Mason City weather in March

In March, Mason City sees average daytime highs of 42°F and overnight lows near 25°F, with 2.4 in of precipitation across 8.5 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 34°F in the first days to 49°F by the end. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 27% 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 Mason City's 8th-clearest and 4th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Mason City's year-round climate.

Daytime high: 42°; 9th warmest
Overnight low: 25°; 4th coldest
Precipitation: 2.4 in; 8.5 wet days
Daylight: 11 h 36 min; 6:33 AM – 6:12 PM
Cloud cover: 64%; 8th clearest
Wind: 11 mph; 4th windiest
Solar energy: 4.16 kWh/m²
Travel score: 0.7; out of 10

Mason City is city and the county seat of Cerro Gordo County, Iowa, United States.

Density: 376/km²; people per km²

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

← February Mason City 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 34°F in the first days to 49°F by the end.

A typical March day in Mason City reaches about 42°F in the afternoon and slips back to 25°F overnight — a 17°F spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 27°F and 60°F. Set against its neighbours, March runs about 14°F warmer than February and about 15°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)	33	34	34	35	35	36	37	37	38	38	39	40	40	41	42	42	43	43	44	45	45	46	46	47	47	48	48	49	49	50	51
Avg low (°F)	18	18	19	19	19	20	20	21	21	22	22	23	24	24	25	25	26	26	27	27	28	28	29	29	29	30	30	30	31	31	31

	Avg high (°F)	Avg low (°F)
1	33	18
2	34	18
3	34	19
4	35	19
5	35	19
6	36	20
7	37	20
8	37	21
9	38	21
10	38	22
11	39	22
12	40	23
13	40	24
14	41	24
15	42	25
16	42	25
17	43	26
18	43	26
19	44	27
20	45	27
21	45	28
22	46	28
23	46	29
24	47	29
25	47	29
26	48	30
27	48	30
28	49	30
29	49	31
30	50	31
31	51	31

How March really feels in Mason City

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

14 feel bitter (≤ 14°F)

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

Mason City 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	24° / 9°	1.1	6.1	5.7	9.2	0.0
Feb	28° / 13°	1.2	5.9	5.3	10.2	0.0
Mar	42° / 25°	2.4	8.5	3.9	11.6	0.7
Apr	57° / 37°	4.0	11.5	1.9	13.1	3.8
May	69° / 49°	5.1	13.6	0.1	14.4	5.8
Jun	78° / 60°	5.4	12.6	0	15.1	6.3
Jul	80° / 63°	4.0	9.7	0	14.9	6.7
Aug	78° / 60°	4.0	10.2	0	13.8	6.9
Sep	72° / 52°	3.5	9.3	0	12.3	6.9
Oct	59° / 40°	2.7	8.2	0.5	10.8	4.8
Nov	43° / 27°	1.9	6.5	2.8	9.5	0.9
Dec	30° / 15°	1.5	6.7	5.9	8.9	0.0

Cloud cover in March

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 27% of the time in March.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 13% of March, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 60%.

	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 (%)	38	38	39	39	39	39	39	40	41	41	41	41	41	41	41	40	40	40	40	39	39	39	39	38	38	38	39	40	40	40	40
Cloudier (%)	62	62	61	61	61	61	61	60	59	59	59	59	59	59	59	60	60	60	60	61	61	61	61	62	62	62	61	60	60	60	60

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	38	62
2	38	62
3	39	61
4	39	61
5	39	61
6	39	61
7	39	61
8	40	60
9	41	59
10	41	59
11	41	59
12	41	59
13	41	59
14	41	59
15	41	59
16	40	60
17	40	60
18	40	60
19	40	60
20	39	61
21	39	61
22	39	61
23	39	61
24	38	62
25	38	62
26	38	62
27	39	61
28	40	60
29	40	60
30	40	60
31	40	60

Chance of precipitation in March

Any precipitationSnow

Mason City gets around 2.4 in of rain and snow over 8.5 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 27% and peaks near 31% on the wettest days, and about 4 days bring snow. The odds climb toward the end of the month.

	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 (%)	24	24	24	24	24	24	24	25	25	25	26	26	26	27	27	27	27	28	28	28	28	29	29	29	29	30	30	30	30	31	31
Snow chance (%)	18	17	17	16	16	16	16	15	15	15	15	14	14	14	13	13	13	12	12	11	11	10	10	9	9	9	8	8	8	7	7

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

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 99% 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	99	99	99	99	99	99	99	99	99	99	99	99	99	99	99	99	99	99	99	99
Comfortable (%)	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1

	Dry (%)	Comfortable (%)
1	100	0
2	100	0
3	100	0
4	100	0
5	100	0
6	100	0
7	100	0
8	100	0
9	100	0
10	100	0
11	100	0
12	99	1
13	99	1
14	99	1
15	99	1
16	99	1
17	99	1
18	99	1
19	99	1
20	99	1
21	99	1
22	99	1
23	99	1
24	99	1
25	99	1
26	99	1
27	99	1
28	99	1
29	99	1
30	99	1
31	99	1

Wind in March

Winds average 11 mph in March.

Across March, daily wind ranges from about 10 mph on the calmest days to 11 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)	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	11	11	11	11
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	11	light breeze
2	11	light breeze
3	11	light breeze
4	11	light breeze
5	11	light breeze
6	11	light breeze
7	11	light breeze
8	11	light breeze
9	11	light breeze
10	11	light breeze
11	11	light breeze
12	11	light breeze
13	11	light breeze
14	11	light breeze
15	11	light breeze
16	11	light breeze
17	11	light breeze
18	10	light breeze
19	10	light breeze
20	10	light breeze
21	10	light breeze
22	10	light breeze
23	10	light breeze
24	10	light breeze
25	10	light breeze
26	10	light breeze
27	10	light breeze
28	11	light breeze
29	11	light breeze
30	11	light breeze
31	11	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 6:59 AM to 6:06 AM, and sunset from 5:53 PM to 6:29 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	10.9	11.0	11.0	11.1	11.1	11.2	11.2	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)	6:59	6:58	6:56	6:54	6:53	6:51	6:49	6:48	6:46	6:44	6:42	6:41	6:39	6:37	6:35	6:33	6:32	6:30	6:28	6:26	6:24	6:23	6:21	6:19	6:17	6:15	6:13	6:12	6:10	6:08	6:06
Sunset (PM)	5:53	5:54	5:55	5:57	5:58	5:59	6:00	6:02	6:03	6:04	6:05	6:07	6:08	6:09	6:10	6:12	6:13	6:14	6:15	6:16	6:18	6:19	6:20	6:21	6:22	6:24	6:25	6:26	6:27	6:28	6:29

	Daylight (h)	Sunrise (AM)	Sunset (PM)
1	10.9	6:59	5:53
2	10.9	6:58	5:54
3	11.0	6:56	5:55
4	11.0	6:54	5:57
5	11.1	6:53	5:58
6	11.1	6:51	5:59
7	11.2	6:49	6:00
8	11.2	6:48	6:02
9	11.3	6:46	6:03
10	11.3	6:44	6:04
11	11.4	6:42	6:05
12	11.4	6:41	6:07
13	11.5	6:39	6:08
14	11.5	6:37	6:09
15	11.6	6:35	6:10
16	11.6	6:33	6:12
17	11.7	6:32	6:13
18	11.7	6:30	6:14
19	11.8	6:28	6:15
20	11.8	6:26	6:16
21	11.9	6:24	6:18
22	11.9	6:23	6:19
23	12.0	6:21	6:20
24	12.0	6:19	6:21
25	12.1	6:17	6:22
26	12.1	6:15	6:24
27	12.2	6:13	6:25
28	12.2	6:12	6:26
29	12.3	6:10	6:27
30	12.3	6:08	6:28
31	12.4	6:06	6:29

Solar energy in March

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in March, about 4.16 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 1.64 kWh/m² to a high of 6.38 kWh/m² in July across the year — March's 4.16 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)	3.7	3.7	3.8	3.8	3.8	3.9	3.9	4.0	4.0	4.0	4.1	4.1	4.1	4.2	4.2	4.2	4.2	4.3	4.3	4.3	4.3	4.3	4.4	4.4	4.4	4.5	4.5	4.5	4.5	4.6	4.6
Level	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright

	Solar energy (kWh/m²)	Level
1	3.7	Moderate
2	3.7	Moderate
3	3.8	Moderate
4	3.8	Moderate
5	3.8	Moderate
6	3.9	Moderate
7	3.9	Moderate
8	4.0	Moderate
9	4.0	Moderate
10	4.0	Bright
11	4.1	Bright
12	4.1	Bright
13	4.1	Bright
14	4.2	Bright
15	4.2	Bright
16	4.2	Bright
17	4.2	Bright
18	4.3	Bright
19	4.3	Bright
20	4.3	Bright
21	4.3	Bright
22	4.3	Bright
23	4.4	Bright
24	4.4	Bright
25	4.4	Bright
26	4.5	Bright
27	4.5	Bright
28	4.5	Bright
29	4.5	Bright
30	4.6	Bright
31	4.6	Bright

Planning a trip in March

Hazard calendar for Mason City

In seasonPeak

None of Mason City's seasonal hazards are active in March. The full-year calendar below shows when the rainy season, cyclone risk and dust haze do peak.

Mason City's rainy season runs April–October, when most of the year's rain falls.

Rainy season

Jan

Feb

Mar

Apr

May

Jun

Jul

Aug

Sep

Oct

Nov

Dec

Is March a good time to visit Mason City?

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

0.7

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 Mason City.

What to pack for Mason City in March

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

In March, Mason City sees daytime highs around 42°F and nights near 25°F. Pack a warm layer and a heavy coat. Worth having: rain gear. About 9 days see rain.

a warm layera heavy coatrain gear

UV index in Mason City 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 Mason City peaks around June 16 at about 9 (very high) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 22 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	6	7	9	7	7	6	4	2	2
Level	Low	Moderate	Moderate	High	Very high	Very high	Very high	Very high	High	Moderate	Moderate	Low

	UV index (midday)	Level
Jan	2	Low
Feb	2	Moderate
Mar	4	Moderate
Apr	6	High
May	7	Very high
Jun	9	Very high
Jul	7	Very high
Aug	7	Very high
Sep	6	High
Oct	4	Moderate
Nov	2	Moderate
Dec	2	Low

Location & terrain

Where is Mason City?

Mason City sits at 43.2°N, 93.2°W, 1,129 ft above sea level, in United States. The nearest listed city is Albert Lea, 35 mi away.

Topography around Mason City

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

Within 2 miles, the terrain around Mason City has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 135 ft around an average of 1,129 ft above sea level; within 10 miles, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 285 ft; within 50 miles, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 577 ft.

The land around Mason City is covered by trees (38%) and artificial surfaces (29%) within 2 miles, cropland (77%) within 10 miles, and cropland (89%) within 50 miles.

2 miles

135 ft

trees 38%

10 miles

285 ft

cropland 77%

50 miles

577 ft

cropland 89%

treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater

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

March weather nearby: Albert Lea 35 mi · Austin 37 mi · Cedar Falls 58 mi · Waterloo 63 mi · Owatonna 64 mi · Fort Dodge 66 mi · Rochester 70 mi · Marshalltown 78 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 Mason City (43.1536°, -93.201°, 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	33	18
2	34	18
3	34	19
4	35	19
5	35	19
6	36	20
7	37	20
8	37	21
9	38	21
10	38	22
11	39	22
12	40	23
13	40	24
14	41	24
15	42	25
16	42	25
17	43	26
18	43	26
19	44	27
20	45	27
21	45	28
22	46	28
23	46	29
24	47	29
25	47	29
26	48	30
27	48	30
28	49	30
29	49	31
30	50	31
31	51	31

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	38	62
2	38	62
3	39	61
4	39	61
5	39	61
6	39	61
7	39	61
8	40	60
9	41	59
10	41	59
11	41	59
12	41	59
13	41	59
14	41	59
15	41	59
16	40	60
17	40	60
18	40	60
19	40	60
20	39	61
21	39	61
22	39	61
23	39	61
24	38	62
25	38	62
26	38	62
27	39	61
28	40	60
29	40	60
30	40	60
31	40	60

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

	Dry (%)	Comfortable (%)
1	100	0
2	100	0
3	100	0
4	100	0
5	100	0
6	100	0
7	100	0
8	100	0
9	100	0
10	100	0
11	100	0
12	99	1
13	99	1
14	99	1
15	99	1
16	99	1
17	99	1
18	99	1
19	99	1
20	99	1
21	99	1
22	99	1
23	99	1
24	99	1
25	99	1
26	99	1
27	99	1
28	99	1
29	99	1
30	99	1
31	99	1

	Avg high (°F)	Avg low (°F)
1	33	18
2	34	18
3	34	19
4	35	19
5	35	19
6	36	20
7	37	20
8	37	21
9	38	21
10	38	22
11	39	22
12	40	23
13	40	24
14	41	24
15	42	25
16	42	25
17	43	26
18	43	26
19	44	27
20	45	27
21	45	28
22	46	28
23	46	29
24	47	29
25	47	29
26	48	30
27	48	30
28	49	30
29	49	31
30	50	31
31	51	31

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	38	62
2	38	62
3	39	61
4	39	61
5	39	61
6	39	61
7	39	61
8	40	60
9	41	59
10	41	59
11	41	59
12	41	59
13	41	59
14	41	59
15	41	59
16	40	60
17	40	60
18	40	60
19	40	60
20	39	61
21	39	61
22	39	61
23	39	61
24	38	62
25	38	62
26	38	62
27	39	61
28	40	60
29	40	60
30	40	60
31	40	60

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

	Dry (%)	Comfortable (%)
1	100	0
2	100	0
3	100	0
4	100	0
5	100	0
6	100	0
7	100	0
8	100	0
9	100	0
10	100	0
11	100	0
12	99	1
13	99	1
14	99	1
15	99	1
16	99	1
17	99	1
18	99	1
19	99	1
20	99	1
21	99	1
22	99	1
23	99	1
24	99	1
25	99	1
26	99	1
27	99	1
28	99	1
29	99	1
30	99	1
31	99	1

	Avg high (°F)	Avg low (°F)
1	33	18
2	34	18
3	34	19
4	35	19
5	35	19
6	36	20
7	37	20
8	37	21
9	38	21
10	38	22
11	39	22
12	40	23
13	40	24
14	41	24
15	42	25
16	42	25
17	43	26
18	43	26
19	44	27
20	45	27
21	45	28
22	46	28
23	46	29
24	47	29
25	47	29
26	48	30
27	48	30
28	49	30
29	49	31
30	50	31
31	51	31

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	38	62
2	38	62
3	39	61
4	39	61
5	39	61
6	39	61
7	39	61
8	40	60
9	41	59
10	41	59
11	41	59
12	41	59
13	41	59
14	41	59
15	41	59
16	40	60
17	40	60
18	40	60
19	40	60
20	39	61
21	39	61
22	39	61
23	39	61
24	38	62
25	38	62
26	38	62
27	39	61
28	40	60
29	40	60
30	40	60
31	40	60

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

	Dry (%)	Comfortable (%)
1	100	0
2	100	0
3	100	0
4	100	0
5	100	0
6	100	0
7	100	0
8	100	0
9	100	0
10	100	0
11	100	0
12	99	1
13	99	1
14	99	1
15	99	1
16	99	1
17	99	1
18	99	1
19	99	1
20	99	1
21	99	1
22	99	1
23	99	1
24	99	1
25	99	1
26	99	1
27	99	1
28	99	1
29	99	1
30	99	1
31	99	1