Climate and average weather in Greensboro

In Greensboro, the summers are humid, hot, showery, and partly cloudy and the winters are cool, snowy, and partly cloudy.

Best: late March to early June

Over the course of the year, the temperature in Greensboro typically varies from 32°F to 88°F, and is rarely below 20°F or above 95°F. July is the hottest month of the year, while January is the coldest.

Based on the travel score, the best times of year to visit Greensboro for warm-weather activities are from late March to early June and early September to early November.

Hottest
Jul
88°
Coldest
Jan
32°
Wettest
Mar
4.3 in
Driest
Oct
3.1 in
Rain / yr
43.9 in
122 wet days
Daylight
9.5–14.5 h
shortest–longest
Elevation
873 ft
36.1°N
Clearest
Oct
47% cloud

Greensboro is city in North Carolina, United States of America.

Density
836/km²
people per km²
Founded
1808

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

Greensboro 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 March to early June.

Temperature through the year

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

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

The hot season lasts 4.1 months, from May 20 to September 20, with daily high temperatures above 78°F. The hottest month of the year in Greensboro is July, with an average high of 88°F and low of 71°F.

The cool season lasts 3.1 months, from November 28 to March 1, with daily high temperatures below 57°F. The coldest month of the year in Greensboro is January, with an average low of 32°F and high of 49°F.

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

20°40°60°80°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Avg high (°F)Avg low (°F)
Jan4932
Feb5335
Mar6141
Apr7050
May7859
Jun8567
Jul8871
Aug8669
Sep8063
Oct7051
Nov6041
Dec5235

How hot and cold Greensboro 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 hottest afternoons, once humidity is folded in, Greensboro feels like about 92°F (around July 21). About 38 days a year carry some heat stress, peaking in July.

On the coldest nights, wind chill pulls the feels-like down to about 25°F (around January 23), with roughly 90 freezing days a year (feels-like at or below 32°F), worst in January.

20°40°60°80°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Feels-like high (°F)Air high (°F)Feels-like low (°F)Air low (°F)
Jan49492632
Feb53532935
Mar61613641
Apr70704850
May78785959
Jun86856767
Jul91887171
Aug89866969
Sep80806363
Oct70705051
Nov60603641
Dec52523035

Average hourly temperature in Greensboro

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 88°F, and coldest before dawn in January, near 32°F.

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

Greensboro 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
Jan49° / 32°3.79.31.59.82.2
Feb53° / 35°3.28.81.510.63.0
Mar61° / 41°4.310.20.711.75.0
Apr70° / 50°3.59.3012.96.6
May78° / 59°3.511.2013.96.5
Jun85° / 67°3.913014.44.9
Jul88° / 71°4.014.6014.24.0
Aug86° / 69°3.812013.44.7
Sep80° / 63°4.19.7012.26.5
Oct70° / 51°3.17.3011.17.1
Nov60° / 41°3.37.70.110.15.2
Dec52° / 35°3.68.90.79.62.9

Chance of rain

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

Greensboro gets about 43.9 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 4.4 months, from around Apr 22 to Sep 2, peaking in July at about 49% chance on a given day. The drier stretch runs the rest of the year, bottoming out around Oct 19.

March is the wettest month by volume, with 4.3 in over about 10 wet days; October is the driest, with 3.1 in. Some of the cold-season precipitation falls as snow.

0%10%20%30%40%50%60%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecdrierwetterdriermostly drysome rainoften wetvery wetJul 24 · 49%Oct 19 · 24%
Rain on a day (%)Rain days
Jan309
Feb319
Mar3210
Apr329
May3711
Jun4313
Jul4615
Aug4012
Sep3110
Oct257
Nov258
Dec299

Monthly rainfall

Over a full year, Greensboro collects about 43.9 in of rain across 122 wet days — roughly 3.7 in in an average month.

It doesn’t fall evenly. March is the wettest month with 4.3 in, while October is the driest at just 3.1 in. The three wettest months alone bring about 28% of the year’s total, and some of the cold-season precipitation falls as snow.

012345JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec3.73.24.33.53.53.94.03.84.13.13.33.6
Rainfall (in)Rain daysSnow days
Jan3.792
Feb3.292
Mar4.3101
Apr3.590
May3.5110
Jun3.9130
Jul4.0150
Aug3.8120
Sep4.1100
Oct3.170
Nov3.380
Dec3.691

Snow in Greensboro

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.

Greensboro averages about 5 snowy days a year. Snow season runs roughly Dec 6 to Mar 22 — about 3.5 months.

January is snowiest, with roughly 1.4 day of snow and an estimated 3 in of snowfall. Over the year that adds up to an estimated 10 in of snow.

01234JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecsnow seasonJan 19
Snow daysSnowfall (in)
Jan23
Feb23
Mar12
Apr00
May00
Jun00
Jul00
Aug00
Sep00
Oct00
Nov00
Dec12

Clouds and sunshine

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

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

In Greensboro, 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 September 25 and lasts for 2.3 months, ending around December 3. The clearest month is October, when the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 59% of the time on average.

The cloudier part of the year begins around April 20 and lasts for 3.8 months, ending around August 14. The cloudiest month is July, when it is overcast or mostly cloudy 53% 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%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecOct 21 · 62%Jun 2 · 46%clearmostly clearpartly cloudymostly cloudyovercastcloudierclearercloudier
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
Jan5347
Feb4852
Mar5050
Apr5248
May4852
Jun4951
Jul4753
Aug5149
Sep5248
Oct5941
Nov5743
Dec5050

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 20, brings about 14 h 30 min of light; the shortest, around December 19, only 9 h 30 min — a swing of roughly 5 hours.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AMJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
Jan9.87:345:22
Feb10.67:155:53
Mar11.76:376:20
Apr12.95:526:47
May13.95:187:13
Jun14.45:067:33
Jul14.25:187:32
Aug13.45:427:05
Sep12.26:076:20
Oct11.16:325:36
Nov10.17:035:06
Dec9.67:295:02

Sunny days

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

Greensboro averages about 11 sunny days a month — counting the days the sky stays clear or mostly clear — with a clear seasonal swing between 7 and 15 days.

The sunnier stretch runs 5.2 months, from around Sep 4 to Feb 9. The sunniest month is October, with roughly 14 sunny days (mixed).

The greyest month is July, down near 8 sunny days — about 46% fewer than the October peak.

05101520JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecsunniergreyersunniergloomymixedbrightOct 2315 daysJul 157 days
Sunny daysSky
Jan13Mixed
Feb10Mixed
Mar11Mixed
Apr11Mixed
May9Mixed
Jun8Gloomy
Jul8Gloomy
Aug9Mixed
Sep11Mixed
Oct14Mixed
Nov14Mixed
Dec12Mixed

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 Greensboro, how humid it feels changes dramatically over the year.

The more humid part of the year lasts 4.7 months, from around May 14 to October 4. The muggiest month is July, when the air feels humid, muggy or worse about 91% of the time.

The most comfortable stretch runs from around October 5 to May 13, and March is the most comfortable month — the air is dry or comfortable 99% of the time.

0%10%20%30%40%50%60%70%80%90%100%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecMar 7 · 100%Jul 22 · 7%oppressivecomfortablehumidmuggydrycomfortablehumidcomfortable
Dry (%)Comfortable (%)Humid (%)Muggy (%)Oppressive (%)
Jan972100
Feb972100
Mar936100
Apr7914610
May432123131
Jun1115243911
Jul27154432
Aug38204029
Sep221824288
Oct65161261
Nov898310
Dec953100

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 Greensboro is typically calm, near 6 mph, and varies little with the seasons.

The windier part of the year lasts 6.5 months, from around Oct 31 to May 16. The windiest month is April, averaging about 7 mph (calm).

The calmer part of the year runs from around May 17 to Oct 30, with August the calmest month at about 5 mph.

0510JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecwindiercalmerwindiercalmlight breezeApr 7 · 7 mphAug 9 · 5 mph
Wind speed (mph)Feels
Jan7calm
Feb7calm
Mar7calm
Apr7calm
May6calm
Jun5calm
Jul5calm
Aug5calm
Sep5calm
Oct6calm
Nov6calm
Dec6calm

Best time to visit Greensboro

TravelBeach/poolTemperatureCloudsPrecipitation

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

Around early April, Greensboro 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 times of year to visit Greensboro for general outdoor tourist activities run from late March to early June and again from early September to early November, with a peak score in the first week of October.

0246810JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbest timebest timetravel scoretemperaturecloudsprecipitationOct 4 · 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
Jan2.2poor
Feb3.1poor
Mar5.0fair
Apr6.6good
May6.5good
Jun5.0fair
Jul4.0fair
Aug4.7fair
Sep6.5good
Oct7.0good
Nov5.2fair
Dec2.9poor

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 Greensboro for hot-weather activities is from early May to early October, with a peak score in the first week of September.

024681012JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbest timebeach/pool scoretemperaturecloudsprecipitationSep 5 · 6.9

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 Greensboro, 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 88°F), the essentials are light clothes, rain gear and sun protection. In the cold season around January (highs near 49°F), pack a warm layer and rain gear.

Light clothing
Warm layer
Winter coat
Rain gear
Sun protection
Windbreaker

In July, Greensboro sees daytime highs around 88°F and nights near 71°F. Pack light clothes and rain gear. Worth having: sun protection. About 15 days see rain.

UV index (midday) in Greensboro 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 Greensboro peaks around July 14 at about 9 (very high) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 20 at about 2 (moderate).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 10 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModerateHighVery highHighModerateJul 14UV 9Dec 20UV 2
UV index (midday)Level
Jan3Moderate
Feb4Moderate
Mar6High
Apr7High
May8Very high
Jun9Very high
Jul10Very high
Aug8Very high
Sep7High
Oct5Moderate
Nov4Moderate
Dec2Moderate

Average hourly UV index in Greensboro

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 5.5 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
Feb3.50
Mar5.50
Apr6.53
May7.54
Jun85
Jul8.55.5
Aug7.54.5
Sep6.52.5
Oct4.50
Nov2.50
Dec00

Air quality in Greensboro 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 Greensboro is worst in July — around 18 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 2.3× the cleanest month (December, 8 µg/m³).

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

01020JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecGoodModerateGoodJul 1718 µg/m³Dec 128 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan9Good
Feb10Good
Mar12Moderate
Apr12Moderate
May14Moderate
Jun16Moderate
Jul18Moderate
Aug17Moderate
Sep12Moderate
Oct10Good
Nov8Good
Dec8Good
Almanac & agriculture

Growing season

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

The growing season in Greensboro typically lasts about 351 days, from around January 31 to January 16 — the span where a frost-free day is more likely than not. It is reliably frost-free from March 27 to November 4.

0%25%50%75%100%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecgrowing seasonJan 3150%Mar 2790%Nov 490%Jan 1650%
Frost-free chance (%)Frost nights
Jan5131
Feb6128
Mar8224
Apr980
May1000
Jun1000
Jul1000
Aug1000
Sep1000
Oct980
Nov8125
Dec6331

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. Greensboro banks about 4,449 degree days a year, and the running total — which growers use to time plantings and predict maturity — climbs fastest around July.

01,0002,0003,0004,0005,000JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Growing degree days (°F·days)
Jan0
Feb0
Mar48
Apr304
May561
Jun771
Jul907
Aug854
Sep640
Oct331
Nov33
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.

Greensboro receives about 4.4 kWh/m² a day of solar energy on average — bright — with a clear seasonal swing between 2.2 and 6.2 kWh/m².

The brighter stretch of the year lasts 6.2 months, from around Mar 14 to Sep 18. The brightest month is June, averaging about 6.1 kWh/m² (intense).

The dimmest month is December, down near 2.3 kWh/m² — roughly 63% less than the June peak.

01234567JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecdimmerbrighterdimmerdimmoderatebrightintenseJun 276.2 kWhDec 202.2 kWh
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
Jan2.5Moderate
Feb3.3Moderate
Mar4.4Bright
Apr5.5Bright
May5.9Bright
Jun6.2Intense
Jul6.0Bright
Aug5.4Bright
Sep4.5Bright
Oct3.7Moderate
Nov2.8Moderate
Dec2.3Moderate

Where is Greensboro?

Greensboro sits at 36.1°N, 79.8°W, 873 ft above sea level, in United States. The nearest listed city is High Point, 14 mi away.

Topography around Greensboro

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

Within 2 miles, the terrain around Greensboro has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 197 ft around an average of 807 ft above sea level; within 10 miles, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 584 ft; within 50 miles, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 3,051 ft.

The land around Greensboro is covered by trees (47%) and artificial surfaces (42%) within 2 miles, trees (66%) within 10 miles, and trees (80%) within 50 miles.

2 miles
197 ft
10 miles
584 ft
50 miles
3,051 ft
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaceswater
Nearby: High Point 14 mi · Kernersville 16 mi · Burlington 20 mi · Thomasville 21 mi · Asheboro 25 mi · Winston-Salem 25 mi · Eden 29 mi · Lexington 31 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 Greensboro (36.0726°, -79.792°, elevation 873 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. 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).