USDA Hardiness Zone 9a
Frost Dates for 36542 — Gulf Shores, Alabama
NOAA 1991–2020 normals from Dauphin Is #2, AL (8 ft), 21 miles west.
Updated
A freeze (32°F) reaches Gulf Shores in 79% of winters. When it does, the first freeze of winter comes around January 6 and the last freeze of winter around January 31; after February 27 the chance of another is under 8%.
- Last freeze
- January 31
- First freeze
- January 6
- Winters with a freeze
- 79%
- Hardiness zone
- 9a
50%, in freezing years
50%, in freezing years
32°F or below, 1991–2020
20 to 25°F (-6.7 to -3.9°C) coldest night
- First snow
- Rare
- Last snow
- Rare
- Winters with snow
- 0%
- Snow per year
- 0"
median, 1991–2020
median, 1991–2020
0 of 20 observed
NOAA normal
Frost risk by date in Gulf Shores
In the 79% of winters that bring a 32°F night, half of winters at Dauphin Is #2, AL see their last 32°F night by January 31; only one in ten is past it by January 1, and one in ten still has one after February 27. Counting the winters with no freeze at all, the risk of a 32°F night after February 27 is under 8% and after January 31 39%. The 27 days between the even-odds date and the one-in-ten date is the widest of the 115 Alabama stations behind this site's ZIP pages, so a fixed calendar date is a gamble here.
In fall the first 32°F night comes by January 6 in half of years, as early as December 12 one year in ten, and holds off past February 2 one year in ten. A hard freeze of 28°F is less common: it came in 44% of winters. On average 4 nights a year drop to 32°F or below. Nights of 36°F, when frost can still settle on leaves in low, open spots, continue 11 days longer, to about February 11, and return around December 28. A 24°F night is unusual: 15% of winters had one.
| Low | 90% | 80% | 70% | 60% | 50% | 40% | 30% | 20% | 10% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 36°F98% of yrs | Jan 14 | Jan 25 | Feb 1 | Feb 6 | Feb 11 | Feb 17 | Feb 24 | Mar 1 | Mar 10 |
| 32°F79% of yrs | Jan 1 | Jan 11 | Jan 17 | Jan 24 | Jan 31 | Feb 2 | Feb 8 | Feb 17 | Feb 27 |
| 28°F44% of yrs | too rare for a date | ||||||||
| 24°F15% of yrs | too rare for a date | ||||||||
| 20°F2% of yrs | too rare for a date | ||||||||
| Low | 10% | 20% | 30% | 40% | 50% | 60% | 70% | 80% | 90% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 36°F98% of yrs | Nov 27 | Dec 7 | Dec 14 | Dec 22 | Dec 28 | Jan 1 | Jan 5 | Jan 12 | Jan 21 |
| 32°F79% of yrs | Dec 12 | Dec 21 | Dec 29 | Jan 1 | Jan 6 | Jan 12 | Jan 17 | Jan 25 | Feb 2 |
| 28°F44% of yrs | too rare for a date | ||||||||
| 24°F15% of yrs | too rare for a date | ||||||||
| 20°F2% of yrs | too rare for a date | ||||||||
Freeze probabilities 1991–2020 at Dauphin Is #2, AL, from NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals. Where a temperature is reached in fewer than 99.5% of years, the dates describe only the years that reach it. Not a forecast.
Frost risk on any date in 36542 →Compare Gulf Shores with another place →
Weather by month in Gulf Shores
July is the warmest month at Dauphin Is #2, AL, averaging 88°F by day and 78°F at night; January is the coldest at 59°F and 46°F. From March to November the chance of a 32°F night stays under 10% each month. In spring, February still brings one in 31% of years.
Warmth for growing adds up to 7,183 growing degree days a year (base 50°F), more than at 99% of the 115 Alabama stations. 41% of them (2,974) have built up by the end of June, and July adds the most, 1,029. Precipitation totals 61.1 inches a year, most in July (6.8") and least in October (3.5"); May to September bring 47% of it.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | 32°F night | Nights ≤ 32°F | GDD 50°F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 59 | 46 | 5.2 | 56% | 2 | 141 |
| Feb | 62 | 49 | 4.4 | 31% | 1 | 181 |
| Mar | 67 | 56 | 4.9 | 7% | <1 | 358 |
| Apr | 74 | 63 | 5.2 | 0% | 0 | 549 |
| May | 81 | 71 | 5.0 | 0% | 0 | 806 |
| Jun | 86 | 76 | 5.9 | 0% | 0 | 939 |
| Jul | 88 | 78 | 6.8 | 0% | 0 | 1029 |
| Aug | 88 | 78 | 6.0 | 0% | 0 | 1029 |
| Sep | 85 | 76 | 5.2 | 0% | 0 | 910 |
| Oct | 77 | 67 | 3.5 | 0% | 0 | 684 |
| Nov | 68 | 56 | 3.9 | 2% | 0 | 359 |
| Dec | 61 | 49 | 5.1 | 26% | 1 | 198 |
Monthly normals 1991–2020 at Dauphin Is #2, AL (8 ft), NOAA NCEI. "32°F night": chance of at least one in the month. GDD: growing degree days, base 50°F.
Compared with the next station
The nearest other station, Robertsdale, AL, 21 miles north of Gulf Shores and 153 feet higher, has a last frost 33 days later (March 5), a first frost 44 days earlier (November 23), a season 76 days shorter.
When it snows in Gulf Shores, Alabama
Measurable snow is rare here: only 0 of 20 winters from 1991 to 2020 recorded 0.1 inch or more at Dauphin Is #2, AL, 20.9 miles away, so there is no typical first-snow date to plan around.
Where these figures come from
ZIP 36542 is 21 miles from Dauphin Is #2, AL, which stands at 8 feet, the nearest NOAA station that publishes freeze probabilities for 1991–2020. The 2023 USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map lists ZIP 36542 in zone 9a, the band where the coldest night of the year averaged 20 to 25°F (-6.7 to -3.9°C) over 1991–2020; a zone describes winter lows, not frost dates.
Hardiness zone and temperature range: USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map 2023 (USDA-ARS, Oregon State University), ZIP-code listing, unchanged. °C converted from °F by this site.
Thirty-year averages, not a forecast: check the forecast before planting out. How stations are matched and which pages are offered to search engines: methodology.