Frost dates in Birmingham, Alabama
NOAA 1991–2020 normals for a 32 °F freeze. Low spots and the edge of town run colder than downtown.
Short answer
The average last spring frost in Birmingham is March 21, and the average first fall frost is November 11, from NOAA's Birmingham Airport station, 4 miles from the middle of Birmingham. 1 year in 10 the last frost comes after April 8, and the first one by October 30. That leaves about 235 frost-free days. Birmingham is in USDA planting zone 8a.
Weather stations around Birmingham
The first row is the date most people in Birmingham go by. The others show how far the dates move across the area.
| Station | Last spring frost | First fall frost | Frost-free |
|---|---|---|---|
| Birmingham Airport 4 mi away, 615 ft | March 21 1 in 10 after April 8 | November 11 1 in 10 by October 30 | 235 days |
| Pinson 13 mi away, 608 ft | April 4 1 in 10 after April 22 | November 1 1 in 10 by October 21 | 211 days |
| Bessemer 3 WSW 15 mi away, 445 ft | March 23 1 in 10 after April 11 | November 10 1 in 10 by October 27 | 232 days |
| Helena 18 mi away, 480 ft | March 19 1 in 10 after April 9 | November 8 1 in 10 by October 26 | 234 days |
| Alabaster Shelby Co Airport 24 mi away, 565 ft | March 12 1 in 10 after March 31 | November 16 1 in 10 by November 1 | 249 days |
Distances are from the middle of Birmingham as the Census Bureau maps it. The average date is NOAA's 50% date: half of years have a later last frost, or an earlier first one. Plan by the 1-in-10 date if a freeze would cost you plants. The planting zone is the USDA 2023 zone for ZIP code 35203, at the middle of the city.
Your exact ZIP code
Birmingham covers a lot of ground. For the station nearest your own street, and its planting zone, type your ZIP code.
How these dates work
Frost dates come from NOAA's 1991 to 2020 Climate Normals, which work out from each weather station's daily lows how likely the last spring freeze and the first fall freeze (32 °F) are by each date. We use the station nearest the middle of your ZIP code and show its height and distance, since a station on a hill or by a lake can differ from your yard.
The average date is the 50% date: half of years have a freeze after the spring date or before the fall one. The 1-in-10 dates are NOAA's 10% dates, the ones to plan by if a late freeze would cost you plants. Within one yard, cold air pools in low spots while walls and paving hold heat, so some corners freeze before others.
More frost dates
All of Alabama, station by station.
Other Alabama cities: Huntsville · Mobile · Montgomery
Nearby: Columbus, GA · Atlanta, GA
Where the numbers come from
- USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map, 2023. Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture
- PRISM Climate Group, Oregon State University (zone data)
- NOAA NCEI, U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020, annual/seasonal
- NOAA, Normals calculation methodology (frost-freeze probability dates)
- US Census Bureau, 2025 ZCTA gazetteer (ZIP code centers)
- US Census Bureau, 2025 city population estimates and place gazetteer