Washington, District of Columbia climate: Normal weather by month, frost dates and records

What is the weather like in Washington each month?

July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 90°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of 30°F. The most precipitation falls in July (4.33 in), the least in February (2.62 in).

Each month has its own page with the day-by-day normals, the month's records and its recent years:

• Jan
• Feb
• Mar
• Apr
• May
• Jun
• Jul
• Aug
• Sep
• Oct
• Nov
• Dec

When is the best weather to visit Washington?

Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in April, May, September and October. Of those, October has the fewest days with rain (8).

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.

When is the last frost in Washington?

In Washington, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after March 24 in half of years and after April 6 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before November 18 in half of years and before November 5 in one year in ten.

Last spring frost, half of years after

March 241 year in 10 after April 6; 9 in 10 after March 7

First autumn frost, half of years before

November 181 year in 10 before November 5; 9 in 10 before December 6

NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 241 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 268 days.

A hard freeze (28°F) comes after March 12 in half of springs and before December 3 in half of autumns.

The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Washington in zones 7b to 8a across its 24 ZIP code areas (8a in 20019, the largest). By the map's own method, the average of each year's coldest night over 1991-2020, Washington's NOAA station is in zone 8a: the coldest night of a typical year reaches 12°F (30 complete years).

Frost dates for every NOAA station in District of Columbia · Frost dates by ZIP code

What hardiness zone is each Washington ZIP code in?

The USDA's 2023 map gives each ZIP code area one zone. Washington's 24 ZIP code areas run from zone 7b to 8a: 13 in 7b and 11 in 8a. Each ZIP's frost dates are in the frost tool.

How hot and how cold does it get in Washington?

In a normal year in Washington, 40 days a year reach 90°F (1 of them 100°F or more), 60 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 118 days bring measurable precipitation.

Days at 90°F or more

40a normal year

Days at 100°F or more

1a normal year

Nights at 32°F or colder

60a normal year

Days that stay below freezing

7high of 32°F or less

Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation

118a normal year

Days with 1 inch of snow or more

4a normal year

The highest temperature in Washington's official record (kept by the National Weather Service since 1871) is 106°F, on July 20, 1930; the lowest is −15°F, on February 11, 1899.

The wettest calendar year on that record is 2018, with 66.28 in; the snowiest season is 2009–10, with 56.1 inches.

How humid and windy is Washington, and how clear are its skies?

The summer (June-August) dew point averages 65°F. The muggiest month is July, with an average dew point of 67°F, above the 65°F at which most people call the air sticky; the driest air comes in January (24°F). February is the windiest month (10.2 mph on average), and September has the most clear or nearly clear hours (37%).

How sunny is Washington?

Over a year 75% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds in the area around Washington, 4.1 kWh per square metre a day. July is the sunniest month (80%) and January the cloudiest (70%). Among the 459 U.S. places of 50,000 or more, that ranks tied 304th (with 25 others) in sunshine.

How much heating and cooling does Washington need?

A normal year in Washington brings 3,769 heating degree days, 30% fewer than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 1,738 cooling degree days, 91% more than the median (908). Five months need 300 or more heating degree days, a monthly mean of about 55°F or colder. For gardens and crops, NOAA counts 4,709 growing degree days a year above 50°F.

Has Washington been warmer than normal lately?

2025 averaged 59.4°F, 0.1°F above the 1991-2020 normal of 59.3°F. 5 of the 5 complete years since 2021 ran warmer than the normal.

Over 87 complete years from 1938 to 2025, the station's annual mean temperature rose at a fitted 3.7°F per century (+0.20°C per decade). A fitted rate summarizes the whole record; single years swing well above and below it.

Which places near Washington share this climate record?

99 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.

• Arlington, VAalso near: Dalecarlia Reservoir (4 mi, 56.2°F a year); National Arboretum DC (7 mi, 58.3°F a year)235,463 people · 4 mi NW
• Alexandria, VAalso near: Oxon Hill (5 mi, 57.1°F a year); Dalecarlia Reservoir (8 mi, 56.2°F a year)159,102 people · 3 mi SW
• Waldorf, MDalso near: Mechanicsville (13 mi, 55.2°F a year); Oxon Hill (13 mi, 57.1°F a year)82,541 people · 18 mi S
• Silver Spring, MDalso near: Beltsville (5 mi, 55.9°F a year); Dalecarlia Reservoir (7 mi, 56.2°F a year)82,129 people · 11 mi N
• Bethesda, MDalso near: Dalecarlia Reservoir (3 mi, 56.2°F a year); Rockville (8 mi, 56.2°F a year)67,403 people · 11 mi NW
• Wheaton, MDalso near: Rockville (6 mi, 56.2°F a year); Beltsville (7 mi, 55.9°F a year)52,172 people · 14 mi N
• Burke, VA43,336 people · 13 mi W
• Clinton, MD38,756 people · 10 mi SE
• Chillum, MD35,163 people · 9 mi N
• College Park, MD34,667 people · 11 mi NE
• Springfield, VA30,894 people · 9 mi SW
• Fort Washington, MD25,843 people · 8 mi S
• Bailey's Crossroads, VA25,458 people · 5 mi W
• Suitland, MD24,667 people · 6 mi E
• Landover, MD24,558 people · 10 mi NE
• West Springfield, VA22,905 people · 11 mi SW
• Camp Springs, MD22,174 people · 7 mi SE
• Langley Park, MD22,057 people · 10 mi N
• Rose Hill, VA21,484 people · 6 mi SW
• Hyattsville, MD21,052 people · 9 mi NE
• Lincolnia, VA19,913 people · 7 mi W
• East Riverdale, MD19,043 people · 10 mi NE
• Franconia, VA18,141 people · 9 mi SW
• Takoma Park, MD17,856 people · 9 mi N
• Glassmanor, MD17,687 people · 3 mi SE
• Adelphi, MD17,210 people · 11 mi N
• Hillcrest Heights, MD15,670 people · 4 mi E
• Summerfield, MD15,635 people · 10 mi NE
• Lake Arbor, MD14,932 people · 12 mi E
• Bensville, MD14,792 people · 16 mi S
• Kemp Mill, MD14,437 people · 13 mi N
• New Carrollton, MD13,645 people · 12 mi NE
• Accokeek, MD13,226 people · 12 mi S
• Newington Forest, VA12,434 people · 13 mi SW
• Rosaryville, MD12,206 people · 12 mi SE
• Westphalia, MD12,020 people · 11 mi E
• Largo, MD11,753 people · 11 mi E
• Friendly, MD11,673 people · 7 mi SE
• Brandywine, MD10,989 people · 14 mi SE
• Forestville, MD10,839 people · 9 mi E
• Marlton, MD10,223 people · 15 mi SE
• Bladensburg, MD9,635 people · 9 mi NE
• Walker Mill, MD9,626 people · 8 mi E
• Chevy Chase, MD9,484 people · 10 mi N
• Coral Hills, MD9,372 people · 6 mi E
• North Kensington, MD8,980 people · 13 mi N
• Temple Hills, MD8,740 people · 5 mi SE
• Mount Rainier, MD8,269 people · 8 mi NE
• South Kensington, MD8,057 people · 12 mi N
• Four Corners, MD7,785 people · 12 mi N
• North Springfield, VA7,511 people · 10 mi W
• Riverdale Park, MD7,296 people · 10 mi NE
• Woodlawn, MD7,221 people · 10 mi NE
• South Run, VA6,714 people · 15 mi SW
• Forest Glen, MD6,650 people · 12 mi N
• Glenarden, MD6,394 people · 11 mi NE
• Marlow Heights, MD6,144 people · 5 mi E
• Cheverly, MD6,125 people · 8 mi NE
• District Heights, MD5,916 people · 8 mi E
• Crosspointe, VA5,632 people · 15 mi SW
• Peppermill Village, MD5,268 people · 9 mi E
• Silver Hill, MD5,068 people · 5 mi E
• Seat Pleasant, MD4,518 people · 8 mi NE
• Springdale, MD4,476 people · 12 mi NE
• National Harbor, MD4,418 people · 5 mi S
• Kings Park, VA4,206 people · 11 mi W
• Capitol Heights, MD4,038 people · 7 mi E
• Friendship Heights Village, MD3,991 people · 9 mi N
• Brookmont, MD3,825 people · 9 mi NW
• Brentwood, MD3,795 people · 8 mi NE
• Melwood, MD3,734 people · 11 mi E
• Berwyn Heights, MD3,325 people · 12 mi NE
• Andrews AFB, MD3,075 people · 9 mi E
• Chevy Chase, MD2,927 people · 10 mi N
• Forest Heights, MD2,639 people · 3 mi S
• Ravensworth, VA2,566 people · 11 mi W
• Croom, MD2,519 people · 17 mi SE
• University Park, MD2,431 people · 10 mi NE
• Kensington, MD2,155 people · 12 mi N
• Chevy Chase Village, MD2,071 people · 9 mi N
• Queensland, MD2,066 people · 13 mi E
• Baden, MD1,968 people · 20 mi SE
• Landover Hills, MD1,799 people · 10 mi NE
• Cedar Heights, MD1,748 people · 8 mi NE
• Edmonston, MD1,609 people · 9 mi NE
• Colmar Manor, MD1,586 people · 7 mi NE
• Fairmount Heights, MD1,522 people · 7 mi NE
• Cottage City, MD1,322 people · 8 mi NE
• Morningside, MD1,235 people · 8 mi E
• Somerset, MD1,203 people · 9 mi N
• Chevy Chase View, MD1,017 people · 12 mi N
• Garrett Park, MD1,004 people · 13 mi N
• Martin's Additions, MD950 people · 9 mi N
• Maryland Park, MD888 people · 7 mi E
• Chevy Chase Section Three, MD802 people · 9 mi N
• Cedarville, MD791 people · 17 mi SE
• North Chevy Chase, MD691 people · 11 mi N
• Chevy Chase Section Five, MD684 people · 10 mi N
• North Brentwood, MD587 people · 8 mi NE

Nearby and next

• Washington in OctoberThis month day by day, its records and recent years
• District of Columbia climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
• Oxon Hill, MD4 miles from this station, 57.1°F a year
• National Arboretum DC, MD6 miles from this station, 58.3°F a year
• Dalecarlia Reservoir, MD7 miles from this station, 56.2°F a year
• Beltsville, MD14 miles from this station, 55.9°F a year
• Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side

Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made