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Bakersfield, California climate

BWh Hot desert

Bakersfield has a seasonal warm-temperate climate (Hot desert, Köppen BWh). The hottest month is July with an average daily high near 97°F, while the coldest is December averaging around 38°F at night. Precipitation totals about 7 inches a year and is strongly seasonal — February alone averages 1.3 inches while August barely receives 0.00 inches.

☀️ Summers

Very hot

Highs near 97°F in July.

About 100 days a year above 90 °F

❄️ Winters

Chilly

Lows near 38°F in December.

About 15 freezing nights a year

🌧️ Rain

Very dry

About 7 in of rain a year.

Wettest in February

⛅ Sky & trend

Sunny

Clear skies most days.

+1.7 °F vs 50 years ago

Temperature & precipitation

Daily high–low temperature range with the monthly average, plus monthly precipitation · 1991–2020 normals · hover a month for the exact figures

Clear vs cloudy days

Share of days each month that are clear, partly cloudy or cloudy · 1991–2020 · hover a month for the day counts

Bakersfield climate normals (1991–2020)

	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Avg high (°F)	58	64	69	75	83	91	97	96	91	80	67	59
Avg temp (°F)	49	52	57	62	70	77	84	82	77	67	56	48
Avg low (°F)	39	41	45	49	57	64	70	69	64	54	44	38
Precipitation (in)	1.3	1.3	1.2	0.6	0.3	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.1	0.2	0.5	1.0

Jan – Jun	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun
Avg high (°F)	58	64	69	75	83	91
Avg temp (°F)	49	52	57	62	70	77
Avg low (°F)	39	41	45	49	57	64
Precipitation (in)	1.3	1.3	1.2	0.6	0.3	0.0

Jul – Dec	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Avg high (°F)	97	96	91	80	67	59
Avg temp (°F)	84	82	77	67	56	48
Avg low (°F)	70	69	64	54	44	38
Precipitation (in)	0.0	0.0	0.1	0.2	0.5	1.0

How often — frequency of weather events

	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Days with measurable rain (days)	6	5	5	4	2	0.2	0.3	0.2	0.4	2	3	5
Days with high ≥ 90°F (days)	—	—	0.3	2	7	18	27	25	17	3	0.0	—
Days with low ≤ 32°F (days)	4	2	0.2	0.1	—	—	—	—	—	—	1	6

Jan – Jun	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun
Days with measurable rain (days)	6	5	5	4	2	0.2
Days with high ≥ 90°F (days)	—	—	0.3	2	7	18
Days with low ≤ 32°F (days)	4	2	0.2	0.1	—	—

Jul – Dec	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Days with measurable rain (days)	0.3	0.2	0.4	2	3	5
Days with high ≥ 90°F (days)	27	25	17	3	0.0	—
Days with low ≤ 32°F (days)	—	—	—	—	1	6

Sky & atmosphere

	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Cloud cover (%)	57	49	44	35	27	16	14	12	14	25	39	50
Clear days (≤ 30% cloud)	7	10	12	16	20	25	27	28	25	21	13	9
Partly cloudy days (30–70%)	12	10	11	10	8	3	3	3	4	7	12	13
Cloudy days (≥ 70%)	12	9	8	5	3	2	1	0.7	1	3	6	9
Relative humidity (%)	62	65	65	59	49	35	29	28	32	41	51	59
Wind speed (mph)	4.0	4.2	4.2	4.8	4.9	4.9	4.4	4.0	3.8	3.8	3.8	4.0

Jan – Jun	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun
Cloud cover (%)	57	49	44	35	27	16
Clear days (≤ 30% cloud)	7	10	12	16	20	25
Partly cloudy days (30–70%)	12	10	11	10	8	3
Cloudy days (≥ 70%)	12	9	8	5	3	2
Relative humidity (%)	62	65	65	59	49	35
Wind speed (mph)	4.0	4.2	4.2	4.8	4.9	4.9

Jul – Dec	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Cloud cover (%)	14	12	14	25	39	50
Clear days (≤ 30% cloud)	27	28	25	21	13	9
Partly cloudy days (30–70%)	3	3	4	7	12	13
Cloudy days (≥ 70%)	1	0.7	1	3	6	9
Relative humidity (%)	29	28	32	41	51	59
Wind speed (mph)	4.4	4.0	3.8	3.8	3.8	4.0

Methodology & sources

Temperature & precipitation — the official 1991–2020 climate normals from NOAA's U.S. Climate Normals, measured at Bakersfield 5 NW (NOAA GHCN station USC00040444), about 6 km from the city centre.

Cloud, humidity, wind & sunshine — modelled estimates from NASA POWER, NASA's satellite-and-reanalysis climatology. This is the standard global source for atmospheric variables, which are not measured at most weather stations.

How we build these numbers →