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Downtown DC, Washington, DC climate
Cfa Humid subtropical
Downtown DC has a seasonal mild-temperate climate (Humid subtropical, Köppen Cfa). The hottest month is July with an average daily high near 88°F, while the coldest is January averaging around 27°F at night. Precipitation is fairly even year-round, totalling about 47 inches.
Temperature & precipitation
Daily high–low temperature range with the monthly average, plus monthly precipitation · 1991–2020 normals · hover a month for the exact figuresClear vs cloudy days
Share of days each month that are clear, partly cloudy or cloudy · 1991–2020 · hover a month for the day countsDowntown DC climate normals (1991–2020)
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avg high (°F) | 44 | 48 | 56 | 67 | 76 | 84 | 88 | 87 | 80 | 68 | 57 | 48 |
| Avg temp (°F) | 36 | 38 | 45 | 56 | 65 | 74 | 78 | 77 | 70 | 58 | 48 | 40 |
| Avg low (°F) | 27 | 28 | 35 | 45 | 55 | 64 | 69 | 67 | 61 | 48 | 39 | 31 |
| Precipitation (in) | 3.1 | 2.9 | 4.0 | 3.4 | 4.5 | 4.9 | 5.0 | 4.2 | 4.4 | 3.8 | 3.1 | 3.8 |
| Jan – Jun | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avg high (°F) | 44 | 48 | 56 | 67 | 76 | 84 |
| Avg temp (°F) | 36 | 38 | 45 | 56 | 65 | 74 |
| Avg low (°F) | 27 | 28 | 35 | 45 | 55 | 64 |
| Precipitation (in) | 3.1 | 2.9 | 4.0 | 3.4 | 4.5 | 4.9 |
| Jul – Dec | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avg high (°F) | 88 | 87 | 80 | 68 | 57 | 48 |
| Avg temp (°F) | 78 | 77 | 70 | 58 | 48 | 40 |
| Avg low (°F) | 69 | 67 | 61 | 48 | 39 | 31 |
| Precipitation (in) | 5.0 | 4.2 | 4.4 | 3.8 | 3.1 | 3.8 |
How often — frequency of weather events
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Days with measurable rain (days) | 11 | 10 | 11 | 11 | 12 | 11 | 10 | 10 | 8 | 10 | 9 | 11 |
| Days with high ≥ 90°F (days) | — | — | — | 0.4 | 2 | 7 | 14 | 10 | 4 | 0.2 | — | — |
| Days with low ≤ 32°F (days) | 21 | 19 | 12 | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | 0.2 | 6 | 17 |
| Days with snowfall ≥ 1 in (days) | 1 | 1 | 0.8 | 0.1 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 0.1 | 0.6 |
| Jan – Jun | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Days with measurable rain (days) | 11 | 10 | 11 | 11 | 12 | 11 |
| Days with high ≥ 90°F (days) | — | — | — | 0.4 | 2 | 7 |
| Days with low ≤ 32°F (days) | 21 | 19 | 12 | 1 | — | — |
| Days with snowfall ≥ 1 in (days) | 1 | 1 | 0.8 | 0.1 | — | — |
| Jul – Dec | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Days with measurable rain (days) | 10 | 10 | 8 | 10 | 9 | 11 |
| Days with high ≥ 90°F (days) | 14 | 10 | 4 | 0.2 | — | — |
| Days with low ≤ 32°F (days) | — | — | — | 0.2 | 6 | 17 |
| Days with snowfall ≥ 1 in (days) | — | — | — | — | 0.1 | 0.6 |
Sky & atmosphere
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cloud cover (%) | 62 | 62 | 61 | 60 | 60 | 57 | 54 | 53 | 53 | 51 | 56 | 61 |
| Clear days (≤ 30% cloud) | 6 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 8 | 7 |
| Partly cloudy days (30–70%) | 11 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 11 |
| Cloudy days (≥ 70%) | 14 | 13 | 14 | 14 | 13 | 11 | 11 | 10 | 11 | 11 | 12 | 14 |
| Relative humidity (%) | 83 | 81 | 79 | 77 | 77 | 74 | 68 | 69 | 71 | 75 | 78 | 83 |
| Wind speed (mph) | 7.1 | 7.2 | 7.3 | 6.7 | 5.5 | 4.9 | 4.5 | 4.5 | 5.3 | 5.8 | 6.2 | 6.4 |
| Jan – Jun | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cloud cover (%) | 62 | 62 | 61 | 60 | 60 | 57 |
| Clear days (≤ 30% cloud) | 6 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 7 |
| Partly cloudy days (30–70%) | 11 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 11 | 12 |
| Cloudy days (≥ 70%) | 14 | 13 | 14 | 14 | 13 | 11 |
| Relative humidity (%) | 83 | 81 | 79 | 77 | 77 | 74 |
| Wind speed (mph) | 7.1 | 7.2 | 7.3 | 6.7 | 5.5 | 4.9 |
| Jul – Dec | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cloud cover (%) | 54 | 53 | 53 | 51 | 56 | 61 |
| Clear days (≤ 30% cloud) | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 8 | 7 |
| Partly cloudy days (30–70%) | 12 | 12 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 11 |
| Cloudy days (≥ 70%) | 11 | 10 | 11 | 11 | 12 | 14 |
| Relative humidity (%) | 68 | 69 | 71 | 75 | 78 | 83 |
| Wind speed (mph) | 4.5 | 4.5 | 5.3 | 5.8 | 6.2 | 6.4 |
Methodology & sources
Temperature & precipitation — the official 1991–2020 climate normals from NOAA's U.S. Climate Normals, measured at Oxon Hill (NOAA GHCN station USC00186800), about 11 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.