Planting Zone Finder
Find your USDA Hardiness Zone by ZIP code, by clicking the map, or by picking your zone. Then see what it means for your garden.
Every planting decision starts with one number: your hardiness zone. It tells you which plants survive your winter, and it is the first thing every seed packet, nursery tag, and planting calendar asks for. This tool finds it three ways: enter your ZIP code, click the map, or pick your zone from the list. Then it shows you the minimum temperature, the typical season length, and the crops that do well there.
A zone is not a planting date. It says nothing about your last frost in spring or your first frost in autumn, and two gardens in the same zone can have very different frost dates. Once you know your zone, use the First Frost Date Calculator and the Last Frost Date Calculator to turn it into a real planting window.
Your zone
- –average annual extreme minimum temperature
- –typical growing season
- –typical frost-free period
- –example crops
2. Or click the map
Click anywhere in the United States to see the zone at that exact spot. The map uses the 2023 USDA zone data, simplified for the web, so treat a click near a boundary as approximate, and use the ZIP lookup for a general answer.
Map: simplified USDA Plant Hardiness Zone data. This is not the official USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map. Base map © OpenStreetMap contributors. Click a coloured area to set your zone.
How this is worked out
A USDA Hardiness Zone is defined by one number: the average annual extreme minimum temperature: the coldest night of the year, averaged over 30 years (1991 to 2020 in the current 2023 map). Each whole zone spans 10°F, and each splits into two half-zones of 5°F. Zone 7 covers 0 to 10°F; 7a is 0 to 5°F and 7b is 5 to 10°F.
Assumptions:
- The ZIP lookup uses the official PRISM ZIP code list for the 2023 USDA map (40,502 ZIP codes). A ZIP’s zone comes from its centre point, so a large ZIP can span two zones.
- The map uses the same PRISM data, simplified for web use: boundaries are approximate to about 2 to 5 km, and patches smaller than about 60 km² were removed. Do not use it for precise GIS work.
- A map click and a ZIP lookup can disagree near a boundary. A ZIP covers an area; a click is one point. Trust the click for a specific garden bed.
- Season lengths and frost-free periods on this page are typical values for the zone. Your actual dates depend on your exact location, elevation, and nearby water. Use the frost date calculators for your local dates.
- Some ZIP codes have no official zone at all: PO-box-only ZIP codes cover no geographic area, so the list has nothing to return for them. The map still works for their city centre.
Three worked examples
1. New York City, ZIP 10001. The lookup returns Zone 7b, minimum 5 to 10°F, with a typical season of about 180 to 210 days. Tomatoes, peppers, and okra all grow here; citrus does not survive the winter outdoors.
2. A click on Denver, Colorado. Clicking downtown Denver returns Zone 6a, minimum -10 to -5°F. The same click a few miles east, up on the plains, can return Zone 5b. Elevation changes the zone fast in the mountains.
3. Picking Zone 9 by hand. Choose Zone 9 from the list and the page shows a minimum of 20 to 30°F and a typical season of about 240 to 270 days. Citrus and avocado grow here; a hard freeze below 20°F is the rare event that damages them.
USDA Hardiness Zones at a glance
Thirteen zones, from the coldest winters in Alaska to the frost-free tropics. Minimum temperatures are the USDA definitions; season lengths and frost-free periods are typical values, not promises. Click “Show this zone” on any card to load it into the result above. The map covers the whole United States, including Alaska, Hawaii, and Puerto Rico. Pan west for Alaska and south-west for Hawaii.
Zone 1
Minimum temperature: Below -50°F
Typical growing season: about Under 60 days
Typical frost-free period: about Under 60 days
Example crops: Hardy native perennials only. Almost no garden vegetables survive outdoors. Occurs only in Alaska.
Zone 2
Minimum temperature: -50 to -40°F
Typical growing season: about 60 to 90 days
Typical frost-free period: about 60 to 90 days
Example crops: Potatoes, carrots, rutabaga, and hardy herbs such as chives and mint. Occurs only in Alaska.
Zone 3
Minimum temperature: -40 to -30°F
Typical growing season: about 90 to 110 days
Typical frost-free period: about 90 to 110 days
Example crops: Kale, cabbage, broccoli, peas, carrots, and potatoes.
Zone 4
Minimum temperature: -30 to -20°F
Typical growing season: about 110 to 140 days
Typical frost-free period: about 110 to 130 days
Example crops: Short-season tomatoes, beans, squash, apples, and tart cherries.
Zone 5
Minimum temperature: -20 to -10°F
Typical growing season: about 130 to 160 days
Typical frost-free period: about 130 to 150 days
Example crops: Peppers, eggplant, sweet corn, grapes, and pears.
Zone 6
Minimum temperature: -10 to 0°F
Typical growing season: about 150 to 180 days
Typical frost-free period: about 150 to 180 days
Example crops: Most vegetables, plus roses, peonies, lilacs, and asparagus.
Zone 7
Minimum temperature: 0 to 10°F
Typical growing season: about 180 to 210 days
Typical frost-free period: about 180 to 200 days
Example crops: Okra, sweet potatoes, figs, crape myrtle, and most herbs.
Zone 8
Minimum temperature: 10 to 20°F
Typical growing season: about 210 to 240 days
Typical frost-free period: about 210 to 240 days
Example crops: Hardy citrus, olives, rosemary, lavender, and year-round greens.
Zone 9
Minimum temperature: 20 to 30°F
Typical growing season: about 240 to 270 days
Typical frost-free period: about 240 to 270 days
Example crops: Citrus, avocado, bougainvillea, and year-round vegetables.
Zone 10
Minimum temperature: 30 to 40°F
Typical growing season: about 270 to 330 days
Typical frost-free period: about 270 to 330 days
Example crops: Mango, papaya, hibiscus, plumeria, and tropical vegetables.
Zone 11
Minimum temperature: 40 to 50°F
Typical growing season: about 330 to 365 days
Typical frost-free period: about 330 to 365 days
Example crops: Bananas, orchids, most tropical plants, and year-round harvest.
Zone 12
Minimum temperature: 50 to 60°F
Typical growing season: about 365 days
Typical frost-free period: about 365 days
Example crops: Tropical fruits and orchids in a frost-free year.
Zone 13
Minimum temperature: 60 to 70°F
Typical growing season: about 365 days
Typical frost-free period: about 365 days
Example crops: Coconut, breadfruit, and tropical fruits. Frost never arrives. Occurs only in Hawaii and Puerto Rico.
Common zone mistakes
- Using an old map. The current map is the 2023 edition; the previous one was 2012. Many places warmed by half a zone or a full zone between editions. If a nursery tag cites the 2012 map, check the 2023 zone here first.
- Treating a zone as a frost date. Zone 7 in Virginia and Zone 7 in Oregon have very different last frost dates. A zone tells you what survives winter; only frost dates tell you when to plant.
- Ignoring microclimates. A south-facing wall, a low hollow where cold air pools, or a spot near a large lake can shift your real minimum by a full half-zone. The map cannot see your garden’s slope.
- Buying one zone colder “to be safe” and skipping protection. A plant rated Zone 6 in a Zone 6 garden still needs its first winter to establish roots. Mulch it and water it well in autumn, whatever the tag says.
- Assuming a zone means heat tolerance. USDA zones measure cold only. A plant that survives a Zone 8 winter can still fail in a Zone 8 summer that is hot and humid. Check heat tolerance separately for warm climates.
What to do next
Once you know your zone, turn it into dates: the First Frost Date Calculator gives your average first autumn frost, the Last Frost Date Calculator gives your last spring frost, and the Seasonal Garden Calendar turns both into a month-by-month task list for your zone. Then plan the sowing dates with the Seed Starting & Planting Date Calculator.
Putting the result to work
A zone is only useful if it changes what you buy and when you plant. Use it three ways. First, filter every plant purchase: if the tag says hardy to Zone 8 and you are in Zone 7, either skip it or plan winter protection before you pay. Second, set expectations for perennials: a plant at the cold edge of its range may survive but grow slowly, flower late, or die back to the ground each winter. Third, plan the calendar: in Zones 3 to 5 the season is short, so start tender crops indoors; in Zones 9 to 11 the season is long, so succession-sow and watch for heat stress instead of frost.
And remember the map’s limits. Zones are drawn from 30 years of weather stations, and your garden has its own weather. Keep a simple note of your own first and last frosts each year. After two or three seasons you will know your garden better than any map does.
How to find your planting zone in 3 steps
- Enter your 5-digit US ZIP code and press Find my zone. Or click any spot on the map, or pick your zone from the list.
- Read your result: the half-zone (for example 7b), its minimum temperature range, and your typical season length.
- Use the zone card below to see example crops, then open the First and Last Frost Date Calculators to turn your zone into planting dates.
Zone = average annual extreme minimum temperature, 1991 to 2020 (USDA 2023 map). Whole zone = 10°F; half-zone = 5°F.
What is my USDA Hardiness Zone?
Your zone is the USDA’s answer to one question: how cold does it get where you garden? It is based on your average annual extreme minimum temperature over 30 years. Enter your ZIP code above, click the map, or pick your zone from the list to see your minimum temperature, typical season length, and example crops.
What is the difference between a zone and a half-zone?
A whole zone spans 10°F. Zone 7, for example, covers 0 to 10°F. Each whole zone splits into two half-zones of 5°F: 7a is 0 to 5°F and 7b is 5 to 10°F. The ZIP lookup and the map click both return the half-zone, because it is more precise; the cards below show whole zones.
Why does my ZIP code give a different zone than the map click?
A ZIP code covers an area, and the official zone for a ZIP comes from its centre point. A map click is one exact spot. Near a zone boundary the two can differ. Downtown Portland, for example, sits in a 9a pocket while its ZIP is officially 8b. Trust the click for a specific garden bed, and the ZIP for a general answer.
Does my zone tell me when to plant?
No, not by itself. Your zone tells you which plants survive the winter. When to sow and plant out depends on your first and last frost dates, which vary inside a zone. Use the First Frost Date Calculator and the Last Frost Date Calculator next to turn your zone into a planting window.
I live outside the United States. Does this tool work for me?
The map and the ZIP lookup cover the United States only, because USDA zones are a US system. The zone cards still help anywhere: find the zone whose minimum temperature matches your coldest winter night, and use it as a rough guide. Australia, for example, has no official USDA zones, so any AU mapping is approximate.
Zone data: USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map 2023, GIS data by the PRISM Climate Group, Oregon State University, prism.oregonstate.edu/phzm (shapefile and ZIP code list). Map polygons simplified for web use; this page is not the official USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map and shows no USDA or OSU logos, per the PRISM terms of use. Base map © OpenStreetMap contributors. Results are estimates for planning.
