California has chilly winters and warm summers. A typical July afternoon reaches 84°, a January night drops to 22°, and about 21 inches of snow falls in a normal winter.
NOAA 1991-2020 climate normalsUpdated once a decade
☀️
July high
84°
1393rd hottest of 3,547 Pennsylvania towns
❄️
January low
22°
519th mildest of 3,547 Pennsylvania towns
💧
Rain + melted snow
41 in
482nd driest of 3,547 Pennsylvania towns
🌨️
Snow a winter
21 in
466th least snowy of 3,541 Pennsylvania towns
A normal year
What a year in California feels like
❄️
Winter
41° / 24°
Typical high / low · 8 days with an inch or more of snow
🌷
Spring
63° / 40°
Typical high / low · Last frost around Apr 27
☀️
Summer
83° / 60°
Typical high / low · 15 days reach 90° in a normal year
🍂
Fall
65° / 43°
Typical high / low · First frost around Oct 22
10°
20°
40°
50°
60°
70°
80°
90°
100°
32°
38°
22°
42°
24°
51°
31°
64°
40°
73°
49°
81°
58°
84°
62°
83°
61°
77°
54°
65°
43°
53°
33°
43°
27°
JanJFebFMarMAprAMayMJunJJulJAugASepSOctONovNDecD
32°, freezingBar runs from the typical overnight low up to the afternoon high
Best months to be outsideMayJunAugSepOctHighs of 62–84° and lows of 40° or more
Month by month
California weather by month
Average highs, lows, rain and snow for every month, from NOAA’s 1991–2020 normals.
Month
High
Low
Rain + melt
Snow
Wet days
Snow on ground
30-yr range
January
38°
22°
3.1"
5.7"
15
9
22° – 40°
February
42°
24°
2.7"
7.2"
12
7
20° – 41°
March
51°
31°
3.4"
4.6"
13
3
34° – 51°
April
64°
40°
3.5"
0.1"
14
0
46° – 56°
May
73°
49°
4.2"
0
14
0
54° – 67°
June
81°
58°
4.3"
0
13
0
65° – 71°
July
84°
62°
4.1"
0
11
0
69° – 77°
August
83°
61°
3.8"
0
10
0
68° – 76°
September
77°
54°
3.4"
0
10
0
63° – 70°
October
65°
43°
3.0"
0
12
0
51° – 60°
November
53°
33°
2.9"
0.5"
12
1
37° – 48°
December
43°
27°
3.1"
3.3"
13
5
25° – 46°
Year
63°
42°
41.3"
21.4"
147
24
“Wet days” have at least 0.01" of rain or melted snow. “Snow on ground” counts days with 1" or more. The 30-year range is the coldest and warmest that month’s average temperature got between 1991 and 2020.
Rain & snow
Rain and snow in California
California gets 41 inches of rain and melted snow a year. June is the wettest month and February the driest. Rain or snow falls on about 147 days a year. Snow covers the ground about 24 days of the year.
💧
41 in
Rain + melted snow a year
More rain than 56% of U.S. towns
❄️
21 in
Snow in a normal winter
Less snow than 55% of U.S. towns
⛄
24 days
With 1"+ of snow on the ground
Fewer than 54% of U.S. towns
Rain + melted snow by month
Inches of water
4.3"
JFMAMJJASOND
Snowfall by month
Inches of snow
7.2"
JFMAMJJASOND
Frost & the growing season
About 177 frost-free days a year
In half of years the last 32° night comes by April 27 and the first one by October 22. That leaves about 177 frost-free days for gardens, shorter than 51% of U.S. towns.
🌱 Apr 27
🍂 Oct 22
177 frost-free days
JFMAMJJASOND
🥶
116
nights at or below 32° in a normal year
🧊
2
nights below 0° in a normal year
🔥
15
days that reach 90° in a normal year
Freezing nights by month
Average nights at or below 32°
JFMAMJJASOND
90° days by month
Average days at 90° or more
JFMAMJJASOND
Heating & cooling
Heating and cooling a home in California
Engineers use “degree days” to estimate how hard a furnace or air conditioner works. In California, 87% of that work is heating and 13% is cooling, so the furnace matters far more than the air conditioner.
🔥
5,465 heating degree daysLess heating than 57% of U.S. towns
❄️
812 cooling degree daysLess cooling than 53% of U.S. towns
Degree days measure how far each day’s average temperature falls below or rises above 65°, added up over a year. Source: NOAA station normals.
Around California
California and its neighbors
California borders 9 towns with climate data. January nights across them vary by 0.5°. West Pike Run has the coldest January nights (21°) and Coal Center the hottest July afternoons (84°). California’s January low is 22° and its July high 84°.
Compared with every U.S. town and city on TownTapestry, each counted once.
Then and now
Warmer than it used to be
+0.8°1991–2020 average vs. the 20th century (1901–2000)
The last 30 years in California averaged 0.8° warmer than the 1900s. The biggest change is in December (+2.2°). The shift is smaller than in 84% of U.S. towns.
❄️ Winter+1.5°now 33°, was 31°
🌷 Spring+0.9°now 51°, was 50°
☀️ Summer+0.3°now 71°, was 71°
🍂 Fall+0.5°now 54°, was 54°
Change by month1991–2020 average minus 1901–2000 average, at California’s spot on NOAA’s grid
+0.0°
+2.2°
JanJFebFMarMAprAMayMJunJJulJAugASepSOctONovNDecD
Year to year
How much a month can swing
A normal is an average, and real years wander around it. February swings the most: between 1991 and 2020 its average temperature ranged from 20° to 41°. June is the most reliable, staying within 7°.
10°
20°
30°
40°
50°
60°
70°
80°
90°
JanJFebFMarMAprAMayMJunJJulJAugASepSOctONovNDecD
Coldest to warmest month in 30 yearsNormal
Questions
Common questions about California’s climate
What is the coldest month in California?
January, with a typical high of 38° and a low of 22°.
What is the hottest month in California?
July, with a typical high of 84° and a low of 62°. About 15 days a year reach 90°.
How much snow does California get?
About 21 inches in a normal winter, most of it in February.
When is the first frost in California?
In half of years the first 32° night comes by October 22, and the last spring frost by April 27.
What is the rainiest month in California?
June, with 4.3 inches of rain and melted snow. The year totals 41 inches.
📍Temperatures and rainfall come from NOAA’s gridded climate normals for California itself (about a 3-mile square). Snow, frost dates and day counts come from NOAA’s weather station at Donora 1 Sw, PA (7 mi) away. Normals are 30-year averages, not a forecast. Source: NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020 and 1901–2000.