Climate and average weather in Marblehead

In Marblehead, the summers are mild, showery, and partly cloudy and the winters are cold, breezy, snowy, and partly cloudy.

Best: mid June to late September

Over the course of the year, the temperature in Marblehead typically varies from 26°F to 70°F, and is rarely below 10°F or above 77°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 Marblehead for warm-weather activities is from mid June to late September.

Hottest
Jul
70°
Coldest
Jan
26°
Wettest
Dec
5.4 in
Driest
Jul
2.7 in
Rain / yr
50.6 in
120 wet days
Daylight
8.9–15.1 h
shortest–longest
Elevation
59 ft
42.5°N
Clearest
Sep
52% cloud

Marblehead is town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States.

Density
391/km²
people per km²
Founded
1629

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

Marblehead 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 mid June to late September.

Temperature through the year

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Daily average highs and lows in Marblehead, 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 9 to September 29, with daily high temperatures above 62°F. The hottest month of the year in Marblehead is July, with an average high of 70°F and low of 65°F.

The cool season lasts 3.5 months, from December 11 to March 27, with daily high temperatures below 42°F. The coldest month of the year in Marblehead is January, with an average low of 26°F and high of 36°F.

Days typically run about 7°F warmer than nights year-round.

20°40°60°80°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Avg high (°F)Avg low (°F)
Jan3626
Feb3727
Mar4032
Apr4741
May5549
Jun6459
Jul7065
Aug7065
Sep6560
Oct5751
Nov4942
Dec4133

How hot and cold Marblehead 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 12°F (around January 23), with roughly 142 freezing days a year (feels-like at or below 32°F) 31 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)
Jan36361426
Feb37371527
Mar40402232
Apr47473441
May55554649
Jun64645959
Jul70706565
Aug70706565
Sep65656060
Oct57574951
Nov49493442
Dec41412333

Average hourly temperature in Marblehead

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 70°F, and coldest before dawn in January, near 26°F.

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

Marblehead 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
Jan36° / 26°4.310.75.89.20.0
Feb37° / 27°3.89.5510.30.0
Mar40° / 32°5.211.54.411.60.1
Apr47° / 41°4.811.21.113.11.5
May55° / 49°3.910.8014.43.6
Jun64° / 59°3.79.5015.15.8
Jul70° / 65°2.78.6014.86.8
Aug70° / 65°3.27.9013.76.9
Sep65° / 60°3.88.2012.36.3
Oct57° / 51°5.210.50.110.84.2
Nov49° / 42°4.610.40.69.62.0
Dec41° / 33°5.411.43.88.90.2

Chance of rain

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

Marblehead gets about 50.6 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 3.4 months, from around Feb 10 to May 24, peaking in April at about 39% chance on a given day. The drier stretch runs the rest of the year, bottoming out around Aug 28.

December is the wettest month by volume, with 5.4 in over about 11 wet days; July is the driest, with 2.7 in. Some of the cold-season precipitation falls as snow.

0%10%20%30%40%50%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecdrierwetterdriermostly drysome rainoften wetvery wetApr 2 · 39%Aug 28 · 24%
Rain on a day (%)Rain days
Jan3511
Feb3410
Mar3712
Apr3711
May3511
Jun3110
Jul289
Aug268
Sep278
Oct3411
Nov3510
Dec3711

Monthly rainfall

Over a full year, Marblehead collects about 50.6 in of rain across 120 wet days — roughly 4.2 in in an average month.

It doesn’t fall evenly. December is the wettest month with 5.4 in, while July is the driest at just 2.7 in. The three wettest months alone bring about 31% of the year’s total, and some of the cold-season precipitation falls as snow.

01234567JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec4.33.85.24.83.93.72.73.23.85.24.65.4
Rainfall (in)Rain daysSnow days
Jan4.3116
Feb3.8105
Mar5.2124
Apr4.8111
May3.9110
Jun3.7100
Jul2.790
Aug3.280
Sep3.880
Oct5.2110
Nov4.6101
Dec5.4114

Snow in Marblehead

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.

Marblehead averages about 21 snowy days a year. Snow season runs roughly Nov 8 to Apr 22 — about 5.5 months.

January is snowiest, with roughly 6 days of snow and an estimated 14 in of snowfall. Over the year that adds up to an estimated 58 in of snow.

02468JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecsnow seasonsnow seasonJan 13
Snow daysSnowfall (in)
Jan614
Feb516
Mar413
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 Marblehead, 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 5.1 months, ending around November 23. The clearest month is August, when the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 57% of the time on average.

The cloudier part of the year begins around February 8 and lasts for 4.4 months, ending around June 22. The cloudiest month is April, when it is overcast or mostly cloudy 57% 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 · 60%Apr 8 · 41%clearmostly clearpartly cloudymostly cloudyovercastcloudierclearercloudier
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
Jan4951
Feb4753
Mar4456
Apr4357
May4357
Jun4753
Jul5446
Aug5743
Sep5743
Oct5545
Nov5050
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 12, brings about 15 h 06 min of light; the shortest, around January 1, 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)
Jan9.27:164:29
Feb10.36:505:06
Mar11.66:045:42
Apr13.15:096:18
May14.44:276:52
Jun15.14:117:17
Jul14.84:247:14
Aug13.74:556:40
Sep12.35:295:46
Oct10.86:044:53
Nov9.66:434:15
Dec8.97:134:07

Sunny days

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

Marblehead 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 24 to Nov 30. The sunniest month is August, with roughly 12 sunny days (mixed).

The greyest month is April, down near 8 sunny days — about 35% fewer than the August peak.

05101520JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecgreyersunniergreyergloomymixedbrightAug 2913 daysApr 108 days
Sunny daysSky
Jan10Mixed
Feb9Mixed
Mar9Mixed
Apr8Gloomy
May8Gloomy
Jun9Mixed
Jul10Mixed
Aug12Mixed
Sep13Mixed
Oct12Mixed
Nov11Mixed
Dec10Mixed

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

The more humid part of the year lasts 3.4 months, from around June 16 to September 26. The muggiest month is August, when the air feels humid, muggy or worse about 71% of the time.

The most comfortable stretch runs from around September 27 to June 15, 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 25 · 100%Aug 1 · 20%muggydrycomfortablehumidcomfortablehumidcomfortable
Dry (%)Comfortable (%)Humid (%)Muggy (%)Oppressive (%)
Jan1000000
Feb1000000
Mar1000000
Apr1000000
May927100
Jun42351940
Jul42443271
Aug62343271
Sep37312670
Oct8412400
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 Marblehead is typically breezy, near 13 mph, and varies moderately with the seasons.

The windier part of the year lasts 6.1 months, from around Oct 11 to Apr 13. The windiest month is January, averaging about 16 mph (breezy).

The calmer part of the year runs from around Apr 14 to Oct 10, with August the calmest month at about 10 mph.

05101520JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecwindiercalmerwindiercalmlight breezebreezywindyJan 12 · 16 mphAug 5 · 10 mph
Wind speed (mph)Feels
Jan16breezy
Feb15breezy
Mar14breezy
Apr13breezy
May11light breeze
Jun11light breeze
Jul10light breeze
Aug10light breeze
Sep11light breeze
Oct13breezy
Nov14breezy
Dec15breezy

Hazard calendar for Marblehead

In seasonPeak

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

Marblehead 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 Marblehead

TravelBeach/poolTemperatureCloudsPrecipitation

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

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

0246810JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbest timetravel scoretemperaturecloudsprecipitationAug 25 · 7.0

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
Mar0.1poor
Apr1.5poor
May3.6fair
Jun5.8good
Jul6.8good
Aug6.9good
Sep6.3good
Oct4.2fair
Nov2.0poor
Dec0.3poor

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 Marblehead for hot-weather activities is from early July to early September, with a peak score in the last week of July.

024681012JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbest timebeach/pool scoretemperaturecloudsprecipitationJul 27 · 4.6

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 Marblehead, 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 70°F), the essentials are rain gear and sun protection. In the cold season around January (highs near 36°F), pack a warm layer, a heavy coat, rain gear and a windbreaker.

Light clothing
Warm layer
Winter coat
Rain gear
Sun protection
Windbreaker

In July, Marblehead sees daytime highs around 70°F and nights near 65°F. Pack sun protection. Worth having: rain gear. About 9 days see rain.

Sea temperature near Marblehead

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
Oct56Bracing
Nov50Bracing
Dec46Bracing

UV index (midday) in Marblehead 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 Marblehead peaks around July 10 at about 7 (very high) — sunscreen and a hat are worth it in the middle of the day. It bottoms out near January 1 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 7Jan 1UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan1Low
Feb3Moderate
Mar4Moderate
Apr5High
May7Very high
Jun7Very high
Jul7Very high
Aug5Moderate
Sep6High
Oct3Moderate
Nov2Moderate
Dec1Low

Average hourly UV index in Marblehead

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 3.5 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
Mar3.50
Apr60
May7.53.5
Jun84
Jul7.53.5
Aug5.50
Sep5.50
Oct20
Nov00
Dec00
Almanac & agriculture

Growing season

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

The growing season in Marblehead typically lasts about 277 days, from around March 17 to December 18 — the span where a frost-free day is more likely than not. It is reliably frost-free from April 4 to November 20.

0%25%50%75%100%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecgrowing seasonMar 1750%Apr 490%Nov 2090%Dec 1850%
Frost-free chance (%)Frost nights
Jan2831
Feb2728
Mar5331
Apr973
May1000
Jun1000
Jul1000
Aug1000
Sep1000
Oct1000
Nov9211
Dec5531

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. Marblehead banks about 2,045 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
May82
Jun344
Jul553
Aug548
Sep385
Oct133
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.

Marblehead receives about 4.0 kWh/m² a day of solar energy on average — moderate — with a clear seasonal swing between 1.5 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 6.0 kWh/m² (intense).

The dimmest month is December, down near 1.6 kWh/m² — roughly 74% less than the July peak.

01234567JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecdimmerbrighterdimmerdimmoderatebrightintenseJul 26.3 kWhDec 171.5 kWh
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
Jan1.9Dim
Feb2.8Moderate
Mar3.9Moderate
Apr5.0Bright
May5.7Bright
Jun6.0Intense
Jul6.1Intense
Aug5.4Bright
Sep4.2Bright
Oct3.0Moderate
Nov2.0Moderate
Dec1.5Dim

Where is Marblehead?

Marblehead sits at 42.5°N, 70.9°W, 59 ft above sea level, in United States. The nearest listed city is Salem, 2.5 mi away.

Topography around Marblehead

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

Within 2 miles, the terrain around Marblehead has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 131 ft around an average of 20 ft above sea level; within 10 miles, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 397 ft; within 50 miles, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,385 ft.

The land around Marblehead is covered by water (59%) and trees (26%) within 2 miles, water (54%) and trees (32%) within 10 miles, and trees (55%) and water (37%) within 50 miles.

2 miles
131 ft
10 miles
397 ft
50 miles
1,385 ft
treesgrasslandartificial surfaceswaterwetland
Nearby: Salem 2.5 mi · Beverly Cove 3.7 mi · Peabody 4.3 mi · Beverly 4.3 mi · South Peabody 5.0 mi · Lynn 5.0 mi · Danvers 6.2 mi · Saugus 8.1 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 Marblehead (42.5001°, -70.8578°, elevation 59 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).