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Indianapolis weather by month: averages, rainfall & climate trends

Indianapolis has the restless four-season climate of the American heartland, where a warm spring afternoon can turn to snow inside a day and a half. Indianapolis weather by month: average temperatures, rainfall, extremes and how the climate has changed since 1940.

Today vs average

+2.2°Fhigh near average

65° / 36°Today
63° / 44°Average
see today in detail →

How it's changed

+3.4°Faverage temperature, 2016–2025 vs 1940–1949average temperature vs 1940–4983frost days a year now (2016–2025) · 108 in the 1940sfrost days a year · 108 in the 1940s42days above 86°F a year now (2016–2025) · 27 in the 1940sdays above 86°F · 27 in the 1940s+3.4°F vs the 1940s · see how it's changed →
Weather by montha typical year, averaged over the full recordJanuary, rain 3.0 incheshigh 36°low 22°February, rain 2.8 incheshigh 40°low 25°March, rain 4.1 incheshigh 51°low 34°April, rain 4.3 incheshigh 63°low 44°May, rain 4.4 incheshigh 73°low 54°June, rain 3.9 incheshigh 82°low 64°July, rain 3.6 incheshigh 85°low 67°August, rain 3.0 incheshigh 83°low 65°September, rain 2.7 incheshigh 77°low 58°October, rain 2.9 incheshigh 66°low 47°November, rain 3.4 incheshigh 52°low 36°December, rain 3.2 incheshigh 40°low 27°wettest month May, 4.4 inches · 41.3 inches a yearsee month by month →

Right now

What it's doing today vs the historical average for this date.
Clear

Right now

55.9°

50°feels like
40%humidity
32°dew point
5 mphfrom SE
UV index0.0
sunrise07:58sunset19:01day length11h 03m
SunClear65°36°
TodayClear67°41°
TueClear70°41°
WedClear71°51°
ThuClear71°53°
FriClear71°53°
SatMostly clear73°52°

On this date: October 19

Today (forecast)
65° / 36°
Average for October 19
63° / 44°

High near average · +2.2°F

  • Highest since 1940: 82.5° · 1953
  • Lowest since 1940: 24.0° · 1992
  • One year ago: 66° / 50°

Every October 19 in history, coldest to hottest

▲ Daily highs▼ Daily lows

Dots show daily highs (top) and lows (bottom) for each October 19 on record (n = 86). Outlined dots are today's forecast.

Area we sample

Each city's history comes from one ERA5 grid cell, about 28 km across, shown by the dashed box. Near mountains or coasts, conditions can vary across the cell.

Location & data

Historical weather for Indianapolis is sampled from the ECMWF ERA5 reanalysis at 39.77°N, 86.16°W, with daily records since 1940.

Coordinates
39.77°N, 86.16°W
Time zone
America/Indiana/Indianapolis
Period
1940–2026
Data source
ERA5 (ECMWF)

Last 30 days

20 of the last 30 days were warmer than the historical average for that date. Average difference: +3.5°F.

Each bar is one day, from morning low to afternoon high. Warm-colored bars are days whose mean ran above average; cool bars ran below. The dot inside the bar is the daily mean. The shaded band is the typical 10–90% range expected for that date. Average = the day's mean temperature averaged across every year of record (1940–2026) for that calendar date.

This date over the years

One dot per year, showing the mean temperature on this calendar date. Dots are warmer or cooler than the long-term average (dashed line); the shaded band is the typical 10–90% range, and the highlighted dot is today's forecast. Based on ERA5 reanalysis: modelled estimates, not station readings.

Weather by month

Average temperatures and rainfall for each month: a typical year, from the full record.

Climate overview

Indianapolis sits at the centre of Indiana on flat, open till plains, with no large body of water nearby to temper its weather. The climate is hot-summer humid continental (Köppen Dfa), close to the subtropical line. Summers run hot, humid and wet; winters are cold with moderate snow. It is the shoulder seasons that misbehave most, spring above all, when temperatures can drop more than 17°C in a single afternoon.

That volatility is part of the city's character: a balmy March day can give way to snow within thirty-six hours. The flat terrain leaves the area exposed to the severe thunderstorms and tornadoes of the Midwest, while river flooding has occasionally turned serious, most notably in the Great Flood of 1913, which drove thousands of families from their homes.

The warmest month is July, with typical afternoon highs of 84.6°F and nights around 67.1°F. On about 55 nights a year, the temperature never drops below 68°F. The coolest month is January, when afternoons reach about 36.1°F and overnight lows sit around 21.7°F. Frost shows up on around 85 mornings a year.

Indianapolis picks up roughly 41.3 inches a year, with a peak of 4.4 inches in May and as little as 2.7 inches in September.

Over the full record (since 1940), the annual mean temperature in Indianapolis has risen by 3.4°F between its first decade and its last. The count of days past 86°F has risen from roughly 25 a year to 40 between the record's first and last decades.

Sources:en.wikipedia.orgbritannica.comweather.gov

Climate graph (climograph)

July is the warmest month, January the coolest: a yearly swing of 47°F. Wettest month: May (~4.4 in). Whole year averages ~41.3 inches of rain.

Bars = average monthly rainfall (right axis). Lines = average daily high and low (left axis). Average = each month's value averaged across every year of record (1940–2026).

Rainy days by month

About 101 rainy days a year: most in May (~11), fewest in September (~6).

Bars = average number of days with ≥ 0.08 in per month. Hover for the monthly rainfall total.

Monthly wind

Average daily peak wind at 10 m, by month.

Monthly solar energy

Average daily incoming solar energy in megajoules per square metre: the record's own proxy for how sunny the month is.

Indianapolis month by month: what to expect

Typical conditions for each month, averaged across the full record (since 1940). Daylight is the time from sunrise to sunset. Highest and Lowest are the most extreme values in the ERA5 dataset (modelled since 1940), so they can differ from official weather-station readings.

MonthAvg highAvg lowRainRainy daysDaylightHighestLowest
January36.1°21.7°3.0 in79.5 h69.7° (1950)−23.5° (1994)
February40.4°24.7°2.8 in710.5 h74.5° (2018)−18.2° (1951)
March51.2°33.6°4.1 in1011.7 h83.3° (2012)−8.3° (1943)
April63.4°44.0°4.3 in1013.1 h86.3° (1962)17.3° (1972)
May73.0°54.4°4.4 in1114.2 h93.7° (2012)26.7° (1947)
June81.6°63.6°3.9 in1014.8 h102.5° (1988)38.2° (1945)
July84.6°67.1°3.6 in914.6 h101.9° (1954)47.4° (1947)
August83.2°65.1°3.0 in813.6 h99.0° (1983)43.1° (1986)
September77.2°57.8°2.7 in612.2 h100.4° (1954)31.7° (1995)
October65.7°46.7°2.9 in710.9 h90.6° (2019)21.4° (1962)
November51.6°36.2°3.4 in89.8 h79.3° (1950)−3.1° (1958)
December40.1°26.6°3.2 in89.2 h70.7° (1998)−18.4° (1989)

How it's changed

Year-by-year signals from 1940 to today.

Climate stripes

Annual mean shifted from 1940–1949 to 2016–2025 by +3.4°F.

Each vertical stripe is one year. Color encodes how much that year's annual mean differed from the long-term average. Average = each year's annual mean compared to the average of all years (1940–2026). cooler ← → warmer

Annual mean temperature

Long-term trend: +0.38°F per decade.

One point per year, showing the temperature averaged across the whole year. The dashed line is the least-squares long-term trend. Based on ERA5 reanalysis: modelled estimates, not station readings.

Seasonal warming

Mar–May is warming fastest: +0.58°F per decade.

Each faint line is one three-month period's average per year; the bold dashed line is its long-term trend. Different parts of the year often warm at different rates. Based on ERA5 reanalysis: modelled estimates, not station readings.

Hot days vs frost days

Days ≥ 86°F per year: 27.0 early in the record → 41.6 recently. Frost days: 108 → 83.

Thin lines are raw yearly counts; thick lines are the smoothed trend that removes year-to-year noise. The hot-day threshold is auto-picked per city so the line actually moves. Average = a centered 5-year rolling average to smooth weather noise.

Yearly hot & cold extremes

Hottest day since 1940 in 1988, coldest in 1994: 102.5°F / −23.5°F.

One point per year: the single hottest and coldest day recorded that year.

Annual rainfall

~41.3 in/year on average. Last decade: +8% vs that average. Long-term trend: +1.01 in per decade.

One bar per year of total rainfall. Dashed line is the long-term average. Average = the average annual rainfall across every year of record (1940–2026).

Day-by-day grid

Each tiny square is one calendar day across the full record, about 30,000 days per city. Use the mode switch above the chart: Anomaly colors each day by how far it ran from the historical average for that date (red = warmer, blue = cooler), Daily mean temp shows the absolute mean temperature for the day (useful to see seasons and heatwaves), and Precipitation shows daily rainfall (useful to spot wet/dry seasons and droughts). Average = the long-term average for that calendar date (1940–2026).

Frequently asked questions about Indianapolis

Which is the warmest month in Indianapolis?
On long-term average, the warmest month in Indianapolis is July (mean daily temperature of about 75.4°F) and the coolest is January (about 28.0°F).
How does today's temperature in Indianapolis compare to the historical average?
On October 19, 2026, Indianapolis is forecast to reach a high of 64.8°F and a low of 35.8°F. The long-term average for this date (the full record since 1940) is a high of 62.5°F and a low of 43.7°F, so today's high is 2.2°F warmer than that average.
How much has Indianapolis warmed since 1940?
Comparing the first decade of the record (1940–1949) with the most recent (2016–2025), the annual mean temperature in Indianapolis is about 3.4°F warmer.
How much does it rain in Indianapolis?
Indianapolis receives about 41.3 inches of precipitation per year on long-term average, with May typically the wettest month.
What is the average temperature in Indianapolis?
Over the full record (since 1940), the annual mean temperature in Indianapolis is about 53.0°F. The warmest month is July and the coolest is January.
What are the average temperatures in Indianapolis by month?
Average daily highs and lows for each month in Indianapolis (°F, full record since 1940): January 36°/22°, February 40°/25°, March 51°/34°, April 63°/44°, May 73°/54°, June 82°/64°, July 85°/67°, August 83°/65°, September 77°/58°, October 66°/47°, November 52°/36°, December 40°/27°.
What is the weather like in Indianapolis in summer?
June to August is summer in Indianapolis, and it is warm. Daytime highs sit at 82–85°F and nights at 64–67°F; July is the warmest month. Rain falls on about 9 days a month, adding up to around 3.5 inches.
What is the weather like in Indianapolis in winter?
Winter in Indianapolis (December to February) is cold. Afternoons run 36–40°F and nights 22–27°F; January is the coldest month. Rain and snow are steady at around 3.0 inches a month, spread over roughly 8 days.
What is the weather like in Indianapolis in spring?
March to May is spring in Indianapolis, and it is wet and fairly mild. It warms from 51°F by day and 34°F at night in March to 73°F and 54°F in May. Rain falls on about 10 days a month, adding up to around 4.3 inches. No season is wetter.
What is the weather like in Indianapolis in autumn?
September to November is autumn in Indianapolis, and it is mild. September still brings 77°F afternoons and 58°F nights, November only 52°F and 36°F. Rain is steady at around 3.0 inches a month, spread over roughly 7 days.
How many days a year does it rain in Indianapolis?
On long-term average, Indianapolis has about 101 days a year with at least 0.08 inches of rain or snow. The annual total is roughly 41.3 inches.

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