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Rotorua vs Crested Butte
Comparing Rotorua change · Crested Butte change
Rotorua is the warmer of the two — about 10°C on the annual average; Rotorua is the wetter, with 217 mm more rain a year, and Crested Butte the sunnier.
How the seasons compare
The differences between Rotorua and Crested Butte, in everyday terms.
Summers
Crested Butte has hotter summers
Rotorua: Mild
Crested Butte: Mild
Winters
Rotorua has far milder winters
Rotorua: Chilly
Crested Butte: Bitterly cold
Rain & snow
Rotorua is wetter
Rotorua: Moderate rainfall
Crested Butte: Moderate rainfall
Sky
Crested Butte is sunnier
Rotorua: Often cloudy
Crested Butte: Partly cloudy
Month-by-month charts
Temperature
Rotorua is the warmer of the two — about 10°C on the annual average.
Precipitation
Rotorua is the wetter — about 217 mm more across the year.
Clear skies
Crested Butte has the clearer skies — the higher line.
Exact monthly numbers
Tap a metric to open its full table. Desktop shows all twelve months; on a phone each metric splits into Jan–Jun and Jul–Dec.
Avg high (°C) Varies through the year
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rotorua | 23 | 23 | 21 | 17 | 14 | 12 | 11 | 12 | 14 | 16 | 18 | 21 |
| Crested Butte | -3 | -1 | 4 | 8 | 15 | 21 | 25 | 23 | 19 | 13 | 4 | -3 |
| Difference | -26 | -24 | -17 | -9 | — | +10 | +14 | +11 | +5 | -3 | -14 | -23 |
| Jan – Jun | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rotorua | 23 | 23 | 21 | 17 | 14 | 12 |
| Crested Butte | -3 | -1 | 4 | 8 | 15 | 21 |
| Difference | -26 | -24 | -17 | -9 | — | +10 |
| Jul – Dec | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rotorua | 11 | 12 | 14 | 16 | 18 | 21 |
| Crested Butte | 25 | 23 | 19 | 13 | 4 | -3 |
| Difference | +14 | +11 | +5 | -3 | -14 | -23 |
Avg low (°C) Rotorua runs higher most of the year
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rotorua | 11 | 12 | 10 | 7 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 6 | 7 | 10 |
| Crested Butte | -21 | -19 | -14 | -7 | -2 | 1 | 4 | 4 | -0 | -6 | -13 | -20 |
| Difference | -32 | -30 | -23 | -14 | -7 | -2 | +2 | +1 | -5 | -12 | -20 | -30 |
| Jan – Jun | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rotorua | 11 | 12 | 10 | 7 | 5 | 3 |
| Crested Butte | -21 | -19 | -14 | -7 | -2 | 1 |
| Difference | -32 | -30 | -23 | -14 | -7 | -2 |
| Jul – Dec | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rotorua | 2 | 3 | 4 | 6 | 7 | 10 |
| Crested Butte | 4 | 4 | -0 | -6 | -13 | -20 |
| Difference | +2 | +1 | -5 | -12 | -20 | -30 |
Precipitation (mm) Rotorua runs higher most of the year
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rotorua | 63 | 50 | 55 | 65 | 77 | 82 | 84 | 75 | 66 | 67 | 58 | 77 |
| Crested Butte | 69 | 65 | 54 | 51 | 38 | 24 | 50 | 50 | 49 | 43 | 51 | 57 |
| Difference | +6 | +14 | -2 | -14 | -38 | -58 | -34 | -25 | -17 | -24 | -7 | -20 |
| Jan – Jun | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rotorua | 63 | 50 | 55 | 65 | 77 | 82 |
| Crested Butte | 69 | 65 | 54 | 51 | 38 | 24 |
| Difference | +6 | +14 | -2 | -14 | -38 | -58 |
| Jul – Dec | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rotorua | 84 | 75 | 66 | 67 | 58 | 77 |
| Crested Butte | 50 | 50 | 49 | 43 | 51 | 57 |
| Difference | -34 | -25 | -17 | -24 | -7 | -20 |
Snowfall (cm)
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rotorua | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Crested Butte | 106 | 90 | 69 | 46 | 17 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 20 | 66 | 88 |
| Difference | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Jan – Jun | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rotorua | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Crested Butte | 106 | 90 | 69 | 46 | 17 | 1 |
| Difference | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Jul – Dec | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rotorua | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Crested Butte | 0 | 0 | 3 | 20 | 66 | 88 |
| Difference | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Cloud cover (%) Rotorua runs higher most of the year
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rotorua | 69 | 70 | 68 | 67 | 65 | 66 | 68 | 69 | 72 | 73 | 75 | 76 |
| Crested Butte | 54 | 60 | 60 | 63 | 61 | 46 | 57 | 58 | 46 | 44 | 49 | 54 |
| Difference | -15 | -10 | -8 | -5 | -4 | -20 | -11 | -11 | -26 | -29 | -26 | -22 |
| Jan – Jun | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rotorua | 69 | 70 | 68 | 67 | 65 | 66 |
| Crested Butte | 54 | 60 | 60 | 63 | 61 | 46 |
| Difference | -15 | -10 | -8 | -5 | -4 | -20 |
| Jul – Dec | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rotorua | 68 | 69 | 72 | 73 | 75 | 76 |
| Crested Butte | 57 | 58 | 46 | 44 | 49 | 54 |
| Difference | -11 | -11 | -26 | -29 | -26 | -22 |
Relative humidity (%) Varies through the year
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rotorua | 69 | 70 | 74 | 82 | 87 | 91 | 91 | 88 | 86 | 82 | 76 | 74 |
| Crested Butte | 91 | 94 | 89 | 76 | 64 | 52 | 56 | 59 | 57 | 63 | 77 | 89 |
| Difference | +22 | +24 | +15 | -6 | -23 | -39 | -35 | -29 | -29 | -19 | — | +15 |
| Jan – Jun | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rotorua | 69 | 70 | 74 | 82 | 87 | 91 |
| Crested Butte | 91 | 94 | 89 | 76 | 64 | 52 |
| Difference | +22 | +24 | +15 | -6 | -23 | -39 |
| Jul – Dec | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rotorua | 91 | 88 | 86 | 82 | 76 | 74 |
| Crested Butte | 56 | 59 | 57 | 63 | 77 | 89 |
| Difference | -35 | -29 | -29 | -19 | — | +15 |
How both climates are changing
Both cities are warming. Each city has its own warming trend; see its trends page for the year-by-year detail. Rotorua trends → · Crested Butte trends →
Methodology & sources
Rotorua
Temperature & precipitation — 1991–2020 normals computed from 24 years of daily observations at Taupo Aws, a weather station, about 68 km from the city centre. The underlying daily records come from NOAA's global station network.
Cloud, humidity, wind & sunshine — modelled estimates from NASA POWER, NASA's satellite-and-reanalysis climatology. This is the standard global source for atmospheric variables, which are not measured at most weather stations.
Crested Butte
Temperature & precipitation — 1991–2020 normals computed from 30 years of daily observations at Crested Butte, a weather station, about 1 km from the city centre. The underlying daily records come from NOAA's global station network.
Cloud, humidity, wind & sunshine — modelled estimates from NASA POWER, NASA's satellite-and-reanalysis climatology. This is the standard global source for atmospheric variables, which are not measured at most weather stations.
← change Rotorua · change Crested Butte → · Rotorua page · Crested Butte page