Climateby Month

Providence, RI climate by month

NOAA 1991-2020 normals · 9 ft elevation · also covers Cranston, Warwick

Summers in Providence are warm and often humid; winters are cold and snowy. Highs peak at 84°F in July and fall to 38°F in January. Wet days are spread through the year, from about 9 to 12 a month. Normal snowfall is about 37 in a year. The most comfortable time to visit is May.

Warmest month
84°F
July normal high
Coldest month
22°F
January normal low
Wet days a year
127
47.5 in of precipitation
Snow a year
36.6 in
normal snowfall

How warm is Providence?

Normal highs range from 38°F in January to 84°F in July.

20°40°60°80°100° January: normal high 38°F (3°C), low 22°F (-6°C) 38° 22° February: normal high 41°F (5°C), low 24°F (-4°C) March: normal high 48°F (9°C), low 30°F (-1°C) April: normal high 59°F (15°C), low 40°F (4°C) May: normal high 69°F (21°C), low 49°F (9°C) June: normal high 78°F (26°C), low 59°F (15°C) July: normal high 84°F (29°C), low 65°F (18°C) 84° 65° August: normal high 82°F (28°C), low 64°F (18°C) September: normal high 75°F (24°C), low 57°F (14°C) October: normal high 64°F (18°C), low 45°F (7°C) November: normal high 53°F (12°C), low 36°F (2°C) December: normal high 43°F (6°C), low 28°F (-2°C) JFMAMJJASOND

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

How rainy is Providence?

May has the most wet days (about 12); the year brings about 48 in of precipitation.

January: 11 wet days February: 10 wet days March: 12 wet days April: 12 wet days May: 12 wet days 12 June: 11 wet days July: 9 wet days August: 9 wet days 9 September: 9 wet days October: 10 wet days November: 10 wet days December: 12 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 36.6 in a year, most of it in February.

January: 10.3 in of snow February: 10.5 in of snow 10.5 March: 6.4 in of snow April: 0.6 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: 0.2 in of snow November: 1.0 in of snow December: 7.6 in of snow JFMAMJJASOND

How humid is Providence?

Muggy days peak in July, at about 13 days.

January: 0 muggy days 0 February: 0 muggy days March: 0 muggy days April: 0 muggy days May: 0 muggy days June: 5 muggy days July: 13 muggy days 13 August: 12 muggy days September: 5 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 Theodore F Green State Airport, 7.0 mi S of the city center.

How much daylight?

Daylight ranges from about 9.2 hours in December to 15.2 hours in June.

January: 9.5 hours of daylight February: 10.6 hours of daylight March: 12.0 hours of daylight April: 13.4 hours of daylight May: 14.6 hours of daylight June: 15.2 hours of daylight 15.2 July: 14.9 hours of daylight August: 13.8 hours of daylight September: 12.5 hours of daylight October: 11.1 hours of daylight November: 9.8 hours of daylight December: 9.2 hours of daylight 9.2 JFMAMJJASOND
See all numbers
Monthly climate normals and day counts for Providence, 1991-2020
MonthHighLowPrecip.Wet daysSnowMuggy daysDaylight
January 38°F22°F 4.0 in11 10.3 in 0 9.5 h
February 41°F24°F 3.4 in10 10.5 in 0 10.6 h
March 48°F30°F 4.9 in12 6.4 in 0 12.0 h
April 59°F40°F 4.3 in12 0.6 in 0 13.4 h
May 69°F49°F 3.4 in12 0.0 in 0 14.6 h
June 78°F59°F 3.8 in11 0.0 in 5 15.2 h
July 84°F65°F 2.9 in9 0.0 in 13 14.9 h
August 82°F64°F 3.6 in9 0.0 in 12 13.8 h
September 75°F57°F 4.2 in9 0.0 in 5 12.5 h
October 64°F45°F 4.2 in10 0.2 in 0 11.1 h
November 53°F36°F 4.3 in10 1.0 in 0 9.8 h
December 43°F28°F 4.7 in12 7.6 in 0 9.2 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 Providence

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 290719
Feb 330615
Mar 44277
Apr 59771
May 731671
Jun 691262
Jul 57465
Aug 58663
Sep 691661
Oct 601270
Nov 44362
Dec 320812

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 Providence

The last spring frost typically comes around Apr 11, and the first fall frost around Oct 30, leaving 199 frost-free days in a typical year.

Frost and freeze dates for Providence
Typical date1 year in 10
Last spring frost (32°F)Apr 11after Apr 23
First fall frost (32°F)Oct 30before Oct 16
Last hard freeze (28°F)Apr 1after Apr 11
First hard freeze (28°F)Nov 9before Oct 29
Frost-free season199 daysunder 183 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: Providence T F Green Airport (USW00014765), NOAA 1991-2020 freeze probabilities. Frost dates for every city in Rhode Island.

Hottest and coldest readings, 1991-2020

The highest reading was 102°F (July 6, 2010, and 1 other day); the lowest was -9°F (February 14, 2016).

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

Near Providence

Similar climates elsewhere

Also covers

Cranston and Warwick use the same temperature and rain stations as Providence, so their 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: Providence T F Green Airport (USW00014765), 7.1 mi S of the city center, 60 ft (51 ft higher than the city). NOAA normals and daily records, 1991-2020.
  • Cloud cover: Boston Logan Intl Airport (USW00014739), 42 mi NNE of the city center, 12 ft . NOAA normals and daily records, 1991-2020.
  • Daily humidity and wind: Theodore F Green State Airport (725070-14765), 7.0 mi S of the city center, 51 ft . Hourly observations, 1991-2020.

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