°W, 197 ft above sea level, in United States. The nearest listed city is Paradise, 12 mi away.
Topography around Chico
How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 2, 10 and 50 miles of Chico.
Within 2 miles, the terrain around Chico has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 128 ft around an average of 207 ft above sea level; within 10 miles, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,860 ft; within 50 miles, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 7,772 ft.
The land around Chico is covered by trees (62%) and artificial surfaces (29%) within 2 miles, trees (51%) and grassland (33%) within 10 miles, and trees (52%) and grassland (32%) within 50 miles.
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
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 Chico (39.7285°, -121.8375°, elevation 197 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).