Climate and average weather in Kalispell

In Kalispell, the summers are warm, fairly dry, and mostly clear and the winters are very cold, snowy, and mostly cloudy.

Best: late June to late September

Over the course of the year, the temperature in Kalispell typically varies from 17°F to 78°F, and is rarely below -4°F or above 90°F. August is the hottest month of the year, while January is the coldest.

Based on the travel score, the best time of year to visit Kalispell for warm-weather activities is from late June to late September.

Hottest
Aug
78°
Coldest
Jan
17°
Wettest
Jun
3.5 in
Driest
Aug
1.2 in
Rain / yr
29.1 in
137 wet days
Daylight
8.1–15.9 h
shortest–longest
Elevation
2,956 ft
48.2°N
Clearest
Jul
38% cloud

Kalispell is seat of Flathead County, Montana, United States.

Density
726/km²
people per km²

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

Kalispell 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 late June to late September.

Temperature through the year

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

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

The hot season lasts 2.9 months, from June 18 to September 13, with daily high temperatures above 67°F. The hottest month of the year in Kalispell is August, with an average high of 78°F and low of 50°F.

The cool season lasts 3.7 months, from November 15 to March 8, with daily high temperatures below 38°F. The coldest month of the year in Kalispell is January, with an average low of 17°F and high of 29°F.

Days typically run about 19°F warmer than nights, with the widest day–night swing (around 28°F) in August.

20°40°60°80°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Avg high (°F)Avg low (°F)
Jan2917
Feb3318
Mar4023
Apr5030
May6038
Jun6745
Jul7750
Aug7850
Sep6643
Oct5134
Nov3826
Dec3019

How hot and cold Kalispell 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 11°F (around January 1), with roughly 205 freezing days a year (feels-like at or below 32°F) 57 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)
Jan29291617
Feb33331318
Mar41401923
Apr50502630
May61603638
Jun67674345
Jul77775050
Aug77785050
Sep66664243
Oct51513134
Nov38382126
Dec30301419

Average hourly temperature in Kalispell

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 August afternoons, near 78°F, and coldest before dawn in January, near 17°F.

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

Kalispell 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
Jan29° / 17°2.71414.38.60.0
Feb33° / 18°2.111.211.49.90.0
Mar40° / 23°2.614.210.111.60.2
Apr50° / 30°2.714.15.313.42.1
May60° / 38°3.013.71.214.94.5
Jun67° / 45°3.512.10.415.85.9
Jul77° / 50°1.25.7015.57.8
Aug78° / 50°1.250.114.17.9
Sep66° / 43°1.87.10.112.46.6
Oct51° / 34°2.611.92.810.62.6
Nov38° / 26°3.014.110.690.0
Dec30° / 19°2.713.414.18.20.0

Chance of rain

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

Kalispell gets about 29.1 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 8.2 months, from around Oct 16 to Jun 23, peaking in April at about 50% chance on a given day. The drier stretch runs the rest of the year, bottoming out around Jul 25.

June is the wettest month by volume, with 3.5 in over about 12 wet days; August is the driest, with 1.2 in. Some of the cold-season precipitation falls as snow.

0%10%20%30%40%50%60%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecwetterdrierwettermostly drysome rainoften wetvery wetApr 6 · 50%Jul 25 · 15%
Rain on a day (%)Rain days
Jan4414
Feb4111
Mar4614
Apr4714
May4314
Jun4012
Jul196
Aug175
Sep247
Oct3712
Nov4714
Dec4413

Monthly rainfall

Over a full year, Kalispell collects about 29.1 in of rain across 137 wet days — roughly 2.4 in in an average month.

It doesn’t fall evenly. June is the wettest month with 3.5 in, while August is the driest at just 1.2 in. The three wettest months alone bring about 33% of the year’s total, and some of the cold-season precipitation falls as snow.

00.511.522.533.544.5JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec2.72.12.62.73.03.51.21.21.82.63.02.7
Rainfall (in)Rain daysSnow days
Jan2.71414
Feb2.11111
Mar2.61410
Apr2.7145
May3.0141
Jun3.5120
Jul1.260
Aug1.250
Sep1.870
Oct2.6123
Nov3.01411
Dec2.71314

Snow in Kalispell

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.

Kalispell averages about 70 snowy days a year. Snow season runs roughly Sep 27 to Jun 14 — about 8.6 months.

January is snowiest, with roughly 14 days of snow and an estimated 24 in of snowfall. Over the year that adds up to an estimated 115 in of snow.

05101520JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecsnow seasonsnow seasonJan 7
Snow daysSnowfall (in)
Jan1424
Feb1119
Mar1015
Apr58
May11
Jun02
Jul00
Aug00
Sep00
Oct34
Nov1118
Dec1424

Clouds and sunshine

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

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

In Kalispell, 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 June 16 and lasts for 4.3 months, ending around October 24. The clearest month is July, when the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 74% of the time on average.

The cloudier part of the year begins around October 25 and lasts for 7.7 months, ending around June 15. The cloudiest month is December, when it is overcast or mostly cloudy 79% 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%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecJul 26 · 81%Jan 1 · 19%clearmostly clearpartly cloudymostly cloudyovercastcloudierclearercloudier
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
Jan2278
Feb2971
Mar3070
Apr3070
May3763
Jun4456
Jul7426
Aug7228
Sep6040
Oct4555
Nov2872
Dec2179

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 18, brings about 15 h 54 min of light; the shortest, around December 18, only 8 h 06 min — a swing of roughly 7 h 48 min.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AMJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
Jan8.68:305:03
Feb9.97:555:49
Mar11.67:006:34
Apr13.45:557:20
May14.95:048:03
Jun15.84:428:33
Jul15.54:588:28
Aug14.15:377:45
Sep12.46:216:42
Oct10.67:055:39
Nov9.07:544:51
Dec8.28:294:38

Sunny days

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

Kalispell averages about 8 sunny days a month — counting the days the sky stays clear or mostly clear — with a clear seasonal swing between 3 and 19 days.

The sunnier stretch runs 4.0 months, from around Jun 20 to Oct 20. The sunniest month is July, with roughly 17 sunny days (bright).

The greyest month is January, down near 3 sunny days — about 82% fewer than the July peak.

0510152025JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecgreyersunniergreyergloomymixedbrightbrilliantJul 2819 daysJan 13 days
Sunny daysSky
Jan3Gloomy
Feb4Gloomy
Mar4Gloomy
Apr4Gloomy
May6Gloomy
Jun7Gloomy
Jul17Bright
Aug17Bright
Sep13Mixed
Oct9Mixed
Nov4Gloomy
Dec3Gloomy

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 Kalispell, the air stays dry or comfortable essentially all year. Even in July, the muggiest month, it feels humid or worse only about 0% of the time — humidity is not something you need to plan around here.

0%10%20%30%40%50%60%70%80%90%100%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecdry
Dry (%)Comfortable (%)
Jan1000
Feb1000
Mar1000
Apr1000
May1000
Jun991
Jul937
Aug973
Sep1000
Oct1000
Nov1000
Dec1000

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 Kalispell is steady company: average speeds sit near 3 mphcalm — in every month of the year, with no meaningful windy or calm season.

0510JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDeccalmlight breezeApr 29 · 4 mphJan 18 · 3 mph
Wind speed (mph)Feels
Jan3calm
Feb3calm
Mar4calm
Apr4calm
May4calm
Jun4calm
Jul3calm
Aug3calm
Sep3calm
Oct3calm
Nov3calm
Dec3calm

Best time to visit Kalispell

TravelBeach/poolTemperatureCloudsPrecipitation

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

Around early July, Kalispell 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 Kalispell for general outdoor tourist activities is from late June to mid September, with a peak score in the last week of August.

0246810JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbest timetravel scoretemperaturecloudsprecipitationAug 22 · 8.0

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
Mar0.3poor
Apr2.1poor
May4.5fair
Jun5.9good
Jul7.7ideal
Aug7.9ideal
Sep6.5good
Oct2.6poor
Nov0.1poor
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 Kalispell for hot-weather activities is from early July to late August, with a peak score in the last week of July.

024681012JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbest timebeach/pool scoretemperaturecloudsprecipitationJul 29 · 7.8

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 Kalispell, 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 August (highs near 78°F), the essentials are light clothes and sun protection. In the cold season around January (highs near 29°F), pack a warm layer, a heavy coat and rain gear.

Light clothing
Warm layer
Winter coat
Rain gear
Sun protection
Windbreaker

In August, Kalispell sees daytime highs around 78°F and nights near 50°F. Pack sun protection. Worth having: light clothes. About 5 days see rain.

UV index (midday) in Kalispell 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 Kalispell peaks around July 18 at about 8 (very high) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 18 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 highHighModerateLowJul 18UV 8Dec 18UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan1Low
Feb2Low
Mar4Moderate
Apr5Moderate
May7High
Jun6High
Jul8Very high
Aug7High
Sep4Moderate
Oct3Moderate
Nov1Low
Dec1Low

Average hourly UV index in Kalispell

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 July the burn window is concentrated in the middle of the day: about 8.5 hours a day reach index 3 (protection recommended), and 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
Mar3.50
Apr5.50
May7.52.5
Jun7.52
Jul8.55
Aug73
Sep4.50
Oct1.50
Nov00
Dec00

Air quality in Kalispell 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 Kalispell is worst in August — around 44 µg/m³ PM2.5 (poor), about 10.8× the cleanest month (December, 4 µg/m³).

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

0204060JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecGoodModeratePoorModerateGoodAug 1942 µg/m³Dec 204 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan5Good
Feb6Good
Mar8Good
Apr10Good
May10Good
Jun9Good
Jul15Moderate
Aug44Poor
Sep31Moderate
Oct12Good
Nov7Good
Dec4Good
Almanac & agriculture

Growing season

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

The growing season in Kalispell typically lasts about 184 days, from around April 23 to October 23 — the span where a frost-free day is more likely than not. It is reliably frost-free from May 19 to October 1.

0%25%50%75%100%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecgrowing seasonFeb 2010%Apr 2350%May 1990%Oct 190%Oct 2350%Dec 1610%
Frost-free chance (%)Frost nights
Jan1031
Feb1028
Mar1431
Apr3930
May8518
Jun990
Jul1000
Aug1000
Sep980
Oct6531
Nov2430
Dec1031

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. Kalispell banks about 1,206 degree days a year, and the running total — which growers use to time plantings and predict maturity — climbs fastest around July.

05001,0001,500JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Growing degree days (°F·days)
Jan0
Feb0
Mar0
Apr0
May27
Jun182
Jul426
Aug425
Sep147
Oct0
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.

Kalispell receives about 4.0 kWh/m² a day of solar energy on average — bright — with a clear seasonal swing between 1.0 and 7.3 kWh/m².

The brighter stretch of the year lasts 6.0 months, from around Mar 23 to Sep 22. The brightest month is July, averaging about 7.2 kWh/m² (intense).

The dimmest month is December, down near 1.0 kWh/m² — roughly 86% less than the July peak.

012345678JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecdimmerbrighterdimmerdimmoderatebrightintenseJul 147.3 kWhDec 181.0 kWh
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
Jan1.3Dim
Feb2.3Moderate
Mar3.7Moderate
Apr5.1Bright
May6.2Intense
Jun6.5Intense
Jul7.3Intense
Aug6.2Intense
Sep4.4Bright
Oct2.6Moderate
Nov1.4Dim
Dec1.0Dim

Where is Kalispell?

Kalispell sits at 48.2°N, 114.3°W, 2,956 ft above sea level, in United States. The nearest listed city is Whitefish, 15 mi away.

Topography around Kalispell

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

Within 2 miles, the terrain around Kalispell has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 804 ft around an average of 2,969 ft above sea level; within 10 miles, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,900 ft; within 50 miles, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 7,871 ft.

The land around Kalispell is covered by grassland (36%), trees (30%) and artificial surfaces (29%) within 2 miles, trees (38%), grassland (35%) and cropland (21%) within 10 miles, and trees (73%) within 50 miles.

2 miles
804 ft
10 miles
2,900 ft
50 miles
7,871 ft
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwatermoss and lichen
Nearby: Whitefish 15 mi · Missoula 93 mi · Cranbrook 112 mi · Coeur d'Alene 120 mi · Lethbridge 124 mi · Post Falls 127 mi · Spokane Valley 140 mi · Opportunity 140 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 Kalispell (48.1958°, -114.3129°, elevation 2,956 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).