Weather in Houston in July

A hard month. July asks something of you. Go in knowing what. Daytime highs average 34.2 °C and the afternoon is not negotiable — outdoor plans move to early morning or evening.

July ranks 11 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 15 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: 12 days clear 35 °C, so a serious heatwave is normal rather than notable. Across the twenty years measured, the hottest July day reached 41.2 °C and the coldest night fell to 19.2 °C, and the wettest single day dropped 55 mm — roughly 50% of the month's rain in one day.

July is moderately variable: 22 mm in the driest year against 227 mm in the wettest, around an average of 110 mm. Roughly two Julys in three land near that average, and the third does something else entirely.

Wind is light at 5.4 km/h, so the temperature on the page is close to the temperature on your skin, and humidity runs at 75%, high enough to notice on the warm days without dominating them.

How July sits in the year

Temperatures hold steady either side: 33.9 °C in June, 34.2 here, 35.2 in August. Nothing about the timing within the month matters much.

Daylight in July

July is at or near the longest days of Houston's year: 13.9 hours of daylight, losing 0.4 hours across the month. Evenings are the real gain — dinner outdoors still happens in full light.

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

Quiet. Few other visitors, cheaper rooms, and a real chance some seasonal operators are shut.

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

July in Houston versus nearby

If Houston is one option among several, the nearby comparison is worth making. Corpus Christi is a better bet in July — within a degree on temperature, 5 days less rain. San Antonio is close enough to be a coin toss — within a degree on temperature, 6 days less rain.

So: July is a compromise. March is 44 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 July.