#33 of 35 US cities · 2024
How pleasant is the weather in Houston, TX?
In 2024, 43% of daytime hours in Houston were enjoyable outdoors: 2,034 of 4,758 hours between 8 AM and 9 PM. That's #33 of 35 major US cities. March was the best month and August the worst.
- Enjoyable
- 43%
- Comfortable temp
- 53%
- Too cold
- 7%
- Too hot
- 40%
- Lost to rain
- 3.4%
- Lost to gusts
- 6.7%
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 | 48% | 60% | 40% | 0% | 6.5% | 55°F |
| February | 68% | 85% | 15% | 0% | 2.4% | 65°F |
| March | 79% | 94% | 3% | 2% | 3.2% | 69°F |
| April | 66% | 92% | 1% | 7% | 3.1% | 75°F |
| May | 30% | 40% | 0% | 60% | 6.5% | 82°F |
| June | 3% | 5% | 0% | 95% | 1.3% | 86°F |
| July | 2% | 8% | 0% | 92% | 5.7% | 85°F |
| August | 1% | 1% | 0% | 99% | 0.0% | 88°F |
| September | 22% | 24% | 0% | 76% | 1.0% | 83°F |
| October | 49% | 54% | 1% | 44% | 0.5% | 80°F |
| November | 70% | 85% | 6% | 9% | 3.1% | 71°F |
| December | 76% | 86% | 14% | 0% | 6.9% | 64°F |
What limits outdoor time
Heat costs Houston more hours than cold does: 40% of daytime hours were too hot, 7% too cold. Rain matters more here than in most cities, knocking out 3.4% of daytime hours against a median of 1.3%. Wind matters too: gusts took 6.7% of daytime hours.
Sun or shade makes less difference here: 64% of comfortable hours were pleasant in both.
Weather escapes within driving distance
Within an hour's drive (about 45 miles) there's nowhere meaningfully cooler in summer or warmer in winter. Distances are straight-line; temperatures are PRISM 1991–2020 averages.
How Houston, TX compares
- Fort Worth, TX · #30 · 44%
- Dallas, TX · #31 · 44%
- Minneapolis, MN · #32 · 43%
- Austin, TX · #34 · 42%
- Oklahoma City, OK · #35 · 42%
Other Texas cities: El Paso, TX (51%), San Antonio, TX (45%), Fort Worth, TX (44%), Dallas, TX (44%), Austin, TX (42%).
Questions
How many pleasant outdoor hours does Houston, TX get?
2,034 hours in 2024, counting only 8 AM to 9 PM. That's 43% of daytime hours, about 156 days' worth of daytime, and ranks #33 of 35 major US cities.
What is the best month to be outside in Houston, TX?
March, when 79% of daytime hours were enjoyable. December (76%) and November (70%) came next. August was the worst month, at 1%.
What makes outdoor time less pleasant in Houston, TX?
Mostly temperature. 7% of daytime hours were too cold and 40% too hot. Rain took another 3.4%, and gusty wind 6.7%.
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.