Climate and average weather in Arlington

In Arlington, the summers are warm, fairly dry, and mostly clear and the winters are cold, snowy, and mostly cloudy.

Best: late June to mid September

Over the course of the year, the temperature in Arlington typically varies from 35°F to 73°F, and is rarely below 24°F or above 83°F. August is the hottest month of the year, while December is the coldest.

Based on the travel score, the best time of year to visit Arlington for warm-weather activities is from late June to mid September.

Hottest
Aug
73°
Coldest
Dec
35°
Wettest
Nov
10.4 in
Driest
Jul
1.3 in
Rain / yr
68.4 in
165 wet days
Daylight
8.1–15.9 h
shortest–longest
Elevation
115 ft
48.2°N
Clearest
Jul
43% cloud

Arlington is city in northern Snohomish County, Washington, United States.

Density
790/km²
people per km²
Founded
1903

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

Arlington 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 late June to mid September.

Temperature through the year

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

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

The hot season lasts 3.0 months, from June 19 to September 18, with daily high temperatures above 66°F. The hottest month of the year in Arlington is August, with an average high of 73°F and low of 55°F.

The cool season lasts 3.7 months, from November 13 to March 5, with daily high temperatures below 49°F. The coldest month of the year in Arlington is December, with an average low of 35°F and high of 43°F.

Days typically run about 13°F warmer than nights, with the widest day–night swing (around 18°F) in August.

20°40°60°80°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Avg high (°F)Avg low (°F)
Jan4436
Feb4736
Mar5138
Apr5642
May6247
Jun6651
Jul7255
Aug7355
Sep6750
Oct5744
Nov4838
Dec4335

How hot and cold Arlington 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 29°F (around January 1), with roughly 101 freezing days a year (feels-like at or below 32°F), worst in January.

20°30°40°50°60°70°80°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Feels-like high (°F)Air high (°F)Feels-like low (°F)Air low (°F)
Jan44443036
Feb47473136
Mar51513438
Apr56563942
May62624647
Jun66665151
Jul72725555
Aug73735555
Sep67675050
Oct57574144
Nov48483438
Dec43433035

Average hourly temperature in Arlington

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 August afternoons, near 73°F, and coldest before dawn in December, near 35°F.

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

Arlington 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
Jan44° / 36°9.319.15.38.60.6
Feb47° / 36°6.115.54.59.91.2
Mar51° / 38°7.619.63.711.61.9
Apr56° / 42°5.616.4113.43.2
May62° / 47°3.812.10.114.95.0
Jun66° / 51°2.89.8015.86.0
Jul72° / 55°1.35.2015.57.8
Aug73° / 55°1.65.5014.17.8
Sep67° / 50°3.48.8012.46.5
Oct57° / 44°7.214.9010.63.7
Nov48° / 38°10.419.22.291.4
Dec43° / 35°9.319.26.18.20.4

Chance of rain

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

Arlington gets about 68.4 in of precipitation a year. On a typical day the chance of rain is very wet, but that rises and falls sharply with the seasons.

The wetter season lasts 6.6 months, from around Oct 12 to May 1, peaking in November at about 66% chance on a given day. The drier stretch runs the rest of the year, bottoming out around Jul 29.

November is the wettest month by volume, with 10.4 in over about 19 wet days; July is the driest, with 1.3 in. Some of the cold-season precipitation falls as snow.

0%10%20%30%40%50%60%70%80%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecwetterdrierwettermostly drysome rainoften wetvery wetNov 19 · 66%Jul 29 · 12%
Rain on a day (%)Rain days
Jan6119
Feb5716
Mar6220
Apr5416
May3912
Jun3310
Jul175
Aug176
Sep309
Oct4815
Nov6319
Dec6319

Monthly rainfall

Over a full year, Arlington collects about 68.4 in of rain across 165 wet days — roughly 5.7 in in an average month.

It doesn’t fall evenly. November is the wettest month with 10.4 in, while July is the driest at just 1.3 in. The three wettest months alone bring about 42% of the year’s total, and some of the cold-season precipitation falls as snow.

024681012JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec9.36.17.65.63.82.81.31.63.47.210.49.3
Rainfall (in)Rain daysSnow days
Jan9.3195
Feb6.1165
Mar7.6204
Apr5.6161
May3.8120
Jun2.8100
Jul1.350
Aug1.660
Sep3.490
Oct7.2150
Nov10.4192
Dec9.3196

Snow in Arlington

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.

Arlington averages about 23 snowy days a year. Snow season runs roughly Nov 3 to Apr 21 — about 5.6 months.

December is snowiest, with roughly 6 days of snow and an estimated 12 in of snowfall. Over the year that adds up to an estimated 38 in of snow.

02468JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecsnow seasonsnow seasonDec 24
Snow daysSnowfall (in)
Jan59
Feb58
Mar46
Apr11
May00
Jun00
Jul00
Aug00
Sep00
Oct00
Nov23
Dec612

Clouds and sunshine

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

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

In Arlington, the average share of the sky covered by clouds shows significant seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The clearer part of the year begins around June 15 and lasts for 3.9 months, ending around October 10. The clearest month is August, when the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 65% of the time on average.

The cloudier part of the year begins around October 11 and lasts for 6.7 months, ending around May 3. The cloudiest month is December, when it is overcast or mostly cloudy 78% 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%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecJul 29 · 72%Dec 18 · 20%clearmostly clearpartly cloudymostly cloudyovercastcloudierclearercloudier
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
Jan2377
Feb2971
Mar2773
Apr3169
May3763
Jun4159
Jul6436
Aug6535
Sep5743
Oct3664
Nov2476
Dec2278

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 18, brings about 15 h 54 min of light; the shortest, around December 18, only 8 h 06 min — a swing of roughly 7 h 48 min.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AMJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
Jan8.68:014:34
Feb9.97:265:20
Mar11.66:316:05
Apr13.45:266:51
May14.94:367:34
Jun15.84:148:04
Jul15.54:297:59
Aug14.15:097:17
Sep12.45:526:13
Oct10.66:375:10
Nov9.07:254:23
Dec8.28:004:09

Sunny days

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

Arlington averages about 8 sunny days a month — counting the days the sky stays clear or mostly clear — with a clear seasonal swing between 3 and 17 days.

The sunnier stretch runs 3.7 months, from around Jun 21 to Oct 12. The sunniest month is July, with roughly 15 sunny days (mixed).

The greyest month is December, down near 4 sunny days — about 72% fewer than the July peak.

05101520JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecgreyersunniergreyergloomymixedbrightJul 2917 daysDec 183 days
Sunny daysSky
Jan5Gloomy
Feb5Gloomy
Mar5Gloomy
Apr5Gloomy
May7Gloomy
Jun7Gloomy
Jul15Mixed
Aug15Mixed
Sep12Mixed
Oct8Gloomy
Nov5Gloomy
Dec4Gloomy

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 Arlington, the air stays dry or comfortable essentially all year. Even in July, the muggiest month, it feels humid or worse only about 2% of the time — humidity is not something you need to plan around here.

0%10%20%30%40%50%60%70%80%90%100%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDeccomfortabledry
Dry (%)Comfortable (%)Humid (%)
Jan10000
Feb10000
Mar10000
Apr10000
May9820
Jun9190
Jul71282
Aug65332
Sep83170
Oct9820
Nov10000
Dec10000

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 Arlington is typically calm, near 5 mph, and varies little with the seasons.

The windier part of the year lasts 6.2 months, from around Oct 14 to Apr 19. The windiest month is December, averaging about 6 mph (calm).

The calmer part of the year runs from around Apr 20 to Oct 13, with August the calmest month at about 4 mph.

0510JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecwindiercalmerwindiercalmlight breezeDec 11 · 6 mphAug 8 · 4 mph
Wind speed (mph)Feels
Jan6calm
Feb6calm
Mar5calm
Apr5calm
May4calm
Jun4calm
Jul4calm
Aug4calm
Sep4calm
Oct5calm
Nov6calm
Dec6calm

Hazard calendar for Arlington

In seasonPeak

When the seasonal hazards worth planning around — the rainy season, tropical-cyclone risk and dust haze — are active through the year.

Arlington's rainy season runs October–April, when most of the year's rain falls.

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

Best time to visit Arlington

TravelBeach/poolTemperatureCloudsPrecipitation

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

Around late August, Arlington is still near the tail of its best-weather window — great conditions with the peak-season crowds already thinning.

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 Arlington for general outdoor tourist activities is from late June to mid September, with a peak score in the last week of July.

0246810JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbest timetravel scoretemperaturecloudsprecipitationJul 30 · 8.4

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
Jan0.6poor
Feb1.2poor
Mar1.9poor
Apr3.2poor
May5.0fair
Jun6.1good
Jul7.7ideal
Aug7.8ideal
Sep6.4good
Oct3.7fair
Nov1.4poor
Dec0.4poor

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 Arlington for hot-weather activities is from mid July to late August, with a peak score in the last week of July.

024681012JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbest timebeach/pool scoretemperaturecloudsprecipitationJul 31 · 6.6

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 Arlington, 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 August (highs near 73°F), the essentials are light clothes and sun protection. In the cold season around December (highs near 43°F), pack a warm layer, a heavy coat and rain gear.

Light clothing
Warm layer
Winter coat
Rain gear
Sun protection
Windbreaker

In August, Arlington sees daytime highs around 73°F and nights near 55°F. Worth packing: light clothes and sun protection. About 6 days see rain.

Sea temperature near Arlington

Average ocean temperature at the nearest coast, month by month, banded into swim-comfort zones — the other half of the beach question.

The sea at the nearest coast (about 35 mi away) is warmest in August at about 53°F and coldest in February near 46°F.

The water stays below 68°F all year — cool enough that most swimmers want a wetsuit.

45°50°55°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbracing
Sea temperature (°F)Comfort
Jan46Bracing
Feb46Bracing
Mar47Bracing
Apr48Bracing
May50Bracing
Jun52Bracing
Jul53Bracing
Aug53Bracing
Sep53Bracing
Oct50Bracing
Nov49Bracing
Dec47Bracing

UV index (midday) in Arlington 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 Arlington peaks around July 17 at about 8 (very high) — sunscreen and a hat are worth it in the middle of the day. It bottoms out near December 18 at about 1 (low).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 7 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLowModerateHighVery highHighModerateLowJul 17UV 8Dec 18UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan1Low
Feb1Low
Mar4Moderate
Apr5Moderate
May7High
Jun6High
Jul8Very high
Aug6High
Sep4Moderate
Oct3Moderate
Nov1Low
Dec1Low

Average hourly UV index in Arlington

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 8.5 hours a day reach index 3 (protection recommended), and 5 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
Mar30
Apr50
May7.53
Jun70.5
Jul8.55
Aug71.5
Sep40
Oct00
Nov00
Dec00

Air quality in Arlington by month

GoodModeratePoorUnhealthyVery unhealthy

Average fine-particle pollution (PM2.5) through the year — so you can see which months the air is worst, not just the yearly average.

Air quality in Arlington is worst in August — around 20 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 3.1× the cleanest month (December, 6 µg/m³).

Modeled monthly averages (CAMS reanalysis, 2015–2024).

0102030JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecGoodGoodModerateGoodModerateGoodAug 2119 µg/m³Dec 157 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan8Good
Feb10Good
Mar12Moderate
Apr12Good
May13Moderate
Jun11Good
Jul10Good
Aug20Moderate
Sep18Moderate
Oct11Good
Nov7Good
Dec6Good
Almanac & agriculture

Growing season

Chance of a frost-free dayReliably frost-free (≥90%)

Arlington is mild enough that a frost-free day stays more likely than not even in midwinter. Nights are reliably above freezing from about March 17 to November 3 (232 days); outside that window a hard frost is an occasional risk.

0%25%50%75%100%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecreliably frost-freeMar 1790%Nov 390%
Frost-free chance (%)Frost nights
Jan7031
Feb7528
Mar8814
Apr980
May1000
Jun1000
Jul1000
Aug1000
Sep1000
Oct970
Nov8330
Dec6831

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. Arlington banks about 1,559 degree days a year, and the running total — which growers use to time plantings and predict maturity — climbs fastest around August.

05001,0001,5002,000JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Growing degree days (°F·days)
Jan0
Feb0
Mar0
Apr8
May145
Jun259
Jul416
Aug427
Sep263
Oct41
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.

Arlington receives about 3.4 kWh/m² a day of solar energy on average — moderate — with a clear seasonal swing between 0.8 and 6.2 kWh/m².

The brighter stretch of the year lasts 6.0 months, from around Mar 28 to Sep 25. The brightest month is July, averaging about 6.1 kWh/m² (intense).

The dimmest month is December, down near 0.8 kWh/m² — roughly 86% less than the July peak.

01234567JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecdimmerbrighterdimmerdimmoderatebrightintenseJul 216.2 kWhDec 170.8 kWh
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
Jan1.0Dim
Feb1.9Dim
Mar2.9Moderate
Apr4.3Bright
May5.3Bright
Jun5.6Bright
Jul6.2Intense
Aug5.4Bright
Sep4.0Bright
Oct2.2Moderate
Nov1.1Dim
Dec0.8Dim

Where is Arlington?

Arlington sits at 48.2°N, 122.1°W, 115 ft above sea level, in United States. The nearest listed city is Marysville, 11 mi away.

Topography around Arlington

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

Within 2 miles, the terrain around Arlington has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 479 ft around an average of 157 ft above sea level; within 10 miles, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 3,297 ft; within 50 miles, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 10,755 ft.

The land around Arlington is covered by trees (51%) and grassland (32%) within 2 miles, trees (76%) within 10 miles, and trees (66%) and water (21%) within 50 miles.

2 miles
479 ft
10 miles
3,297 ft
50 miles
10,755 ft
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainsnow and icewater
Nearby: Marysville 11 mi · Lake Stevens 13 mi · West Lake Stevens 14 mi · Everett 16 mi · Mount Vernon 18 mi · Mukilteo 19 mi · Eastmont 21 mi · Silver Firs 23 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 Arlington (48.1987°, -122.1251°, elevation 115 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. 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. Monthly air-quality (PM2.5) seasonality is from the CAMS EAC4 reanalysis (Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service), scaled to the WHO annual mean where available. Topography is sampled from the Copernicus DEM GLO-90 elevation model (© ESA/Airbus) and ESA WorldCover 2021 land cover (CC BY 4.0).