York weather in February

In February, York sees average daytime highs of 7°C and overnight lows near 2°C, with 46 mm of precipitation across 10 wet days and about 9.4 hours of daylight. It is the 10th-warmest and 12th-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 7°C through the month. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 13% of the time in February, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 8 h 30 min at the start of February to 10 h 18 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, February is York's 9th-clearest and 1st-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see York's year-round climate.

Daytime high
10th warmest
Overnight low
2nd coldest
Precipitation
46 mm
10 wet days
Daylight
9 h 24 min
7:37 AM – 5:01 PM
Cloud cover
73%
9th clearest
Wind
17 km/h
1st windiest
Solar energy
1.4 kWh/m²
Travel score
1.0
out of 10

York is city in North Yorkshire, England, United Kingdom.

Air quality
Moderate
PM2.5 11.1 µg/m³ · 2019
Density
574/km²
people per km²
Founded
~71 CE

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

Temperature in February

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 7°C through the month.

A typical February day in York reaches about 7°C in the afternoon and slips back to 2°C overnight — a 6°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 3°C and 11°C. Set against its neighbours, February runs on par with January and about 2°C cooler than March.

-5°10°15°151015202528
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
172
272
372
472
572
672
772
872
972
1072
1172
1272
1372
1472
1572
1672
1782
1882
1982
2082
2182
2282
2382
2482
2582
2682
2782
2882

How February really feels in York

Once humidity and wind are folded in, February averages 0 days that feel above 32°C and 28 that feel at or below 0°C — the comfort signal a plain temperature reading hides.

Days feeling ≥ 32°C
0
heat index over the day's high
Days feeling ≤ C
28
wind chill below the day's low

The story in February is cold — wind chill drags the overnight "feels like" below the raw low.

York weather by month

How February compares with the rest of the year at a glance. February is the 10th-warmest and 12th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan / 5411.81.37.70.7
Feb / 46101.89.41.0
Mar10° / 4610.8111.52.0
Apr12° / 5811.50.413.73.1
May15° / 5511.5015.74.3
Jun18° / 10°7112.2016.85.3
Jul20° / 12°6611.9016.35.9
Aug20° / 12°7211.5014.65.9
Sep17° / 10°5710012.55.3
Oct13° / 6111.5010.23.6
Nov10° / 5911.30.48.31.9
Dec / 5811.11.17.20.8

Cloud cover in February

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

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

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 18% of February, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 70%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202528
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
12773
22872
32872
42872
52872
62971
72971
82971
92971
103070
113070
123169
133169
143169
153169
163169
173169
183268
193169
203169
213169
223169
233169
243169
253169
263070
273070
283070

Chance of precipitation in February

Any precipitationSnow

York gets around 46 mm of rain and snow over 10 wet days in February, the driest month. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Day to day, the chance of measurable precipitation averages around 35% and peaks near 36% on the wettest days, and about 2 days bring snow.

0%10%20%30%40%50%151015202528
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
1336
2346
3346
4356
5356
6356
7366
8366
9366
10366
11366
12366
13366
14366
15366
16366
17356
18356
19356
20356
21356
22356
23356
24356
25366
26366
27366
28366

Humidity in February

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

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

By dew point, February lands in the dry band about 100% of days. It rarely turns muggy — the humid and sticky bands barely register.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202528
Dry (%)
1100
2100
3100
4100
5100
6100
7100
8100
9100
10100
11100
12100
13100
14100
15100
16100
17100
18100
19100
20100
21100
22100
23100
24100
25100
26100
27100
28100

Wind in February

Winds average 17 km/h in February, the windiest month of the year.

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

05101520151015202528
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
117light breeze
217light breeze
317light breeze
417light breeze
517light breeze
617light breeze
717light breeze
817light breeze
917light breeze
1017light breeze
1117light breeze
1217light breeze
1317light breeze
1417light breeze
1517light breeze
1617light breeze
1717light breeze
1817light breeze
1917light breeze
2017light breeze
2117light breeze
2217light breeze
2317light breeze
2417light breeze
2517light breeze
2617light breeze
2717light breeze
2817light breeze

Sunrise & sunset in February

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 8 h 30 min at the start of February to 10 h 18 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 108 minutes over February. Sunrise moves from 8:03 AM to 7:09 AM, and sunset from 4:33 PM to 5:27 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202528
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
18.58:034:33
28.68:014:35
38.68:004:37
48.77:584:39
58.77:564:41
68.87:544:43
78.97:534:45
88.97:514:47
99.07:494:49
109.17:474:51
119.17:454:53
129.27:434:55
139.37:414:57
149.37:394:59
159.47:375:01
169.57:355:03
179.57:335:05
189.67:315:07
199.77:295:09
209.77:275:11
219.87:255:13
229.97:225:15
239.97:205:17
2410.07:185:19
2510.17:165:21
2610.27:135:23
2710.27:115:25
2810.37:095:27

Solar energy in February

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in February, about 1.4 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 0.52 kWh/m² to a high of 5 kWh/m² in June across the year — February's 1.4 kWh/m² falls in the middle.

00.511.522.5151015202528
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
11.0Dim
21.0Dim
31.1Dim
41.1Dim
51.1Dim
61.1Dim
71.2Dim
81.2Dim
91.2Dim
101.3Dim
111.3Dim
121.3Dim
131.3Dim
141.4Dim
151.4Dim
161.4Dim
171.5Dim
181.5Dim
191.6Dim
201.6Dim
211.6Dim
221.7Dim
231.7Dim
241.7Dim
251.8Dim
261.8Dim
271.9Dim
281.9Dim
Planning a trip in February

Is February a good time to visit York?

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

1.0
Sightseeing
10th-best month of the year
0.0
Beach & pool
7th-best month of the year

February is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in York.

What to pack for York in February

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

In February, York sees daytime highs around 7°C and nights near 2°C. Pack a warm layer. Worth having: a heavy coat and rain gear. About 10 days see rain.

a warm layera heavy coatrain gear

Sea temperature near York in February

The nearest coast averages about 6°C in February — the other half of the beach question. The full-year curve and swim-comfort zones are below.

The sea at the nearest coast (about 63 km away) is warmest in August at about 15°C and coldest in February near 6°C.

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

5°10°15°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbracingcool
Sea temperature (°C)Comfort
Jan7Bracing
Feb6Bracing
Mar6Bracing
Apr7Bracing
May9Bracing
Jun11Bracing
Jul14Bracing
Aug15Bracing
Sep14Bracing
Oct13Bracing
Nov11Bracing
Dec9Bracing

UV index in York in February

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in February peaks around 1. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in York peaks around August 11 at about 6 (high) — a little sun protection helps at midday. It bottoms out near December 20 at about 0 (low).

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

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLowModerateHighModerateLowAug 11UV 6Dec 20UV 0
UV index (midday)Level
Jan1Low
Feb1Low
Mar3Moderate
Apr3Moderate
May5High
Jun5High
Jul6High
Aug6High
Sep4Moderate
Oct2Low
Nov1Low
Dec0Low
Location & terrain

Where is York?

York sits at 54.0°N, 1.1°W, 17 m above sea level, in United Kingdom. The nearest listed city is Selby, 19 km away.

Topography around York

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around York has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 36 m around an average of 14 m above sea level; within 16 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 80 m; within 80 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 711 m.

The land around York is covered by artificial surfaces (48%), grassland (25%) and trees (23%) within 3 km, cropland (51%) and grassland (32%) within 16 km, and grassland (37%) and cropland (34%) within 80 km.

3 km
36 m
16 km
80 m
80 km
711 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaceswater
February weather nearby: Selby 19 km · Kippax 28 km · Harrogate 30 km · Goole 31 km · Castleford 32 km · Chapel Allerton 33 km · Pontefract 33 km · Ripon 35 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
Christian 60%none 26%Muslim 4%other 2%

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 York (53.9576°, -1.0827°, elevation 17 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).