Climateby Month

New York City, NY climate by month

NOAA 1991-2020 normals · 35 ft elevation

New York City has warm and often humid summers and cold and snowy winters. Highs peak at 85°F in July and fall to 40°F in January. Wet days are spread through the year, from about 9 to 12 a month. Normal snowfall is about 30 in a year. By our comfort score the best month is May.

Warmest month
85°F
July normal high
Coldest month
28°F
January normal low
Wet days a year
125
49.5 in of precipitation
Snow a year
29.8 in
normal snowfall

How warm is New York City?

Normal highs range from 40°F in January to 85°F in July.

20°40°60°80°100° January: normal high 40°F (4°C), low 28°F (-2°C) 40° 28° February: normal high 42°F (6°C), low 30°F (-1°C) March: normal high 50°F (10°C), low 36°F (2°C) April: normal high 62°F (17°C), low 46°F (8°C) May: normal high 71°F (22°C), low 55°F (13°C) June: normal high 80°F (27°C), low 64°F (18°C) July: normal high 85°F (29°C), low 70°F (21°C) 85° 70° August: normal high 83°F (28°C), low 69°F (21°C) September: normal high 76°F (24°C), low 62°F (17°C) October: normal high 65°F (18°C), low 51°F (11°C) November: normal high 54°F (12°C), low 42°F (6°C) December: normal high 44°F (7°C), low 34°F (1°C) JFMAMJJASOND

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

How rainy is New York City?

May has the most wet days (about 12); the year brings about 50 in of precipitation.

January: 11 wet days February: 10 wet days March: 11 wet days April: 11 wet days May: 12 wet days 12 June: 11 wet days July: 11 wet days August: 10 wet days September: 9 wet days 9 October: 10 wet days November: 9 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 29.8 in a year, most of it in February.

January: 8.8 in of snow February: 10.1 in of snow 10.1 March: 5.0 in of snow April: 0.4 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: 0.5 in of snow December: 4.9 in of snow JFMAMJJASOND

How humid is New York City?

Muggy days peak in July, at about 14 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: 14 muggy days 14 August: 13 muggy days September: 6 muggy days October: 1 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 La Guardia Airport, 8.0 mi NE of the city center.

How much daylight?

Daylight ranges from about 9.3 hours in December to 15.0 hours in June.

January: 9.6 hours of daylight February: 10.7 hours of daylight March: 12.0 hours of daylight April: 13.3 hours of daylight May: 14.5 hours of daylight June: 15.0 hours of daylight 15.0 July: 14.8 hours of daylight August: 13.8 hours of daylight September: 12.5 hours of daylight October: 11.1 hours of daylight November: 9.9 hours of daylight December: 9.3 hours of daylight 9.3 JFMAMJJASOND
See all numbers
Monthly climate normals and day counts for New York City, 1991-2020
MonthHighLowPrecip.Wet daysSnowMuggy daysDaylight
January 40°F28°F 3.6 in11 8.8 in 0 9.6 h
February 42°F30°F 3.2 in10 10.1 in 0 10.7 h
March 50°F36°F 4.3 in11 5.0 in 0 12.0 h
April 62°F46°F 4.1 in11 0.4 in 0 13.3 h
May 71°F55°F 4.0 in12 0.0 in 1 14.5 h
June 80°F64°F 4.5 in11 0.0 in 5 15.0 h
July 85°F70°F 4.6 in11 0.0 in 14 14.8 h
August 83°F69°F 4.6 in10 0.0 in 13 13.8 h
September 76°F62°F 4.3 in9 0.0 in 6 12.5 h
October 65°F51°F 4.4 in10 0.1 in 1 11.1 h
November 54°F42°F 3.6 in9 0.5 in 0 9.9 h
December 44°F34°F 4.4 in11 4.9 in 0 9.3 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 York City

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 310617
Feb 361613
Mar 46385
Apr 631070
May 741771
Jun 661073
Jul 53377
Aug 54475
Sep 661461
Oct 611260
Nov 46462
Dec 341711

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 York City

The last spring frost typically comes around Mar 30, and the first fall frost around Nov 20, leaving 236 frost-free days in a typical year.

Frost and freeze dates for New York City
Typical date1 year in 10
Last spring frost (32°F)Mar 30after Apr 9
First fall frost (32°F)Nov 20before Nov 6
Last hard freeze (28°F)Mar 19after Apr 2
First hard freeze (28°F)Dec 1before Nov 15
Frost-free season236 daysunder 217 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 York Cntrl Pk Twr (USW00094728), NOAA 1991-2020 freeze probabilities. Frost dates for every city in New York.

Hottest and coldest readings, 1991-2020

The highest reading was 104°F (July 22, 2011); the lowest was -2°F (January 19, 1994).

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

Near New York City

Similar climates elsewhere

Where the numbers come from

  • Temperature, rain, snowfall and frost dates: New York Cntrl Pk Twr (USW00094728), 4.9 mi NNE of the city center, 130 ft (95 ft higher than the city). NOAA normals and daily records, 1991-2020.
  • Snow depth and humidity and wind by hour: New York Laguardia Airport (USW00014732), 8.0 mi NE of the city center, 11 ft . NOAA normals and daily records, 1991-2020.
  • Cloud cover: Teterboro Airport (USW00094741), 9.8 mi NNW of the city center, 9 ft . NOAA normals and daily records, 1991-2020.
  • Daily humidity and wind: La Guardia Airport (725030-14732), 8.0 mi NE of the city center, 10 ft . Hourly observations, 1991-2020.

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