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New Bedford weather by month: averages, rainfall & climate trends

New Bedford swings through a wide annual range, with 42.3°F between the monthly means of its warmest and coldest months. No season stands out as markedly wetter. Precipitation arrives fairly evenly year-round. New Bedford weather by month: average temperatures, rainfall, extremes and how the climate has changed since 1940.

Today vs average

+7.8°Fhigh well above average

66° / 40°Today
58° / 46°Average
see today in detail →

How it's changed

+2.4°Faverage temperature, 2016–2025 vs 1940–1949average temperature vs 1940–4980frost days a year now (2016–2025) · 96 in the 1940sfrost days a year · 96 in the 1940s15days above 86°F a year now (2016–2025) · 10 in the 1940sdays above 86°F · 10 in the 1940s+2.4°F vs the 1940s · see how it's changed →
Weather by montha typical year, averaged over the full recordJanuary, rain 3.8 incheshigh 37°low 24°February, rain 3.5 incheshigh 39°low 25°March, rain 4.0 incheshigh 46°low 32°April, rain 3.8 incheshigh 56°low 41°May, rain 3.5 incheshigh 66°low 50°June, rain 3.1 incheshigh 75°low 59°July, rain 3.0 incheshigh 80°low 66°August, rain 3.5 incheshigh 79°low 65°September, rain 3.3 incheshigh 72°low 58°October, rain 3.5 incheshigh 62°low 48°November, rain 3.9 incheshigh 52°low 39°December, rain 4.2 incheshigh 42°low 29°wettest month December, 4.2 inches · 43.1 inches a yearsee month by month →

Right now

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

Right now

40.6°

35°feels like
84%humidity
36°dew point
6 mphfrom SW
UV index0.0
sunrise07:08sunset17:46day length10h 38m
TodayClear66°40°
TueMostly clear53°42°
WedOvercast55°37°
ThuClear62°45°
FriClear73°51°
SatOvercast57°45°
SunOvercast60°47°

On this date: October 26

Today (forecast)
66° / 40°
Average for October 26
58° / 46°

High well above average · +7.8°F

  • Highest since 1940: 77.4° · 2023
  • Lowest since 1940: 29.8° · 2013
  • One year ago: 57° / 40°

Every October 26 in history, coldest to hottest

▲ Daily highs▼ Daily lows

Dots show daily highs (top) and lows (bottom) for each October 26 on record (n = 87). 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 New Bedford is sampled from the ECMWF ERA5 reanalysis at 41.64°N, 70.93°W, with daily records since 1940.

Coordinates
41.64°N, 70.93°W
Time zone
America/New York
Period
1940–2026
Data source
ERA5 (ECMWF)

Last 30 days

17 of the last 31 days were warmer than the historical average for that date. Average difference: −0.1°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

The year peaks in July, at around 80.5°F by mid-afternoon, with nights around 65.8°F. On about 35 nights a year, the temperature never drops below 68°F. In January, the coolest month, afternoons reach about 37.3°F and nights dip to 24.0°F. Frost shows up on around 80 mornings a year.

New Bedford picks up roughly 43.1 inches a year, with a peak of 4.2 inches in December and as little as 3.0 inches in July.

The record here starts in 1940, and since then the annual mean in New Bedford has climbed 2.4°F from the first ten years to the last ten. That last decade has also been the warmest in the record.

Climate graph (climograph)

July is the warmest month, January the coolest: a yearly swing of 42°F. Wettest month: December (~4.2 in). Whole year averages ~43.1 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 95 rainy days a year: most in April (~9), 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.

New Bedford 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
January37.3°24.0°3.8 in99.3 h68.8° (2020)−12.0° (1984)
February38.9°25.0°3.5 in810.4 h66.4° (2022)−12.0° (1967)
March45.8°32.1°4.0 in911.7 h78.4° (1945)−0.3° (1948)
April55.8°41.1°3.8 in913.1 h88.4° (2002)18.9° (1982)
May65.6°50.3°3.5 in914.3 h91.3° (1987)32.3° (1956)
June74.6°59.4°3.1 in815.0 h101.4° (2025)41.7° (1945)
July80.5°65.8°3.0 in714.7 h102.2° (1999)50.8° (1993)
August79.0°64.8°3.5 in813.7 h98.4° (1975)44.7° (1965)
September72.2°58.1°3.3 in612.3 h97.7° (1953)37.5° (1950)
October62.3°48.1°3.5 in710.8 h86.1° (2011)25.2° (1969)
November52.1°38.7°3.9 in89.6 h76.7° (2024)7.8° (1989)
December41.7°28.9°4.2 in99.0 h69.6° (1998)−9.6° (1942)

How it's changed

Year-by-year signals from 1940 to today.

Climate stripes

Annual mean shifted from 1940–1949 to 2016–2025 by +2.4°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: +0.31°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

Dec–Feb is warming fastest: +0.48°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: 9.5 early in the record → 14.8 recently. Frost days: 96 → 80.

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 1999, coldest in 1967: 102.2°F / −12.0°F.

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

Annual rainfall

~43.1 in/year on average. Last decade: +5% vs that average. Long-term trend: +0.43 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 New Bedford

Which is the warmest month in New Bedford?
On long-term average, the warmest month in New Bedford is July (mean daily temperature of about 72.5°F) and the coolest is January (about 30.2°F).
How does today's temperature in New Bedford compare to the historical average?
On October 26, 2026, New Bedford is forecast to reach a high of 66.0°F and a low of 39.9°F. The long-term average for this date (the full record since 1940) is a high of 58.3°F and a low of 45.7°F, so today's high is 7.8°F warmer than that average.
How much has New Bedford warmed since 1940?
Comparing the first decade of the record (1940–1949) with the most recent (2016–2025), the annual mean temperature in New Bedford is about 2.4°F warmer.
How much does it rain in New Bedford?
New Bedford receives about 43.1 inches of precipitation per year on long-term average, with December typically the wettest month.
What is the average temperature in New Bedford?
Over the full record (since 1940), the annual mean temperature in New Bedford is about 51.2°F. The warmest month is July and the coolest is January.
What are the average temperatures in New Bedford by month?
Average daily highs and lows for each month in New Bedford (°F, full record since 1940): January 37°/24°, February 39°/25°, March 46°/32°, April 56°/41°, May 66°/50°, June 75°/59°, July 80°/66°, August 79°/65°, September 72°/58°, October 62°/48°, November 52°/39°, December 42°/29°.
What is the weather like in New Bedford in summer?
In summer, June through August, New Bedford is pleasantly warm. Afternoons run 75–80°F and nights 59–66°F; July is the warmest month. Rain is steady at around 3.2 inches a month, spread over roughly 7 days.
What is the weather like in New Bedford in winter?
December to February is winter in New Bedford, and it is cold. Expect 37–42°F by day and 24–29°F at night, with January the coldest month. Rain and snow are steady at around 3.8 inches a month, spread over roughly 8 days.
What is the weather like in New Bedford in spring?
In spring, March through May, New Bedford is cool. It warms from 46°F by day and 32°F at night in March to 66°F and 50°F in May. Rain is steady at around 3.8 inches a month, spread over roughly 9 days.
What is the weather like in New Bedford in autumn?
Autumn in New Bedford (September to November) is fairly mild. It cools from 72°F by day and 58°F at night in September to 52°F and 39°F in November. Rain falls on about 7 days a month, adding up to around 3.6 inches.
How many days a year does it rain in New Bedford?
On long-term average, New Bedford has about 95 days a year with at least 0.08 inches of rain or snow. The annual total is roughly 43.1 inches.

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