Washington weather in October

In October, Washington sees average daytime highs of 13°C and overnight lows near 8°C, with 58 mm of rain across 11.8 wet days and about 10.2 hours of daylight. It is the 6th-warmest and 6th-wettest month of the year here.

Highs ease over the month, from about 15°C in the first days to 12°C by the end. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 13% of the time in October, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 11 h 18 min at the start of October to 9 h 06 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, October is Washington's 6th-clearest and 6th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Washington's year-round climate.

Daytime high: 13°; 6th warmest
Overnight low: 8°; 8th coldest
Rainfall: 58 mm; 11.8 wet days
Daylight: 10 h 12 min; 6:46 AM – 4:56 PM
Cloud cover: 72%; 6th clearest
Wind: 18 km/h; 6th windiest
Solar energy: 1.57 kWh/m²
Travel score: 3.5; out of 10

Washington is town in the City of Sunderland, in Tyne and Wear, England.

Air quality: WHO Ambient Air Quality Database. Density & description: Wikidata (CC0), GeoNames.

← September Washington year-round climate November →Best places to visit in October

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

Temperature in October

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Highs ease over the month, from about 15°C in the first days to 12°C by the end.

A typical October day in Washington reaches about 13°C in the afternoon and slips back to 8°C overnight — a 5°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 10°C and 17°C. Set against its neighbours, October runs about 4°C cooler than September and about 4°C warmer than November.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Avg high (°C)	15	15	15	15	15	14	14	14	14	14	14	14	14	13	13	13	13	13	13	13	13	13	12	12	12	12	12	12	12	12	12
Avg low (°C)	9	9	9	9	9	9	9	9	9	9	9	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7

	Avg high (°C)	Avg low (°C)
1	15	9
2	15	9
3	15	9
4	15	9
5	15	9
6	14	9
7	14	9
8	14	9
9	14	9
10	14	9
11	14	9
12	14	8
13	14	8
14	13	8
15	13	8
16	13	8
17	13	8
18	13	8
19	13	8
20	13	8
21	13	8
22	13	8
23	12	7
24	12	7
25	12	7
26	12	7
27	12	7
28	12	7
29	12	7
30	12	7
31	12	7

How October really feels in Washington

Once humidity and wind are folded in, October averages 0 days that feel above 32°C and 0 that feel at or below 0°C — the comfort signal a plain temperature reading hides.

Days feeling ≥ 32°C

heat index over the day's high

Days feeling ≤ 0°C

wind chill below the day's low

October sits comfortably in between — no days that feel dangerously hot or drop to a hard freeze once humidity and wind are folded in.

Washington weather by month

How October compares with the rest of the year at a glance. October is the 6th-warmest and 6th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

Month	High / Low (°C)	Rainfall (mm)	Wet days	Snow days	Daylight (hours)	Travel score
Jan	7° / 3°	53	12.2	1.5	7.6	0.8
Feb	7° / 3°	46	10.9	1.6	9.3	1.0
Mar	9° / 4°	43	10.6	1	11.4	1.9
Apr	12° / 5°	51	11	0.2	13.8	2.8
May	14° / 8°	48	11.3	0	15.8	4.0
Jun	17° / 11°	60	11.5	0	17	5.1
Jul	19° / 13°	61	12	0	16.5	5.7
Aug	19° / 13°	68	12.3	0	14.7	5.6
Sep	17° / 11°	52	9.8	0	12.5	5.2
Oct	13° / 8°	58	11.8	0	10.2	3.5
Nov	10° / 5°	62	12.5	0.3	8.1	2.0
Dec	7° / 3°	59	12.4	1.2	7	1.0

Cloud cover in October

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 13% of the time in October.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 16% of October, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 70%.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Clearer (%)	28	28	28	28	28	27	27	28	28	28	28	28	28	28	28	28	30	30	31	31	32	33	33	33	33	32	32	33	32	33	32
Cloudier (%)	72	72	72	72	72	73	73	72	72	72	72	72	72	72	72	72	70	70	69	69	68	67	67	67	67	68	68	67	68	67	68

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	28	72
2	28	72
3	28	72
4	28	72
5	28	72
6	27	73
7	27	73
8	28	72
9	28	72
10	28	72
11	28	72
12	28	72
13	28	72
14	28	72
15	28	72
16	28	72
17	30	70
18	30	70
19	31	69
20	31	69
21	32	68
22	33	67
23	33	67
24	33	67
25	33	67
26	32	68
27	32	68
28	33	67
29	32	68
30	33	67
31	32	68

Chance of precipitation in October

Any precipitation

Washington gets around 58 mm of rain over 11.8 wet days in October. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Day to day, the chance of measurable rain averages around 38% and peaks near 41% on the wettest days.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Rain chance (%)	36	36	36	36	36	36	36	36	36	36	36	36	37	37	38	38	39	39	39	40	40	40	41	41	41	41	41	41	41	41	41

	Rain chance (%)
1	36
2	36
3	36
4	36
5	36
6	36
7	36
8	36
9	36
10	36
11	36
12	36
13	37
14	37
15	38
16	38
17	39
18	39
19	39
20	40
21	40
22	40
23	41
24	41
25	41
26	41
27	41
28	41
29	41
30	41
31	41

Humidity in October

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

Most of October feels dry — the stacked bands show each day's mix of comfort levels, read off the dew point.

By dew point, October lands in the dry band about 97% of days. It rarely turns muggy — the humid and sticky bands barely register.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Dry (%)	95	95	95	95	96	96	96	96	96	96	96	96	96	96	97	97	97	97	97	98	98	98	99	99	99	99	99	99	99	99	99
Comfortable (%)	5	5	5	5	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	3	3	3	3	3	2	2	2	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1

	Dry (%)	Comfortable (%)
1	95	5
2	95	5
3	95	5
4	95	5
5	96	4
6	96	4
7	96	4
8	96	4
9	96	4
10	96	4
11	96	4
12	96	4
13	96	4
14	96	4
15	97	3
16	97	3
17	97	3
18	97	3
19	97	3
20	98	2
21	98	2
22	98	2
23	99	1
24	99	1
25	99	1
26	99	1
27	99	1
28	99	1
29	99	1
30	99	1
31	99	1

Wind in October

Winds average 18 km/h in October.

Across October, daily wind ranges from about 17 km/h on the calmest days to 18 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Wind speed (km/h)	17	17	17	17	17	17	17	17	17	17	17	17	17	17	17	17	17	17	17	18	18	18	18	18	18	18	18	18	18	18	18
Feels	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze

	Wind speed (km/h)	Feels
1	17	light breeze
2	17	light breeze
3	17	light breeze
4	17	light breeze
5	17	light breeze
6	17	light breeze
7	17	light breeze
8	17	light breeze
9	17	light breeze
10	17	light breeze
11	17	light breeze
12	17	light breeze
13	17	light breeze
14	17	light breeze
15	17	light breeze
16	17	light breeze
17	17	light breeze
18	17	light breeze
19	17	light breeze
20	18	light breeze
21	18	light breeze
22	18	light breeze
23	18	light breeze
24	18	light breeze
25	18	light breeze
26	18	light breeze
27	18	light breeze
28	18	light breeze
29	18	light breeze
30	18	light breeze
31	18	light breeze

Sunrise & sunset in October

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 11 h 18 min at the start of October to 9 h 06 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days shrink by about 132 minutes over October. Sunrise moves from 6:16 AM to 7:17 AM, and sunset from 5:34 PM to 4:22 PM.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Daylight (h)	11.3	11.2	11.1	11.1	11.0	10.9	10.8	10.8	10.7	10.6	10.5	10.5	10.4	10.3	10.2	10.2	10.1	10.0	9.9	9.9	9.8	9.7	9.7	9.6	9.5	9.4	9.4	9.3	9.2	9.2	9.1
Sunrise (AM)	6:16	6:18	6:20	6:22	6:24	6:26	6:28	6:30	6:32	6:34	6:36	6:38	6:40	6:42	6:44	6:46	6:48	6:50	6:52	6:54	6:56	6:58	7:01	7:03	7:05	7:07	7:09	7:11	7:13	7:15	7:17
Sunset (PM)	5:34	5:31	5:29	5:26	5:23	5:21	5:18	5:16	5:13	5:11	5:08	5:06	5:03	5:01	4:58	4:56	4:54	4:51	4:49	4:46	4:44	4:42	4:40	4:37	4:35	4:33	4:31	4:29	4:26	4:24	4:22

	Daylight (h)	Sunrise (AM)	Sunset (PM)
1	11.3	6:16	5:34
2	11.2	6:18	5:31
3	11.1	6:20	5:29
4	11.1	6:22	5:26
5	11.0	6:24	5:23
6	10.9	6:26	5:21
7	10.8	6:28	5:18
8	10.8	6:30	5:16
9	10.7	6:32	5:13
10	10.6	6:34	5:11
11	10.5	6:36	5:08
12	10.5	6:38	5:06
13	10.4	6:40	5:03
14	10.3	6:42	5:01
15	10.2	6:44	4:58
16	10.2	6:46	4:56
17	10.1	6:48	4:54
18	10.0	6:50	4:51
19	9.9	6:52	4:49
20	9.9	6:54	4:46
21	9.8	6:56	4:44
22	9.7	6:58	4:42
23	9.7	7:01	4:40
24	9.6	7:03	4:37
25	9.5	7:05	4:35
26	9.4	7:07	4:33
27	9.4	7:09	4:31
28	9.3	7:11	4:29
29	9.2	7:13	4:26
30	9.2	7:15	4:24
31	9.1	7:17	4:22

Solar energy in October

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in October, about 1.57 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 0.45 kWh/m² to a high of 5.08 kWh/m² in June across the year — October's 1.57 kWh/m² falls in the middle.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Solar energy (kWh/m²)	2.1	2.1	2.1	2.0	2.0	1.9	1.9	1.8	1.8	1.8	1.7	1.7	1.6	1.6	1.6	1.6	1.5	1.5	1.4	1.4	1.4	1.4	1.3	1.3	1.3	1.3	1.2	1.2	1.2	1.1	1.1
Level	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim

	Solar energy (kWh/m²)	Level
1	2.1	Moderate
2	2.1	Moderate
3	2.1	Moderate
4	2.0	Moderate
5	2.0	Dim
6	1.9	Dim
7	1.9	Dim
8	1.8	Dim
9	1.8	Dim
10	1.8	Dim
11	1.7	Dim
12	1.7	Dim
13	1.6	Dim
14	1.6	Dim
15	1.6	Dim
16	1.6	Dim
17	1.5	Dim
18	1.5	Dim
19	1.4	Dim
20	1.4	Dim
21	1.4	Dim
22	1.4	Dim
23	1.3	Dim
24	1.3	Dim
25	1.3	Dim
26	1.3	Dim
27	1.2	Dim
28	1.2	Dim
29	1.2	Dim
30	1.1	Dim
31	1.1	Dim

Planning a trip in October

Is October a good time to visit Washington?

Our two travel scores rate October for general sightseeing and for beach or pool weather — 0 (poor) to 10 (ideal).

3.5

Sightseeing

6th-best month of the year

0.0

Beach & pool

6th-best month of the year

October is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Washington.

What to pack for Washington in October

From October's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.

In October, Washington sees daytime highs around 13°C and nights near 8°C. Worth packing: a warm layer and rain gear. About 12 days see rain.

a warm layerrain gear

Sea temperature near Washington in October

The nearest coast averages about 12°C in October — the other half of the beach question. The full-year curve and swim-comfort zones are below.

The sea offshore is warmest in August at about 15°C and coldest in March near 6°C.

The water stays below 20°C all year — cool enough that most swimmers want a wetsuit.

	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Sea temperature (°C)	7	7	6	7	9	12	14	15	13	12	10	9
Comfort	Bracing	Bracing	Bracing	Bracing	Bracing	Bracing	Bracing	Bracing	Bracing	Bracing	Bracing	Bracing

	Sea temperature (°C)	Comfort
Jan	7	Bracing
Feb	7	Bracing
Mar	6	Bracing
Apr	7	Bracing
May	9	Bracing
Jun	12	Bracing
Jul	14	Bracing
Aug	15	Bracing
Sep	13	Bracing
Oct	12	Bracing
Nov	10	Bracing
Dec	9	Bracing

UV index in Washington in October

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in October peaks around 2. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Washington peaks around August 10 at about 6 (high) — a little sun protection helps at midday. It bottoms out near January 1 at about 0 (low).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 6 months of the year.

	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
UV index (midday)	0	1	2	3	5	5	6	6	3	2	1	0
Level	Low	Low	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	High	High	High	Moderate	Low	Low	Low

	UV index (midday)	Level
Jan	0	Low
Feb	1	Low
Mar	2	Moderate
Apr	3	Moderate
May	5	Moderate
Jun	5	High
Jul	6	High
Aug	6	High
Sep	3	Moderate
Oct	2	Low
Nov	1	Low
Dec	0	Low

Location & terrain

Where is Washington?

Washington sits at 54.9°N, 1.5°W, 59 m above sea level, in United Kingdom. The nearest listed city is Chester-le-Street, 6.0 km away.

Topography around Washington

How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Washington.

Within 3 km, the terrain around Washington has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 146 m around an average of 56 m above sea level; within 16 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 286 m; within 80 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 906 m.

The land around Washington is covered by artificial surfaces (37%), trees (35%) and grassland (21%) within 3 km, artificial surfaces (26%), grassland (25%) and trees (21%) within 16 km, and grassland (51%) and water (23%) within 80 km.

3 km

146 m

artificial surfaces 37%

16 km

286 m

artificial surfaces 26%

80 km

906 m

grassland 51%

treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaceswater

← September Washington year-round climate November →Best places to visit in October

October weather nearby: Chester-le-Street 6.0 km · Felling 7.0 km · Houghton-Le-Spring 7.0 km · Hebburn 8.0 km · Sunderland 9.0 km · Gateshead 9.0 km · Jarrow 9.0 km · Wallsend 10 km

United Kingdom travel facts

Travel advisory: Level 2; Exercise Increased Caution
Power plugs: Type D / G / M; 230 V · 50 Hz
Prices: ≈ 89% of US; price level, 2025
GDP per capita: $57,602; 2025
Happiness: 6.7 / 10; World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water: 100%; of population, 2024
Homicide rate: 1.1; per 100k, 2021
Road deaths: 3.2; per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group: High; World Bank
Religion

Sources: World Bank, US State Department, World Happiness Report, WHO/UNICEF, EF EPI, CIA World Factbook.

Data sources

Temperature, precipitation, cloud, humidity, wind and solar figures are a 1991–2020 climatology for Washington (54.9°, -1.5167°, elevation 59 m), computed from hourly ERA5 reanalysis — contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information. Sun figures are astronomical calculations, not observations. City data © GeoNames, CC BY 4.0. Map outlines from Natural Earth (public domain); interactive map © Google. Sea temperatures are the NOAA OISST v2.1 1991–2020 monthly climatology (public domain), sampled at the nearest ocean point. UV index is derived from CAMS (Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service) clear-sky UV data — contains modified Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service information. Topography is sampled from the Copernicus DEM GLO-90 elevation model (© ESA/Airbus) and ESA WorldCover 2021 land cover (CC BY 4.0).

	Avg high (°C)	Avg low (°C)
1	15	9
2	15	9
3	15	9
4	15	9
5	15	9
6	14	9
7	14	9
8	14	9
9	14	9
10	14	9
11	14	9
12	14	8
13	14	8
14	13	8
15	13	8
16	13	8
17	13	8
18	13	8
19	13	8
20	13	8
21	13	8
22	13	8
23	12	7
24	12	7
25	12	7
26	12	7
27	12	7
28	12	7
29	12	7
30	12	7
31	12	7

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	28	72
2	28	72
3	28	72
4	28	72
5	28	72
6	27	73
7	27	73
8	28	72
9	28	72
10	28	72
11	28	72
12	28	72
13	28	72
14	28	72
15	28	72
16	28	72
17	30	70
18	30	70
19	31	69
20	31	69
21	32	68
22	33	67
23	33	67
24	33	67
25	33	67
26	32	68
27	32	68
28	33	67
29	32	68
30	33	67
31	32	68

	Rain chance (%)
1	36
2	36
3	36
4	36
5	36
6	36
7	36
8	36
9	36
10	36
11	36
12	36
13	37
14	37
15	38
16	38
17	39
18	39
19	39
20	40
21	40
22	40
23	41
24	41
25	41
26	41
27	41
28	41
29	41
30	41
31	41

	Dry (%)	Comfortable (%)
1	95	5
2	95	5
3	95	5
4	95	5
5	96	4
6	96	4
7	96	4
8	96	4
9	96	4
10	96	4
11	96	4
12	96	4
13	96	4
14	96	4
15	97	3
16	97	3
17	97	3
18	97	3
19	97	3
20	98	2
21	98	2
22	98	2
23	99	1
24	99	1
25	99	1
26	99	1
27	99	1
28	99	1
29	99	1
30	99	1
31	99	1

	Avg high (°C)	Avg low (°C)
1	15	9
2	15	9
3	15	9
4	15	9
5	15	9
6	14	9
7	14	9
8	14	9
9	14	9
10	14	9
11	14	9
12	14	8
13	14	8
14	13	8
15	13	8
16	13	8
17	13	8
18	13	8
19	13	8
20	13	8
21	13	8
22	13	8
23	12	7
24	12	7
25	12	7
26	12	7
27	12	7
28	12	7
29	12	7
30	12	7
31	12	7

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	28	72
2	28	72
3	28	72
4	28	72
5	28	72
6	27	73
7	27	73
8	28	72
9	28	72
10	28	72
11	28	72
12	28	72
13	28	72
14	28	72
15	28	72
16	28	72
17	30	70
18	30	70
19	31	69
20	31	69
21	32	68
22	33	67
23	33	67
24	33	67
25	33	67
26	32	68
27	32	68
28	33	67
29	32	68
30	33	67
31	32	68

	Rain chance (%)
1	36
2	36
3	36
4	36
5	36
6	36
7	36
8	36
9	36
10	36
11	36
12	36
13	37
14	37
15	38
16	38
17	39
18	39
19	39
20	40
21	40
22	40
23	41
24	41
25	41
26	41
27	41
28	41
29	41
30	41
31	41

	Dry (%)	Comfortable (%)
1	95	5
2	95	5
3	95	5
4	95	5
5	96	4
6	96	4
7	96	4
8	96	4
9	96	4
10	96	4
11	96	4
12	96	4
13	96	4
14	96	4
15	97	3
16	97	3
17	97	3
18	97	3
19	97	3
20	98	2
21	98	2
22	98	2
23	99	1
24	99	1
25	99	1
26	99	1
27	99	1
28	99	1
29	99	1
30	99	1
31	99	1

	Avg high (°C)	Avg low (°C)
1	15	9
2	15	9
3	15	9
4	15	9
5	15	9
6	14	9
7	14	9
8	14	9
9	14	9
10	14	9
11	14	9
12	14	8
13	14	8
14	13	8
15	13	8
16	13	8
17	13	8
18	13	8
19	13	8
20	13	8
21	13	8
22	13	8
23	12	7
24	12	7
25	12	7
26	12	7
27	12	7
28	12	7
29	12	7
30	12	7
31	12	7

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	28	72
2	28	72
3	28	72
4	28	72
5	28	72
6	27	73
7	27	73
8	28	72
9	28	72
10	28	72
11	28	72
12	28	72
13	28	72
14	28	72
15	28	72
16	28	72
17	30	70
18	30	70
19	31	69
20	31	69
21	32	68
22	33	67
23	33	67
24	33	67
25	33	67
26	32	68
27	32	68
28	33	67
29	32	68
30	33	67
31	32	68

	Rain chance (%)
1	36
2	36
3	36
4	36
5	36
6	36
7	36
8	36
9	36
10	36
11	36
12	36
13	37
14	37
15	38
16	38
17	39
18	39
19	39
20	40
21	40
22	40
23	41
24	41
25	41
26	41
27	41
28	41
29	41
30	41
31	41

	Dry (%)	Comfortable (%)
1	95	5
2	95	5
3	95	5
4	95	5
5	96	4
6	96	4
7	96	4
8	96	4
9	96	4
10	96	4
11	96	4
12	96	4
13	96	4
14	96	4
15	97	3
16	97	3
17	97	3
18	97	3
19	97	3
20	98	2
21	98	2
22	98	2
23	99	1
24	99	1
25	99	1
26	99	1
27	99	1
28	99	1
29	99	1
30	99	1
31	99	1