How extreme does Elmira's weather get?

The hottest, coldest, wettest and snowiest days Elmira has recorded — the outer limits of what its weather can do, and how far they sit beyond a normal day.

Based on 50+ years of daily weather observations (1971–present), from the Elmira station 3 km away. Updated through May 2026 — an all-time extreme only changes when a more extreme day actually occurs, so some dates are old. That is normal, not stale data.

The four kinds of extreme

The hottest, coldest, wettest and snowiest single days Elmira has recorded — each shown against what a normal day that time of year looks like.

🔥 Hottest day

103°F Jul 22, 2011

That is about 19°F hotter than a normal July afternoon in Elmira (typical high near 84°F).

The three most extreme on record

1 103°F Jul 22, 2011

2 102°F Jul 16, 1988

3 102°F Jul 23, 2011

❄️ Coldest night

-27°F Mar 9, 2003

About 50°F colder than a normal March night in Elmira (typical low near 23°F).

The three most extreme on record

1 -27°F Mar 9, 2003

2 -21°F Feb 18, 1979

3 -21°F Feb 19, 1979

🌧️ Most rain in one day

4.56 in Sep 8, 2011

More rain in a single day than Elmira usually gets in the whole month of September (typical September total about 4.1 in).

The three most extreme on record

1 4.56 in Sep 8, 2011

2 4.47 in Aug 10, 2003

3 3.96 in Sep 18, 2018

⛄ Most snow in one day

18.7 in Dec 17, 2020

Close to a whole typical December's snow in one day (Elmira averages about 8 in across the month).

The three most extreme on record

1 18.7 in Dec 17, 2020

2 18.0 in Dec 30, 1997

3 17.5 in Feb 20, 1972

How hot and cold it gets, month by month

The shaded band is the normal range of daily temperatures for each month. The dots show the most extreme it has ever been — so you can see how far beyond a normal day the records really sit.

normal range of daily temperatureshottest ever recordedcoldest ever recorded

Elmira's record heat sits well above even a hot day for the season — July's 103°F is about 19°F beyond a normal hot afternoon. Its record cold is just as far below a normal winter night — the dots mark how rare each extreme really is.

In plain terms

In a normal year, Elmira's warmest days reach the mid-80s°F and its coldest nights drop to the mid-10s°F. But across the record it has gone as high as 103°F and as low as −27°F. A single day has delivered over 5 inches of rain or close to 19 inches of snow. Those are the outer edges worth knowing if you are moving here, planning a trip, or thinking about a house.

Methodology & sources

Temperature & precipitation — the official 1991–2020 climate normals from NOAA's U.S. Climate Normals, measured at Elmira (NOAA GHCN station USC00302610), about 3 km from the city centre.

How we build these numbers →

← Elmira city detail