Climateby Month

Lowell, MA climate by month

NOAA 1991-2020 normals · 117 ft elevation

Summers in Lowell are warm and often humid; winters are cold and snowy. Highs peak at 85°F in July and fall to 34°F in January. Wet days are spread through the year, from about 9 to 13 a month. Normal snowfall is about 64 in a year. The most comfortable time to visit is May.

Warmest month
85°F
July normal high
Coldest month
16°F
January normal low
Wet days a year
127
48.5 in of precipitation
Snow a year
63.5 in
normal snowfall

How warm is Lowell?

Normal highs range from 34°F in January to 85°F in July.

0°20°40°60°80°100° January: normal high 34°F (1°C), low 16°F (-9°C) 34° 16° February: normal high 37°F (3°C), low 17°F (-8°C) March: normal high 45°F (7°C), low 24°F (-4°C) April: normal high 59°F (15°C), low 35°F (2°C) May: normal high 70°F (21°C), low 45°F (7°C) June: normal high 79°F (26°C), low 55°F (13°C) July: normal high 85°F (29°C), low 61°F (16°C) 85° 61° August: normal high 83°F (28°C), low 59°F (15°C) September: normal high 76°F (24°C), low 52°F (11°C) October: normal high 62°F (17°C), low 40°F (4°C) November: normal high 51°F (11°C), low 30°F (-1°C) December: normal high 40°F (4°C), low 22°F (-6°C) JFMAMJJASOND

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

How rainy is Lowell?

May has the most wet days (about 13); the year brings about 49 in of precipitation.

January: 11 wet days February: 9 wet days 9 March: 11 wet days April: 11 wet days May: 13 wet days 13 June: 11 wet days July: 10 wet days August: 10 wet days September: 9 wet days October: 11 wet days November: 11 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 much does it snow?

Normal snowfall is 63.5 in a year, most of it in January.

January: 17.2 in of snow 17.2 February: 16.2 in of snow March: 13.3 in of snow April: 2.2 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: 0.1 in of snow November: 1.7 in of snow December: 12.8 in of snow JFMAMJJASOND

How humid is Lowell?

Muggy days peak in July, at about 10 days.

January: 0 muggy days 0 February: 0 muggy days March: 0 muggy days April: 0 muggy days May: 0 muggy days June: 3 muggy days July: 10 muggy days 10 August: 9 muggy days September: 4 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 Gen E L Logan International Airport, 24 mi SE of the city center (the nearest airport with complete hourly records).

How much daylight?

Daylight ranges from about 9.1 hours in December to 15.3 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: 15.3 hours of daylight 15.3 July: 14.9 hours of daylight August: 13.9 hours of daylight September: 12.5 hours of daylight October: 11.0 hours of daylight November: 9.8 hours of daylight December: 9.1 hours of daylight 9.1 JFMAMJJASOND
See all numbers
Monthly climate normals and day counts for Lowell, 1991-2020
MonthHighLowPrecip.Wet daysSnowMuggy daysDaylight
January 34°F16°F 3.6 in11 17.2 in 0 9.5 h
February 37°F17°F 3.2 in9 16.2 in 0 10.6 h
March 45°F24°F 4.3 in11 13.3 in 0 11.9 h
April 59°F35°F 4.1 in11 2.2 in 0 13.4 h
May 70°F45°F 3.8 in13 0.0 in 0 14.6 h
June 79°F55°F 4.4 in11 0.0 in 3 15.3 h
July 85°F61°F 3.9 in10 0.0 in 10 14.9 h
August 83°F59°F 4.0 in10 0.0 in 9 13.9 h
September 76°F52°F 3.9 in9 0.0 in 4 12.5 h
October 62°F40°F 5.0 in11 0.1 in 0 11.0 h
November 51°F30°F 3.9 in11 1.7 in 0 9.8 h
December 40°F22°F 4.5 in11 12.8 in 0 9.1 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 Lowell

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 250823
Feb 300718
Mar 422811
Apr 58882
May 731681
Jun 661184
Jul 54478
Aug 57675
Sep 671561
Oct 571180
Nov 41375
Dec 280817

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 Lowell

The last spring frost typically comes around Apr 30, and the first fall frost around Oct 10, leaving 164 frost-free days in a typical year.

Frost and freeze dates for Lowell
Typical date1 year in 10
Last spring frost (32°F)Apr 30after May 10
First fall frost (32°F)Oct 10before Sep 30
Last hard freeze (28°F)Apr 18after Apr 29
First hard freeze (28°F)Oct 22before Oct 9
Frost-free season164 daysunder 148 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: Lowell (USC00194313), NOAA 1991-2020 freeze probabilities. Frost dates for every city in Massachusetts.

Hottest and coldest readings, 1991-2020

The highest reading was 102°F (June 11, 2008); the lowest was -17°F (January 27, 1994).

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

Near Lowell

Similar climates elsewhere

Where the numbers come from

  • Temperature, rain and frost dates: Lowell (USC00194313), 2.5 mi WNW of the city center, 110 ft . NOAA normals and daily records, 1991-2020.
  • Snowfall and snow depth: Reading (USC00196783), 12 mi SE of the city center, 110 ft . NOAA normals and daily records, 1991-2020.
  • Humidity and wind by hour: Manchester Airport (USW00014710), 22 mi NNW of the city center, 225 ft (108 ft higher than the city). NOAA normals and daily records, 1991-2020.
  • Cloud cover: Boston Logan Intl Airport (USW00014739), 24 mi SE of the city center, 12 ft (105 ft lower than the city). NOAA normals and daily records, 1991-2020.
  • Daily humidity and wind: Gen E L Logan International Airport (725090-14739), 24 mi SE of the city center, 11 ft (106 ft lower than the city). Hourly observations, 1991-2020.

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