Climate and average weather in Amherst Center

In Amherst Center, the summers are warm, showery, and partly cloudy and the winters are very cold, snowy, and partly cloudy.

Best: mid May to early October

Over the course of the year, the temperature in Amherst Center typically varies from 18°F to 82°F, and is rarely below -0°F or above 91°F. July is the hottest month of the year, while January is the coldest.

Based on the travel score, the best time of year to visit Amherst Center for warm-weather activities is from mid May to early October.

Hottest
Jul
82°
Coldest
Jan
18°
Wettest
Oct
4.3 in
Driest
Feb
3.0 in
Rain / yr
43.6 in
119 wet days
Daylight
8.9–15.1 h
shortest–longest
Elevation
305 ft
42.4°N
Clearest
Sep
56% cloud

Amherst Center is census-designated place in Hampshire County, Massachusetts, United States.

Density
1,484/km²
people per km²

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

Amherst Center weather by month, at a glance

The whole year in one picture — sky, rain, humidity, temperature and travel score. Click any band to jump to its full chart.

Each stripe is one measure across the whole year, stacked so a single day reads top to bottom. The sky band runs overcast grey on top down to clear blue at the base — more blue means sunnier — followed by the rainfall curve, the humidity band, a temperature strip that tints each stretch of the year by how warm its average high is, and the travel-score line at the foot. Scan straight down any date to read that day across every measure at once; the score climbs highest around mid May to early October.

Temperature through the year

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Daily average highs and lows in Amherst Center, from 1991–2020 of climate data. The shaded bands show the range most days fall in — 10th to 90th percentile.

The hot season lasts 4.0 months, from May 23 to September 22, with daily high temperatures above 70°F. The hottest month of the year in Amherst Center is July, with an average high of 82°F and low of 63°F.

The cool season lasts 3.2 months, from December 3 to March 10, with daily high temperatures below 42°F. The coldest month of the year in Amherst Center is January, with an average low of 18°F and high of 33°F.

Days typically run about 17°F warmer than nights, with the widest day–night swing (around 19°F) in June.

20°40°60°80°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Avg high (°F)Avg low (°F)
Jan3318
Feb3619
Mar4427
Apr5738
May6748
Jun7757
Jul8263
Aug8061
Sep7253
Oct6043
Nov4833
Dec3824

How hot and cold Amherst Center really feels

Feels-like highFeels-like lowactual air temp

The felt-temperature range through the year — heat index on the day's high (summer humidity), wind chill on the night's low (winter wind). The dashed lines are the plain thermometer; the gap is how much hotter or colder it really feels.

On the coldest nights, wind chill pulls the feels-like down to about 6°F (around January 22), with roughly 163 freezing days a year (feels-like at or below 32°F) 69 of them bitterly cold — worst in January.

20°40°60°80°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Feels-like high (°F)Air high (°F)Feels-like low (°F)Air low (°F)
Jan3333818
Feb36361019
Mar44441927
Apr57573338
May67674648
Jun77775757
Jul82826363
Aug80806161
Sep72725353
Oct60603943
Nov48482733
Dec38381624

Average hourly temperature in Amherst Center

A compact picture of the whole year, hour by hour: each column is a day, each row an hour, and the color is the modeled average temperature. Darker overlays mark night, lighter ones the civil-twilight hours around sunrise and sunset.

Read left to right for the day of the year and top to bottom for the hour of the day; the color is the modeled temperature, cool blues through to hot reds on the same scale as the other charts. A vertical slice is a single day's swing — coolest just before dawn, warmest in the mid-afternoon — while a horizontal slice follows one hour across the seasons. The darker overlay marks night and the lighter one the twilight around sunrise and sunset. Colors run warmest on July afternoons, near 82°F, and coldest before dawn in January, near 18°F.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec12 AM2 AM4 AM6 AM8 AM10 AM12 PM2 PM4 PM6 PM8 PM10 PM12 AM

Amherst Center weather by month

Every month at a glance. Click a month for its detailed page.

MonthHigh / Low (°F)Rainfall (inches)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan33° / 18°3.49.66.69.30.0
Feb36° / 19°3.08.96.310.30.0
Mar44° / 27°4.010.65.411.60.8
Apr57° / 38°3.711.11.513.13.8
May67° / 48°3.3110.114.46.0
Jun77° / 57°3.510.80156.6
Jul82° / 63°3.49.9014.86.4
Aug80° / 61°3.39.2013.76.7
Sep72° / 53°3.88.3012.36.9
Oct60° / 43°4.39.50.310.84.9
Nov48° / 33°3.59.71.79.61.8
Dec38° / 24°4.210.55.490.0

Chance of rain

How likely it is to rain on a typical day, and how that shifts across the wetter and drier seasons.

Amherst Center gets about 43.6 in of precipitation a year. On a typical day the chance of rain is often wet, but that rises and falls sharply with the seasons.

The wetter season lasts 4.5 months, from around Feb 19 to Jul 5, peaking in April at about 38% chance on a given day. The drier stretch runs the rest of the year, bottoming out around Aug 30.

October is the wettest month by volume, with 4.3 in over about 10 wet days; February is the driest, with 3.0 in. Some of the cold-season precipitation falls as snow.

0%10%20%30%40%50%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecdrierwetterdriermostly drysome rainoften wetvery wetApr 23 · 38%Aug 30 · 25%
Rain on a day (%)Rain days
Jan3110
Feb329
Mar3411
Apr3711
May3511
Jun3511
Jul3310
Aug309
Sep288
Oct3110
Nov3210
Dec3411

Monthly rainfall

Over a full year, Amherst Center collects about 43.6 in of rain across 119 wet days — roughly 3.6 in in an average month.

It doesn’t fall evenly. October is the wettest month with 4.3 in, while February is the driest at just 3.0 in. The three wettest months alone bring about 29% of the year’s total, and some of the cold-season precipitation falls as snow.

012345JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec3.43.04.03.73.33.53.43.33.84.33.54.2
Rainfall (in)Rain daysSnow days
Jan3.4107
Feb3.096
Mar4.0115
Apr3.7112
May3.3110
Jun3.5110
Jul3.4100
Aug3.390
Sep3.880
Oct4.3100
Nov3.5102
Dec4.2115

Snow in Amherst Center

Average snowy days through the year, the snow-season span, and estimated snowfall — for ski trips and the perennial 'will there be snow at Christmas?' question.

Amherst Center averages about 27 snowy days a year. Snow season runs roughly Oct 24 to Apr 28 — about 6.1 months.

January is snowiest, with roughly 7 days of snow and an estimated 18 in of snowfall. Over the year that adds up to an estimated 76 in of snow.

0246810JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecsnow seasonsnow seasonJan 11
Snow daysSnowfall (in)
Jan718
Feb618
Mar516
Apr23
May00
Jun00
Jul00
Aug00
Sep00
Oct00
Nov24
Dec517

Clouds and sunshine

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

How often the daytime sky is clear, partly cloudy or overcast.

In Amherst Center, the average share of the sky covered by clouds shows moderate seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The clearer part of the year begins around June 23 and lasts for 5.3 months, ending around November 29. The clearest month is September, when the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 52% of the time on average.

The cloudier part of the year begins around February 18 and lasts for 4.1 months, ending around June 22. The cloudiest month is April, when it is overcast or mostly cloudy 61% of the time.

0%100%10%90%20%80%30%70%40%60%50%50%60%40%70%30%80%20%90%10%100%0%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecAug 27 · 54%Apr 8 · 38%clearmostly clearpartly cloudymostly cloudyovercastcloudierclearercloudier
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
Jan4852
Feb4753
Mar4159
Apr3961
May3961
Jun4456
Jul5050
Aug5149
Sep5248
Oct4951
Nov4753
Dec4357

Daylight, sunrise and sunset

DaylightNight

Hours of daylight through the year, with sunrise and sunset times.

The gold band is daylight — sunrise runs along its lower edge, sunset along the upper — so it widens toward summer and pinches toward winter, with night the dark area above and below. The longest day, around June 13, brings about 15 h 06 min of light; the shortest, around January 1, only 8 h 54 min — a swing of roughly 6 h 12 min.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AMJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
Jan9.37:234:36
Feb10.36:565:13
Mar11.66:105:49
Apr13.15:166:25
May14.44:346:58
Jun15.04:187:23
Jul14.84:317:20
Aug13.75:026:46
Sep12.35:365:53
Oct10.86:105:00
Nov9.66:494:22
Dec9.07:194:14

Sunny days

How many genuinely sunny days each month brings — days the sky stays clear or mostly clear — banded into plain-language zones.

Amherst Center averages about 9 sunny days a month — counting the days the sky stays clear or mostly clear — with a clear seasonal swing between 7 and 12 days.

The sunnier stretch runs 4.1 months, from around Jul 31 to Dec 3. The sunniest month is October, with roughly 10 sunny days (mixed).

The greyest month is May, down near 7 sunny days — about 34% fewer than the October peak.

051015JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecgreyersunniergreyergloomymixedOct 312 daysMay 107 days
Sunny daysSky
Jan10Mixed
Feb9Mixed
Mar8Gloomy
Apr7Gloomy
May7Gloomy
Jun7Gloomy
Jul8Mixed
Aug10Mixed
Sep11Mixed
Oct11Mixed
Nov10Mixed
Dec9Mixed

Humidity comfort

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

Share of days at each humidity comfort level, based on the dew point — the measure that tracks how muggy it actually feels.

Humidity comfort is graded by the dew point — the temperature at which the air would be fully saturated — because it tracks how muggy it actually feels far better than relative humidity does. A low dew point feels dry and crisp; a high one feels sticky and oppressive no matter the reading on a humidity gauge.

In Amherst Center, how humid it feels changes dramatically over the year.

The more humid part of the year lasts 3.9 months, from around May 31 to September 27. The muggiest month is July, when the air feels humid, muggy or worse about 52% of the time.

The most comfortable stretch runs from around September 28 to May 30, and March is the most comfortable month — the air is dry or comfortable 100% of the time.

0%10%20%30%40%50%60%70%80%90%100%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecMar 28 · 100%Jul 23 · 43%muggyhumiddrycomfortablecomfortablehumidcomfortable
Dry (%)Comfortable (%)Humid (%)Muggy (%)Oppressive (%)
Jan1000000
Feb1000000
Mar1000000
Apr982000
May8510510
Jun49231892
Jul232428204
Aug282724183
Sep57201490
Oct916310
Nov991000
Dec1000000

Wind

Average wind speed through the year, banded into plain-language speed zones so a number reads as 'breezy' or 'calm' without knowing the scale.

This is the average sustained wind speed at the standard 10 metres above open ground — the steady flow a weather station reports, not the sharper gusts that come and go, which can run half again as fast. It's the number that says whether a place is generally breezy or calm.

Across the year, average wind speed in Amherst Center is typically calm, near 6 mph, and varies little with the seasons.

The windier part of the year lasts 6.7 months, from around Oct 13 to May 4. The windiest month is March, averaging about 7 mph (calm).

The calmer part of the year runs from around May 5 to Oct 12, with August the calmest month at about 5 mph.

0510JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecwindiercalmerwindiercalmlight breezeMar 8 · 7 mphAug 8 · 5 mph
Wind speed (mph)Feels
Jan7calm
Feb7calm
Mar7calm
Apr7calm
May6calm
Jun6calm
Jul5calm
Aug5calm
Sep6calm
Oct6calm
Nov7calm
Dec7calm

Best time to visit Amherst Center

TravelBeach/poolTemperatureCloudsPrecipitation

To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Amherst Center throughout the year, we compute two travel scores — one for general sightseeing, one for beach and pool weather.

Around late May, Amherst Center is still near the start of its best-weather window — great conditions with the peak-season crowds not yet at full swing.

Inferred from the travel-score curve; month-by-month visitor numbers are a planned addition.

The travel score favors clear, rainless days with daytime highs between 64°F and 82°F. Based on this score, the best time of year to visit Amherst Center for general outdoor tourist activities is from mid May to early October, with a peak score in the first week of September.

0246810JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbest timetravel scoretemperaturecloudsprecipitationSep 4 · 7.2

The travel score (filled area), and its constituents: the temperature score (red line), the cloud cover score (blue line), and the precipitation score (green line).

Travel score (0–10)Rating
Jan0.0poor
Feb0.0poor
Mar0.8poor
Apr3.8fair
May6.0good
Jun6.5good
Jul6.4good
Aug6.7good
Sep6.9good
Oct4.9fair
Nov1.8poor
Dec0.1poor

The beach/pool score favors clear, rainless days with daytime highs between 75°F and 93°F. Based on this score, the best time of year to visit Amherst Center for hot-weather activities is from early June to mid September, with a peak score in the second week of July.

024681012JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbest timebeach/pool scoretemperaturecloudsprecipitationJul 14 · 6.8

The beach/pool score (filled area), and its constituents: the temperature score (red line), the cloud cover score (blue line), and the precipitation score (green line).

What to pack for Amherst Center, by month

EssentialRecommendedOptional

Month by month, what's worth putting in the bag — from the temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind. Tap a month for a quick packing note.

For a warm-season trip around July (highs near 82°F), the essentials are light clothes, rain gear and sun protection. In the cold season around January (highs near 33°F), pack a warm layer, a heavy coat and rain gear.

Light clothing
Warm layer
Winter coat
Rain gear
Sun protection
Windbreaker

In July, Amherst Center sees daytime highs around 82°F and nights near 63°F. Pack light clothes. Worth having: rain gear and sun protection. About 10 days see rain.

UV index (midday) in Amherst Center by month

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV index through the year, shaded by the WHO exposure levels — how much sun protection each month calls for.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Amherst Center peaks around July 11 at about 7 (very high) — sunscreen and a hat are worth it in the middle of the day. It bottoms out near December 23 at about 1 (low).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 8 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLowModerateHighVery highHighModerateLowJul 11UV 7Dec 23UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan1Low
Feb3Moderate
Mar4Moderate
Apr5High
May7Very high
Jun7Very high
Jul8Very high
Aug5High
Sep6High
Oct3Moderate
Nov2Moderate
Dec1Low

Average hourly UV index in Amherst Center

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Modeled clear-sky UV for every hour of every day — when in the day sun protection actually matters.

The whole year hour by hour: each column is a day, each row an hour, and the color is the modeled clear-sky UV index — the midday peak scaled down as the sun sits lower in the sky. Darker overlays mark night, lighter ones the civil-twilight hours around sunrise and sunset.

UV falls off far faster than brightness as the sun drops, so even in July the burn window is concentrated in the middle of the day: about 7.5 hours a day reach index 3 (protection recommended), and 4 hours reach 6 or more. Mornings and late afternoons stay comparatively gentle year round.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec12 AM2 AM4 AM6 AM8 AM10 AM12 PM2 PM4 PM6 PM8 PM10 PM12 AM
UV ≥ 3 (h/day)UV ≥ 6 (h/day)
Jan00
Feb00
Mar40
Apr60
May7.53.5
Jun7.53.5
Jul7.54
Aug60
Sep60
Oct1.50
Nov00
Dec00
Almanac & agriculture

Growing season

Chance of a frost-free dayTypical season (≥50%)

The growing season in Amherst Center typically lasts about 234 days, from around March 30 to November 18 — the span where a frost-free day is more likely than not. It is reliably frost-free from April 23 to October 18.

0%25%50%75%100%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecgrowing seasonFeb 1210%Mar 3050%Apr 2390%Oct 1890%Nov 1850%Jan 2310%
Frost-free chance (%)Frost nights
Jan1131
Feb1228
Mar3231
Apr8020
May990
Jun1000
Jul1000
Aug1000
Sep990
Oct9012
Nov5530
Dec2131

Growing degree days

Degree days (base 50°F)Frost-free shaded

Growing degree days tally heat above 50°F: each day adds however many degrees its average temperature runs over that threshold, and cold days add nothing. Amherst Center banks about 2,523 degree days a year, and the running total — which growers use to time plantings and predict maturity — climbs fastest around July.

01,0002,0003,000JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Growing degree days (°F·days)
Jan0
Feb0
Mar0
Apr12
May237
Jun507
Jul687
Aug632
Sep382
Oct66
Nov0
Dec0

Solar energy

Average daily shortwave solar energy reaching the ground, banded into brightness zones so the number means something at a glance.

Solar energy is how much sunlight actually reaches the ground each day, measured in kilowatt-hours per square metre (kWh/m²) — the combined effect of how long the sun is up, how high it climbs, and how much cloud gets in the way. It's the raw fuel a solar panel has to work with: for scale, 1 kWh/m² a day is dim and wintry, while 7+ is desert-bright.

Amherst Center receives about 3.9 kWh/m² a day of solar energy on average — moderate — with a clear seasonal swing between 1.6 and 6.1 kWh/m².

The brighter stretch of the year lasts 6.3 months, from around Mar 15 to Sep 21. The brightest month is July, averaging about 5.9 kWh/m² (bright).

The dimmest month is December, down near 1.6 kWh/m² — roughly 73% less than the July peak.

01234567JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecdimmerbrighterdimmerdimmoderatebrightintenseJul 36.1 kWhDec 181.6 kWh
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
Jan2.0Dim
Feb2.9Moderate
Mar3.9Moderate
Apr4.9Bright
May5.5Bright
Jun5.9Bright
Jul5.9Bright
Aug5.2Bright
Sep4.2Bright
Oct2.9Moderate
Nov2.0Moderate
Dec1.6Dim

Where is Amherst Center?

Amherst Center sits at 42.4°N, 72.5°W, 305 ft above sea level, in United States. The nearest listed city is Amherst, 0.6 mi away.

Topography around Amherst Center

How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 2, 10 and 50 miles of Amherst Center.

Within 2 miles, the terrain around Amherst Center has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 374 ft around an average of 226 ft above sea level; within 10 miles, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,260 ft; within 50 miles, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 3,675 ft.

The land around Amherst Center is covered by trees (58%) and grassland (23%) within 2 miles, trees (79%) within 10 miles, and trees (91%) within 50 miles.

2 miles
374 ft
10 miles
1,260 ft
50 miles
3,675 ft
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaceswater
Nearby: Amherst 0.6 mi · Northampton 6.8 mi · South Hadley 8.7 mi · Easthampton 11 mi · Holyoke 13 mi · North Chicopee 14 mi · Ludlow 15 mi · Greenfield 15 mi

United States travel facts

Power plugs
Type A / B
120 V · 60 Hz
Prices
≈ 100% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$90,027
2025
Happiness
6.8 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
98%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
5.8
per 100k, 2023
Road deaths
12.7
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
High
World Bank
Religion
Protestant 47%unaffiliated 23%Roman Catholic 21%Jewish 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 Amherst Center (42.3754°, -72.5192°, elevation 305 ft), 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. 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).