How extreme does Methuen's weather get?

The hottest, coldest, wettest and snowiest days Methuen 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 Lawrence station 4 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 Methuen has recorded — each shown against what a normal day that time of year looks like.

🔥 Hottest day

102°F Jul 23, 2011

That is about 19°F hotter than a normal July afternoon in Methuen (typical high near 83°F).

The three most extreme on record

1 102°F Jul 23, 2011

2 102°F Jun 25, 2025

3 101°F Aug 3, 1975

❄️ Coldest night

-20°F Jan 21, 1984

About 40°F colder than a normal January night in Methuen (typical low near 20°F).

The three most extreme on record

1 -20°F Jan 21, 1984

2 -13°F Jan 19, 1971

3 -13°F Jan 11, 1988

🌧️ Most rain in one day

10.20 in Dec 7, 1994

More rain in a single day than Methuen usually gets in the whole month of December (typical December total about 4.7 in).

The three most extreme on record

1 10.20 in Dec 7, 1994

2 10.00 in Mar 7, 1999

3 8.00 in Jan 7, 2001

⛄ Most snow in one day

31.0 in Feb 7, 1978

The three most extreme on record

1 31.0 in Feb 7, 1978

2 23.0 in Jan 28, 2015

3 21.0 in Jan 21, 1978

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

Methuen's record heat sits well above even a hot day for the season — July's 102°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, Methuen's warmest days reach the low 80s°F and its coldest nights drop to the low 20s°F. But across the record it has gone as high as 102°F and as low as −20°F. A single day has delivered over 10 inches of rain or close to 31 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 Reading (NOAA GHCN station USC00196783), about 23 km from the city centre.

How we build these numbers →

← Methuen city detail