Weather in Houston in August

A hard month. August is a hard month in Houston, and worth planning around. Daytime highs average 35.2 °C and the afternoon is not negotiable — outdoor plans move to early morning or evening.

August ranks 12 of 12 — near the bottom of Houston's year. March is the month that works, and the swing between the two is 47 points, which is a different holiday rather than a slightly better one.

Rain on 14 days, 3 of them heavy. Enough to need a plan B, not enough to need a plan around it. Pack for heat management rather than style: shade, water, and a schedule that gives up on the middle of the day.

What the averages hide

Averages flatten a month, and this one hides a few things: 17 days clear 35 °C, so a serious heatwave is normal rather than notable. Across the twenty years measured, the hottest August day reached 42.9 °C and the coldest night fell to 16.9 °C, and the wettest single day dropped 237 mm — roughly 190% of the month's rain in one day.

This is the volatile part. August rainfall has ranged from 19 mm to 719 mm across the twenty years measured — a 700 mm spread around an average of 125 mm. The average is real but almost no individual August looks like it, so treat the figure as the middle of a wide range rather than a forecast.

Wind is light at 5.3 km/h, so the temperature on the page is close to the temperature on your skin, and humidity is unremarkable at 72%.

How August sits in the year

This is a turning point in the year — July and September sit on opposite sides of it, so the month contains the change rather than following it.

Daylight in August

13.3 hours of daylight, losing 0.8 hours across the month. That is between Houston's extremes of 14 and 10.2 hours, so days are long enough not to constrain the plan.

An inland climate

With no coast nearby, the year swings a fair way — 30 °C between the warmest afternoons and the coldest nights, wider than any coastal city at this latitude would manage.

How busy it gets

Off season. The genuine off season: cheapest by a distance, with the caveat that some tours and restaurants close entirely.

Crowd levels are estimated from climate desirability and school-holiday calendars, not from visitor numbers.

August in Houston versus nearby

If Houston is one option among several, the nearby comparison is worth making. Corpus Christi is a better bet in August — within a degree on temperature, 6 days less rain. San Antonio is close enough to be a coin toss — within a degree on temperature, 7 days less rain.

So: August is a compromise. March is 47 points better and is what Houston is actually like at its best — worth moving the trip for if that is possible, and worth adjusting expectations for if it is not.

Every month in Houston

See all twelve months in Houston, or where else to go in August.