Climateby Month

Charlotte, NC climate by month

NOAA 1991-2020 normals · 763 ft elevation

Summers in Charlotte are hot and oppressively humid; winters are chilly. Highs peak at 90°F in July and fall to 52°F in January. Wet days are spread through the year, from about 7 to 11 a month. Normal snowfall is about 3.5 in a year. The most comfortable time to visit is April.

Warmest month
90°F
July normal high
Coldest month
32°F
January normal low
Wet days a year
112
43.6 in of precipitation
Snow a year
3.5 in
normal snowfall

How warm is Charlotte?

Normal highs range from 52°F in January to 90°F in July.

20°40°60°80°100° January: normal high 52°F (11°C), low 32°F (0°C) 52° 32° February: normal high 57°F (14°C), low 35°F (2°C) March: normal high 64°F (18°C), low 41°F (5°C) April: normal high 73°F (23°C), low 49°F (9°C) May: normal high 80°F (27°C), low 58°F (14°C) June: normal high 87°F (31°C), low 66°F (19°C) July: normal high 90°F (32°C), low 70°F (21°C) 90° 70° August: normal high 89°F (32°C), low 69°F (21°C) September: normal high 83°F (28°C), low 63°F (17°C) October: normal high 73°F (23°C), low 50°F (10°C) November: normal high 63°F (17°C), low 40°F (4°C) December: normal high 55°F (13°C), low 35°F (2°C) JFMAMJJASOND

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

How rainy is Charlotte?

June has the most wet days (about 11); the year brings about 44 in of precipitation.

January: 10 wet days February: 10 wet days March: 10 wet days April: 9 wet days May: 10 wet days June: 11 wet days 11 July: 11 wet days August: 10 wet days September: 8 wet days October: 7 wet days 7 November: 8 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 3.5 in a year, most of it in January.

January: 1.6 in of snow 1.6 February: 1.1 in of snow March: 0.3 in of snow April: 0.0 in of snow 0.0 May: 0.0 in of snow 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: 0.1 in of snow December: 0.4 in of snow JFMAMJJASOND

How humid is Charlotte?

Muggy days peak in July, at about 25 days.

January: 0 muggy days 0 February: 0 muggy days March: 0 muggy days April: 0 muggy days May: 4 muggy days June: 17 muggy days July: 25 muggy days 25 August: 23 muggy days September: 11 muggy days October: 2 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 Charlotte/Douglas International Airport, 6.3 mi W of the city center.

How much daylight?

Daylight ranges from about 9.8 hours in December to 14.5 hours in June.

January: 10.1 hours of daylight February: 10.9 hours of daylight March: 12.0 hours of daylight April: 13.1 hours of daylight May: 14.0 hours of daylight June: 14.5 hours of daylight 14.5 July: 14.3 hours of daylight August: 13.4 hours of daylight September: 12.4 hours of daylight October: 11.3 hours of daylight November: 10.3 hours of daylight December: 9.8 hours of daylight 9.8 JFMAMJJASOND
See all numbers
Monthly climate normals and day counts for Charlotte, 1991-2020
MonthHighLowPrecip.Wet daysSnowMuggy daysDaylight
January 52°F32°F 3.5 in10 1.6 in 0 10.1 h
February 57°F35°F 3.1 in10 1.1 in 0 10.9 h
March 64°F41°F 4.0 in10 0.3 in 0 12.0 h
April 73°F49°F 3.8 in9 0.0 in 0 13.1 h
May 80°F58°F 3.4 in10 0.0 in 4 14.0 h
June 87°F66°F 4.0 in11 0.0 in 17 14.5 h
July 90°F70°F 3.7 in11 0.0 in 25 14.3 h
August 89°F69°F 4.3 in10 0.0 in 23 13.4 h
September 83°F63°F 3.7 in8 0.0 in 11 12.4 h
October 73°F50°F 3.2 in7 0.0 in 2 11.3 h
November 63°F40°F 3.3 in8 0.1 in 0 10.3 h
December 55°F35°F 3.6 in10 0.4 in 0 9.8 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 Charlotte

By our comfort score, the best month is April.

Comfort score by month (0-100) and its parts, in days per month
MonthScoreComfortableNotable rainHot or cold
Jan 44475
Feb 53762
Mar 631370
Apr 731760
May 651062
Jun 492710
Jul 420618
Aug 430614
Sep 54655
Oct 691740
Nov 591250
Dec 47562

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 Charlotte

The last spring frost typically comes around Mar 30, and the first fall frost around Nov 3, leaving 221 frost-free days in a typical year.

Frost and freeze dates for Charlotte
Typical date1 year in 10
Last spring frost (32°F)Mar 30after Apr 14
First fall frost (32°F)Nov 3before Oct 22
Last hard freeze (28°F)Mar 17after Apr 3
First hard freeze (28°F)Nov 14before Nov 1
Frost-free season221 daysunder 201 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: Charlotte Douglas Airport (USW00013881), NOAA 1991-2020 freeze probabilities. Frost dates for every city in North Carolina.

Hottest and coldest readings, 1991-2020

The highest reading was 104°F (June 30, 2012, and 1 other day); the lowest was 5°F (January 30, 2014).

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

Near Charlotte

Similar climates elsewhere

Where the numbers come from

  • Temperature, rain, snowfall, snow depth, frost dates, humidity and wind by hour and cloud cover: Charlotte Douglas Airport (USW00013881), 6.3 mi W of the city center, 728 ft . NOAA normals and daily records, 1991-2020.
  • Daily humidity and wind: Charlotte/Douglas International Airport (723140-13881), 6.3 mi W of the city center, 730 ft . Hourly observations, 1991-2020.

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