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Seattle weather by month: averages, rainfall & climate trends

Framed by Puget Sound and the Olympic and Cascade ranges, the Emerald City is famous for its soft grey drizzle and deep evergreen forests: a maritime Pacific Northwest climate of mild, damp winters and bright, dry summers. Seattle weather by month: average temperatures, rainfall, extremes and how the climate has changed since 1940.

Today vs average

−2.6°Fhigh near average

57° / 42°Today
60° / 48°Average
see today in detail →

How it's changed

+2.2°Faverage temperature, 2016–2025 vs 1940–1949average temperature vs 1940–4912frost days a year now (2016–2025) · 22 in the 1940sfrost days a year · 22 in the 1940s+2.2°F vs the 1940s · see how it's changed →
Weather by montha typical year, averaged over the full recordJanuary, rain 7.4 incheshigh 45°low 37°February, rain 5.7 incheshigh 48°low 38°March, rain 5.7 incheshigh 53°low 40°April, rain 4.4 incheshigh 58°low 43°May, rain 3.3 incheshigh 65°low 48°June, rain 2.6 incheshigh 70°low 53°July, rain 1.2 incheshigh 76°low 57°August, rain 1.5 incheshigh 76°low 58°September, rain 2.9 incheshigh 70°low 54°October, rain 5.5 incheshigh 60°low 48°November, rain 7.9 incheshigh 50°low 42°December, rain 7.9 incheshigh 45°low 38°wettest month November, 7.9 inches · 56.0 inches a yearsee month by month →

Right now

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

Right now

46.9°

44°feels like
81%humidity
41°dew point
3 mphfrom NE
UV index0.0
sunrise07:33sunset18:15day length10h 43m
SunOvercast57°42°
TodayOvercast58°46°
TueClear62°45°
WedClear65°46°
ThuOvercast61°46°
FriClear58°46°
SatOvercast56°41°

On this date: October 19

Today (forecast)
57° / 42°
Average for October 19
60° / 48°

High near average · −2.6°F

  • Highest since 1940: 70.4° · 2014
  • Lowest since 1940: 33.6° · 1949
  • One year ago: 58° / 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 = 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 Seattle is sampled from the ECMWF ERA5 reanalysis at 47.61°N, 122.33°W, with daily records since 1940.

Coordinates
47.61°N, 122.33°W
Time zone
America/Los Angeles
Period
1940–2026
Data source
ERA5 (ECMWF)

Last 30 days

14 of the last 31 days were warmer than the historical average for that date. Average difference: −0.2°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

Seattle has a warm-summer Mediterranean climate (Köppen Csb), often also described as oceanic. The Pacific Ocean, Puget Sound and Lake Washington moderate its temperatures into small seasonal swings, while the Olympic Mountains to the west cast a partial rain shadow over the city. From October through March the Aleutian Low steers a procession of Pacific storms across the region, bringing the long, cloudy, drizzly wet season for which Seattle is known; summers are comparatively dry and bright under the North Pacific High.

The city's signature hazards are wind and water rather than heat: major windstorms such as the Columbus Day Storm of 1962 and the 2006 Hanukkah Eve storm caused widespread damage and power outages. More recent extremes include the record-breaking Pacific Northwest heat wave of late June 2021 and an unusually long rainless stretch in the summer of 2017. Over the past century the climate has warmed and air conditioning has spread from a rarity to most households, while heavy-rainfall events and sea level are both documented as rising.

August brings the year's peak warmth, with afternoons typically reaching 76.1°F and nights around 57.6°F. In January, the coolest month, afternoons reach about 44.9°F and nights dip to 36.9°F.

The yearly total for Seattle comes to about 56.0 inches; monthly amounts range from 1.2 inches in July up to 7.9 inches in November. Precipitation falls on roughly 145 days in a typical year.

The record here starts in 1940, and since then the annual mean in Seattle has climbed 2.2°F from the first ten years to the last ten. Frost days have thinned out, from around 20 a year in the first decade to about 12 now.

Sources:en.wikipedia.orgbritannica.comweather.gov

Climate graph (climograph)

August is the warmest month, January the coolest: a yearly swing of 25°F. Wettest month: November (~7.9 in). Whole year averages ~56.0 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 145 rainy days a year: most in December (~18), fewest in July (~4).

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.

Seattle 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
January44.9°36.9°7.4 in178.6 h61.3° (2005)3.6° (1950)
February48.4°38.1°5.7 in1410.0 h65.8° (1986)5.3° (1950)
March52.5°40.0°5.7 in1611.6 h75.1° (2004)13.4° (1955)
April57.9°43.2°4.4 in1413.4 h84.5° (2016)29.6° (1968)
May64.6°48.5°3.3 in1114.9 h92.2° (1972)31.9° (1954)
June69.8°53.4°2.6 in915.8 h101.0° (2021)40.6° (1976)
July76.0°57.1°1.2 in415.4 h99.5° (1941)45.0° (1962)
August76.1°57.6°1.5 in514.1 h96.1° (1978)45.1° (1980)
September70.4°53.6°2.9 in812.3 h91.5° (1988)36.7° (1972)
October60.2°47.6°5.5 in1310.6 h84.0° (1987)24.6° (1971)
November50.4°41.7°7.9 in179.0 h66.7° (2016)5.9° (1985)
December45.3°38.1°7.9 in188.2 h61.0° (1980)5.0° (1968)

How it's changed

Year-by-year signals from 1940 to today.

Climate stripes

Annual mean shifted from 1940–1949 to 2016–2025 by +2.2°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: +0.30°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: +0.40°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: 5.1 early in the record → 5.4 recently. Frost days: 22 → 12.

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 2021, coldest in 1950: 101.0°F / 3.6°F.

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

Annual rainfall

~56.0 in/year on average. Last decade: −4% vs that average. Long-term trend: −0.44 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 Seattle

Which is the warmest month in Seattle?
On long-term average, the warmest month in Seattle is August (mean daily temperature of about 65.4°F) and the coolest is January (about 40.2°F).
How does today's temperature in Seattle compare to the historical average?
On October 19, 2026, Seattle is forecast to reach a high of 57.0°F and a low of 41.5°F. The long-term average for this date (the full record since 1940) is a high of 59.6°F and a low of 47.5°F, so today's high is 2.6°F cooler than that average.
How much has Seattle warmed since 1940?
Comparing the first decade of the record (1940–1949) with the most recent (2016–2025), the annual mean temperature in Seattle is about 2.2°F warmer.
How much does it rain in Seattle?
Seattle receives about 56.0 inches of precipitation per year on long-term average, with November typically the wettest month.
What is the average temperature in Seattle?
Over the full record (since 1940), the annual mean temperature in Seattle is about 51.9°F. The warmest month is August and the coolest is January.
What are the average temperatures in Seattle by month?
Average daily highs and lows for each month in Seattle (°F, full record since 1940): January 45°/37°, February 48°/38°, March 53°/40°, April 58°/43°, May 65°/48°, June 70°/53°, July 76°/57°, August 76°/58°, September 70°/54°, October 60°/48°, November 50°/42°, December 45°/38°.
What is the weather like in Seattle in summer?
In summer, June through August, Seattle is pleasantly warm. It warms from 70°F by day and 53°F at night in June to 76°F and 58°F in August. Rain falls off from 2.6 inches on 9 days in June to 1.5 inches on 5 days in August. It is the driest season of the year.
What is the weather like in Seattle in winter?
In winter, December through February, Seattle is wet and cold. Daytime highs sit at 45–48°F and nights at 37–38°F; January is the coldest month. Rain falls on about 16 days a month, adding up to around 7.0 inches. No season is wetter.
What is the weather like in Seattle in spring?
In spring, March through May, Seattle is wet and cool. It warms from 53°F by day and 40°F at night in March to 65°F and 48°F in May. Rain falls off from 5.7 inches on 16 days in March to 3.3 inches on 11 days in May.
What is the weather like in Seattle in autumn?
September to November is autumn in Seattle, and it is wet and fairly mild. It cools from 70°F by day and 54°F at night in September to 50°F and 42°F in November. Rain rises from 2.9 inches on 8 days in September to 7.9 inches on 17 days in November.
How many days a year does it rain in Seattle?
On long-term average, Seattle has about 145 days a year with at least 0.08 inches of rain or snow. The annual total is roughly 56.0 inches.

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