Climateby Month

Elgin, IL climate by month

NOAA 1991-2020 normals · 740 ft elevation

Elgin has warm and often humid summers and cold and snowy winters. Highs peak at 84°F in July and fall to 30°F in January. Wet days are spread through the year, from about 8 to 13 a month. Normal snowfall is about 32 in a year. By our comfort score the best month is May.

Warmest month
84°F
July normal high
Coldest month
14°F
January normal low
Wet days a year
124
39.9 in of precipitation
Snow a year
32.1 in
normal snowfall

How warm is Elgin?

Normal highs range from 30°F in January to 84°F in July.

0°20°40°60°80°100° January: normal high 30°F (-1°C), low 14°F (-10°C) 30° 14° February: normal high 34°F (1°C), low 17°F (-8°C) March: normal high 46°F (8°C), low 26°F (-3°C) April: normal high 59°F (15°C), low 37°F (3°C) May: normal high 70°F (21°C), low 48°F (9°C) June: normal high 80°F (27°C), low 58°F (14°C) July: normal high 84°F (29°C), low 63°F (17°C) 84° 63° August: normal high 82°F (28°C), low 61°F (16°C) September: normal high 76°F (24°C), low 53°F (12°C) October: normal high 63°F (17°C), low 41°F (5°C) November: normal high 48°F (9°C), low 30°F (-1°C) December: normal high 36°F (2°C), low 20°F (-7°C) JFMAMJJASOND

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

How rainy is Elgin?

May has the most wet days (about 13); the year brings about 40 in of precipitation.

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

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

How much does it snow?

Normal snowfall is 32.1 in a year, most of it in January.

January: 9.5 in of snow 9.5 February: 8.0 in of snow March: 3.7 in of snow April: 0.8 in of snow May: 0.0 in of snow 0.0 June: 0.0 in of snow July: 0.0 in of snow August: 0.0 in of snow September: 0.0 in of snow October: 0.0 in of snow November: 1.4 in of snow December: 8.7 in of snow JFMAMJJASOND

How humid is Elgin?

Muggy days peak in July, at about 11 days.

January: 0 muggy days 0 February: 0 muggy days March: 0 muggy days April: 0 muggy days May: 1 muggy days June: 5 muggy days July: 11 muggy days 11 August: 10 muggy days September: 3 muggy days October: 0 muggy days November: 0 muggy days December: 0 muggy days JFMAMJJASOND

Muggy day: daily mean dew point of 65°F or higher, from hourly observations 1991-2020 at Chicago O'hare International Airport, 19 mi ESE of the city center (the nearest airport with complete hourly records).

How much daylight?

Daylight ranges from about 9.2 hours in December to 15.2 hours in June.

January: 9.5 hours of daylight February: 10.6 hours of daylight March: 11.9 hours of daylight April: 13.4 hours of daylight May: 14.6 hours of daylight June: 15.2 hours of daylight 15.2 July: 14.9 hours of daylight August: 13.8 hours of daylight September: 12.5 hours of daylight October: 11.1 hours of daylight November: 9.8 hours of daylight December: 9.2 hours of daylight 9.2 JFMAMJJASOND
See all numbers
Monthly climate normals and day counts for Elgin, 1991-2020
MonthHighLowPrecip.Wet daysSnowMuggy daysDaylight
January 30°F14°F 2.0 in10 9.5 in 0 9.5 h
February 34°F17°F 1.9 in8 8.0 in 0 10.6 h
March 46°F26°F 2.4 in10 3.7 in 0 11.9 h
April 59°F37°F 4.0 in13 0.8 in 0 13.4 h
May 70°F48°F 5.1 in13 0.0 in 1 14.6 h
June 80°F58°F 4.5 in11 0.0 in 5 15.2 h
July 84°F63°F 4.0 in9 0.0 in 11 14.9 h
August 82°F61°F 4.3 in10 0.0 in 10 13.8 h
September 76°F53°F 3.5 in9 0.0 in 3 12.5 h
October 63°F41°F 3.3 in11 0.0 in 0 11.1 h
November 48°F30°F 2.7 in10 1.4 in 0 9.8 h
December 36°F20°F 2.2 in10 8.7 in 0 9.2 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 Elgin

By our comfort score, the best month is May.

Comfort score by month (0-100) and its parts, in days per month
MonthScoreComfortableNotable rainHot or cold
Jan 260526
Feb 310420
Mar 443611
Apr 59882
May 701481
Jun 661174
Jul 58566
Aug 59763
Sep 661462
Oct 581160
Nov 40269
Dec 280521

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 Elgin

The last spring frost typically comes around Apr 26, and the first fall frost around Oct 18, leaving 174 frost-free days in a typical year.

Frost and freeze dates for Elgin
Typical date1 year in 10
Last spring frost (32°F)Apr 26after May 12
First fall frost (32°F)Oct 18before Oct 3
Last hard freeze (28°F)Apr 14after Apr 29
First hard freeze (28°F)Oct 29before Oct 15
Frost-free season174 daysunder 152 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: Elgin (USC00112736), NOAA 1991-2020 freeze probabilities. Frost dates for every city in Illinois.

Hottest and coldest readings, 1991-2020

The highest reading was 102°F (July 8, 2012, and 1 other day); the lowest was -25°F (January 31, 2019, and 1 other day).

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

Near Elgin

Similar climates elsewhere

Where the numbers come from

  • Temperature, rain, snowfall, snow depth and frost dates: Elgin (USC00112736), 1.8 mi N of the city center, 763 ft . NOAA normals and daily records, 1991-2020.
  • Humidity and wind by hour: West Chicago Dupage Airport (USW00094892), 8.7 mi SSE of the city center, 754 ft . NOAA normals and daily records, 1991-2020.
  • Daily humidity and wind: Chicago O'hare International Airport (725300-94846), 19 mi ESE of the city center, 672 ft (68 ft lower than the city). Hourly observations, 1991-2020.
  • Not available for this location: cloud cover (no station close enough or similar enough in elevation).

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