Maricopa, AZ Climate: Temperature & Rain by Month
Temperature and precipitation from NOAA NCEI 1991–2020 normals →, plus PlainClimate's derived comfort score
30-year climate normals (1991-2020) from Maricopa's primary NOAA station, MARICOPA 4 N.
The climate verdict for Maricopa
Maricopa, Arizona is cooling-led and dry. Its 7.1 inches of annual precipitation pairs with an annual average of 72°F. It scores 77/100 for climate comfort (good), putting it in the top third of station-mapped location scores and exceeding 70% of them.
- 72°F
- yearly average temperature, NOAA normal
- 77/100
- comfort score, above 70% of station-mapped location scores
- 7.1"
- yearly precipitation total
- 274 days
- frost-free days per growing season
Maricopa: NOAA 1991-2020 normals describe a typical year, not a forecast. Method: /methodology.
Normals record plate
Sheet USC00025270 · Maricopa, AZ 72°F mean · 7.1" precip
TEMP-HOT · RANK-WARM · PHOTO-FINISH · PRCP-ARID · SWING-MID · COMF-TOP · LOAD-COOL · STN-1 · BOOK-FULL
- TEMP-HOT 72°F
- RANK-WARM #6,655
- PHOTO-FINISH ≈ Youngtown
- PRCP-ARID 7.1"
- SWING-MID 42°F
- COMF-TOP 77/100
- LOAD-COOL 3,946 CDD
- STN-1 USC00025270
- BOOK-FULL 6/6 fields
Nearest mean-temperature peer: Youngtown, AZ (+ 0 °F mean)
Instrument codes from this station's NOAA 1991–2020 normals, mean temperature, corpus warmth rank, photo-finish peer station, precipitation band, seasonal swing, comfort composite, degree-day load, and field book, not a livability rating.
Mean-temperature neighbourhood
Nationwide NOAA normal poles and nearest peers, not a reprint of every AZ station list.
- Maricopa (this station) 72°F
- Hot Picacho, AZ 72°F
- Near Youngtown, AZ 72°F
- Near Rio Grande Vill…, TX 72°F
- Near E Mesa, AZ 72°F
Climate Living Index · Maricopa
Maricopa: 56/100 · grade C
Maricopa publishes 5 of 6 Living Index dimensions (NOAA annual/seasonal normals · NOAA daily multivariate normals); 1 missing weight rescale to 100.
PlainClimate-derived for Maricopa, not an official NOAA rating. Rankings still use Comfort Score 77/100 (separate formula). Breakpoints and limits.
| Dimension | Station value | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Frost-free season | 274 days/year | 96/100 · A |
| Snowfall burden | 0.0 inches/year | 90/100 · A |
| Annual temperature balance | 71.9°F · 4.4° from 67.5°F | 87/100 · A |
| Normal heat + freeze calendar | 179 calendar days | 26/100 · F |
| Precipitation balance | 7.1 in · 27.9 from 35 in | 5/100 · F |
Maricopa · 2026-08-04 · NOAA NCEI Climate Normals · method · Comfort Score method.
Maricopa's normals sit in a dry climate class: BWh
Annual precipitation falls well below the aridity threshold for this temperature regime, so the normals classify as hot desert (BWh). Class BWh is the Peel et al. (2007) label for this station's monthly mean temperature and precipitation normals: dry (arid or semi-arid), specifically hot desert.
- Köppen code
- BWh
- Group
- Dry (arid or semi-arid)
- Warmest month
- 93.3°F
- Coldest month
- 51.4°F
Source: official public datasets monthly normals (1991–2020) at the city’s primary station. This is a station classification, not a mapped regional consensus.
National standing · cooling-led station
Where Maricopa sits across the climate record
Three NOAA fields for Maricopa's primary station, temperature, precipitation, and seasonal swing, are ranked against every station-mapped normal that carries the same field.
- Annual temperature
- Top 3% warmest
- Among 6,861 stations, Maricopa sits in the warmer third of annual means.
- Annual precipitation
- Drier than 98%
- Maricopa's annual total ranks in the drier third of 6,352 measured normals.
- Seasonal temperature swing
- 44th percentile swing
- Typical seasonal amplitude versus 6,861 complete station-years.
How Maricopa compares across U.S. station-mapped locations
Maricopa's comfort score vs. all station-mapped locations
PlainClimate composite comfort index (1–100), NOAA 1991–2020 normals
77 Top 30% score exceeds 70% of 6,189 station-mapped location scores
- 0–10: 0 station-mapped locations (0%). Below this entry.
- 10–20: 0 station-mapped locations (0%). Below this entry.
- 20–30: 96 station-mapped locations (2%). Below this entry.
- 30–40: 280 station-mapped locations (5%). Below this entry.
- 40–50: 1,113 station-mapped locations (18%). Below this entry.
- 50–60: 1,329 station-mapped locations (21%). Below this entry.
- 60–70: 1,236 station-mapped locations (20%). Below this entry.
- 70–80: 650 station-mapped locations (11%). This entry sits in this band.
- 80–90: 921 station-mapped locations (15%). Above this entry.
- 90–100: 564 station-mapped locations (9%). Above this entry.
Source NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, PlainClimate comfort index · 1991–2020
Monthly Temperatures
Average daily high and low temperatures by month
| Month | Avg High | Avg Low | Mean | Precip | Snow | Freeze Days | 90°F+ Days |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 69°F (21°C) | 37°F (3°C) | 53°F (12°C) | 0.8" | 0.0" | 10.7 | 0.0 |
| February | 73°F (23°C) | 40°F (4°C) | 56°F (14°C) | 0.8" | 0.0" | 5.1 | 0.0 |
| March | 80°F (27°C) | 45°F (7°C) | 62°F (17°C) | 0.9" | 0.0" | 1.0 | 3.0 |
| April | 88°F (31°C) | 51°F (10°C) | 70°F (21°C) | 0.2" | 0.0" | 0.1 | 12.6 |
| May | 97°F (36°C) | 59°F (15°C) | 78°F (26°C) | 0.2" | 0.0" | 0.0 | 26.7 |
| June | 107°F (42°C) | 69°F (20°C) | 88°F (31°C) | 0.1" | 0.0" | 0.0 | 29.7 |
| July | 109°F (43°C) | 78°F (25°C) | 93°F (34°C) | 0.7" | 0.0" | 0.0 | 31.0 |
| August | 107°F (42°C) | 77°F (25°C) | 92°F (34°C) | 1.0" | 0.0" | 0.0 | 30.9 |
| September | 102°F (39°C) | 69°F (21°C) | 86°F (30°C) | 0.7" | 0.0" | 0.0 | 29.6 |
| October | 91°F (33°C) | 55°F (13°C) | 73°F (23°C) | 0.5" | 0.0" | 0.1 | 18.0 |
| November | 78°F (26°C) | 43°F (6°C) | 60°F (16°C) | 0.5" | 0.0" | 2.6 | 2.0 |
| December | 68°F (20°C) | 35°F (2°C) | 51°F (11°C) | 0.8" | 0.0" | 12.3 | 0.0 |
The year, day by day
The year in Maricopa runs from a mild 35°F around December 18 to 109°F at the peak near July 1, and the normal low never reaches freezing on any date in the record.
When the heat sits
Normal highs reach 90°F from April 24 through October 19, covering 179 dates. The broader mild season, normal highs of 70°F or more, runs January 23 to December 3.
This counts calendar dates whose 1991–2020 normal high reaches 90°F. It is a smaller number than the 90°F+ day counts in the monthly table above, which measure how often the threshold was actually crossed in a typical year. A date can average 88°F and still exceed 90°F in half of all years.
No freezing date
Not one calendar date in the 1991–2020 record carries a normal low at or below 32°F. The coldest normal low of the year is 35°F around December 18.
Where the wet dates fall
The likeliest wet date is August 16, when 14% of years recorded at least a hundredth of an inch. The driest is June 4 at 2%. Summed across the calendar, that is about 32 wet dates a year.
The widest day
June 4 carries the biggest normal gap between afternoon and dawn, 40°F between the normal high and the normal low.
Look up any date
Any date's 1991–2020 normal for Maricopa.
Where Maricopa Stands Nationally
Summers here run among the most heat-heavy normals calendars in the country: on about 179 days a year the normal daily high itself reaches 90°F — a count fewer than one station in ten exceeds.
Aridity defines the water calendar: about 7 inches in a normal year lands this among the driest tenth of ranked stations.
Maricopa earns 2 nationally notable standings (outer quintiles) against 6,860 NOAA 1991–2020 normals stations; only those extremes render.
Monthly Precipitation
Average monthly rainfall and snowfall
4.0 days with precipitation
3.7 days with precipitation
3.3 days with precipitation
1.3 days with precipitation
0.7 days with precipitation
0.5 days with precipitation
3.8 days with precipitation
4.1 days with precipitation
3.1 days with precipitation
2.1 days with precipitation
2.0 days with precipitation
3.8 days with precipitation
Maricopa spreads its precipitation across the year
Neither half of the year dominates here: June through August take 25% of the annual total and December through February 33%, with neither reaching the 35% that would mark a distinct wet season. Maricopa has no dry season to plan around, though it does carry a 41.9°F seasonal spread.
The gap between the wettest and driest month still matters: August averages 1.0" and June 0.1". The three wettest months together take 38% of the year, against the 25% a perfectly flat distribution would give them.
Shares are computed from this station's own 1991-2020 monthly precipitation normals. "Spread across the year" means neither the June-August nor the December-February share reaches 35%; it describes an average year, not the variability of any single one.
How Maricopa's precipitation splits across the calendar
About 32 days a year record measurable precipitation here, carrying 7.1" between them, or roughly 0.22 inches on a typical wet day. That sits in the middle band: neither the many-light-days pattern of the Pacific Northwest and the Great Lakes, nor the few-heavy-events pattern of the Gulf and the desert Southwest.
A wet day is one recording at least 0.01 inches. These are 1991-2020 normals: they describe an average year and say nothing about the heaviest single storm on record.
Maricopa's record shows no measurable snowfall
This station measured snowfall across the 1991-2020 period and recorded none: the annual normal is 0.0 inches. That is a measured zero rather than missing data, which is a meaningful distinction here , most stations in the database simply do not report snow at all, and those pages say nothing about it.
A thirty-year normal of zero describes the typical year at this station. It is not a claim that snow has never fallen in the area.
Frost Dates & Growing Season
First Fall Freeze
November 24
50% probability date
Last Spring Freeze
February 23
50% probability date
Growing Season
274 days
Heating & Cooling Degree Days
Annual totals indicate energy demand for heating and cooling
Heating Degree Days
1,382
Higher = more heating needed
Cooling Degree Days
3,946
Higher = more cooling needed
Warmest Month
July
Coldest Month
December
Nationwide similar cities
Other rankable U.S. places outside AZ closest to Maricopa on two NOAA annual-normal axes (mean temperature and annual precipitation). Chip rows use distinct link sets.
Closest by average temperature
Nearest out-of-state peers by annual mean temperature (72°F here).
- Fort Green, FL 72°F · 0.0°F off
- Encinal, TX 72°F · 0.1°F off
- Freer, TX 72°F · 0.1°F off
- Tilden, TX 72°F · 0.1°F off
Closest by annual precipitation
Nearest out-of-state peers by annual precipitation (7.1" here), excluding temperature-peer places.
- Gabbs, NV 7.1" · 0.0" off
- Wasco, CA 7.1" · 0.0" off
- Basin, WY 7.2" · 0.0" off
- Greybull, WY 7.2" · 0.1" off
Scarce-water calendar
Where Maricopa's limited precipitation lands
cooling led · dry · mid swing
Air-conditioning demand is the clearest thermal signal here. Maricopa accumulates 3,946 cooling degree days, more than twice its 1,382 heating total; the monthly table shows when that imbalance builds rather than treating it as a year-round condition.
Heat demand sits beside limited local precipitation: Maricopa receives 7.1 inches in a normal year, inside PlainClimate's dry range. Recorded annual snowfall is negligible. Month-level precipitation is the useful check on when that small annual total arrives.
July and December mark the typical warm and cold ends of the calendar in Maricopa's middle-range seasonal profile. The measured spread is 41.9°F. The annual average is 72°F. Neither the annual mean nor one extreme month represents the full calendar on its own.
Maricopa has a long frost-free window of roughly 274 days, but the dry annual profile is a separate constraint. Growing-season length says when freezes are unlikely, not whether rainfall is sufficient.
Maricopa wettest normal
August
August concentrates the scarce annual total (7.1 inches).
Maricopa driest normal
June
June is typically driest; arid stations are defined by when water is absent, not by a four-season grid.
Questions about Maricopa's climate
How dry is Maricopa? ▼
How many days above 90°F does Maricopa get? ▼
How much energy does heating and cooling require in Maricopa? ▼
Data Sources
Data source: NOAA U.S. Climate Normals v1.0.1 (1991-2020). All figures on this page are from Maricopa's primary station: MARICOPA 4 N (USC00025270). For informational purposes only.
Place identity: U.S. Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer places. The 2024 Census Gazetteer identifies the exact name-and-state match as an incorporated place (GEOID 0444410). Match rule for Maricopa: exact normalized name + state only, no fuzzy expansion, so nearby differently spelled facilities stay unmatched.
On this page every temperature, precipitation, and derived score for Maricopa comes from its primary NOAA station record. No figure on this page is typed in by an editor - each value is rendered from NOAA 1991-2020 U.S. Climate Normals. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of 1991–2020 normals.