Climate and average weather in Hanover

In Hanover, the summers are warm, showery, and partly cloudy and the winters are cold, breezy, snowy, and partly cloudy.

Best: late May to early October

Over the course of the year, the temperature in Hanover typically varies from 26°F to 77°F, and is rarely below 10°F or above 85°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 Hanover for warm-weather activities is from late May to early October.

Hottest
Jul
77°
Coldest
Jan
26°
Wettest
Dec
4.8 in
Driest
Jul
2.8 in
Rain / yr
46.8 in
120 wet days
Daylight
8.9–15.1 h
shortest–longest
Elevation
52 ft
42.1°N
Clearest
Sep
53% cloud

Hanover is town in Massachusetts, United States.

Founded
1649

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

Hanover 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 early October.

Temperature through the year

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

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

The hot season lasts 3.7 months, from June 4 to September 24, with daily high temperatures above 67°F. The hottest month of the year in Hanover is July, with an average high of 77°F and low of 66°F.

The cool season lasts 3.5 months, from December 7 to March 21, with daily high temperatures below 44°F. The coldest month of the year in Hanover is January, with an average low of 26°F and high of 37°F.

Days typically run about 11°F warmer than nights year-round.

20°40°60°80°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Avg high (°F)Avg low (°F)
Jan3726
Feb3827
Mar4333
Apr5241
May6150
Jun7159
Jul7766
Aug7665
Sep7059
Oct6050
Nov5140
Dec4232

How hot and cold Hanover 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 14°F (around January 23), with roughly 141 freezing days a year (feels-like at or below 32°F) 4 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)
Jan37371526
Feb38381627
Mar43432433
Apr52523541
May61614850
Jun71715959
Jul77776666
Aug76766565
Sep70705959
Oct60604750
Nov51513340
Dec42422332

Average hourly temperature in Hanover

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 77°F, and coldest before dawn in January, near 26°F.

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

Hanover 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
Jan37° / 26°4.110.65.29.30.0
Feb38° / 27°3.59.5510.30.0
Mar43° / 33°4.811.34.511.70.6
Apr52° / 41°4.211.30.913.12.7
May61° / 50°3.311014.44.9
Jun71° / 59°3.49.20156.6
Jul77° / 66°2.88.9014.87.0
Aug76° / 65°3.39013.77.2
Sep70° / 59°3.78.2012.36.8
Oct60° / 50°4.69.60.110.85.0
Nov51° / 40°4.19.70.59.62.4
Dec42° / 32°4.811.33.590.4

Chance of rain

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

Hanover gets about 46.8 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 3.6 months, from around Feb 6 to May 26, peaking in April at about 39% chance on a given day. The drier stretch runs the rest of the year, bottoming out around Aug 30.

December is the wettest month by volume, with 4.8 in over about 11 wet days; July is the driest, with 2.8 in. Some of the cold-season precipitation falls as snow.

0%10%20%30%40%50%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecdrierwetterdriermostly drysome rainoften wetvery wetApr 27 · 39%Aug 30 · 25%
Rain on a day (%)Rain days
Jan3411
Feb3410
Mar3611
Apr3711
May3611
Jun309
Jul299
Aug309
Sep278
Oct3110
Nov3210
Dec3611

Monthly rainfall

Over a full year, Hanover collects about 46.8 in of rain across 120 wet days — roughly 3.9 in in an average month.

It doesn’t fall evenly. December is the wettest month with 4.8 in, while July is the driest at just 2.8 in. The three wettest months alone bring about 31% of the year’s total, and some of the cold-season precipitation falls as snow.

0123456JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec4.13.54.84.23.33.42.83.33.74.64.14.8
Rainfall (in)Rain daysSnow days
Jan4.1115
Feb3.5105
Mar4.8115
Apr4.2111
May3.3110
Jun3.490
Jul2.890
Aug3.390
Sep3.780
Oct4.6100
Nov4.1101
Dec4.8114

Snow in Hanover

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.

Hanover averages about 20 snowy days a year. Snow season runs roughly Nov 8 to Apr 20 — about 5.4 months.

February is snowiest, with roughly 6 days of snow and an estimated 16 in of snowfall. Over the year that adds up to an estimated 54 in of snow.

02468JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecsnow seasonsnow seasonFeb 25
Snow daysSnowfall (in)
Jan513
Feb516
Mar512
Apr12
May00
Jun00
Jul00
Aug00
Sep00
Oct00
Nov11
Dec411

Clouds and sunshine

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

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

In Hanover, 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 December 1. The clearest month is August, when the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 56% of the time on average.

The cloudier part of the year begins around January 5 and lasts for 5.6 months, ending around June 22. The cloudiest month is April, when it is overcast or mostly cloudy 58% 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 28 · 58%Apr 5 · 39%clearmostly clearpartly cloudymostly cloudyovercastcloudierclearercloudier
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
Jan4753
Feb4555
Mar4258
Apr4258
May4258
Jun4654
Jul5248
Aug5644
Sep5545
Oct5347
Nov4951
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 16, brings about 15 h 06 min of light; the shortest, around December 15, 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)
Jan9.37:154:30
Feb10.36:495:07
Mar11.76:035:42
Apr13.15:096:18
May14.44:286:51
Jun15.04:127:15
Jul14.84:257:13
Aug13.74:566:39
Sep12.35:295:46
Oct10.86:034:53
Nov9.66:414:16
Dec9.07:114:08

Sunny days

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

Hanover averages about 10 sunny days a month — counting the days the sky stays clear or mostly clear — with a clear seasonal swing between 8 and 13 days.

The sunnier stretch runs 4.3 months, from around Jul 26 to Dec 2. The sunniest month is August, with roughly 12 sunny days (mixed).

The greyest month is April, down near 8 sunny days — about 33% fewer than the August peak.

051015JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecgreyersunniergreyergloomymixedAug 2813 daysApr 98 days
Sunny daysSky
Jan10Mixed
Feb9Mixed
Mar8Gloomy
Apr8Gloomy
May8Gloomy
Jun9Mixed
Jul10Mixed
Aug12Mixed
Sep12Mixed
Oct12Mixed
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 Hanover, how humid it feels changes dramatically over the year.

The more humid part of the year lasts 3.8 months, from around June 6 to September 29. The muggiest month is July, when the air feels humid, muggy or worse about 71% of the time.

The most comfortable stretch runs from around September 30 to June 5, 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 11 · 100%Jul 31 · 23%oppressivemuggydryhumidcomfortablecomfortablehumidcomfortable
Dry (%)Comfortable (%)Humid (%)Muggy (%)Oppressive (%)
Jan1000000
Feb1000000
Mar1000000
Apr991000
May8511400
Jun392723101
Jul82231328
Aug102133288
Sep382622131
Oct8113520
Nov972000
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 Hanover is typically light breeze, near 10 mph, and varies moderately with the seasons.

The windier part of the year lasts 6.4 months, from around Oct 11 to Apr 23. The windiest month is January, averaging about 12 mph (light breeze).

The calmer part of the year runs from around Apr 24 to Oct 10, with August the calmest month at about 8 mph.

051015JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecwindiercalmerwindiercalmlight breezebreezyJan 15 · 12 mphAug 8 · 8 mph
Wind speed (mph)Feels
Jan12light breeze
Feb12light breeze
Mar11light breeze
Apr10light breeze
May9light breeze
Jun9light breeze
Jul8light breeze
Aug8light breeze
Sep9light breeze
Oct10light breeze
Nov11light breeze
Dec12light breeze

Hazard calendar for Hanover

In seasonPeak

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

Hanover 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 Hanover

TravelBeach/poolTemperatureCloudsPrecipitation

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

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

0246810JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbest timetravel scoretemperaturecloudsprecipitationAug 26 · 7.4

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
Jan0.0poor
Feb0.0poor
Mar0.6poor
Apr2.7poor
May4.9fair
Jun6.6good
Jul7.0good
Aug7.1good
Sep6.8good
Oct5.0fair
Nov2.5poor
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 Hanover for hot-weather activities is from late June to early September, with a peak score in the second week of July.

024681012JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbest timebeach/pool scoretemperaturecloudsprecipitationJul 11 · 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 Hanover, 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 77°F), the essentials are light clothes, rain gear and sun protection. In the cold season around January (highs near 37°F), pack a warm layer, a heavy coat and rain gear.

Light clothing
Warm layer
Winter coat
Rain gear
Sun protection
Windbreaker

In July, Hanover sees daytime highs around 77°F and nights near 66°F. Pack sun protection. Worth having: light clothes and rain gear. About 9 days see rain.

Sea temperature near Hanover

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 9 mi away) is warmest in August at about 66°F and coldest in February near 38°F.

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

40°50°60°70°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbracingcoolrefreshing
Sea temperature (°F)Comfort
Jan41Bracing
Feb38Bracing
Mar38Bracing
Apr42Bracing
May50Bracing
Jun58Bracing
Jul65Cool
Aug66Cool
Sep63Cool
Oct57Bracing
Nov51Bracing
Dec46Bracing

UV index (midday) in Hanover 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 Hanover peaks around July 10 at about 8 (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 highHighHighModerateLowJul 10UV 8Dec 23UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan1Low
Feb3Moderate
Mar4Moderate
Apr5High
May7Very high
Jun8Very high
Jul8Very high
Aug5Moderate
Sep6High
Oct3Moderate
Nov2Moderate
Dec1Low

Average hourly UV index in Hanover

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
Apr60
May7.53.5
Jun84
Jul7.54
Aug60
Sep5.50
Oct20
Nov00
Dec00
Almanac & agriculture

Growing season

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

The growing season in Hanover typically lasts about 274 days, from around March 16 to December 14 — the span where a frost-free day is more likely than not. It is reliably frost-free from April 7 to November 10.

0%25%50%75%100%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecgrowing seasonMar 1650%Apr 790%Nov 1090%Dec 1450%
Frost-free chance (%)Frost nights
Jan2831
Feb2728
Mar5531
Apr954
May1000
Jun1000
Jul1000
Aug1000
Sep1000
Oct990
Nov8520
Dec5031

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. Hanover banks about 2,501 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
Apr2
May172
Jun449
Jul663
Aug634
Sep430
Oct151
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.

Hanover receives about 4.0 kWh/m² a day of solar energy on average — bright — with a clear seasonal swing between 1.6 and 6.3 kWh/m².

The brighter stretch of the year lasts 6.2 months, from around Mar 18 to Sep 21. The brightest month is July, averaging about 6.1 kWh/m² (intense).

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

01234567JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecdimmerbrighterdimmerdimmoderatebrightintenseJul 16.3 kWhDec 171.6 kWh
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
Jan1.9Dim
Feb2.9Moderate
Mar3.9Moderate
Apr5.0Bright
May5.7Bright
Jun6.1Intense
Jul6.1Intense
Aug5.4Bright
Sep4.3Bright
Oct3.0Moderate
Nov2.1Moderate
Dec1.6Dim

Where is Hanover?

Hanover sits at 42.1°N, 70.8°W, 52 ft above sea level, in United States. The nearest listed city is Rockland, 5.6 mi away.

Topography around Hanover

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

Within 2 miles, the terrain around Hanover has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 240 ft around an average of 89 ft above sea level; within 10 miles, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 302 ft; within 50 miles, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 935 ft.

The land around Hanover is covered by trees (85%) within 2 miles, trees (69%) within 10 miles, and trees (47%) and water (45%) within 50 miles.

2 miles
240 ft
10 miles
302 ft
50 miles
935 ft
treesgrasslandartificial surfaceswaterwetland
Nearby: Rockland 5.6 mi · Abington 6.8 mi · Duxbury 8.7 mi · Weymouth 9.9 mi · Brockton 11 mi · Braintree 12 mi · Randolph 12 mi · Quincy 14 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 Hanover (42.1132°, -70.812°, elevation 52 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).