Climate and average weather in Bangor

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

Best: late May to late September

Over the course of the year, the temperature in Bangor typically varies from 11°F to 78°F, and is rarely below -8°F or above 87°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 Bangor for warm-weather activities is from late May to late September.

Hottest
Jul
78°
Coldest
Jan
11°
Wettest
Oct
4.4 in
Driest
Feb
2.9 in
Rain / yr
42.5 in
123 wet days
Daylight
8.6–15.4 h
shortest–longest
Elevation
118 ft
44.8°N
Clearest
Sep
56% cloud

Bangor is city in and county seat of Penobscot County, Maine, United States.

Density
362/km²
people per km²
Founded
1769

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

Bangor 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 May to late September.

Temperature through the year

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Daily average highs and lows in Bangor, 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 25 to September 23, with daily high temperatures above 66°F. The hottest month of the year in Bangor is July, with an average high of 78°F and low of 59°F.

The cool season lasts 3.3 months, from December 4 to March 12, with daily high temperatures below 38°F. The coldest month of the year in Bangor is January, with an average low of 11°F and high of 28°F.

Days typically run about 18°F warmer than nights year-round.

20°40°60°80°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Avg high (°F)Avg low (°F)
Jan2811
Feb3113
Mar3922
Apr5234
May6344
Jun7353
Jul7859
Aug7758
Sep6950
Oct5740
Nov4530
Dec3419

How hot and cold Bangor 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 -2°F (around January 22), with roughly 184 freezing days a year (feels-like at or below 32°F) 104 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)
Jan2828-111
Feb3131113
Mar39391322
Apr52522834
May63634044
Jun73735253
Jul78785959
Aug77775858
Sep69694950
Oct57573540
Nov45452330
Dec3434919

Average hourly temperature in Bangor

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 78°F, and coldest before dawn in January, near 11°F.

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

Bangor 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
Jan28° / 11°3.49.16.990.0
Feb31° / 13°2.997.310.10.0
Mar39° / 22°3.610.46.311.60.2
Apr52° / 34°3.611.22.713.22.6
May63° / 44°3.311.30.114.65.3
Jun73° / 53°3.711.4015.36.3
Jul78° / 59°3.110.60156.5
Aug77° / 58°3.09.5013.96.9
Sep69° / 50°3.58.4012.36.7
Oct57° / 40°4.410.60.510.74.0
Nov45° / 30°3.79.82.69.40.9
Dec34° / 19°4.311.578.70.0

Chance of rain

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

Bangor gets about 42.5 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 4.0 months, from around Mar 25 to Jul 23, peaking in June at about 38% chance on a given day. The drier stretch runs the rest of the year, bottoming out around Aug 31.

October is the wettest month by volume, with 4.4 in over about 11 wet days; February is the driest, with 2.9 in. Some of the cold-season precipitation falls as snow.

0%10%20%30%40%50%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecdrierwetterdriermostly drysome rainoften wetvery wetJun 28 · 38%Aug 31 · 27%
Rain on a day (%)Rain days
Jan309
Feb329
Mar3410
Apr3711
May3711
Jun3811
Jul3511
Aug3010
Sep288
Oct3411
Nov3310
Dec3612

Monthly rainfall

Over a full year, Bangor collects about 42.5 in of rain across 123 wet days — roughly 3.5 in in an average month.

It doesn’t fall evenly. October is the wettest month with 4.4 in, while February is the driest at just 2.9 in. The three wettest months alone bring about 29% of the year’s total, and some of the cold-season precipitation falls as snow.

0123456JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec3.42.93.63.63.33.73.13.03.54.43.74.3
Rainfall (in)Rain daysSnow days
Jan3.497
Feb2.997
Mar3.6106
Apr3.6113
May3.3110
Jun3.7110
Jul3.1110
Aug3.0100
Sep3.580
Oct4.4111
Nov3.7103
Dec4.3127

Snow in Bangor

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.

Bangor averages about 33 snowy days a year. Snow season runs roughly Oct 18 to May 4 — about 6.5 months.

February is snowiest, with roughly 8 days of snow and an estimated 22 in of snowfall. Over the year that adds up to an estimated 91 in of snow.

0246810JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecsnow seasonsnow seasonFeb 10
Snow daysSnowfall (in)
Jan720
Feb722
Mar620
Apr36
May00
Jun00
Jul00
Aug00
Sep00
Oct11
Nov35
Dec717

Clouds and sunshine

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

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

In Bangor, 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 July 2 and lasts for 3.7 months, ending around October 23. The clearest month is September, when the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 51% of the time on average.

The cloudier part of the year begins around February 14 and lasts for 4.5 months, ending around July 1. The cloudiest month is May, when it is overcast or mostly cloudy 65% 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 30 · 54%Jun 1 · 33%clearmostly clearpartly cloudymostly cloudyovercastcloudierclearercloudier
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
Jan5050
Feb4456
Mar3961
Apr3664
May3565
Jun3862
Jul4654
Aug5050
Sep5149
Oct4654
Nov4456
Dec4555

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 14, brings about 15 h 24 min of light; the shortest, around December 13, only 8 h 36 min — a swing of roughly 6 h 48 min.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AMJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
Jan9.07:164:13
Feb10.16:464:54
Mar11.65:565:33
Apr13.24:586:13
May14.64:136:50
Jun15.33:547:17
Jul15.04:087:13
Aug13.94:426:36
Sep12.35:205:39
Oct10.75:584:42
Nov9.46:414:00
Dec8.77:133:50

Sunny days

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

Bangor averages about 9 sunny days a month — counting the days the sky stays clear or mostly clear — with a clear seasonal swing between 5 and 11 days.

The sunnier stretch runs 3.5 months, from around Nov 7 to Feb 22. The sunniest month is January, with roughly 11 sunny days (mixed).

The greyest month is June, down near 7 sunny days — about 40% fewer than the January peak.

051015JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecsunniergreyersunniergloomymixedJan 2711 daysJun 25 days
Sunny daysSky
Jan11Mixed
Feb9Mixed
Mar8Gloomy
Apr6Gloomy
May6Gloomy
Jun6Gloomy
Jul8Gloomy
Aug9Mixed
Sep11Mixed
Oct10Mixed
Nov9Mixed
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 Bangor, how humid it feels changes dramatically over the year.

The more humid part of the year lasts 3.4 months, from around June 12 to September 24. The muggiest month is July, when the air feels humid, muggy or worse about 44% of the time.

The most comfortable stretch runs from around September 25 to June 11, and April 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%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecApr 21 · 100%Jul 26 · 50%muggyhumiddrycomfortablecomfortablehumidcomfortable
Dry (%)Comfortable (%)Humid (%)Muggy (%)Oppressive (%)
Jan1000000
Feb1000000
Mar1000000
Apr1000000
May954100
Jun61221330
Jul263128151
Aug322927110
Sep65191330
Oct935200
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 Bangor is typically calm, near 7 mph, and varies little with the seasons.

The windier part of the year lasts 6.9 months, from around Oct 6 to May 4. The windiest month is March, averaging about 8 mph (light breeze).

The calmer part of the year runs from around May 5 to Oct 5, with August the calmest month at about 6 mph.

051015JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecwindiercalmerwindiercalmlight breezebreezyMar 6 · 8 mphAug 5 · 6 mph
Wind speed (mph)Feels
Jan8light breeze
Feb8light breeze
Mar8light breeze
Apr8light breeze
May7calm
Jun7calm
Jul6calm
Aug6calm
Sep7calm
Oct8light breeze
Nov8light breeze
Dec8light breeze

Hazard calendar for Bangor

In seasonPeak

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

Bangor sits in the Atlantic hurricane belt; the season peaks August–October.

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

Best time to visit Bangor

TravelBeach/poolTemperatureCloudsPrecipitation

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

Around mid June, Bangor 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 Bangor for general outdoor tourist activities is from late May to late September, with a peak score in the last week of August.

0246810JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbest timetravel scoretemperaturecloudsprecipitationAug 29 · 7.3

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
Mar0.2poor
Apr2.6poor
May5.2fair
Jun6.3good
Jul6.5good
Aug6.9good
Sep6.6good
Oct4.0fair
Nov1.0poor
Dec0.0poor

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 Bangor for hot-weather activities is from late June to early September, with a peak score in the first week of August.

024681012JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbest timebeach/pool scoretemperaturecloudsprecipitationAug 4 · 6.4

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 Bangor, 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 78°F), the essentials are light clothes, rain gear and sun protection. In the cold season around January (highs near 28°F), pack a warm layer, a heavy coat and rain gear.

Light clothing
Warm layer
Winter coat
Rain gear
Sun protection
Windbreaker

In July, Bangor sees daytime highs around 78°F and nights near 59°F. Worth packing: light clothes, rain gear and sun protection. About 11 days see rain.

Sea temperature near Bangor

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 30 mi away) is warmest in August at about 58°F and coldest in February near 35°F.

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

30°40°50°60°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbracingcool
Sea temperature (°F)Comfort
Jan39Bracing
Feb35Bracing
Mar35Bracing
Apr40Bracing
May46Bracing
Jun52Bracing
Jul57Bracing
Aug58Bracing
Sep57Bracing
Oct54Bracing
Nov49Bracing
Dec44Bracing

UV index (midday) in Bangor 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 Bangor peaks around July 13 at about 7 (very high) — sunscreen and a hat are worth it in the middle of the day. It bottoms out near December 21 at about 1 (low).

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

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLowModerateHighModerateModerateLowJul 13UV 7Dec 21UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan1Low
Feb2Low
Mar4Moderate
Apr5Moderate
May7High
Jun6High
Jul8Very high
Aug4Moderate
Sep5High
Oct3Moderate
Nov2Low
Dec1Low

Average hourly UV index in Bangor

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
Mar3.50
Apr5.50
May72.5
Jun71.5
Jul7.54
Aug40
Sep5.50
Oct00
Nov00
Dec00
Almanac & agriculture

Growing season

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

The growing season in Bangor typically lasts about 216 days, from around April 9 to November 10 — the span where a frost-free day is more likely than not. It is reliably frost-free from May 3 to October 12.

0%25%50%75%100%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecgrowing seasonFeb 2410%Apr 950%May 390%Oct 1290%Nov 1050%Dec 2210%
Frost-free chance (%)Frost nights
Jan631
Feb728
Mar1931
Apr6330
May972
Jun1000
Jul1000
Aug1000
Sep990
Oct8518
Nov4230
Dec1331

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. Bangor banks about 1,934 degree days a year, and the running total — which growers use to time plantings and predict maturity — climbs fastest around July.

05001,0001,5002,0002,500JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Growing degree days (°F·days)
Jan0
Feb0
Mar0
Apr0
May112
Jun382
Jul578
Aug543
Sep294
Oct26
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.

Bangor receives about 3.7 kWh/m² a day of solar energy on average — moderate — with a clear seasonal swing between 1.4 and 5.8 kWh/m².

The brighter stretch of the year lasts 6.3 months, from around Mar 13 to Sep 21. The brightest month is July, averaging about 5.7 kWh/m² (bright).

The dimmest month is December, down near 1.4 kWh/m² — roughly 75% less than the July peak.

01234567JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecdimmerbrighterdimmerdimmoderatebrightintenseJul 55.8 kWhDec 151.4 kWh
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
Jan1.8Dim
Feb2.8Moderate
Mar3.9Moderate
Apr4.7Bright
May5.3Bright
Jun5.7Bright
Jul5.7Bright
Aug5.2Bright
Sep4.0Bright
Oct2.6Moderate
Nov1.7Dim
Dec1.4Dim

Where is Bangor?

Bangor sits at 44.8°N, 68.8°W, 118 ft above sea level, in United States. The nearest listed city is Bar Harbor, 40 mi away.

Topography around Bangor

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

Within 2 miles, the terrain around Bangor has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 266 ft around an average of 118 ft above sea level; within 10 miles, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 912 ft; within 50 miles, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,870 ft.

The land around Bangor is covered by trees (51%) and artificial surfaces (23%) within 2 miles, trees (78%) within 10 miles, and trees (80%) within 50 miles.

2 miles
266 ft
10 miles
912 ft
50 miles
1,870 ft
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwaterwetland
Nearby: Bar Harbor 40 mi · Waterville 45 mi · Augusta 60 mi · Brunswick 85 mi · Lewiston 86 mi · Auburn 87 mi · Portland 108 mi · South Portland 108 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 Bangor (44.7988°, -68.7726°, elevation 118 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. Tropical-cyclone seasons are the published climatological basin seasons (NOAA National Hurricane Center / regional warning centres). 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).