Cortland weather in March

In March, Cortland sees average daytime highs of 41°F and overnight lows near 25°F, with 3.8 in of precipitation across 13 wet days and about 11.6 hours of daylight. It is the 9th-warmest and 8th-wettest month of the year here.

Highs climb over the month, from about 36°F in the first days to 46°F by the end. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 17% of the time in March, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 10 h 54 min at the start of March to 12 h 24 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, March is Cortland's 8th-clearest and 2nd-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Cortland's year-round climate.

Daytime high: 41°; 9th warmest
Overnight low: 25°; 4th coldest
Precipitation: 3.8 in; 13 wet days
Daylight: 11 h 36 min; 6:25 AM – 6:04 PM
Cloud cover: 72%; 8th clearest
Wind: 8 mph; 2nd windiest
Solar energy: 3.72 kWh/m²
Travel score: 0.3; out of 10

Cortland is city in New York, USA.

Density: 1,865/km²; people per km²
Founded: 1791

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

← February Cortland year-round climate April →Best places to visit in March

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

Temperature in March

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Highs climb over the month, from about 36°F in the first days to 46°F by the end.

A typical March day in Cortland reaches about 41°F in the afternoon and slips back to 25°F overnight — a 16°F spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 27°F and 57°F. Set against its neighbours, March runs about 9°F warmer than February and about 13°F cooler than April.

	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 (°F)	36	36	36	37	37	37	38	38	38	39	39	39	40	40	40	41	41	41	42	42	42	43	43	44	44	45	45	46	46	47	47
Avg low (°F)	20	21	21	21	21	22	22	22	22	22	23	23	23	24	24	24	25	25	26	26	26	27	27	28	28	29	29	29	30	30	31

	Avg high (°F)	Avg low (°F)
1	36	20
2	36	21
3	36	21
4	37	21
5	37	21
6	37	22
7	38	22
8	38	22
9	38	22
10	39	22
11	39	23
12	39	23
13	40	23
14	40	24
15	40	24
16	41	24
17	41	25
18	41	25
19	42	26
20	42	26
21	42	26
22	43	27
23	43	27
24	44	28
25	44	28
26	45	29
27	45	29
28	46	29
29	46	30
30	47	30
31	47	31

How March really feels in Cortland

Once humidity and wind are folded in, March averages 0 days that feel above 90°F and 31 that feel at or below 32°F — the comfort signal a plain temperature reading hides.

Days feeling ≥ 90°F

heat index over the day's high

Days feeling ≤ 32°F

12 feel bitter (≤ 14°F)

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

Cortland weather by month

How March compares with the rest of the year at a glance. March is the 9th-warmest and 8th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

Month	High / Low (°F)	Rainfall (inches)	Wet days	Snow days	Daylight (hours)	Travel score
Jan	30° / 16°	3.1	12.6	12.2	9.2	0.0
Feb	32° / 17°	2.7	10.9	9.5	10.3	0.0
Mar	41° / 25°	3.8	13	8.2	11.6	0.3
Apr	54° / 37°	4.2	13.5	2.9	13.1	3.0
May	65° / 47°	4.0	13.9	0.2	14.4	5.4
Jun	74° / 56°	4.4	12.8	0	15.1	6.3
Jul	78° / 60°	4.2	13	0	14.8	6.3
Aug	76° / 59°	3.9	12.3	0	13.7	6.6
Sep	69° / 52°	4.1	10.5	0	12.3	6.3
Oct	57° / 41°	4.2	13	0.6	10.8	3.8
Nov	45° / 31°	3.5	12.3	4.4	9.6	0.9
Dec	35° / 23°	3.6	13	10	8.9	0.0

Cloud cover in March

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 17% of the time in March.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 12% of March, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 71%. Skies tend to open up as the month goes on.

	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 (%)	25	25	25	26	26	27	27	27	27	28	29	30	30	30	30	30	30	31	31	30	30	32	32	32	32	32	32	32	31	31	31
Cloudier (%)	75	75	75	74	74	73	73	73	73	72	71	70	70	70	70	70	70	69	69	70	70	68	68	68	68	68	68	68	69	69	69

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	25	75
2	25	75
3	25	75
4	26	74
5	26	74
6	27	73
7	27	73
8	27	73
9	27	73
10	28	72
11	29	71
12	30	70
13	30	70
14	30	70
15	30	70
16	30	70
17	30	70
18	31	69
19	31	69
20	30	70
21	30	70
22	32	68
23	32	68
24	32	68
25	32	68
26	32	68
27	32	68
28	32	68
29	31	69
30	31	69
31	31	69

Chance of precipitation in March

Any precipitationSnow

Cortland gets around 3.8 in of rain and snow over 13 wet days in March. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Day to day, the chance of measurable precipitation averages around 42% and peaks near 45% on the wettest days, and about 8 days bring snow.

	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 (%)	43	43	43	43	43	43	43	43	42	42	42	42	41	41	41	41	41	40	40	40	41	41	41	42	42	43	43	44	44	44	45
Snow chance (%)	32	32	32	31	31	31	31	31	30	30	30	29	29	29	28	28	27	26	25	25	24	23	22	21	21	20	20	19	19	19	18

	Rain chance (%)	Snow chance (%)
1	43	32
2	43	32
3	43	32
4	43	31
5	43	31
6	43	31
7	43	31
8	43	31
9	42	30
10	42	30
11	42	30
12	42	29
13	41	29
14	41	29
15	41	28
16	41	28
17	41	27
18	40	26
19	40	25
20	40	25
21	41	24
22	41	23
23	41	22
24	42	21
25	42	21
26	43	20
27	43	20
28	44	19
29	44	19
30	44	19
31	45	18

Humidity in March

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

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

By dew point, March lands in the dry band about 100% 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 (%)	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100

	Dry (%)
1	100
2	100
3	100
4	100
5	100
6	100
7	100
8	100
9	100
10	100
11	100
12	100
13	100
14	100
15	100
16	100
17	100
18	100
19	100
20	100
21	100
22	100
23	100
24	100
25	100
26	100
27	100
28	100
29	100
30	100
31	100

Wind in March

Winds average 8 mph in March.

Across March, daily wind ranges from about 8 mph on the calmest days to 8 mph 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 (mph)	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8
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 (mph)	Feels
1	8	light breeze
2	8	light breeze
3	8	light breeze
4	8	light breeze
5	8	light breeze
6	8	light breeze
7	8	light breeze
8	8	light breeze
9	8	light breeze
10	8	light breeze
11	8	light breeze
12	8	light breeze
13	8	light breeze
14	8	light breeze
15	8	light breeze
16	8	light breeze
17	8	light breeze
18	8	light breeze
19	8	light breeze
20	8	light breeze
21	8	light breeze
22	8	light breeze
23	8	light breeze
24	8	light breeze
25	8	light breeze
26	8	light breeze
27	8	light breeze
28	8	light breeze
29	8	light breeze
30	8	light breeze
31	8	light breeze

Sunrise & sunset in March

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 10 h 54 min at the start of March to 12 h 24 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 90 minutes over March. Sunrise moves from 6:51 AM to 5:58 AM, and sunset from 5:45 PM to 6:21 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)	10.9	11.0	11.0	11.1	11.1	11.2	11.2	11.3	11.3	11.3	11.4	11.4	11.5	11.5	11.6	11.6	11.7	11.7	11.8	11.8	11.9	11.9	12.0	12.0	12.1	12.1	12.2	12.2	12.3	12.3	12.4
Sunrise (AM)	6:51	6:49	6:47	6:46	6:44	6:42	6:41	6:39	6:37	6:36	6:34	6:32	6:30	6:29	6:27	6:25	6:23	6:22	6:20	6:18	6:16	6:14	6:13	6:11	6:09	6:07	6:05	6:04	6:02	6:00	5:58
Sunset (PM)	5:45	5:47	5:48	5:49	5:50	5:52	5:53	5:54	5:55	5:56	5:58	5:59	6:00	6:01	6:02	6:04	6:05	6:06	6:07	6:08	6:10	6:11	6:12	6:13	6:14	6:15	6:17	6:18	6:19	6:20	6:21

	Daylight (h)	Sunrise (AM)	Sunset (PM)
1	10.9	6:51	5:45
2	11.0	6:49	5:47
3	11.0	6:47	5:48
4	11.1	6:46	5:49
5	11.1	6:44	5:50
6	11.2	6:42	5:52
7	11.2	6:41	5:53
8	11.3	6:39	5:54
9	11.3	6:37	5:55
10	11.3	6:36	5:56
11	11.4	6:34	5:58
12	11.4	6:32	5:59
13	11.5	6:30	6:00
14	11.5	6:29	6:01
15	11.6	6:27	6:02
16	11.6	6:25	6:04
17	11.7	6:23	6:05
18	11.7	6:22	6:06
19	11.8	6:20	6:07
20	11.8	6:18	6:08
21	11.9	6:16	6:10
22	11.9	6:14	6:11
23	12.0	6:13	6:12
24	12.0	6:11	6:13
25	12.1	6:09	6:14
26	12.1	6:07	6:15
27	12.2	6:05	6:17
28	12.2	6:04	6:18
29	12.3	6:02	6:19
30	12.3	6:00	6:20
31	12.4	5:58	6:21

Solar energy in March

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in March, about 3.72 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 1.31 kWh/m² to a high of 5.98 kWh/m² in June across the year — March's 3.72 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)	3.1	3.1	3.2	3.2	3.3	3.3	3.4	3.4	3.5	3.5	3.5	3.6	3.6	3.7	3.7	3.8	3.8	3.8	3.9	3.9	3.9	4.0	4.0	4.0	4.0	4.1	4.1	4.1	4.2	4.2	4.2
Level	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright

	Solar energy (kWh/m²)	Level
1	3.1	Moderate
2	3.1	Moderate
3	3.2	Moderate
4	3.2	Moderate
5	3.3	Moderate
6	3.3	Moderate
7	3.4	Moderate
8	3.4	Moderate
9	3.5	Moderate
10	3.5	Moderate
11	3.5	Moderate
12	3.6	Moderate
13	3.6	Moderate
14	3.7	Moderate
15	3.7	Moderate
16	3.8	Moderate
17	3.8	Moderate
18	3.8	Moderate
19	3.9	Moderate
20	3.9	Moderate
21	3.9	Moderate
22	4.0	Moderate
23	4.0	Bright
24	4.0	Bright
25	4.0	Bright
26	4.1	Bright
27	4.1	Bright
28	4.1	Bright
29	4.2	Bright
30	4.2	Bright
31	4.2	Bright

Planning a trip in March

Is March a good time to visit Cortland?

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

0.3

Sightseeing

9th-best month of the year

0.0

Beach & pool

8th-best month of the year

March is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Cortland.

What to pack for Cortland in March

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

In March, Cortland sees daytime highs around 41°F and nights near 25°F. Pack a warm layer and a heavy coat. Worth having: rain gear. About 13 days see rain.

a warm layera heavy coatrain gear

UV index in Cortland in March

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in March peaks around 4 — enough to warrant sun protection. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Cortland peaks around July 12 at about 8 (very high) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near January 1 at about 2 (low).

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

	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
UV index (midday)	2	2	4	5	8	8	9	6	6	3	2	2
Level	Low	Moderate	Moderate	High	Very high	Very high	Very high	High	High	Moderate	Moderate	Low

	UV index (midday)	Level
Jan	2	Low
Feb	2	Moderate
Mar	4	Moderate
Apr	5	High
May	8	Very high
Jun	8	Very high
Jul	9	Very high
Aug	6	High
Sep	6	High
Oct	3	Moderate
Nov	2	Moderate
Dec	2	Low

Location & terrain

Where is Cortland?

Cortland sits at 42.6°N, 76.2°W, 1,129 ft above sea level, in United States. The nearest listed city is Ithaca, 19 mi away.

Topography around Cortland

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

Within 2 miles, the terrain around Cortland has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 614 ft around an average of 1,220 ft above sea level; within 10 miles, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,178 ft; within 50 miles, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,847 ft.

The land around Cortland is covered by trees (43%) and grassland (28%) within 2 miles, trees (63%) and grassland (20%) within 10 miles, and trees (66%) within 50 miles.

2 miles

614 ft

trees 43%

10 miles

1,178 ft

trees 63%

50 miles

1,847 ft

trees 66%

treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater

← February Cortland year-round climate April →Best places to visit in March

March weather nearby: Ithaca 19 mi · Auburn 30 mi · Syracuse 31 mi · Vestal 36 mi · Binghamton 37 mi · Cicero 40 mi · Clay 40 mi · Elmira 48 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

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 Cortland (42.6012°, -76.1805°, elevation 1,129 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).

	Avg high (°F)	Avg low (°F)
1	36	20
2	36	21
3	36	21
4	37	21
5	37	21
6	37	22
7	38	22
8	38	22
9	38	22
10	39	22
11	39	23
12	39	23
13	40	23
14	40	24
15	40	24
16	41	24
17	41	25
18	41	25
19	42	26
20	42	26
21	42	26
22	43	27
23	43	27
24	44	28
25	44	28
26	45	29
27	45	29
28	46	29
29	46	30
30	47	30
31	47	31

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	25	75
2	25	75
3	25	75
4	26	74
5	26	74
6	27	73
7	27	73
8	27	73
9	27	73
10	28	72
11	29	71
12	30	70
13	30	70
14	30	70
15	30	70
16	30	70
17	30	70
18	31	69
19	31	69
20	30	70
21	30	70
22	32	68
23	32	68
24	32	68
25	32	68
26	32	68
27	32	68
28	32	68
29	31	69
30	31	69
31	31	69

	Rain chance (%)	Snow chance (%)
1	43	32
2	43	32
3	43	32
4	43	31
5	43	31
6	43	31
7	43	31
8	43	31
9	42	30
10	42	30
11	42	30
12	42	29
13	41	29
14	41	29
15	41	28
16	41	28
17	41	27
18	40	26
19	40	25
20	40	25
21	41	24
22	41	23
23	41	22
24	42	21
25	42	21
26	43	20
27	43	20
28	44	19
29	44	19
30	44	19
31	45	18

	Dry (%)
1	100
2	100
3	100
4	100
5	100
6	100
7	100
8	100
9	100
10	100
11	100
12	100
13	100
14	100
15	100
16	100
17	100
18	100
19	100
20	100
21	100
22	100
23	100
24	100
25	100
26	100
27	100
28	100
29	100
30	100
31	100

	Avg high (°F)	Avg low (°F)
1	36	20
2	36	21
3	36	21
4	37	21
5	37	21
6	37	22
7	38	22
8	38	22
9	38	22
10	39	22
11	39	23
12	39	23
13	40	23
14	40	24
15	40	24
16	41	24
17	41	25
18	41	25
19	42	26
20	42	26
21	42	26
22	43	27
23	43	27
24	44	28
25	44	28
26	45	29
27	45	29
28	46	29
29	46	30
30	47	30
31	47	31

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	25	75
2	25	75
3	25	75
4	26	74
5	26	74
6	27	73
7	27	73
8	27	73
9	27	73
10	28	72
11	29	71
12	30	70
13	30	70
14	30	70
15	30	70
16	30	70
17	30	70
18	31	69
19	31	69
20	30	70
21	30	70
22	32	68
23	32	68
24	32	68
25	32	68
26	32	68
27	32	68
28	32	68
29	31	69
30	31	69
31	31	69

	Rain chance (%)	Snow chance (%)
1	43	32
2	43	32
3	43	32
4	43	31
5	43	31
6	43	31
7	43	31
8	43	31
9	42	30
10	42	30
11	42	30
12	42	29
13	41	29
14	41	29
15	41	28
16	41	28
17	41	27
18	40	26
19	40	25
20	40	25
21	41	24
22	41	23
23	41	22
24	42	21
25	42	21
26	43	20
27	43	20
28	44	19
29	44	19
30	44	19
31	45	18

	Dry (%)
1	100
2	100
3	100
4	100
5	100
6	100
7	100
8	100
9	100
10	100
11	100
12	100
13	100
14	100
15	100
16	100
17	100
18	100
19	100
20	100
21	100
22	100
23	100
24	100
25	100
26	100
27	100
28	100
29	100
30	100
31	100

	Avg high (°F)	Avg low (°F)
1	36	20
2	36	21
3	36	21
4	37	21
5	37	21
6	37	22
7	38	22
8	38	22
9	38	22
10	39	22
11	39	23
12	39	23
13	40	23
14	40	24
15	40	24
16	41	24
17	41	25
18	41	25
19	42	26
20	42	26
21	42	26
22	43	27
23	43	27
24	44	28
25	44	28
26	45	29
27	45	29
28	46	29
29	46	30
30	47	30
31	47	31

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	25	75
2	25	75
3	25	75
4	26	74
5	26	74
6	27	73
7	27	73
8	27	73
9	27	73
10	28	72
11	29	71
12	30	70
13	30	70
14	30	70
15	30	70
16	30	70
17	30	70
18	31	69
19	31	69
20	30	70
21	30	70
22	32	68
23	32	68
24	32	68
25	32	68
26	32	68
27	32	68
28	32	68
29	31	69
30	31	69
31	31	69

	Rain chance (%)	Snow chance (%)
1	43	32
2	43	32
3	43	32
4	43	31
5	43	31
6	43	31
7	43	31
8	43	31
9	42	30
10	42	30
11	42	30
12	42	29
13	41	29
14	41	29
15	41	28
16	41	28
17	41	27
18	40	26
19	40	25
20	40	25
21	41	24
22	41	23
23	41	22
24	42	21
25	42	21
26	43	20
27	43	20
28	44	19
29	44	19
30	44	19
31	45	18

	Dry (%)
1	100
2	100
3	100
4	100
5	100
6	100
7	100
8	100
9	100
10	100
11	100
12	100
13	100
14	100
15	100
16	100
17	100
18	100
19	100
20	100
21	100
22	100
23	100
24	100
25	100
26	100
27	100
28	100
29	100
30	100
31	100