Climateby Month

Durham, NC climate by month

NOAA 1991-2020 normals · 395 ft elevation · also covers Cary

Durham has hot and oppressively humid summers and chilly winters. Highs peak at 91°F in July and fall to 52°F in January. Wet days are spread through the year, from about 8 to 12 a month. Normal snowfall is about 5.2 in a year. By our comfort score the best month is April.

Warmest month
91°F
July normal high
Coldest month
32°F
January normal low
Wet days a year
118
46.1 in of precipitation
Snow a year
5.2 in
normal snowfall

How warm is Durham?

Normal highs range from 52°F in January to 91°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 56°F (13°C), low 34°F (1°C) March: normal high 63°F (17°C), low 40°F (4°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 91°F (33°C), low 70°F (21°C) 91° 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 34°F (1°C) JFMAMJJASOND

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

How rainy is Durham?

July has the most wet days (about 12); the year brings about 46 in of precipitation.

January: 10 wet days February: 9 wet days March: 11 wet days April: 10 wet days May: 10 wet days June: 11 wet days July: 12 wet days 12 August: 11 wet days September: 9 wet days October: 8 wet days 8 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 5.2 in a year, most of it in January.

January: 2.6 in of snow 2.6 February: 1.4 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: 0.8 in of snow JFMAMJJASOND

How humid is Durham?

Muggy days peak in July, at about 26 days.

January: 0 muggy days 0 February: 0 muggy days March: 0 muggy days April: 0 muggy days May: 6 muggy days June: 18 muggy days July: 26 muggy days 26 August: 24 muggy days September: 13 muggy days October: 3 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 Raleigh-Durham International Airport, 9.6 mi SE of the city center.

How much daylight?

Daylight ranges from about 9.8 hours in December to 14.6 hours in June.

January: 10.0 hours of daylight February: 10.9 hours of daylight March: 12.0 hours of daylight April: 13.1 hours of daylight May: 14.1 hours of daylight June: 14.6 hours of daylight 14.6 July: 14.3 hours of daylight August: 13.5 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 Durham, 1991-2020
MonthHighLowPrecip.Wet daysSnowMuggy daysDaylight
January 52°F32°F 3.4 in10 2.6 in 0 10.0 h
February 56°F34°F 2.8 in9 1.4 in 0 10.9 h
March 63°F40°F 4.1 in11 0.3 in 0 12.0 h
April 73°F49°F 3.5 in10 0.0 in 0 13.1 h
May 80°F58°F 3.4 in10 0.0 in 6 14.1 h
June 87°F66°F 3.9 in11 0.0 in 18 14.6 h
July 91°F70°F 5.0 in12 0.0 in 26 14.3 h
August 89°F69°F 4.7 in11 0.0 in 24 13.5 h
September 83°F63°F 5.2 in9 0.0 in 13 12.4 h
October 73°F50°F 3.4 in8 0.0 in 3 11.3 h
November 63°F40°F 3.3 in8 0.1 in 0 10.3 h
December 55°F34°F 3.4 in10 0.8 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 Durham

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 44476
Feb 52663
Mar 631371
Apr 721660
May 641073
Jun 482712
Jul 400819
Aug 421714
Sep 54665
Oct 681750
Nov 591250
Dec 47563

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 Durham

The last spring frost typically comes around Mar 31, and the first fall frost around Nov 4, leaving 219 frost-free days in a typical year.

Frost and freeze dates for Durham
Typical date1 year in 10
Last spring frost (32°F)Mar 31after Apr 16
First fall frost (32°F)Nov 4before Oct 23
Last hard freeze (28°F)Mar 18after Apr 3
First hard freeze (28°F)Nov 16before Nov 2
Frost-free season219 daysunder 198 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: Raleigh Durham Intl Airport (USW00013722), NOAA 1991-2020 freeze probabilities. Frost dates for every city in North Carolina.

Hottest and coldest readings, 1991-2020

The highest reading was 105°F (June 30, 2012, and 1 other day); the lowest was 0°F (February 5, 1996).

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

Near Durham

Similar climates elsewhere

Also covers

Cary uses the same temperature and rain stations as Durham, so its monthly numbers are the ones on this page.

Where the numbers come from

  • Temperature, rain, snowfall, snow depth, frost dates and humidity and wind by hour: Raleigh Durham Intl Airport (USW00013722), 9.6 mi SE of the city center, 416 ft . NOAA normals and daily records, 1991-2020.
  • Cloud cover: Pope AFB (USW00013714), 57 mi S of the city center, 218 ft (177 ft lower than the city). NOAA normals and daily records, 1991-2020.
  • Daily humidity and wind: Raleigh-Durham International Airport (723060-13722), 9.6 mi SE of the city center, 395 ft . Hourly observations, 1991-2020.

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