Climateby Month

Richmond, VA climate by month

NOAA 1991-2020 normals · 213 ft elevation

Summers in Richmond are hot and oppressively humid; winters are chilly. Highs peak at 90°F in July and fall to 48°F in January. Wet days are spread through the year, from about 8 to 11 a month. Normal snowfall is about 8.8 in a year. The most comfortable time to visit is April, May and October.

Warmest month
90°F
July normal high
Coldest month
29°F
January normal low
Wet days a year
119
45.5 in of precipitation
Snow a year
8.8 in
normal snowfall

How warm is Richmond?

Normal highs range from 48°F in January to 90°F in July.

20°40°60°80°100° January: normal high 48°F (9°C), low 29°F (-2°C) 48° 29° February: normal high 52°F (11°C), low 30°F (-1°C) March: normal high 60°F (16°C), low 37°F (3°C) April: normal high 70°F (21°C), low 46°F (8°C) May: normal high 78°F (26°C), low 56°F (13°C) June: normal high 86°F (30°C), low 65°F (18°C) July: normal high 90°F (32°C), low 69°F (21°C) 90° 69° August: normal high 88°F (31°C), low 68°F (20°C) September: normal high 81°F (27°C), low 61°F (16°C) October: normal high 71°F (22°C), low 49°F (9°C) November: normal high 60°F (16°C), low 39°F (4°C) December: normal high 52°F (11°C), low 32°F (0°C) JFMAMJJASOND

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

How rainy is Richmond?

July has the most wet days (about 11); the year brings about 46 in of precipitation.

January: 10 wet days February: 9 wet days March: 11 wet days April: 11 wet days May: 11 wet days June: 11 wet days July: 11 wet days 11 August: 9 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 8.8 in a year, most of it in January.

January: 3.7 in of snow 3.7 February: 2.2 in of snow March: 1.1 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: 0.0 in of snow December: 1.8 in of snow JFMAMJJASOND

How humid is Richmond?

Muggy days peak in July, at about 24 days.

January: 0 muggy days 0 February: 0 muggy days March: 0 muggy days April: 0 muggy days May: 4 muggy days June: 15 muggy days July: 24 muggy days 24 August: 22 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 Richmond International Airport, 8.1 mi ESE of the city center.

How much daylight?

Daylight ranges from about 9.6 hours in December to 14.7 hours in June.

January: 9.9 hours of daylight February: 10.8 hours of daylight March: 12.0 hours of daylight April: 13.2 hours of daylight May: 14.2 hours of daylight June: 14.7 hours of daylight 14.7 July: 14.5 hours of daylight August: 13.6 hours of daylight September: 12.4 hours of daylight October: 11.2 hours of daylight November: 10.2 hours of daylight December: 9.6 hours of daylight 9.6 JFMAMJJASOND
See all numbers
Monthly climate normals and day counts for Richmond, 1991-2020
MonthHighLowPrecip.Wet daysSnowMuggy daysDaylight
January 48°F29°F 3.2 in10 3.7 in 0 9.9 h
February 52°F30°F 2.6 in9 2.2 in 0 10.8 h
March 60°F37°F 4.0 in11 1.1 in 0 12.0 h
April 70°F46°F 3.2 in11 0.0 in 0 13.2 h
May 78°F56°F 4.0 in11 0.0 in 4 14.2 h
June 86°F65°F 4.6 in11 0.0 in 15 14.7 h
July 90°F69°F 4.4 in11 0.0 in 24 14.5 h
August 88°F68°F 4.9 in9 0.0 in 22 13.6 h
September 81°F61°F 4.6 in9 0.0 in 11 12.4 h
October 71°F49°F 3.4 in8 0.0 in 2 11.2 h
November 60°F39°F 3.1 in8 0.0 in 0 10.2 h
December 52°F32°F 3.5 in10 1.8 in 0 9.6 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 Richmond

By our comfort score, the best months are April, May and October.

Comfort score by month (0-100) and its parts, in days per month
MonthScoreComfortableNotable rainHot or cold
Jan 40369
Feb 47465
Mar 591071
Apr 691571
May 661273
Jun 52379
Jul 420817
Aug 451712
Sep 56864
Oct 681750
Nov 561050
Dec 43365

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 Richmond

The last spring frost typically comes around Apr 3, and the first fall frost around Nov 4, leaving 215 frost-free days in a typical year.

Frost and freeze dates for Richmond
Typical date1 year in 10
Last spring frost (32°F)Apr 3after Apr 18
First fall frost (32°F)Nov 4before Oct 23
Last hard freeze (28°F)Mar 22after Apr 5
First hard freeze (28°F)Nov 15before Nov 2
Frost-free season215 daysunder 195 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: Richmond Intl Airport (USW00013740), NOAA 1991-2020 freeze probabilities. Frost dates for every city in Virginia.

Hottest and coldest readings, 1991-2020

The highest reading was 105°F (July 25, 2010, and 1 other day); the lowest was -3°F (January 7, 2018).

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

Near Richmond

Similar climates elsewhere

Where the numbers come from

  • Temperature, rain, snowfall, snow depth, frost dates and humidity and wind by hour: Richmond Intl Airport (USW00013740), 8.4 mi ESE of the city center, 164 ft . NOAA normals and daily records, 1991-2020.
  • Daily humidity and wind: Richmond International Airport (724010-13740), 8.1 mi ESE of the city center, 166 ft . Hourly observations, 1991-2020.
  • Not available for this location: cloud cover (no station close enough or similar enough in elevation).

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