Climateby Month

Madison, WI climate by month

NOAA 1991-2020 normals · 875 ft elevation

Madison has warm and often humid summers and very cold and snowy winters. Highs peak at 82°F in July and fall to 27°F in January. Wet days are spread through the year, from about 9 to 13 a month. Normal snowfall is about 52 in a year. By our comfort score the best month is May.

Warmest month
82°F
July normal high
Coldest month
12°F
January normal low
Wet days a year
126
37.1 in of precipitation
Snow a year
51.8 in
normal snowfall

How warm is Madison?

Normal highs range from 27°F in January to 82°F in July.

0°20°40°60°80°100° January: normal high 27°F (-3°C), low 12°F (-11°C) 27° 12° February: normal high 31°F (-1°C), low 15°F (-9°C) March: normal high 44°F (7°C), low 25°F (-4°C) April: normal high 57°F (14°C), low 36°F (2°C) May: normal high 69°F (21°C), low 47°F (8°C) June: normal high 79°F (26°C), low 57°F (14°C) July: normal high 82°F (28°C), low 62°F (17°C) 82° 62° August: normal high 80°F (27°C), low 60°F (16°C) September: normal high 73°F (23°C), low 51°F (11°C) October: normal high 60°F (16°C), low 40°F (4°C) November: normal high 45°F (7°C), low 29°F (-2°C) December: normal high 32°F (0°C), low 18°F (-8°C) JFMAMJJASOND

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

How rainy is Madison?

May has the most wet days (about 13); the year brings about 37 in of precipitation.

January: 11 wet days February: 10 wet days March: 11 wet days April: 13 wet days May: 13 wet days 13 June: 12 wet days July: 10 wet days August: 9 wet days September: 9 wet days 9 October: 10 wet days November: 10 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 51.8 in a year, most of it in January.

January: 13.7 in of snow 13.7 February: 12.8 in of snow March: 7.0 in of snow April: 2.6 in of snow May: 0.1 in of snow June: 0.0 in of snow 0.0 July: 0.0 in of snow August: 0.0 in of snow September: 0.0 in of snow October: 0.6 in of snow November: 3.0 in of snow December: 12.0 in of snow JFMAMJJASOND

How humid is Madison?

Muggy days peak in July, at about 11 days.

January: 0 muggy days 0 February: 0 muggy days March: 0 muggy days April: 0 muggy days May: 1 muggy days June: 6 muggy days July: 11 muggy days 11 August: 9 muggy days September: 2 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 Dane Co Regional-Truax Field Airport, 5.5 mi NNE of the city center.

How much daylight?

Daylight ranges from about 9.1 hours in December to 15.3 hours in June.

January: 9.4 hours of daylight February: 10.5 hours of daylight March: 11.9 hours of daylight April: 13.4 hours of daylight May: 14.7 hours of daylight June: 15.3 hours of daylight 15.3 July: 15.0 hours of daylight August: 13.9 hours of daylight September: 12.5 hours of daylight October: 11.0 hours of daylight November: 9.7 hours of daylight December: 9.1 hours of daylight 9.1 JFMAMJJASOND
See all numbers
Monthly climate normals and day counts for Madison, 1991-2020
MonthHighLowPrecip.Wet daysSnowMuggy daysDaylight
January 27°F12°F 1.5 in11 13.7 in 0 9.4 h
February 31°F15°F 1.5 in10 12.8 in 0 10.5 h
March 44°F25°F 2.3 in11 7.0 in 0 11.9 h
April 57°F36°F 3.8 in13 2.6 in 0 13.4 h
May 69°F47°F 4.1 in13 0.1 in 1 14.7 h
June 79°F57°F 5.3 in12 0.0 in 6 15.3 h
July 82°F62°F 4.5 in10 0.0 in 11 15.0 h
August 80°F60°F 4.2 in9 0.0 in 9 13.9 h
September 73°F51°F 3.4 in9 0.0 in 2 12.5 h
October 60°F40°F 2.8 in10 0.6 in 0 11.0 h
November 45°F29°F 2.2 in10 3.0 in 0 9.7 h
December 32°F18°F 1.6 in10 12.0 in 0 9.1 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 Madison

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 250428
Feb 290423
Mar 422513
Apr 58783
May 731570
Jun 691282
Jul 63874
Aug 641062
Sep 691561
Oct 57961
Nov 372511
Dec 260524

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 Madison

The last spring frost typically comes around May 1, and the first fall frost around Oct 10, leaving 160 frost-free days in a typical year.

Frost and freeze dates for Madison
Typical date1 year in 10
Last spring frost (32°F)May 1after May 16
First fall frost (32°F)Oct 10before Sep 26
Last hard freeze (28°F)Apr 20after May 5
First hard freeze (28°F)Oct 22before Oct 6
Frost-free season160 daysunder 140 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: Madison Dane Rgnl Airport (USW00014837), NOAA 1991-2020 freeze probabilities. Frost dates for every city in Wisconsin.

Hottest and coldest readings, 1991-2020

The highest reading was 104°F (July 5, 2012); the lowest was -29°F (February 3, 1996).

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

Near Madison

Similar climates elsewhere

Where the numbers come from

  • Temperature, rain, snowfall, snow depth, frost dates and humidity and wind by hour: Madison Dane Rgnl Airport (USW00014837), 5.5 mi NNE of the city center, 866 ft . NOAA normals and daily records, 1991-2020.
  • Daily humidity and wind: Dane Co Regional-Truax Field Airport (726410-14837), 5.5 mi NNE of the city center, 859 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