Climateby Month

Gulf Shores, AL climate by month

NOAA 1991-2020 normals · 7 ft elevation

Gulf Shores has hot and oppressively humid summers and cool winters. Highs peak at 91°F in July and fall to 62°F in January. The wettest month is August (about 15 wet days) and the driest is October (about 7). Snow is rare. By our comfort score the best months are March, April and November.

Warmest month
91°F
July normal high
Coldest month
37°F
January normal low
Wet days a year
123
69.3 in of precipitation
Muggy days a year
171
dew point 65°F or higher

How warm is Gulf Shores?

Normal highs range from 62°F in January to 91°F in July.

20°40°60°80°100° January: normal high 62°F (17°C), low 37°F (3°C) 62° 37° February: normal high 65°F (18°C), low 40°F (4°C) March: normal high 72°F (22°C), low 46°F (8°C) April: normal high 78°F (26°C), low 52°F (11°C) May: normal high 85°F (29°C), low 60°F (16°C) June: normal high 89°F (32°C), low 68°F (20°C) July: normal high 91°F (33°C), low 70°F (21°C) 91° 70° August: normal high 91°F (33°C), low 69°F (21°C) September: normal high 88°F (31°C), low 65°F (18°C) October: normal high 81°F (27°C), low 54°F (12°C) November: normal high 71°F (22°C), low 44°F (7°C) December: normal high 64°F (18°C), low 39°F (4°C) JFMAMJJASOND

Bars run from the normal low to the normal high for each month.

How rainy is Gulf Shores?

August has the most wet days (about 15); the year brings about 69 in of precipitation.

January: 11 wet days February: 10 wet days March: 9 wet days April: 8 wet days May: 8 wet days June: 13 wet days July: 14 wet days August: 15 wet days 15 September: 11 wet days October: 7 wet days 7 November: 8 wet days December: 11 wet days JFMAMJJASOND

Wet day: at least 0.01 in of rain or melted snow, counted from daily records 1991-2020.

How humid is Gulf Shores?

Muggy days peak in July, at about 31 days.

January: 1 muggy days 1 February: 2 muggy days March: 4 muggy days April: 10 muggy days May: 21 muggy days June: 29 muggy days July: 31 muggy days 31 August: 30 muggy days September: 25 muggy days October: 12 muggy days November: 4 muggy days December: 3 muggy days JFMAMJJASOND

Muggy day: daily mean dew point of 65°F or higher, from hourly observations 1991-2020 at Pensacola NAS, 24 mi ENE of the city center (the nearest airport with complete hourly records).

How much daylight?

Daylight ranges from about 10.2 hours in December to 14.1 hours in June.

January: 10.4 hours of daylight February: 11.1 hours of daylight March: 12.0 hours of daylight April: 12.9 hours of daylight May: 13.7 hours of daylight June: 14.1 hours of daylight 14.1 July: 13.9 hours of daylight August: 13.2 hours of daylight September: 12.3 hours of daylight October: 11.4 hours of daylight November: 10.6 hours of daylight December: 10.2 hours of daylight 10.2 JFMAMJJASOND
See all numbers
Monthly climate normals and day counts for Gulf Shores, 1991-2020
MonthHighLowPrecip.Wet daysMuggy daysDaylight
January 62°F37°F 5.5 in11 1 10.4 h
February 65°F40°F 4.7 in10 2 11.1 h
March 72°F46°F 5.1 in9 4 12.0 h
April 78°F52°F 5.5 in8 10 12.9 h
May 85°F60°F 4.9 in8 21 13.7 h
June 89°F68°F 6.8 in13 29 14.1 h
July 91°F70°F 9.0 in14 31 13.9 h
August 91°F69°F 7.2 in15 30 13.2 h
September 88°F65°F 6.6 in11 25 12.3 h
October 81°F54°F 4.4 in7 12 11.4 h
November 71°F44°F 4.6 in8 4 10.6 h
December 64°F39°F 5.2 in11 3 10.2 h

High and low: NOAA 1991-2020 normal daily high and low. Wet days: at least 0.01 in of rain or melted snow. Muggy days: daily mean dew point 65°F or higher.

Best months to visit Gulf Shores

By our comfort score, the best months are March, April and November.

Comfort score by month (0-100) and its parts, in days per month
MonthScoreComfortableNotable rainHot or cold
Jan 54971
Feb 611160
Mar 661460
Apr 651150
May 53364
Jun 390916
Jul 3401023
Aug 3301023
Sep 391714
Oct 57952
Nov 641460
Dec 55960

Score = 40 × share of comfortable days + 25 × share of days without notable rain + 20 × share of days neither hot (90°F+) nor cold (high 40°F or below) + 15 × daylight. How the score works.

Frost dates in Gulf Shores

The last spring frost typically comes around Jan 31, and the first fall frost around Jan 6, leaving 340 frost-free days in a typical year.

Frost and freeze dates for Gulf Shores
Typical date1 year in 10
Last spring frost (32°F)Jan 31after Feb 27
First fall frost (32°F)Jan 6before Dec 12
Hard freeze (28°F)in about 44% of years; no typical date
Frost-free season340 daysunder 305 days

"Typical" is the date with a 50% chance of a later spring frost (or earlier fall frost). Planting after the "1 year in 10" spring date gives a 90% chance of no further frost. The Old Farmer's Almanac publishes 30% dates, which fall between our typical and 1-in-10 dates.

Station: Dauphin Is #2 (USC00012172), NOAA 1991-2020 freeze probabilities. Frost dates for every city in Alabama.

Hottest and coldest readings, 1991-2020

The highest reading was 102°F (June 5, 2011); the lowest was 14°F (January 18, 2018, and 2 other days).

From the temperature station's daily records with NOAA quality flags removed. Not an all-time record.

Near Gulf Shores

Similar climates elsewhere

Where the numbers come from

  • Temperature and rain: Fairhope 2 Ne (USC00012813), 23 mi NNW of the city center, 23 ft . NOAA normals and daily records, 1991-2020.
  • Snowfall, snow depth and frost dates: Dauphin Is #2 (USC00012172), 23 mi W of the city center, 8 ft . NOAA normals and daily records, 1991-2020.
  • Humidity and wind by hour: Pensacola Forest Sherman NAS (USW00003855), 24 mi ENE of the city center, 28 ft . NOAA normals and daily records, 1991-2020.
  • Cloud cover: Pensacola Rgnl Airport (USW00013899), 35 mi ENE of the city center, 112 ft (105 ft higher than the city). NOAA normals and daily records, 1991-2020.
  • Daily humidity and wind: Pensacola NAS (722225-03855), 24 mi ENE of the city center, 28 ft . Hourly observations, 1991-2020.

Distances from the city center (USGS). Methodology · Report an error