Climateby Month

New Orleans, LA climate by month

NOAA 1991-2020 normals · 0 ft elevation

New Orleans has hot and oppressively humid summers and cool winters. Highs peak at 94°F in August and fall to 64°F in January. Wet days are spread through the year, from about 7 to 13 a month. By our comfort score the best months are March, April and November.

Warmest month
94°F
August normal high
Coldest month
47°F
January normal low
Wet days a year
113
60.1 in of precipitation
Muggy days a year
176
dew point 65°F or higher

How warm is New Orleans?

Normal highs range from 64°F in January to 94°F in August.

40°50°60°70°80°90°100° January: normal high 64°F (18°C), low 47°F (8°C) 64° 47° February: normal high 68°F (20°C), low 51°F (11°C) March: normal high 75°F (24°C), low 56°F (13°C) April: normal high 81°F (27°C), low 62°F (17°C) May: normal high 88°F (31°C), low 69°F (21°C) June: normal high 93°F (34°C), low 75°F (24°C) July: normal high 94°F (34°C), low 77°F (25°C) 94° 77° August: normal high 94°F (34°C), low 77°F (25°C) September: normal high 90°F (32°C), low 74°F (23°C) October: normal high 83°F (28°C), low 65°F (18°C) November: normal high 73°F (23°C), low 55°F (13°C) December: normal high 66°F (19°C), low 49°F (9°C) JFMAMJJASOND

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

How rainy is New Orleans?

July has the most wet days (about 13); the year brings about 60 in of precipitation.

January: 10 wet days February: 9 wet days March: 8 wet days April: 7 wet days May: 7 wet days 7 June: 12 wet days July: 13 wet days 13 August: 12 wet days September: 9 wet days October: 7 wet days November: 7 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 humid is New Orleans?

Muggy days peak in July, at about 31 days.

January: 2 muggy days 2 February: 3 muggy days March: 5 muggy days April: 10 muggy days May: 22 muggy days June: 29 muggy days July: 31 muggy days 31 August: 30 muggy days September: 26 muggy days October: 14 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 Louis Armstrong New Orleans Intl Airport, 13 mi WNW of the city center.

How much daylight?

Daylight ranges from about 10.3 hours in December to 14.0 hours in June.

January: 10.5 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: 14.0 hours of daylight 14.0 July: 13.8 hours of daylight August: 13.2 hours of daylight September: 12.3 hours of daylight October: 11.4 hours of daylight November: 10.7 hours of daylight December: 10.3 hours of daylight 10.3 JFMAMJJASOND
See all numbers
Monthly climate normals and day counts for New Orleans, 1991-2020
MonthHighLowPrecip.Wet daysSnowMuggy daysDaylight
January 64°F47°F 5.3 in10 0.0 in 2 10.5 h
February 68°F51°F 4.1 in9 0.0 in 3 11.1 h
March 75°F56°F 4.6 in8 0.0 in 5 12.0 h
April 81°F62°F 5.9 in7 0.0 in 10 12.9 h
May 88°F69°F 4.9 in7 0.0 in 22 13.7 h
June 93°F75°F 6.0 in12 0.0 in 29 14.0 h
July 94°F77°F 6.3 in13 0.0 in 31 13.8 h
August 94°F77°F 6.5 in12 0.0 in 30 13.2 h
September 90°F74°F 4.6 in9 0.0 in 26 12.3 h
October 83°F65°F 3.6 in7 0.0 in 14 11.4 h
November 73°F55°F 3.6 in7 0.0 in 4 10.7 h
December 66°F49°F 4.6 in10 0.1 in 3 10.3 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 New Orleans

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 571061
Feb 621260
Mar 661450
Apr 641051
May 492510
Jun 350923
Jul 3201026
Aug 320826
Sep 381617
Oct 55753
Nov 641440
Dec 571160

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 New Orleans

The last spring frost typically comes around Jan 24, and the first fall frost around Jan 2, leaving 341 frost-free days in a typical year.

Frost and freeze dates for New Orleans
Typical date1 year in 10
Last spring frost (32°F)Jan 24after Feb 23
First fall frost (32°F)Jan 2before Dec 5
Hard freeze (28°F)in about 36% of years; no typical date
Frost-free season341 daysunder 309 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: New Orleans Audubon (USW00012930), NOAA 1991-2020 freeze probabilities. Frost dates for every city in Louisiana.

Hottest and coldest readings, 1991-2020

The highest reading was 104°F (June 24, 2009); the lowest was 20°F (February 5, 1996).

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

Near New Orleans

Similar climates elsewhere

Where the numbers come from

  • Temperature and frost dates: New Orleans Audubon (USW00012930), 4.2 mi SW of the city center, 20 ft . NOAA normals and daily records, 1991-2020.
  • Rain, snowfall, snow depth and humidity and wind by hour: New Orleans Lakefront Airport (USW00053917), 7.1 mi NNE of the city center, 9 ft . NOAA normals and daily records, 1991-2020.
  • Daily humidity and wind: Louis Armstrong New Orleans Intl Airport (722310-12916), 13 mi WNW of the city center, -3 ft . 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