Clifton weather in October

In October, Clifton sees average daytime highs of 62°F and overnight lows near 37°F, with 2.0 in of precipitation across 8.1 wet days and about 11 hours of daylight. It is the 6th-warmest and 6th-wettest month of the year here.

Highs ease over the month, from about 68°F in the first days to 55°F by the end. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 58% of the time in October, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 11 h 36 min at the start of October to 10 h 24 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, October is Clifton's 2nd-clearest and 7th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Clifton's year-round climate.

Daytime high
62°
6th warmest
Overnight low
37°
7th coldest
Precipitation
2.0 in
8.1 wet days
Daylight
11 hours
6:30 AM – 5:28 PM
Cloud cover
37%
2nd clearest
Wind
3 mph
7th windiest
Solar energy
4.3 kWh/m²
Travel score
5.8
out of 10

Clifton is census-designated place in Mesa County, Colorado, United States.

Density
1,250/km²
people per km²

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

Temperature in October

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Highs ease over the month, from about 68°F in the first days to 55°F by the end.

A typical October day in Clifton reaches about 62°F in the afternoon and slips back to 37°F overnight — a 24°F spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 49°F and 73°F. Set against its neighbours, October runs about 13°F cooler than September and about 15°F warmer than November.

20°40°60°80°151015202531
Avg high (°F)Avg low (°F)
16943
26843
36842
46742
56742
66641
76641
86540
96540
106540
116439
126439
136338
146338
156238
166237
176237
186137
196136
206036
216035
225935
235835
245834
255734
265733
275633
285533
295532
305432
315431

How October really feels in Clifton

Once humidity and wind are folded in, October averages 0 days that feel above 90°F and 9 that feel at or below 32°F — the comfort signal a plain temperature reading hides.

Days feeling ≥ 90°F
0
heat index over the day's high
Days feeling ≤ 32°F
9
wind chill below the day's low

The story in October is cold — wind chill drags the overnight "feels like" below the raw low.

Clifton weather by month

How October compares with the rest of the year at a glance. October is the 6th-warmest and 6th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°F)Rainfall (inches)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan34° / 13°1.57.57.29.60.0
Feb39° / 19°1.798.110.50.0
Mar49° / 27°2.09.56.511.72.2
Apr58° / 34°2.09.73.8134.5
May70° / 44°1.98.80.614.16.8
Jun82° / 53°1.04.8014.77.0
Jul87° / 60°2.28.6014.55.1
Aug83° / 58°3.211.7013.55.9
Sep75° / 49°2.78.90.112.37.3
Oct62° / 37°2.08.11.6115.8
Nov47° / 25°1.774.99.91.6
Dec35° / 15°1.57.37.39.30.0

Cloud cover in October

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 58% of the time in October.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 16% of October, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 26%. Skies tend to cloud over as the month goes on.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
17822
27822
37822
47822
57822
67723
77723
87723
97723
107822
117822
127822
137822
147822
157624
167624
177624
187426
197327
207327
217129
227030
237030
246832
256832
266832
276733
286733
296733
306733
316634

Chance of precipitation in October

Any precipitationSnow

Clifton gets around 2.0 in of rain and snow over 8.1 wet days in October. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Day to day, the chance of measurable precipitation averages around 25% and peaks near 27% on the wettest days, and about 2 days bring snow.

0%10%20%30%40%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
1261
2261
3271
4271
5271
6271
7261
8262
9252
10242
11242
12232
13232
14232
15233
16233
17233
18234
19245
20245
21256
22257
23268
24269
252610
262710
272711
282612
292612
302613
312513

Humidity in October

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

Most of October feels dry — the stacked bands show each day's mix of comfort levels, read off the dew point.

By dew point, October lands in the dry band about 100% of days. It rarely turns muggy — the humid and sticky bands barely register.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Dry (%)
1100
2100
3100
4100
5100
6100
7100
8100
9100
10100
11100
12100
13100
14100
15100
16100
17100
18100
19100
20100
21100
22100
23100
24100
25100
26100
27100
28100
29100
30100
31100

Wind in October

Winds average 3 mph in October.

Across October, daily wind ranges from about 3 mph on the calmest days to 4 mph at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

0246810151015202531
Wind speed (mph)Feels
14calm
24calm
34calm
44calm
54calm
64calm
74calm
84calm
94calm
104calm
113calm
123calm
133calm
143calm
153calm
163calm
173calm
183calm
193calm
203calm
213calm
223calm
233calm
243calm
253calm
263calm
273calm
283calm
293calm
303calm
313calm

Sunrise & sunset in October

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 11 h 36 min at the start of October to 10 h 24 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days shrink by about 72 minutes over October. Sunrise moves from 6:15 AM to 6:46 AM, and sunset from 5:51 PM to 5:08 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
111.66:155:51
211.66:165:49
311.56:175:47
411.56:185:46
511.46:195:44
611.46:205:43
711.36:215:41
811.36:225:40
911.36:235:38
1011.26:245:36
1111.26:255:35
1211.16:265:33
1311.16:275:32
1411.06:285:30
1511.06:295:29
1611.06:305:28
1710.96:315:26
1810.96:325:25
1910.86:335:23
2010.86:345:22
2110.86:355:21
2210.76:375:19
2310.76:385:18
2410.66:395:17
2510.66:405:15
2610.66:415:14
2710.56:425:13
2810.56:435:12
2910.46:445:11
3010.46:455:09
3110.46:465:08

Solar energy in October

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in October, about 4.3 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 2.58 kWh/m² to a high of 8.07 kWh/m² in June across the year — October's 4.3 kWh/m² falls in the middle.

0246151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
15.0Bright
25.0Bright
34.9Bright
44.9Bright
54.8Bright
64.8Bright
74.8Bright
84.7Bright
94.7Bright
104.6Bright
114.6Bright
124.5Bright
134.5Bright
144.5Bright
154.4Bright
164.3Bright
174.3Bright
184.3Bright
194.2Bright
204.1Bright
214.1Bright
224.0Bright
234.0Moderate
243.9Moderate
253.9Moderate
263.8Moderate
273.8Moderate
283.7Moderate
293.7Moderate
303.7Moderate
313.6Moderate
Planning a trip in October

Is October a good time to visit Clifton?

Our two travel scores rate October for general sightseeing and for beach or pool weather — 0 (poor) to 10 (ideal).

5.8
Sightseeing
5th-best month of the year
1.5
Beach & pool
6th-best month of the year

October is a reasonable time to visit Clifton for sightseeing.

What to pack for Clifton in October

From October's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.

In October, Clifton sees daytime highs around 62°F and nights near 37°F. Worth packing: a warm layer and rain gear. About 8 days see rain.

a warm layerrain gear

UV index in Clifton in October

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in October peaks around 6 — enough to warrant sun protection. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Clifton peaks around July 16 at about 11 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 20 at about 2 (moderate).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 10 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModerateHighVery highExtremeVery highHighModerateJul 16UV 11Dec 20UV 2
UV index (midday)Level
Jan3Moderate
Feb4Moderate
Mar6High
Apr6High
May8Very high
Jun11Extreme
Jul11Extreme
Aug10Extreme
Sep7Very high
Oct6High
Nov3Moderate
Dec2Moderate
Location & terrain

Where is Clifton?

Clifton sits at 39.1°N, 108.4°W, 4,724 ft above sea level, in United States. The nearest listed city is Grand Junction, 5.6 mi away.

Topography around Clifton

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

Within 2 miles, the terrain around Clifton has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 322 ft around an average of 4,728 ft above sea level; within 10 miles, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 4,150 ft; within 50 miles, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 7,149 ft.

The land around Clifton is covered by artificial surfaces (31%) and grassland (21%) within 2 miles, grassland (34%) and bare terrain (22%) within 10 miles, and trees (40%), grassland (25%) and shrubs (22%) within 50 miles.

2 miles
322 ft
10 miles
4,150 ft
50 miles
7,149 ft
treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater
October weather nearby: Grand Junction 5.6 mi · Montrose 52 mi · Moab 69 mi · Telluride 87 mi · Aspen 88 mi · Durango 129 mi · Farmington 164 mi · Rock Springs 177 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 Clifton (39.0919°, -108.449°, elevation 4,724 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. Topography is sampled from the Copernicus DEM GLO-90 elevation model (© ESA/Airbus) and ESA WorldCover 2021 land cover (CC BY 4.0).