New Orleans, Louisiana climate: Normal weather by month, frost dates and records
New Orleans's normal year runs from 46°F January nights to 91°F August afternoons, with 63.4 inches of precipitation a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 21.4°C, January lows of 8°C, August highs of 33°C, 1,609 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationNew Orleans Airport
- Station IDUSW00012916
- Location29.99°N 90.25°W
- Elevation4 ft (1 m)
- From the center19 miles
- Population362,701
On October 23, the normal high in New Orleans is 78°F and the normal low 62°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 23%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for New Orleans.
- Jan 63° 46°
- Feb 66° 50°
- Mar 72° 55°
- Apr 79° 62°
- May 85° 69°
- Jun 90° 75°
- Jul 91° 77°
- Aug 91° 77°
- Sep 88° 74°
- Oct 81° 64°
- Nov 71° 54°
- Dec 65° 48°
Each month: normal high (large) and low, °F. Fill: the month's normal mean, colder blue to hotter red.
What is the weather like in New Orleans each month?
August is the warmest month, with normal highs of 91°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of 46°F. The most precipitation falls in June (7.62 in), the least in October (3.70 in).
Each month has its own page with the day-by-day normals, the month's records and its recent years:
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 63°F | 46°F | 54.3°F | 5.18 | 10 | <1 | 3 | 10 h 20 min |
| February | 66°F | 50°F | 58.0°F | 4.13 | 9 | <1 | 1 | 11 h 10 min |
| March | 72°F | 55°F | 63.8°F | 4.36 | 8 | <1 | <1 | 12 h |
| April | 79°F | 62°F | 70.1°F | 5.22 | 7 | <1 | <1 | 12 h 50 min |
| May | 85°F | 69°F | 77.1°F | 5.64 | 8 | 6 | <1 | 13 h 40 min |
| June | 90°F | 75°F | 82.4°F | 7.62 | 13 | 18 | <1 | 14 h |
| July | 91°F | 77°F | 83.9°F | 6.79 | 14 | 23 | <1 | 13 h 50 min |
| August | 91°F | 77°F | 84.0°F | 6.91 | 14 | 23 | <1 | 13 h 20 min |
| September | 88°F | 74°F | 80.8°F | 5.11 | 10 | 13 | <1 | 12 h 20 min |
| October | 81°F | 64°F | 72.5°F | 3.70 | 7 | 2 | <1 | 11 h 30 min |
| November | 71°F | 54°F | 62.4°F | 3.87 | 7 | <1 | <1 | 10 h 40 min |
| December | 65°F | 48°F | 56.6°F | 4.82 | 9 | <1 | 1 | 10 h 10 min |
| Year (annual) | 79°F | 63°F | 70.5°F | 63.35 | 115 | 85 | 5 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 17°C | 8°C | 12.4°C | 132 mm |
| February | 19°C | 10°C | 14.4°C | 105 mm |
| March | 22°C | 13°C | 17.7°C | 111 mm |
| April | 26°C | 17°C | 21.2°C | 133 mm |
| May | 30°C | 21°C | 25.1°C | 143 mm |
| June | 32°C | 24°C | 28.0°C | 194 mm |
| July | 33°C | 25°C | 28.8°C | 172 mm |
| August | 33°C | 25°C | 28.9°C | 176 mm |
| September | 31°C | 23°C | 27.1°C | 130 mm |
| October | 27°C | 18°C | 22.5°C | 94 mm |
| November | 22°C | 12°C | 16.9°C | 98 mm |
| December | 18°C | 9°C | 13.7°C | 122 mm |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USW00012916; annual normals. Wet days: 0.01 inch or more; 90°F days and freezing nights: NOAA's day counts. Daylight: sunrise to sunset on the 15th, computed from the latitude.
When is the best weather to visit New Orleans?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in February, March, April, October and November. Of those, October has the fewest days with rain (7).
That is a measurement, not a recommendation: it counts the months whose normal afternoon high sits between 65°F and 85°F, where a light layer is enough by day.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USW00012916.
When is the last frost in New Orleans?
In New Orleans, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after January 30 in half of years and after February 27 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before December 31 in half of years and before December 1 in one year in ten. A night at 32°F or colder comes at all in 87% of years here (NOAA).
Frost-free in half of yearsFrost in 1 to 9 years out of 10Frost most years
- Last spring frost, half of years after
- January 301 year in 10 after February 27; 9 in 10 after December 29
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- December 311 year in 10 before December 1; 9 in 10 before January 31
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 333 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 365 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after January 20 in half of springs and before January 7 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts New Orleans in zone 9b across its 18 ZIP code areas (9b in 70129, the largest). By the map's own method, the average of each year's coldest night over 1991-2020, New Orleans's NOAA station is in zone 9b: the coldest night of a typical year reaches 28°F (30 complete years).
Frost dates for every NOAA station in Louisiana · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USW00012916; USDA 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map, ZIP listings: PRISM Group, Oregon State University, https://prism.oregonstate.edu, accessed October 8, 2026; the station zone: ACIS daily lows, 1991-2020. A 10% date means one year in ten has a frost after it in spring or before it in autumn.
What hardiness zone is each New Orleans ZIP code in?
The USDA's 2023 map gives each ZIP code area one zone. New Orleans's 18 ZIP code areas are all in zone 9b. Each ZIP's frost dates are in the frost tool.
| ZIP code | Zone | Land in New Orleans |
|---|---|---|
| 70112 | 9b | 2.5 km² |
| 70113 | 9b | 2.4 km² |
| 70114 | 9b | 13.1 km² |
| 70115 | 9b | 10.0 km² |
| 70116 | 9b | 3.3 km² |
| 70117 | 9b | 14.3 km² |
| 70118 | 9b | 12.0 km² |
| 70119 | 9b | 11.7 km² |
| 70122 | 9b | 16.2 km² |
| 70124 | 9b | 17.3 km² |
| 70125 | 9b | 6.1 km² |
| 70126 | 9b | 31.3 km² |
| 70127 | 9b | 14.2 km² |
| 70128 | 9b | 12.3 km² |
| 70129 | 9b | 235.5 km² |
| 70130 | 9b | 5.5 km² |
| 70131 | 9b | 30.3 km² |
| 70148 | 9b | 1.0 km² |
Source: USDA 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map, ZIP listings: PRISM Group, Oregon State University, https://prism.oregonstate.edu, accessed October 8, 2026; ZIP areas in the place: Census Bureau 2020 ZCTA-to-place relationship file. A ZIP area counts when at least a tenth of its land (and 0.5 km²) lies in the place.
How hot and how cold does it get in New Orleans?
In a normal year in New Orleans, 85 days a year reach 90°F, 5 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 115 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 85a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- fewer than 1a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 5a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- fewer than 1high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 115a normal year
The highest temperature in New Orleans's official record (kept by the National Weather Service since 1946) is 105°F, on August 27, 2023; the lowest is 11°F, on December 23, 1989.
The wettest calendar year on that record is 1991, with 102.37 in; the snowiest season is 1963–64, with 2.7 inches.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USW00012916; records: ACIS (NOAA Regional Climate Centers), NWS threaded record MSYthr. Records use complete months only; a month missing more than three days is left out.
How humid and windy is New Orleans, and how clear are its skies?
The summer (June-August) dew point averages 73°F. The muggiest month is July, with an average dew point of 74°F, above the 65°F at which most people call the air sticky; the driest air comes in January (45°F). February is the windiest month (9.5 mph on average), and October has the most clear or nearly clear hours (52%).
| Month | Dew point | Humidity | Afternoon humidity | Wind | Clear or few clouds | Overcast |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 45°F | 71% | 55% | 9.1 mph | 37% | 36% |
| February | 50°F | 70% | 55% | 9.5 mph | 34% | 33% |
| March | 57°F | 72% | 55% | 9.3 mph | 38% | 27% |
| April | 62°F | 70% | 53% | 9.1 mph | 41% | 18% |
| May | 70°F | 74% | 58% | 7.1 mph | 44% | 12% |
| June | 73°F | 75% | 61% | 6.1 mph | 39% | 15% |
| July | 74°F | 75% | 61% | 5.8 mph | 33% | 12% |
| August | 73°F | 75% | 60% | 6.6 mph | 40% | 14% |
| September | 66°F | 70% | 54% | 8.0 mph | 51% | 15% |
| October | 57°F | 71% | 53% | 8.0 mph | 52% | 17% |
| November | 50°F | 73% | 56% | 8.3 mph | 45% | 24% |
| December | 46°F | 73% | 59% | 9.1 mph | 37% | 34% |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 hourly normals, station USW00012916. Monthly averages of all hours; afternoon humidity at 3 p.m. local standard time; sky as the share of hours NOAA's observations rate clear or few clouds (a dash where NOAA publishes no sky value).
How sunny is New Orleans?
Over a year 79% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds in the area around New Orleans, 4.7 kWh per square metre a day. October is the sunniest month (85%) and February the cloudiest (73%). Among the 459 U.S. places of 50,000 or more, that ranks tied 176th (with 33 others) in sunshine.
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 75% | 3.0 |
| February | 73% | 3.6 |
| March | 79% | 4.9 |
| April | 81% | 5.8 |
| May | 84% | 6.5 |
| June | 79% | 6.1 |
| July | 75% | 5.6 |
| August | 76% | 5.4 |
| September | 81% | 5.1 |
| October | 85% | 4.5 |
| November | 82% | 3.5 |
| December | 74% | 2.7 |
Source: NASA POWER solar climatology, 2001-2020 (CERES SYN1deg). Satellite-based, for the 1-degree cell (about 100 km across) around the station, so it describes the area rather than the airport.
How much heating and cooling does New Orleans need?
A normal year in New Orleans brings 1,176 heating degree days, 78% fewer than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 3,206 cooling degree days, 3.5 times the median (908). One month needs 300 or more heating degree days, a monthly mean of about 55°F or colder. For gardens and crops, NOAA counts 7,640 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 350 | 18 |
| February | 226 | 32 |
| March | 119 | 81 |
| April | 27 | 180 |
| May | 1 | 378 |
| June | 0 | 520 |
| July | 0 | 587 |
| August | 0 | 587 |
| September | 0 | 474 |
| October | 21 | 252 |
| November | 143 | 67 |
| December | 291 | 30 |
| Year (annual) | 1,176 | 3,206 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USW00012916. A degree day is one degree of a day's mean temperature below 65°F (heating) or above it (cooling); utilities use them to estimate energy use.
Has New Orleans been warmer than normal lately?
2025 averaged 72.2°F, 1.7°F above the 1991-2020 normal of 70.5°F. 5 of the 5 complete years since 2021 ran warmer than the normal.
| Year | Mean | Against normal | Precip. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 71.5°F | +1.0°F | 86.08 |
| 2022 | 70.7°F | +0.2°F | 57.57 |
| 2023 | 73.3°F | +2.8°F | 39.85 |
| 2024 | 72.7°F | +2.2°F | 83.32 |
| 2025 | 72.2°F | +1.7°F | 57.54 |
Over 81 complete years from 1939 to 2025, the station's annual mean temperature rose at a fitted 3.5°F per century (+0.19°C per decade). A fitted rate summarizes the whole record; single years swing well above and below it.
Source: observed years: ACIS, station USW00012916; trend: NOAA GHCN-Monthly v4. A year counts only with all twelve months complete.
How does New Orleans's climate compare?
New Orleans is warmer than 64 of the other 64 places with their own NOAA record in Louisiana, and wetter than 45. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 70.5°F is warmer than 96%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, New Orleans is Cfa: temperate, no dry season, hot summer. What the classes mean.
Places with the most similar year elsewhere
Measured month by month on the normal high, low and precipitation, among places of 20,000 or more people in other states:
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 normals for every station PlainClimate covers. Similarity: the root-mean-square difference of the 36 monthly figures, precipitation weighted so an inch counts like 6°F.
Which places near New Orleans share this climate record?
19 places have no NOAA station with 1991-2020 normals of their own, and this station is the nearest full record. A place's own climate can differ from these figures, by several degrees where it sits much higher or lower than the station, nearer the coast, or inside a large city's heat; for the larger places the next nearest records are named with their yearly mean, so the spread around them is visible, and places of 50,000 or more have their own page with NOAA's gridded normals.
- Metairie, LAalso near: Terrytown (11 mi, 70.3°F a year); Chalmette (12 mi, 69.9°F a year)138,995 people · 4 mi E
- Kenner, LAalso near: Terrytown (15 mi, 70.3°F a year); Chalmette (17 mi, 69.9°F a year)64,650 people · 1 mi N
- Luling, LA13,873 people · 9 mi SW
- River Ridge, LA13,170 people · 3 mi SE
- Destrehan, LA11,786 people · 6 mi W
- Waggaman, LA10,617 people · 4 mi S
- Jefferson, LA9,984 people · 6 mi E
- Harahan, LA8,819 people · 5 mi SE
- St. Rose, LA7,271 people · 4 mi SW
- Bridge City, LA7,258 people · 7 mi SE
- Elmwood, LA6,022 people · 5 mi SE
- Avondale, LA5,200 people · 7 mi SE
- Hahnville, LA3,826 people · 11 mi W
- Norco, LA2,858 people · 9 mi W
- Boutte, LA2,283 people · 11 mi SW
- Ama, LA1,473 people · 4 mi SW
- Bayou Gauche, LA1,463 people · 16 mi SW
- New Sarpy, LA1,200 people · 8 mi W
- Paradis, LA709 people · 14 mi SW
Source: Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer (place centers) and Vintage 2024 population estimates. Distance and direction from the station to each place's center.
What do New Orleans's other NOAA stations record?
3 more NOAA stations keep 1991-2020 normals in or near New Orleans. This page uses New Orleans Airport; the others differ by site and elevation:
| Station | From the center | Elevation | Year | Jan low | Jul high | Precip. | Snow | Last frost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New Orleans Alvin Callender Fl USW00012958 | 17 mi S | 5 ft | 68.2°F | 43°F | 90°F | 63.8 | – | February 18 |
| New Orleans Audubon USW00012930 | 15 mi SW | 20 ft | 71.8°F | 47°F | 94°F | 64.6 | – | January 24 |
| New Orleans Lakefront Airport USW00053917 | 6 mi W | 9 ft | 70.8°F | 47°F | 91°F | 60.1 | 0 | January 22 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 normals for each station. Last frost: the median last spring date of 32°F.
Questions about New Orleans's climate
What is the coldest month in New Orleans?
January, with a normal high of 63°F and a normal low of 46°F. The warmest is August (91°F by day, 77°F at night).
Does it snow in New Orleans?
Rarely: NOAA's normal is no measurable snow a year.
What is the rainiest month in New Orleans?
June, with 7.62 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is October with 3.70 in.
What plant hardiness zone is New Orleans in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts New Orleans in zone 9b across its 18 ZIP code areas (9b in 70129, the largest). By the same method at New Orleans's NOAA station, the coldest night of a typical year reaches 28°F (30 years, 1991-2020): zone 9b.
How late can frost come in New Orleans?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after January 30; in one year in ten it comes after February 27. Waiting until February 27 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- New Orleans in OctoberThis month day by day, its records and recent years
- Louisiana climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Terrytown, LA14 miles from this station, 70.3°F a year
- Chalmette, LA16 miles from this station, 69.9°F a year
- Marrero, LA17 miles from this station, 68.4°F a year
- Reserve, LA20 miles from this station, 69.1°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made