Frost dates in El Paso, Texas
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 El Paso is March 2, and the average first fall frost is November 20, from NOAA's El Paso Intl Airport station, 4 miles from the middle of El Paso. 1 year in 10 the last frost comes after March 19, and the first one by November 6. That leaves about 263 frost-free days. El Paso is in USDA planting zone 8b.
Weather stations around El Paso
The first row is the date most people in El Paso go by. The others show how far the dates move across the area.
| Station | Last spring frost | First fall frost | Frost-free |
|---|---|---|---|
| El Paso Intl Airport 4 mi away, 3,918 ft | March 2 1 in 10 after March 19 | November 20 1 in 10 by November 6 | 263 days |
| La Tuna 1 S 13 mi away, 3,870 ft | February 28 1 in 10 after March 17 | November 20 1 in 10 by November 5 | 265 days |
| Santa Teresa Airport 16 mi away, 4,109 ft | March 23 1 in 10 after April 9 | November 11 1 in 10 by October 29 | 233 days |
| El Paso 32 ENE 28 mi away, 5,240 ft | March 24 1 in 10 after April 10 | November 11 1 in 10 by October 23 | 232 days |
| State Univ 36 mi away, 3,886 ft | March 12 1 in 10 after April 2 | November 13 1 in 10 by October 30 | 246 days |
Distances are from the middle of El Paso 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 79904, at the middle of the city.
Your exact ZIP code
El Paso 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 Texas, station by station.
Other Texas cities: Houston · San Antonio · Dallas · Fort Worth · Austin · Arlington · Corpus Christi · Plano · Lubbock · Laredo · Irving · Garland · Frisco · McKinney · Grand Prairie · Amarillo · Brownsville · Denton · Killeen · Mesquite · McAllen · Pasadena · Waco · Midland · Round Rock
Nearby: Albuquerque, NM · Tucson, AZ
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