Frost dates in Oakland, California

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 Oakland is January 7, and the average first fall frost is December 23, from NOAA's Oakland Metro Intl Airport station, 3 miles from the middle of Oakland. 1 year in 10 the last frost comes after February 8, and the first one by November 30. That leaves about 350 frost-free days. Oakland is in USDA planting zone 10a.

Weather stations around Oakland

The first row is the date most people in Oakland go by. The others show how far the dates move across the area.

Station	Last spring frost	First fall frost	Frost-free
Oakland Metro Intl Airport 3 mi away, 6 ft	January 7 1 in 10 after February 8	December 23 1 in 10 by November 30	350 days
Oakland Museum 3 mi away, 30 ft	Frost too rare to date (32 °F in under 1 year in 10)
Berkeley 7 mi away, 310 ft	January 3 1 in 10 after February 14	January 1 1 in 10 by December 10	363 days
Hayward Air Terminal 10 mi away, 43 ft	January 2 1 in 10 after January 27	December 25 1 in 10 by December 6	357 days
San Francisco Dwtn 11 mi away, 150 ft	Frost too rare to date (32 °F in under 1 year in 10)

Distances are from the middle of Oakland 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 94601, at the middle of the city.

Your exact ZIP code

Oakland 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 California, station by station.

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