When Is the First Hard Freeze in Your State? A 50-State Guide

The first frost is a warning. The first hard freeze is the event. When the thermometer settles at 28F or lower for a few hours, the growing season is over for everything but the hardiest greens. Water left in hoses and irrigation lines turns to ice. The ground begins its slow freeze from the top down. Below is when that typically happens in every state, and the short list of jobs worth finishing first.

Frost and Hard Freeze Are Not the Same Thing

A frost forms when surfaces cool enough for ice crystals to appear, which can happen with the official air temperature still in the mid 30s. Tender plants such as basil, tomatoes and impatiens blacken, and hardier crops shrug it off. A freeze is an air temperature of 32F or lower. A hard freeze, sometimes called a killing freeze, is 28F or lower held for several hours. The National Weather Service issues a Freeze Warning at 32F and, in many offices, a Hard Freeze Warning at 28F. The lower figure is the one that matters for pipes, hose bibs and the last of the harvest.

The gap between the two is useful. In most of the country the first hard freeze follows the first frost by two to three weeks, which is your window to lift tender bulbs, drain the sprinklers and bring in the squash. The dates below use the same NOAA 1991 to 2020 normals as our 2026 first frost map.

First Hard Freeze by State

Each row gives a representative city, its average first frost and the typical window for the first 28F reading. The note tells you which parts of the state run early. Mountains, high valleys and open prairie freeze first; coasts, big lakes and city centers hold on longest.

State	Representative city	Average first frost (32F)	Typical first hard freeze (28F)	Earlier or later
Alabama	Birmingham	November 13	Late November to early December	Earlier in the Tennessee Valley, later on the Gulf
Alaska	Anchorage	September 14	Late September to early October	Fairbanks and the Interior freeze hard by mid September
Arizona	Flagstaff	October 1	Mid October (high country); rare in Phoenix and Tucson	Low deserts may go whole winters without 28F
Arkansas	Little Rock	November 4	Mid to late November	Ozarks run one to two weeks earlier
California	Sacramento	November 26	Mid December (inland valleys); rare on the coast	Sierra foothills and high desert freeze in October
Colorado	Denver	October 7	Mid to late October	Mountain towns freeze hard in September
Connecticut	Hartford	October 10	Late October to early November	Shoreline runs about two weeks later
Delaware	Wilmington	October 30	Mid November	Coastal Sussex County a week or so later
Florida	Jacksonville	December 16	Late December to January (north); rare central and south	Miami and the Keys almost never reach 28F
Georgia	Atlanta	November 19	Late November to early December	North Georgia mountains freeze hard by early November
Hawaii	Honolulu	No frost	None at sea level	Only the summits of Mauna Kea and Haleakala freeze
Idaho	Boise	October 12	Mid to late October	Mountain valleys freeze hard in September
Illinois	Chicago	October 28	Late October to mid November	Northern counties earlier, southern tip later
Indiana	Indianapolis	October 15	Late October to early November	Lake Michigan shore a week later
Iowa	Des Moines	October 12	Late October	Northwest corner a week earlier
Kansas	Wichita	October 28	Early to mid November	Northwest Kansas two weeks earlier
Kentucky	Louisville	October 30	Early to mid November	Eastern mountains earlier
Louisiana	Baton Rouge	November 22	Early to mid December (north); rare on the coast	New Orleans can skip 28F in a mild winter
Maine	Portland	October 8	Mid to late October	Caribou and the North Woods freeze hard by early October
Maryland	Baltimore	November 12	Mid to late November	Western mountains in late October
Massachusetts	Boston	October 27	Early to mid November (coast); late October (Worcester hills)	Cape Cod the latest in the state
Michigan	Detroit	October 20	Late October to early November	Upper Peninsula freezes hard by mid October
Minnesota	Minneapolis	October 8	Mid to late October	International Falls and the Arrowhead by early October
Mississippi	Jackson	November 15	Late November to early December	Gulf Coast later still
Missouri	St. Louis	October 29	Early to mid November	Northern Missouri a week earlier
Montana	Billings	September 29	Early to mid October	Great Falls and the high line by late September
Nebraska	Omaha	October 9	Late October	Panhandle a week or two earlier
Nevada	Reno	October 14	Late October (north); rare in Las Vegas	High desert valleys freeze hard in early October
New Hampshire	Concord	September 22	Early to mid October	White Mountains by late September
New Jersey	Newark	November 5	Mid to late November	Northwest hills in late October
New Mexico	Albuquerque	October 29	Early to mid November (Rio Grande valley)	Santa Fe and the high country by mid October
New York	Albany	October 7	Late October (upstate) to late November (NYC)	Adirondacks and Tug Hill by early October
North Carolina	Raleigh	November 7	Mid to late November	Asheville and the mountains by early November
North Dakota	Fargo	October 1	Early to mid October	Northwest corner in late September
Ohio	Columbus	October 18	Late October to early November	Lake Erie shore a week later
Oklahoma	Oklahoma City	November 5	Mid to late November	Panhandle in late October
Oregon	Portland	November 19	Early to mid December (west); mid October (east)	Bend and the high desert freeze hard in early October
Pennsylvania	Philadelphia	November 6	Early November (Pittsburgh) to late November (Philadelphia)	Northern tier and the Poconos by mid October
Rhode Island	Providence	October 28	Early to mid November	Block Island later
South Carolina	Columbia	November 1	Mid to late November (inland); early December (coast)	Upstate earlier
South Dakota	Sioux Falls	October 5	Mid October	Black Hills by late September
Tennessee	Nashville	October 31	Early to mid November	Memphis a week later, the Plateau earlier
Texas	Dallas	November 17	Early December (Dallas); early November (Panhandle); rare on the coast	Houston and the coast may not see 28F every winter
Utah	Salt Lake City	October 15	Late October to early November	High valleys by late September
Vermont	Burlington	October 3	Mid to late October	Northeast Kingdom by early October
Virginia	Richmond	October 26	Early to mid November	Shenandoah and the Blue Ridge in late October
Washington	Seattle	November 25	Early to mid December (west); mid to late October (east)	Spokane freezes hard by late October
West Virginia	Charleston	October 25	Early to mid November	Mountain counties in October
Wisconsin	Madison	October 9	Mid to late October	Milwaukee lakeshore a week later, the North Woods earlier
Wyoming	Cheyenne	September 27	Early to mid October	Jackson and the mountain valleys by mid September

Two patterns stand out. Elevation beats latitude: Flagstaff has usually had its hard freeze by mid October, while Phoenix, 150 miles to the south, often goes the whole winter without one, and Denver freezes before Boston. Water delays everything: Chicago’s lakefront, Cleveland’s shore and the whole of coastal New England run a week or more behind the inland counties beside them.

What to Do Before the Hard Freeze

Most of these take an afternoon. Do them in the two weeks between the first frost and the first 28F reading and nothing gets caught out.

• Disconnect and drain garden hoses, and shut off any outdoor faucet that has an interior valve. A hose left attached is the most common cause of a burst pipe inside the wall. See our sprinkler and faucet guide for timing by state.
• Blow out or drain the irrigation system. Underground lines hold water that expands when it freezes.
• Harvest everything tender. Peppers, tomatoes, squash and pumpkins come in before the first frost; root crops such as carrots, parsnips and beets can stay until the hard freeze and taste sweeter for it.
• Lift tender bulbs and tubers. Dahlias, gladiolus, cannas and caladiums come out after the first frost blackens the tops, and before the ground freezes.
• Plant spring bulbs. Tulips and daffodils go in once the soil has cooled, and can keep going until the ground freezes solid. Timing by state in our bulb planting guide.
• Mulch new perennials after the first hard freeze, not before. The point is to keep the ground frozen and stop heaving, not to keep it warm.
• Run the furnace once while it is still mild, so any fault shows up before you depend on it. More in our checklist for turning on the heat.

Why the Date Moves From Year to Year

The normals above are 30 year averages, and the spread around them is wide. In a northern city such as Minneapolis the first 28F night can land in late September one year and the first week of November the next. A clear, calm night after a cold front is what does it: without cloud or wind, heat radiates away from the ground and the air at grass level drops several degrees below the official reading. Valleys and low spots, where cold air pools, freeze first. A sloping garden or one close to a large body of water gets a few days’ grace.

For the broader outlook on the season ahead, the Farmers’ Almanac long range forecast for your region is on our extended forecast page.

Frequently Asked Questions

What temperature is a hard freeze?

A hard freeze is 28F or lower for several hours. A frost can form with air temperatures in the mid 30s, and a freeze is 32F or lower. The 28F threshold is the one that kills most remaining garden plants and can burst unprotected pipes.

How long after the first frost does the first hard freeze come?

Typically two to three weeks. In the northern Plains and northern Rockies the gap can be a week or less, because autumn arrives fast. Along the Gulf Coast and in the low deserts a hard freeze may not follow the first frost at all in a mild winter.

Which states get a hard freeze first?

Alaska, then the high country of Wyoming, Montana, Colorado and New Mexico, the Dakotas, Minnesota and northern New England, all typically by mid October. Interior Alaska and the highest mountain valleys freeze hard in September.

Which states rarely get a hard freeze?

Hawaii, the Florida peninsula, coastal southern California, the Phoenix and Tucson low deserts, and the immediate Gulf Coast of Texas and Louisiana. All of these can reach 28F in a severe cold outbreak, but not in a typical winter.

Can I still plant bulbs after the first hard freeze?

Yes, as long as you can still get a trowel into the ground. The hard freeze affects the air and the surface; the soil a few inches down takes weeks longer to freeze solid. Bulbs need about six weeks of root growth before that happens.

Are these dates a forecast for this autumn?

No. They are long term averages from NOAA climate normals. Any single year can run early or late by two or three weeks. For the seasonal outlook, see the Farmers’ Almanac extended forecast.

Read Next

• First Frost Dates 2026: When Should You Expect the First Frost of Fall?
• The Fall Garden Checklist: 6 Things to Do Before the First Hard Freeze
• When Should You Stop Mowing Your Lawn for the Year?
• First Snowfall Where I Live: When Will the First Snow Arrive in 2026?