#9 of 35 US cities · 2024
How pleasant is the weather in Denver, CO?
In 2024, 59% of daytime hours in Denver were enjoyable outdoors: 2,794 of 4,758 hours between 8 AM and 9 PM. That's #9 of 35 major US cities. May and October were the best months and January the worst.
- Enjoyable
- 59%
- Comfortable temp
- 61%
- Too cold
- 27%
- Too hot
- 12%
- Lost to rain
- 0.5%
- Lost to gusts
- 2.0%
Month by month
Share of each month's daytime hours (8 AM to 9 PM). Avg temp is the plain air temperature over those hours, not feels-like.
| Month | Enjoyable | Comfortable | Too cold | Too hot | Rain | Avg temp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 34% | 34% | 66% | 0% | 0.0% | 33°F |
| February | 50% | 51% | 49% | 0% | 0.5% | 41°F |
| March | 58% | 59% | 41% | 0% | 0.0% | 46°F |
| April | 67% | 74% | 26% | 0% | 1.0% | 55°F |
| May | 81% | 90% | 10% | 0% | 3.0% | 62°F |
| June | 61% | 65% | 0% | 35% | 0.8% | 80°F |
| July | 53% | 54% | 0% | 46% | 0.5% | 83°F |
| August | 55% | 56% | 0% | 44% | 0.5% | 81°F |
| September | 76% | 79% | 1% | 21% | 0.0% | 76°F |
| October | 81% | 84% | 14% | 2% | 0.0% | 65°F |
| November | 46% | 46% | 54% | 0% | 0.0% | 40°F |
| December | 43% | 43% | 57% | 0% | 0.0% | 40°F |
What limits outdoor time
Denver loses hours at both ends of the year: November through March are often too cold, and July and August are often too hot.
Where you stand matters here. Of the comfortable hours, 29% were only comfortable in the sun and 28% only in the shade.
Weather escapes within driving distance
An hour's drive (about 45 miles) reaches places that average 28°F cooler in summer, but nowhere meaningfully warmer in winter. Distances are straight-line; temperatures are PRISM 1991–2020 averages.
How Denver, CO compares
- Sacramento, CA · #6 · 65%
- Portland, OR · #7 · 63%
- Seattle, WA · #8 · 61%
- Albuquerque, NM · #10 · 57%
- Charlotte, NC · #11 · 54%
- Honolulu, HI · #12 · 54%
Questions
How many pleasant outdoor hours does Denver, CO get?
2,794 hours in 2024, counting only 8 AM to 9 PM. That's 59% of daytime hours, about 215 days' worth of daytime, and ranks #9 of 35 major US cities.
What is the best month to be outside in Denver, CO?
May and October tied for best, with 81% of daytime hours enjoyable. September came next at 76%. January was the worst month, at 34%.
What makes outdoor time less pleasant in Denver, CO?
Mostly temperature. 27% of daytime hours were too cold and 12% too hot. Rain took another 0.5%, and gusty wind 2.0%.
Scored with the default rule: 48–79°F feels-like in sun or shade, under 1 mm/h of rain, gusts under 27 mph, 8 AM to 9 PM. If you run hotter or colder than that, set your own range on the map. How the score works.