Detroit climate
Detroit is warmest in July, with average highs of 28 °C, and coldest in January, when nights average -7.0 °C. May is the wettest month (90 mm) and February the driest (55 mm). Figures are 1991–2020 climate normals.
Across a full year Detroit averages 886 mm of rain, 77 days above 25 °C and 109 days below freezing.
United States · 183 m elevation · population 645,705 · 1991–2020 normals
Temperature below 0 °C to above 30 °C Rain band height is that month’s share of the wettest month
- Warmest month July 28 °C
- Coldest month January -7.0 °C
- Driest month February 55 mm
- Wettest month May 90 mm
- Least cloud September 49 % cloud
- Hottest on record July 37 °C
- Coldest on record January -29 °C
What to expectDetroit through the year
Detroit has a clear annual cycle: average daily highs run from -0.2 °C in January to 28 °C in July, a swing of 27 °C in mean temperature across the year.
Counted across a normal year, 77 days a year reach 25 °C, 15 of them reach 30 °C, 109 nights drop below freezing. The warmest reading in the 1991–2020 record is 37 °C, in July.
Rain is spread fairly evenly through the year, from 55 mm in February to 90 mm in May. There is no dry season to aim for.
Month by month
| Month | Avg high | Rainfall | Cloud |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | -0.2 °C | 64 mm | 74 % |
| February | 1.3 °C | 55 mm | 69 % |
| March | 6.5 °C | 65 mm | 66 % |
| April | 13.5 °C | 90 mm | 64 % |
| May | 20.1 °C | 90 mm | 61 % |
| June | 25.3 °C | 90 mm | 55 % |
| July | 27.6 °C | 80 mm | 49 % |
| August | 26.4 °C | 81 mm | 50 % |
| September | 22.7 °C | 70 mm | 49 % |
| October | 15.7 °C | 69 mm | 57 % |
| November | 8.5 °C | 69 mm | 67 % |
| December | 2.6 °C | 63 mm | 75 % |
Temperature month by month
| Month | Avg high | Avg low | Mean | Record high | Record low | Days above 25 °C | Days above 30 °C | Days below 0 °C |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | -0.2 °C | -7.0 °C | -4.0 °C | 13.6 °C | -29.3 °C | 0 | 0 | 27 |
| February | 1.3 °C | -6.5 °C | -3.1 °C | 19.7 °C | -27.9 °C | 0 | 0 | 24 |
| March | 6.5 °C | -2.2 °C | 1.6 °C | 23.8 °C | -22.1 °C | 0 | 0 | 21 |
| April | 13.5 °C | 4.4 °C | 8.4 °C | 26.4 °C | -6.4 °C | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| May | 20.1 °C | 11.3 °C | 15.3 °C | 32.5 °C | -3.3 °C | 6 | 0 | 0 |
| June | 25.3 °C | 16.9 °C | 20.9 °C | 35.4 °C | 6.3 °C | 16 | 3 | 0 |
| July | 27.6 °C | 19.4 °C | 23.3 °C | 36.9 °C | 12.5 °C | 24 | 7 | 0 |
| August | 26.4 °C | 18.7 °C | 22.4 °C | 36.1 °C | 11.4 °C | 21 | 3 | 0 |
| September | 22.7 °C | 15.2 °C | 18.6 °C | 34.0 °C | 4.3 °C | 9 | 1 | 0 |
| October | 15.7 °C | 8.7 °C | 11.8 °C | 29.5 °C | -2.0 °C | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| November | 8.5 °C | 2.4 °C | 5.0 °C | 22.2 °C | -15.9 °C | 0 | 0 | 9 |
| December | 2.6 °C | -3.0 °C | -0.6 °C | 18.0 °C | -24.2 °C | 0 | 0 | 23 |
Rain, sun and wind month by month
| Month | Rainfall | Wet days | Daylight | Cloud cover | Humidity | Wind |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 64 mm | 10 | 9.4 h/day | 74 % | 75 % | 24 km/h |
| February | 55 mm | 8 | 11 h/day | 69 % | 72 % | 24 km/h |
| March | 65 mm | 9 | 12 h/day | 66 % | 70 % | 23 km/h |
| April | 90 mm | 11 | 13 h/day | 64 % | 68 % | 25 km/h |
| May | 90 mm | 12 | 15 h/day | 61 % | 70 % | 22 km/h |
| June | 90 mm | 11 | 15 h/day | 55 % | 69 % | 20 km/h |
| July | 80 mm | 10 | 15 h/day | 49 % | 69 % | 19 km/h |
| August | 81 mm | 10 | 14 h/day | 50 % | 72 % | 18 km/h |
| September | 70 mm | 8 | 13 h/day | 49 % | 72 % | 20 km/h |
| October | 69 mm | 9 | 11 h/day | 57 % | 72 % | 23 km/h |
| November | 69 mm | 9 | 9.8 h/day | 67 % | 74 % | 24 km/h |
| December | 63 mm | 10 | 9.1 h/day | 75 % | 76 % | 24 km/h |
Where Detroit ranks
| Ranking | Position | Value |
|---|---|---|
| The coolest places in North America in March | 28thof 50 | 6.5 °C |
| The coolest places in North America in December | 29thof 50 | 2.6 °C |
| The coolest places in North America in February | 31stof 50 | 1.3 °C |
| The coolest places in North America in January | 31stof 50 | -0.2 °C |
| Places with the best weather in North America in September | 33rdof 50 | 90/100 |
| The coolest places in North America in November | 34thof 50 | 8.5 °C |
Planning a trip? See the best time to visit Detroit.
QuestionsCommon questions about Detroit’s climate
When is the best time to visit Detroit?
That depends on what you want, so the honest answer is a comparison rather than a single month. June, August, September sit closest to 20 °C on average, July is the warmest month and February the driest. The month-by-month table above has the full picture.
How hot does Detroit get?
In July, the warmest month, daily highs average 28 °C. About 15 days a year pass 30 °C. The highest value in the 1991–2020 record is 37 °C.
How cold does it get in winter?
Nights average -7.0 °C in January, the coldest month. A normal year has 109 nights below freezing.
Which month is wettest in Detroit?
May, averaging 90 mm over 12 days with rain. The driest month is February with 55 mm. The year as a whole averages 886 mm.
Are these figures a forecast?
No. They are 1991–2020 climate normals: the average of thirty years, which describes what a month is usually like in Detroit rather than what any particular week will bring. Individual years can differ substantially from the normal.
Data sources and method
- ERA5 / ERA5-Land reanalysis — Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S), ECMWF. Copernicus Licence
- Open-Meteo — Open-Meteo.com. CC BY 4.0
- NOAA OISST v2.1 — NOAA Physical Sciences Laboratory. Public domain
- GeoNames — GeoNames.org. CC BY 4.0
- Normal period
- 1991–2020
- Dataset version
- era5-1991-2020-scores1.1
- Last processed
Measured values come from ERA5 reanalysis and are reproduced unchanged. Calculated by us: monthly rankings, daylight hours, beach and comfort scores. Full formulas are on the methodology page.
Contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information 2026. Neither the European Commission nor ECMWF is responsible for any use that may be made of the Copernicus information or data it contains.