Climateby Month

Philadelphia, PA climate by month

NOAA 1991-2020 normals · 35 ft elevation

Summers in Philadelphia are hot and often humid; winters are cold and snowy. Highs peak at 88°F in July and fall to 41°F in January. Wet days are spread through the year, from about 9 to 11 a month. Normal snowfall is about 23 in a year. The most comfortable time to visit is May.

Warmest month
88°F
July normal high
Coldest month
26°F
January normal low
Wet days a year
121
44.1 in of precipitation
Snow a year
23.1 in
normal snowfall

How warm is Philadelphia?

Normal highs range from 41°F in January to 88°F in July.

20°40°60°80°100° January: normal high 41°F (5°C), low 26°F (-3°C) 41° 26° February: normal high 44°F (7°C), low 28°F (-2°C) March: normal high 53°F (12°C), low 34°F (1°C) April: normal high 65°F (18°C), low 44°F (7°C) May: normal high 74°F (23°C), low 54°F (12°C) June: normal high 83°F (28°C), low 64°F (18°C) July: normal high 88°F (31°C), low 70°F (21°C) 88° 70° August: normal high 86°F (30°C), low 68°F (20°C) September: normal high 79°F (26°C), low 61°F (16°C) October: normal high 67°F (19°C), low 49°F (9°C) November: normal high 56°F (13°C), low 39°F (4°C) December: normal high 46°F (8°C), low 31°F (-1°C) JFMAMJJASOND

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

How rainy is Philadelphia?

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

January: 11 wet days 11 February: 10 wet days March: 11 wet days April: 11 wet days May: 11 wet days June: 10 wet days July: 10 wet days August: 9 wet days September: 9 wet days October: 9 wet days November: 9 wet days 9 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 23.1 in a year, most of it in February.

January: 7.1 in of snow February: 8.4 in of snow 8.4 March: 3.6 in of snow April: 0.3 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: 0.0 in of snow November: 0.2 in of snow December: 3.5 in of snow JFMAMJJASOND

How humid is Philadelphia?

Muggy days peak in July, at about 17 days.

January: 0 muggy days 0 February: 0 muggy days March: 0 muggy days April: 0 muggy days May: 2 muggy days June: 9 muggy days July: 17 muggy days 17 August: 16 muggy days September: 7 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 Philadelphia International Airport, 6.4 mi SSW of the city center.

How much daylight?

Daylight ranges from about 9.4 hours in December to 15.0 hours in June.

January: 9.7 hours of daylight February: 10.7 hours of daylight March: 12.0 hours of daylight April: 13.3 hours of daylight May: 14.4 hours of daylight June: 15.0 hours of daylight 15.0 July: 14.7 hours of daylight August: 13.7 hours of daylight September: 12.4 hours of daylight October: 11.1 hours of daylight November: 10.0 hours of daylight December: 9.4 hours of daylight 9.4 JFMAMJJASOND
See all numbers
Monthly climate normals and day counts for Philadelphia, 1991-2020
MonthHighLowPrecip.Wet daysSnowMuggy daysDaylight
January 41°F26°F 3.1 in11 7.1 in 0 9.7 h
February 44°F28°F 2.8 in10 8.4 in 0 10.7 h
March 53°F34°F 4.0 in11 3.6 in 0 12.0 h
April 65°F44°F 3.5 in11 0.3 in 0 13.3 h
May 74°F54°F 3.3 in11 0.0 in 2 14.4 h
June 83°F64°F 4.0 in10 0.0 in 9 15.0 h
July 88°F70°F 4.4 in10 0.0 in 17 14.7 h
August 86°F68°F 4.3 in9 0.0 in 16 13.7 h
September 79°F61°F 4.4 in9 0.0 in 7 12.4 h
October 67°F49°F 3.5 in9 0.0 in 1 11.1 h
November 56°F39°F 2.9 in9 0.2 in 0 10.0 h
December 46°F31°F 4.0 in11 3.5 in 0 9.4 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 Philadelphia

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 331615
Feb 381611
Mar 50474
Apr 671360
May 731662
Jun 59776
Jul 481613
Aug 50368
Sep 641262
Oct 651560
Nov 49561
Dec 36179

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 Philadelphia

The last spring frost typically comes around Mar 30, and the first fall frost around Nov 17, leaving 232 frost-free days in a typical year.

Frost and freeze dates for Philadelphia
Typical date1 year in 10
Last spring frost (32°F)Mar 30after Apr 12
First fall frost (32°F)Nov 17before Nov 4
Last hard freeze (28°F)Mar 17after Mar 31
First hard freeze (28°F)Nov 29before Nov 12
Frost-free season232 daysunder 214 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: Phila Franklin Inst (USC00366886), NOAA 1991-2020 freeze probabilities. Frost dates for every city in Pennsylvania.

Hottest and coldest readings, 1991-2020

The highest reading was 103°F (July 22, 2011, and 2 other days); the lowest was -5°F (January 19, 1994).

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

Near Philadelphia

Similar climates elsewhere

Where the numbers come from

  • Temperature, rain, snowfall, snow depth and humidity and wind by hour: Philadelphia Intl Airport (USW00013739), 6.8 mi SSW of the city center, 10 ft . NOAA normals and daily records, 1991-2020.
  • Frost dates: Phila Franklin Inst (USC00366886), 0.6 mi NW of the city center, 60 ft . NOAA normals and daily records, 1991-2020.
  • Cloud cover: Philadelphia Ne Airport (USW00094732), 12 mi NE of the city center, 100 ft (65 ft higher than the city). NOAA normals and daily records, 1991-2020.
  • Daily humidity and wind: Philadelphia International Airport (724080-13739), 6.4 mi SSW of the city center, 7 ft . Hourly observations, 1991-2020.

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