Columbia, Missouri Weather
Thunder quiets the land. Day 93 of summer. Read this microseason across nine climate regions →
Columbia weather forecast — hour by hour, 7-day outlook, NOAA radar
Conditions updated 1:40 AM CDT · Open-Meteo
- TodaySep 21Light Drizzle later44%0.01″72°64°—
- TuesdaySep 22Overcast12%—64°59°-8°
- WednesdaySep 23Overcast——77°51°+13°
- ThursdaySep 24Overcast——78°53°+1°
- FridaySep 25Overcast——79°58°+1°
- SaturdaySep 26Light Drizzle21%0.01″79°63°0°
- SundaySep 27Overcast19%—79°59°0°
Air quality now AQI 30 · Good
AQI 30 (Good), driven by Ozone. AQI flat over the last 6 hours (within ±3 points).
OK No precautions needed for the general population; unusually sensitive individuals may consider limiting prolonged outdoor exertion.
Trends
Seven days of AQI and PM2.5.
Hourly air-quality data from the Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service, charted across the past and next several days. Dashed lines mark the AQI breakpoints at 50 (Good → Moderate) and 100 (Moderate → Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups).
September dries up ditches or breaks down bridges.
- Moonrise
- 4:40 PM
- Moonset
- 1:34 AM
- In sign
- ♑︎ Capricorn
Thunder quiets the land
Read this microseason across nine climate regions →
All 72 microseasons on the year wheel →
Columbia at a glance
- Today vs. normal: Today averages 68°F (high 72°F, low 64°F), about the 67°F normal for Sep 21
- Last frost: April 5 (1991–2020 median, NOAA station 1 km away)
- Microseason: Sep 21–25
- Planting calendar: September — plant garlic (overwinter); harvest tomatoes, peppers, beans, summer squash, winter squash
15-Day Forecast — Columbia
- Mon72°64°44%
- Tue64°59°12%
- Wed77°51°0%
- Thu78°53°1%
- Fri79°58°5%
- Sat79°63°21%
- Sun79°59°19%
- Mon83°61°19%
- Tue82°62°35%
- Wed81°56°22%
- Thu80°52°10%
- Fri88°57°16%
- Sat91°65°13%
- Sun97°70°6%
- Mon84°62°14%
Forecast data from Open-Meteo (CC BY 4.0).
Live wind & temperature near Columbia
Interactive wind and temperature map centered on Columbia — it loads in your browser. Open the full weather map.
Right now in the garden
Fall planting + final harvests
As of September 21, the season's first frost (typically October 31) is approaching. Pick what frost-tender plants still carry before the next cold front. This city's planting calendar for September: plant garlic (overwinter); harvest tomatoes, peppers, beans, summer squash, and winter squash.
Sun & seasons in Columbia
Columbia sits in Boone County, where the year’s longest day runs 14h 54m of daylight and its shortest just 9h 26m — a swing of +5h 28m between the June and December solstices. Clocks spring forward on Sunday, March 8, 2026 and fall back on Sunday, November 1, 2026.
St. Louis, the state’s largest city, lies about 114 miles to the E. The nearest town Columbia tracks is Rocheport, roughly 13 miles to the W.
Air quality in Columbia
Air quality in Columbia’s county has trended dirtier since 2020; its cleanest year on record was 2020 (median AQI 33). See the full air-quality history for Columbia.
Planting calendar
| Month | Plant | Harvest |
|---|---|---|
| March | lettuce, peas, spinach, radishes | — |
| April | lettuce, peas, spinach, radishes | lettuce, spinach, radishes |
| May | tomatoes, peppers, beans, squash | lettuce, peas, spinach, radishes |
| June | tomatoes, peppers, beans, squash | lettuce, peas, spinach, beans, summer squash, garlic |
| July | tomatoes, peppers, beans, squash | tomatoes, peppers, beans, summer squash, garlic |
| August | beans, squash, fall brassicas, carrots | tomatoes, peppers, beans, summer squash, winter squash |
| September | garlic (overwinter) | tomatoes, peppers, beans, summer squash, winter squash |
| October | garlic (overwinter) | tomatoes, peppers, beans, summer squash, winter squash, fall brassicas, carrots |
| November | — | fall brassicas, carrots |
A year in weather
Columbia's warmest month is July (~79°F mean) and its coldest is January (~31°F). Rainfall peaks in May (5.2 inches) and bottoms out in December (2.2 inches).
| Month | Mean temp | Precip | Rainy days |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 31° | 2.4″ | 8 |
| February | 36° | 2.3″ | 8 |
| March | 46° | 3.2″ | 11 |
| April | 56° | 4.8″ | 11 |
| May | 66° | 5.2″ | 13 |
| June | 75° | 5.1″ | 10 |
| July | 79° | 4.6″ | 8 |
| August | 78° | 4.1″ | 9 |
| September | 69° | 4.3″ | 8 |
| October | 58° | 3.5″ | 10 |
| November | 46° | 3.0″ | 8 |
| December | 35° | 2.2″ | 8 |
Regional context
Similar climates Pierpont, MO, McBaine, MO, Huntsdale, MO
In Columbia, NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 normals put January near 31°F and July near 79°F — a 48°F seasonal arc — with about 44.8 inches of precipitation over 112 rainy or snowy days.
Columbia's rain peaks in summer: May brings 5.2 inches over 12.6 thunderstorm-fed days, while December sees just 2.2 inches across 8.1 days under cooler, drier air. That puts Columbia in a summer-convective cohort with places like Pierpont, MO, McBaine, MO and Huntsdale, MO.
Columbia reaches its last hard frost near April 5; that is the cue for peas, lettuce, spinach, and radishes. Heat-demanding starts go out a fortnight on in Columbia, after the soil warms and cold snaps clear. The season ends by October 31 in Columbia, once hard frosts set back in. Open lawns in Columbia whiten first when frost returns.
Similar climates: Pierpont, MO, McBaine, MO, Huntsdale, MO, Lupus, MO, Wooldridge, MO.
Frequently asked
- When does it freeze in Columbia?
- In Columbia, expect the last spring frost near April 5; Columbia's first autumn frost comes around October 31.
- What is the rainy season in Columbia?
- May is the wettest month in Columbia, about 5.2 inches on average; the year totals roughly 45 inches.
- What is the warmest month in Columbia?
- July is Columbia's warmest month, averaging about 79°F.
- What is the coldest month in Columbia?
- Columbia bottoms out in January, with a mean near 31°F.
- When can I start a vegetable garden in Columbia?
- Frost-hardy sowings begin at April 5 in Columbia; warm-season starts follow two weeks on.
- How many rainy days does Columbia get?
- Columbia averages about 112 days with measurable rain or snow each year.
- What hardiness zone is Columbia?
- Columbia's USDA zone comes from its January mean (31°F); enter the ZIP on the USDA lookup for the number.
- What is the 10-day forecast for Columbia?
- Columbia's extended outlook — daily high and low temperatures and precipitation chances for each upcoming day — is in the daily forecast above.
- Will it rain this week in Columbia?
- See this week's day-by-day rain chances for Columbia in the daily forecast above, and the next 24 hours in the hourly chart.
- What is the weather like right now in Columbia?
- Current conditions for Columbia and the next 24 hours — temperature, precipitation chance, and wind by the hour — are in the hourly forecast chart above.
- How often is the Columbia forecast updated?
- The Columbia forecast on this page is built from Open-Meteo weather-model data and refreshes regularly through the day.
- When are sunrise and sunset in Columbia?
- Today's sunrise and sunset times for Columbia are in the Almanac section above, along with civil dawn, civil dusk, and day length. Day length is longest near the summer solstice and shortest near the winter solstice.
- How accurate is the weather forecast for Columbia?
- The next few days in Columbia's forecast are the most reliable; accuracy declines beyond about a week as weather-model uncertainty grows.
Columbia sits at 38.9°N; its climate zone is humid subtropical (Köppen approximation).
ZIP codes in Columbia
- 65201
- 65202
- 65203
- 65211
- 65215
- 65216
- 65217
- 65218
- 65299