Climateby Month

Milwaukee, WI climate by month

NOAA 1991-2020 normals · 615 ft elevation

Summers in Milwaukee are warm and often humid; winters are cold and snowy. Highs peak at 82°F in July and fall to 31°F in January. Wet days are spread through the year, from about 9 to 12 a month. Normal snowfall is about 49 in a year. The most comfortable time to visit is May, June and September.

Warmest month
82°F
July normal high
Coldest month
17°F
January normal low
Wet days a year
125
34.6 in of precipitation
Snow a year
48.7 in
normal snowfall

How warm is Milwaukee?

Normal highs range from 31°F in January to 82°F in July.

0°20°40°60°80°100° January: normal high 31°F (-1°C), low 17°F (-8°C) 31° 17° February: normal high 34°F (1°C), low 20°F (-7°C) March: normal high 44°F (7°C), low 29°F (-2°C) April: normal high 55°F (13°C), low 38°F (3°C) May: normal high 67°F (19°C), low 48°F (9°C) June: normal high 77°F (25°C), low 58°F (14°C) July: normal high 82°F (28°C), low 65°F (18°C) 82° 65° August: normal high 80°F (27°C), low 64°F (18°C) September: normal high 74°F (23°C), low 56°F (13°C) October: normal high 61°F (16°C), low 45°F (7°C) November: normal high 48°F (9°C), low 33°F (1°C) December: normal high 36°F (2°C), low 23°F (-5°C) JFMAMJJASOND

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

How rainy is Milwaukee?

April has the most wet days (about 12); the year brings about 35 in of precipitation.

January: 11 wet days February: 10 wet days March: 11 wet days April: 12 wet days 12 May: 12 wet days June: 11 wet days July: 10 wet days August: 10 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 48.7 in a year, most of it in January.

January: 14.9 in of snow 14.9 February: 11.8 in of snow March: 6.7 in of snow April: 2.1 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: 0.3 in of snow November: 2.5 in of snow December: 10.4 in of snow JFMAMJJASOND

How humid is Milwaukee?

Muggy days peak in July, at about 10 days.

January: 0 muggy days 0 February: 0 muggy days March: 0 muggy days April: 0 muggy days May: 0 muggy days June: 4 muggy days July: 10 muggy days 10 August: 10 muggy days September: 3 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 General Mitchell International Airport, 5.8 mi S 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 Milwaukee, 1991-2020
MonthHighLowPrecip.Wet daysSnowMuggy daysDaylight
January 31°F17°F 1.8 in11 14.9 in 0 9.4 h
February 34°F20°F 1.7 in10 11.8 in 0 10.5 h
March 44°F29°F 2.2 in11 6.7 in 0 11.9 h
April 55°F38°F 3.9 in12 2.1 in 0 13.4 h
May 67°F48°F 3.5 in12 0.0 in 0 14.7 h
June 77°F58°F 4.4 in11 0.0 in 4 15.3 h
July 82°F65°F 3.4 in10 0.0 in 10 15.0 h
August 80°F64°F 3.6 in10 0.0 in 10 13.9 h
September 74°F56°F 3.2 in9 0.0 in 3 12.5 h
October 61°F45°F 2.8 in10 0.3 in 0 11.0 h
November 48°F33°F 2.2 in10 2.5 in 0 9.7 h
December 36°F23°F 1.9 in10 10.4 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 Milwaukee

By our comfort score, the best months are May, June and September.

Comfort score by month (0-100) and its parts, in days per month
MonthScoreComfortableNotable rainHot or cold
Jan 250527
Feb 300422
Mar 412514
Apr 54473
May 681270
Jun 701472
Jul 65964
Aug 631063
Sep 681451
Oct 57960
Nov 39258
Dec 270522

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 Milwaukee

The last spring frost typically comes around Apr 19, and the first fall frost around Oct 29, leaving 192 frost-free days in a typical year.

Frost and freeze dates for Milwaukee
Typical date1 year in 10
Last spring frost (32°F)Apr 19after May 2
First fall frost (32°F)Oct 29before Oct 15
Last hard freeze (28°F)Apr 6after Apr 20
First hard freeze (28°F)Nov 8before Oct 27
Frost-free season192 daysunder 173 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: Milwaukee Mitchell Airport (USW00014839), NOAA 1991-2020 freeze probabilities. Frost dates for every city in Wisconsin.

Hottest and coldest readings, 1991-2020

The highest reading was 103°F (July 5, 2012, and 1 other day); the lowest was -26°F (February 3, 1996).

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

Near Milwaukee

Similar climates elsewhere

Where the numbers come from

  • Temperature, rain, snowfall, snow depth, frost dates and humidity and wind by hour: Milwaukee Mitchell Airport (USW00014839), 5.8 mi S of the city center, 670 ft (55 ft higher than the city). NOAA normals and daily records, 1991-2020.
  • Daily humidity and wind: General Mitchell International Airport (726400-14839), 5.8 mi S of the city center, 667 ft (52 ft higher than the city). 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