New Orleans, LA Climate: Temperature & Rain by Month
Average temperature and precipitation from NOAA NCEI 1991–2020 normals →, with a derived climate comfort score
30-year climate normals (1991-2020) from New Orleans's primary NOAA station, NEW ORLEANS INTL AP.
The climate verdict for New Orleans
Warm-season cooling demand defines New Orleans, Louisiana, running at more than twice its heating total. The NOAA normal records an annual average of 71°F. It scores 80/100 for climate comfort (excellent), putting it in the top third of station-mapped location scores and exceeding 76% of them.
- 71°F
- average temperature, NOAA 1991-2020 normal
- 80/100
- comfort score, above 76% of station-mapped location scores
- 63.4"
- yearly precipitation total
- 335 days
- frost-free days per growing season
New Orleans: NOAA 1991-2020 normals describe a typical year, not a forecast. Method: /methodology.
Normals record plate
Sheet USW00012916 · New Orleans, LA 71°F mean · 63.4" precip
TEMP-HOT · RANK-WARM · PHOTO-FINISH · PRCP-WET · SWING-NARROW · COMF-TOP · LOAD-COOL · STN-1 · BOOK-FULL
- TEMP-HOT 71°F
- RANK-WARM #6,587
- PHOTO-FINISH ≈ Beeville
- PRCP-WET 63.4"
- SWING-NARROW 30°F
- COMF-TOP 80/100
- LOAD-COOL 3,206 CDD
- STN-1 USW00012916
- BOOK-FULL 6/6 fields
Nearest mean-temperature peer: Beeville, TX (+ 0.1 °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 LA station list.
- New Orleans (this station) 71°F
- Hot Goliad, TX 71°F
- Near Beeville, TX 71°F
- Near Houston Nwso, TX 71°F
- Near Angleton Brazor…, TX 71°F
New Orleans sits in Louisiana, the #3 hottest U.S. state at 67.3°F statewide annual average - see all 50 hottest states ranked by NOAA normals
Climate Living Index · New Orleans
New Orleans: 63/100 · grade C
New Orleans publishes all six Living Index dimensions from NOAA annual/seasonal normals · NOAA daily multivariate normals · NOAA hourly normals.
PlainClimate-derived for New Orleans, not an official NOAA rating. Rankings still use Comfort Score 80/100 (separate formula). Breakpoints and limits.
| Dimension | Station value | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Frost-free season | 335 days/year | 100/100 · A |
| Annual temperature balance | 70.5°F · 3.0° from 67.5°F | 91/100 · A |
| Snowfall burden | 0.0 inches/year | 90/100 · A |
| Normal heat + freeze calendar | 83 calendar days | 81/100 · B |
| Precipitation balance | 63.4 in · 28.4 from 35 in | 5/100 · F |
| Summer moisture balance | 73.3°F mean dew point | 3/100 · F |
New Orleans · 2026-08-04 · NOAA NCEI Climate Normals · method · Comfort Score method.
New Orleans is a temperate Köppen climate: Cfa
Coldest-month mean 54.3°F and warmest-month mean 84.0°F place this station in temperate, no dry season, hot summer climates (Cfa). Class Cfa is the Peel et al. (2007) label for this station's monthly mean temperature and precipitation normals: temperate, specifically temperate, no dry season, hot summer.
- Köppen code
- Cfa
- Group
- Temperate
- Warmest month
- 84.0°F
- Coldest month
- 54.3°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 New Orleans sits across the climate record
Three NOAA fields for New Orleans's primary station, temperature, precipitation, and seasonal swing, are ranked against every station-mapped normal that carries the same field.
- Annual temperature
- Top 4% warmest
- Among 6,861 stations, New Orleans sits in the warmer third of annual means.
- Annual precipitation
- Top 4% wettest
- New Orleans's annual total ranks in the wetter third of 6,352 measured normals.
- Seasonal temperature swing
- Narrower than 91%
- Warmest-to-coldest month gap for New Orleans is compact versus 6,861 complete station-years.
How New Orleans compares across U.S. station-mapped locations
New Orleans's comfort score vs. all station-mapped locations
PlainClimate composite comfort index (1–100), NOAA 1991–2020 normals
80 Top 24% score exceeds 76% 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%). Below this entry.
- 80–90: 921 station-mapped locations (15%). This entry sits in this band.
- 90–100: 564 station-mapped locations (9%). Above this entry.
Source NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, PlainClimate comfort index · 1991–2020
New Orleans's measured station temperature trend
MethodologyAcross 81 complete annual observations from 1939 to 2025, NEW ORLEANS INTL AP warmed at a fitted rate of 0.19°C per decade. The line shows the fitted change relative to its first year, not raw year-to-year temperatures or a forecast.
- New Orleans primary station fitted change +0.19 °C/decade
Monthly Temperatures
Average daily high and low temperatures by month
| Month | Avg High | Avg Low | Mean | Precip | Snow | Freeze Days | 90°F+ Days |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 63°F (17°C) | 46°F (8°C) | 54°F (12°C) | 5.2" | 0.0" | 2.9 | 0.0 |
| February | 66°F (19°C) | 50°F (10°C) | 58°F (14°C) | 4.1" | 0.0" | 0.9 | 0.0 |
| March | 72°F (22°C) | 55°F (13°C) | 64°F (18°C) | 4.4" | 0.0" | 0.2 | 0.0 |
| April | 79°F (26°C) | 62°F (17°C) | 70°F (21°C) | 5.2" | 0.0" | 0.0 | 0.2 |
| May | 85°F (30°C) | 69°F (21°C) | 77°F (25°C) | 5.6" | 0.0" | 0.0 | 5.9 |
| June | 90°F (32°C) | 75°F (24°C) | 82°F (28°C) | 7.6" | 0.0" | 0.0 | 18.4 |
| July | 91°F (33°C) | 77°F (25°C) | 84°F (29°C) | 6.8" | 0.0" | 0.0 | 22.9 |
| August | 91°F (33°C) | 77°F (25°C) | 84°F (29°C) | 6.9" | 0.0" | 0.0 | 23.0 |
| September | 88°F (31°C) | 74°F (23°C) | 81°F (27°C) | 5.1" | 0.0" | 0.0 | 12.8 |
| October | 81°F (27°C) | 64°F (18°C) | 73°F (23°C) | 3.7" | 0.0" | 0.0 | 2.0 |
| November | 71°F (22°C) | 54°F (12°C) | 62°F (17°C) | 3.9" | 0.0" | 0.4 | 0.0 |
| December | 65°F (18°C) | 48°F (9°C) | 57°F (14°C) | 4.8" | 0.0" | 1.0 | 0.0 |
The year, day by day
The year in New Orleans runs from a mild 46°F around January 13 to 92°F at the peak near July 26, and the normal low never reaches freezing on any date in the record.
When the heat sits
Normal highs reach 90°F from June 13 through September 3, covering 83 dates. The broader mild season, normal highs of 70°F or more, runs March 5 to November 19.
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 46°F around January 13.
Where the wet dates fall
The likeliest wet date is July 20, when 45% of years recorded at least a hundredth of an inch. The driest is April 30 at 23%. Summed across the calendar, that is about 115 wet dates a year.
The widest day
November 9 carries the biggest normal gap between afternoon and dawn, 18°F between the normal high and the normal low.
Look up any date
Any date's 1991–2020 normal for New Orleans.
Where New Orleans Stands Nationally
This is one of the wettest normals climates ranked: about 63 inches of precipitation in a normal year, a total fewer than one station in ten surpasses.
Among the steadiest day-night climates ranked: even the widest normal daily swing holds to roughly 18°F.
New Orleans 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
9.5 days with precipitation
9.0 days with precipitation
8.1 days with precipitation
7.3 days with precipitation
7.8 days with precipitation
12.7 days with precipitation
13.9 days with precipitation
13.6 days with precipitation
9.8 days with precipitation
7.1 days with precipitation
7.1 days with precipitation
9.2 days with precipitation
New Orleans spreads its precipitation across the year
Neither half of the year dominates here: June through August take 34% of the annual total and December through February 22%, with neither reaching the 35% that would mark a distinct wet season. New Orleans has no dry season to plan around, though it does carry an unusually narrow 29.7°F seasonal spread.
The gap between the wettest and driest month still matters: June averages 7.6" and October 3.7". The three wettest months together take 34% 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.
When it rains in New Orleans, it arrives in quantity
63.3" of precipitation falls across only about 115 wet days here, averaging 0.55 inches each. Fewer days carry more water: the year's total is delivered in comparatively heavy events rather than persistent damp.
- Days with measurable precipitation
- about 115 a year, 32% of all days
- Average depth per wet day
- 0.55 inches
- Most wet days
- July, about 14
- Fewest wet days
- October, about 7
A wet day is one recording at least 0.01 inches. These are 1991-2020 normals: they describe an average year, and a per-day average is not a forecast of any individual storm.
New Orleans'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
December 31
50% probability date
Last Spring Freeze
January 30
50% probability date
Growing Season
335 days
Heating & Cooling Degree Days
Annual totals indicate energy demand for heating and cooling
Heating Degree Days
1,176
Higher = more heating needed
Cooling Degree Days
3,206
Higher = more cooling needed
Warmest Month
August
Coldest Month
January
Humidity & Wind
Monthly averages from hourly observations
| Month | Humidity | Wind (mph) | Clear Sky % | Overcast % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 71% | 9.1 | 23% | 36% |
| February | 70% | 9.5 | 20% | 33% |
| March | 72% | 9.3 | 22% | 27% |
| April | 70% | 9.1 | 21% | 18% |
| May | 74% | 7.1 | 21% | 12% |
| June | 75% | 6.1 | 19% | 15% |
| July | 75% | 5.8 | 14% | 12% |
| August | 75% | 6.6 | 20% | 14% |
| September | 70% | 8.0 | 29% | 15% |
| October | 71% | 8.0 | 32% | 17% |
| November | 73% | 8.3 | 29% | 24% |
| December | 73% | 9.1 | 23% | 34% |
Nationwide similar cities
Other rankable U.S. places outside LA closest to New Orleans 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 (71°F here).
- Houston, TX 71°F · 0.0°F off
- Lytle, TX 71°F · 0.0°F off
- Paauilo, HI 71°F · 0.0°F off
- Beeville, TX 71°F · 0.1°F off
Closest by annual precipitation
Nearest out-of-state peers by annual precipitation (63.4" here), excluding temperature-peer places.
- Lumberton, TX 63.2" · 0.1" off
- Coalmont, TN 63.2" · 0.2" off
- Davis, WV 63.2" · 0.2" off
- Wewahitchka, FL 63.1" · 0.3" off
Data-derived climate profile
How New Orleans's climate pattern fits together
cooling led · wet · low swing
Warm-season load persists through a relatively even calendar in New Orleans. Cooling totals 3,206 degree days, more than double the 1,176 heating measure, and the 29.7°F seasonal range is compact rather than sharply divided.
Warm-season demand is paired with a wet annual normal: 63.4 inches of precipitation at New Orleans. Recorded annual snowfall is negligible. The month-by-month bars distinguish a concentrated wet season from moisture spread across the calendar.
New Orleans's 29.7°F seasonal spread is compact even though precipitation is abundant. August and January mark the typical warm and cold ends of the calendar. The annual average is 71°F. Temperature is relatively steady; the monthly rows show how rain and snow observations vary across the calendar.
With about 335 frost-free days, the calendar is constrained more by sustained heat than by freeze timing. This does not measure crop suitability or soil moisture; it only reports the NOAA-derived frost-free window for New Orleans.
These labels group NOAA 1991-2020 normals from New Orleans's primary station, so the summer figures are a thirty-year average rather than a ceiling: individual years have run hotter and will again. For New Orleans that means a descriptive range only — not an official NOAA classification and not a prediction for next summer.
Questions about New Orleans's climate
How much rain does New Orleans get? ▼
How many days above 90°F does New Orleans get? ▼
How much energy does heating and cooling require in New Orleans? ▼
Data Sources
Data source: NOAA U.S. Climate Normals v1.0.1 (1991-2020). All figures on this page are from New Orleans's primary station: NEW ORLEANS INTL AP (USW00012916). 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 2255000). Match rule for New Orleans: 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 New Orleans 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.