Climateby Month

Traverse City, MI climate by month

NOAA 1991-2020 normals · 596 ft elevation

Traverse City has warm summers and very cold and snowy winters. Highs peak at 81°F in July and fall to 29°F in January. Wet days are spread through the year, from about 10 to 16 a month. Normal snowfall is about 143 in a year. By our comfort score the best months are May and June.

Warmest month
81°F
July normal high
Coldest month
16°F
February normal low
Wet days a year
146
29.1 in of precipitation
Snow a year
143.3 in
normal snowfall

How warm is Traverse City?

Normal highs range from 29°F in January to 81°F in July.

0°20°40°60°80°100° January: normal high 29°F (-2°C), low 17°F (-8°C) 29° 17° February: normal high 31°F (-1°C), low 16°F (-9°C) March: normal high 41°F (5°C), low 23°F (-5°C) April: normal high 54°F (12°C), low 33°F (1°C) May: normal high 67°F (19°C), low 43°F (6°C) June: normal high 77°F (25°C), low 54°F (12°C) July: normal high 81°F (27°C), low 59°F (15°C) 81° 59° August: normal high 80°F (27°C), low 59°F (15°C) September: normal high 72°F (22°C), low 52°F (11°C) October: normal high 59°F (15°C), low 41°F (5°C) November: normal high 46°F (8°C), low 32°F (0°C) December: normal high 35°F (2°C), low 24°F (-4°C) JFMAMJJASOND

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

How rainy is Traverse City?

October has the most wet days (about 16); the year brings about 29 in of precipitation.

January: 14 wet days February: 11 wet days March: 10 wet days April: 11 wet days May: 12 wet days June: 11 wet days July: 10 wet days 10 August: 10 wet days September: 13 wet days October: 16 wet days 16 November: 14 wet days December: 14 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 143.3 in a year, most of it in January.

January: 44.5 in of snow 44.5 February: 27.5 in of snow March: 14.3 in of snow April: 6.4 in of snow May: 0.2 in of snow June: 0.0 in of snow 0.0 July: 0.0 in of snow August: 0.0 in of snow September: 0.0 in of snow October: 0.5 in of snow November: 13.9 in of snow December: 36.0 in of snow JFMAMJJASOND

How humid is Traverse City?

Muggy days peak in July, at about 6 days.

January: 0 muggy days 0 February: 0 muggy days March: 0 muggy days April: 0 muggy days May: 0 muggy days June: 2 muggy days July: 6 muggy days 6 August: 5 muggy days September: 1 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 Cherry Capital Airport, 3.1 mi ESE of the city center.

How much daylight?

Daylight ranges from about 8.9 hours in December to 15.5 hours in June.

January: 9.3 hours of daylight February: 10.4 hours of daylight March: 11.9 hours of daylight April: 13.5 hours of daylight May: 14.8 hours of daylight June: 15.5 hours of daylight 15.5 July: 15.2 hours of daylight August: 14.0 hours of daylight September: 12.5 hours of daylight October: 11.0 hours of daylight November: 9.6 hours of daylight December: 8.9 hours of daylight 8.9 JFMAMJJASOND
See all numbers
Monthly climate normals and day counts for Traverse City, 1991-2020
MonthHighLowPrecip.Wet daysSnowMuggy daysDaylight
January 29°F17°F 1.7 in14 44.5 in 0 9.3 h
February 31°F16°F 1.0 in11 27.5 in 0 10.4 h
March 41°F23°F 1.6 in10 14.3 in 0 11.9 h
April 54°F33°F 2.8 in11 6.4 in 0 13.5 h
May 67°F43°F 2.8 in12 0.2 in 0 14.8 h
June 77°F54°F 2.6 in11 0.0 in 2 15.5 h
July 81°F59°F 2.7 in10 0.0 in 6 15.2 h
August 80°F59°F 3.0 in10 0.0 in 5 14.0 h
September 72°F52°F 3.4 in13 0.0 in 1 12.5 h
October 59°F41°F 3.6 in16 0.5 in 0 11.0 h
November 46°F32°F 2.2 in14 13.9 in 0 9.6 h
December 35°F24°F 1.8 in14 36.0 in 0 8.9 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 Traverse City

By our comfort score, the best months are May and June.

Comfort score by month (0-100) and its parts, in days per month
MonthScoreComfortableNotable rainHot or cold
Jan 240528
Feb 290324
Mar 401416
Apr 55574
May 711361
Jun 721462
Jul 681154
Aug 671262
Sep 681571
Oct 52780
Nov 361611
Dec 260524

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 Traverse City

The last spring frost typically comes around May 12, and the first fall frost around Oct 16, leaving 155 frost-free days in a typical year.

Frost and freeze dates for Traverse City
Typical date1 year in 10
Last spring frost (32°F)May 12after May 27
First fall frost (32°F)Oct 16before Oct 1
Last hard freeze (28°F)Apr 30after May 16
First hard freeze (28°F)Oct 30before Oct 12
Frost-free season155 daysunder 135 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: Traverse City Cherry Cptl Airport (USW00014850), NOAA 1991-2020 freeze probabilities. Frost dates for every city in Michigan.

Hottest and coldest readings, 1991-2020

The highest reading was 100°F (July 31, 2006); the lowest was -25°F (February 3, 1996).

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

Near Traverse City

Similar climates elsewhere

Where the numbers come from

  • Temperature, rain, frost dates and humidity and wind by hour: Traverse City Cherry Cptl Airport (USW00014850), 2.4 mi SE of the city center, 618 ft . NOAA normals and daily records, 1991-2020.
  • Snowfall: Maple City 1E (USC00205097), 12 mi WNW of the city center, 799 ft (203 ft higher than the city). NOAA normals and daily records, 1991-2020.
  • Snow depth: Traverse City Munson (USC00208249), 1.2 mi W of the city center, 635 ft . NOAA normals and daily records, 1991-2020.
  • Daily humidity and wind: Cherry Capital Airport (726387-14850), 3.1 mi ESE of the city center, 608 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