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New York City weather by month: averages, rainfall & climate trends

Where the Hudson meets the Atlantic, New York runs through a full four-season year: long, hot, humid summers and moderately cold, snowy winters, with the ocean tempering both. New York City weather by month: average temperatures, rainfall, records and how the climate has changed since 1940.

Today vs average

−0.3°Fhigh near average

67° / 45°Today
67° / 54°Average
see today in detail →

How it's changed

+3.0°Faverage temperature, 2016–2025 vs 1940–1949average temperature vs 1940–4960frost days a year now (2016–2025) · 85 in the 1940sfrost days a year · 85 in the 1940s25days above 86°F a year now (2016–2025) · 14 in the 1940sdays above 86°F · 14 in the 1940s+3.0°F vs the 1940s · see how it's changed →
Weather by montha typical year, averaged over the full recordJanuary, rain 3.3 incheshigh 37°low 25°February, rain 3.2 incheshigh 39°low 26°March, rain 4.1 incheshigh 47°low 34°April, rain 3.8 incheshigh 59°low 45°May, rain 3.9 incheshigh 69°low 55°June, rain 3.5 incheshigh 78°low 64°July, rain 4.1 incheshigh 83°low 70°August, rain 4.0 incheshigh 81°low 68°September, rain 3.5 incheshigh 74°low 62°October, rain 3.4 incheshigh 63°low 51°November, rain 3.6 incheshigh 53°low 41°December, rain 3.9 incheshigh 42°low 31°wettest month July, 4.1 inches · 44.2 inches a yearsee month by month →

Right now

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

Right now

61.5°

57°feels like
60%humidity
47°dew point
9 mphfrom S
UV index0.1
sunrise06:58sunset18:28day length11h 30m
TodayClear67°45°
ThuClear76°56°
FriClear70°48°
SatOvercast63°55°
SunRain64°60°
MonPartly cloudy73°61°
TueOvercast73°58°

On this date: October 7

Today (forecast)
67° / 45°
Average for October 7
67° / 54°

High near average · −0.3°F

  • Record high: 78.6° · 2025
  • Record low: 42.2° · 1999
  • One year ago: 79° / 63°

Every October 7 in history, coldest to hottest

▲ Daily highs▼ Daily lows

Dots show daily highs (top) and lows (bottom) for each October 7 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 York City is sampled from the ECMWF ERA5 reanalysis at 40.71°N, 74.01°W, with daily records since 1940.

Coordinates
40.71°N, 74.01°W
Time zone
America/New York
Period
1940–2026
Data source
ERA5 (ECMWF)

Last 30 days

19 of the last 31 days were warmer than the historical average for that date. Average difference: +1.2°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

New York City sits at the mouth of the Hudson River on the Atlantic coast, at the southern edge of New York State, where it has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen Cfa) on the boundary with the continental interior. Summers are long, hot and humid, with frequent late-day thunderstorms, and winters are moderately cold with regular snow and mixed precipitation. The Atlantic moderates the city's temperature swings, milder in winter and cooler in summer than inland, while a strong urban heat island warms the dense core.

Its coastal position exposes the city to powerful Atlantic storms. Hurricane Sandy, on 29 October 2012, drove a destructive storm surge that flooded waterfronts and the subway system, while winter nor'easters periodically bring heavy snow, including 70 cm in Central Park during the blizzard of 22–23 January 2016, the largest single-storm total on record there.

July brings the year's peak warmth, with afternoons typically reaching 82.9°F and nights around 70.0°F. Roughly 25 days a year now top 86°F. The coolest month is January, when afternoons reach about 37.0°F and overnight lows sit around 25.0°F.

In total, New York City averages about 44.2 inches of precipitation a year; July is usually the wettest month (4.1 inches) and February the driest (3.2 inches).

Over the full record (since 1940), the annual mean temperature in New York City has risen by 3.0°F between its first decade and its last. Frost days have thinned out, from around 85 a year in the first decade to about 60 now.

Sources:en.wikipedia.orgweather.govbritannica.com

Climate graph (climograph)

July is the warmest month, January the coolest: a yearly swing of 45°F. Wettest month: July (~4.1 in). Whole year averages ~44.2 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 99 rainy days a year: most in July (~10), fewest in October (~7).

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 York City 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. Record high/low are the most extreme values in the ERA5 dataset (modelled since 1940), so they can differ from official weather-station readings.

MonthAvg highAvg lowRainRainy daysDaylightRecord highRecord low
January37.0°25.0°3.3 in89.4 h67.7° (2007)−10.3° (1984)
February39.2°26.1°3.2 in710.4 h67.5° (2018)−11.1° (1979)
March47.3°34.0°4.1 in911.7 h76.4° (1989)0.4° (1967)
April58.6°44.5°3.8 in913.1 h88.6° (2009)19.5° (1982)
May68.9°54.8°3.9 in1014.3 h91.0° (2013)36.2° (2020)
June78.0°64.3°3.5 in914.9 h97.7° (2025)46.9° (1972)
July82.9°70.0°4.1 in1014.6 h102.3° (2010)54.2° (1988)
August80.9°68.4°4.0 in913.6 h97.0° (2001)49.4° (1982)
September74.1°61.5°3.5 in712.3 h95.3° (1970)40.6° (1963)
October63.5°50.5°3.4 in710.9 h90.2° (2019)29.6° (1976)
November52.5°40.7°3.6 in89.7 h77.0° (2024)15.7° (1989)
December41.6°30.8°3.9 in89.1 h67.8° (2006)−4.3° (1963)

How it's changed

Year-by-year signals from 1940 to today.

Climate stripes

Annual mean shifted from 1940–1949 to 2016–2025 by +3.0°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: +0.36°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: +0.52°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: 13.6 early in the record → 25.4 recently. Frost days: 85 → 60.

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

All-time high in 2010, all-time low in 1979: 102.3°F / −11.1°F.

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

Annual rainfall

~44.2 in/year on average. Last decade: +5% vs that average. Long-term trend: +0.46 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 York City

Which is the warmest month in New York City?
On long-term average, the warmest month in New York City is July (mean daily temperature of about 75.9°F) and the coolest is January (about 30.4°F).
How does today's temperature in New York City compare to the historical average?
On October 7, 2026, New York City is forecast to reach a high of 66.9°F and a low of 44.8°F. The long-term average for this date (the full record since 1940) is a high of 67.2°F and a low of 54.3°F, so today's high is about equal to that average.
How much has New York City warmed since 1940?
Comparing the first decade of the record (1940–1949) with the most recent (2016–2025), the annual mean temperature in New York City is about 3.0°F warmer.
How much does it rain in New York City?
New York City receives about 44.2 inches of precipitation per year on long-term average, with July typically the wettest month.
What is the average temperature in New York City?
Over the full record (since 1940), the annual mean temperature in New York City is about 53.4°F. The warmest month is July and the coolest is January.
What are the average temperatures in New York City by month?
Average daily highs and lows for each month in New York City (°F, full record since 1940): January 37°/25°, February 39°/26°, March 47°/34°, April 59°/45°, May 69°/55°, June 78°/64°, July 83°/70°, August 81°/68°, September 74°/62°, October 63°/51°, November 53°/41°, December 42°/31°.
What is the weather like in New York City in summer?
In summer, June through August, New York City is warm. Expect 78–83°F by day and 64–70°F at night, with July the warmest month. Rain is steady at around 3.9 inches a month, spread over roughly 9 days.
What is the weather like in New York City in winter?
December to February is winter in New York City, and it is cold. Daytime highs sit at 37–42°F and nights at 25–31°F; January is the coldest month. Rain and snow fall on about 8 days a month, adding up to around 3.5 inches.
What is the weather like in New York City in spring?
In spring, March through May, New York City is cool. March starts at 47°F by day and 34°F at night; by May it is 69°F and 55°F. Rain is steady at around 3.9 inches a month, spread over roughly 9 days.
What is the weather like in New York City in autumn?
September to November is autumn in New York City, and it is fairly mild. It cools from 74°F by day and 62°F at night in September to 53°F and 41°F in November. Rain falls on about 7 days a month, adding up to around 3.5 inches.
How many days a year does it rain in New York City?
On long-term average, New York City has about 99 days a year with at least 0.08 inches of rain or snow. The annual total is roughly 44.2 inches.

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