#24 of 35 US cities · 2024
How pleasant is the weather in Indianapolis, IN?
In 2024, 47% of daytime hours in Indianapolis were enjoyable outdoors: 2,246 of 4,758 hours between 8 AM and 9 PM. That's #24 of 35 major US cities. May was the best month and January the worst.
- Enjoyable
- 47%
- Comfortable temp
- 55%
- Too cold
- 34%
- Too hot
- 11%
- Lost to rain
- 2.1%
- Lost to gusts
- 5.8%
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 | 4% | 4% | 96% | 0% | 0.0% | 30°F |
| February | 28% | 34% | 66% | 0% | 0.8% | 42°F |
| March | 35% | 46% | 54% | 0% | 1.7% | 50°F |
| April | 49% | 71% | 29% | 0% | 4.4% | 59°F |
| May | 79% | 93% | 1% | 6% | 4.0% | 71°F |
| June | 58% | 70% | 0% | 30% | 4.6% | 78°F |
| July | 58% | 64% | 0% | 36% | 3.2% | 78°F |
| August | 59% | 62% | 0% | 38% | 1.7% | 77°F |
| September | 72% | 77% | 2% | 21% | 3.8% | 73°F |
| October | 75% | 84% | 16% | 0% | 0.0% | 62°F |
| November | 40% | 46% | 54% | 0% | 1.0% | 49°F |
| December | 10% | 10% | 90% | 0% | 0.2% | 38°F |
What limits outdoor time
Cold costs Indianapolis more hours than heat does: 34% of daytime hours were too cold, 11% too hot. Wind matters too: gusts took 5.8% of daytime hours.
Where you stand matters here. Of the comfortable hours, 16% were only comfortable in the sun and 32% only in the shade.
Weather escapes within driving distance
Within an hour's drive (about 45 miles) there's nowhere meaningfully cooler in summer or warmer in winter. Stretch it to two hours (about 90 miles) and you can find places 5°F warmer in winter. Distances are straight-line; temperatures are PRISM 1991–2020 averages.
How Indianapolis, IN compares
- Boston, MA · #21 · 49%
- Nashville, TN · #22 · 49%
- Phoenix, AZ · #23 · 48%
- Dayton, OH · #25 · 47%
- Columbus, OH · #26 · 47%
- Miami, FL · #27 · 47%
Questions
How many pleasant outdoor hours does Indianapolis, IN get?
2,246 hours in 2024, counting only 8 AM to 9 PM. That's 47% of daytime hours, about 173 days' worth of daytime, and ranks #24 of 35 major US cities.
What is the best month to be outside in Indianapolis, IN?
May, when 79% of daytime hours were enjoyable. October (75%) and September (72%) came next. January was the worst month, at 4%.
What makes outdoor time less pleasant in Indianapolis, IN?
Mostly temperature. 34% of daytime hours were too cold and 11% too hot. Rain took another 2.1%, and gusty wind 5.8%.
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.