Weather in New York City in August

A good month. August works. It is not the peak, but nothing about it fights you. Highs average 26.1 °C, lows 21.2 °C, and rain falls on 13 days — nothing in the month is working against you.

August ranks 3 of 12 in New York City. Only September scores clearly higher, and the difference is small enough to be settled by price rather than weather.

Rain on 13 days, 4 of them heavy. Enough to need a plan B, not enough to need a plan around it. Nothing specialised needed — this is the month you pack for the trip rather than for the weather.

What the averages hide

Averages flatten a month, and this one hides a few things: the day barely swings — 4.9 °C between the overnight low and the afternoon high. Across the twenty years measured, the hottest August day reached 32.4 °C and the coldest night fell to 15.8 °C, and the wettest single day dropped 96 mm — roughly 84% of the month's rain in one day.

August is moderately variable: 33 mm in the driest year against 380 mm in the wettest, around an average of 114 mm. Roughly two Augusts in three land near that average, and the third does something else entirely.

Wind is light at 11.6 km/h, so the temperature on the page is close to the temperature on your skin, and humidity runs at 78%, high enough to notice on the warm days without dominating them.

How August sits in the year

Temperatures hold steady either side: 26.2 °C in July, 26.1 here, 23.2 in September. Nothing about the timing within the month matters much.

Daylight in August

13.8 hours of daylight, losing 1.2 hours across the month. That is between New York City's extremes of 15.1 and 9.3 hours, so days are long enough not to constrain the plan.

Sea temperature

The sea sits at about 24.4 °C in August — warm enough to stay in as long as you like. This is the warmest the water gets all year.

How busy it gets

Peak season. Expect the highest prices of the year and to be booking well ahead.

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

August in New York City versus nearby

If New York City is one option among several, the nearby comparison is worth making. Philadelphia is the weaker option in August — 3.5 °C warmer, the same number of rain days. Boston is close enough to be a coin toss — within a degree on temperature, 2 days less rain.

So: August works, with September the better month by 7 points if the dates can move. If they cannot, nothing here should stop you booking.

Every month in New York City

See all twelve months in New York City, or where else to go in August.