Monterey weather by month & the best time to visit
🇺🇸 United States · seaside town · oceanic / maritime climate
The best time to visit Monterey is August — its sunniest month (Sunshine Score 99/100), with September and July close behind. Monterey averages about 3,366 hours of sunshine a year. Daytime highs around 20°C / 68°F and roughly 1 mm of rain in August.
Jump to: month-by-month table · sea temperature · nearby alternatives · embed this data
- Sun hours / year
- 3,366
- Sunniest month
- August
- Peak score
- 99/100
- Rain / year
- 480 mm
- Midday UV at peak
- 10 (very high)
- Sea at warmest
- 15°C / 59°F
- Population
- 28k
- Elevation
- 60 m
.jpg/960px-Santa_Catalina_School%2C_Monterey%2C_CA_(cropped).jpg)
When is the best time to visit Monterey?
For sunshine, the best time to visit Monterey is August, then September and July. The dullest month is December (40/100, 106 mm of rain). The full month-by-month picture is in the table below.
How sunny is Monterey?
Monterey is one of the sunniest places on Earth: about 3,366 hours of sunshine a year. 59 Sunshine Score points separate August (99) from December (40), so the month you pick matters. It ranks #45 of 580 destinations in United States for annual sunshine, above the national median of 2,279 hours. Rain has a clear season: the wettest stretch, around January, carries about 58% of the annual 480 mm.
Sunshine Score by month
| Month | Score | Day high | Night low | Rain | UV | Sea |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 42 | 14° / 57°F | 9° / 48°F | 86 mm | 2 | 14° / 57°F |
| February | 42 | 14° / 57°F | 9° / 48°F | 86 mm | 3 | 14° / 57°F |
| March | 50 | 15° / 59°F | 9° / 48°F | 70 mm | 5 | 14° / 57°F |
| April | 54 | 15° / 59°F | 9° / 48°F | 36 mm | 7 | 14° / 57°F |
| May | 72 | 17° / 63°F | 10° / 50°F | 14 mm | 8 | 13° / 55°F |
| June | 82 | 18° / 64°F | 11° / 52°F | 4 mm | 9 | 13° / 55°F |
| July | 91 | 19° / 66°F | 13° / 55°F | 1 mm | 10 | 15° / 59°F |
| August | 99 | 20° / 68°F | 13° / 55°F | 1 mm | 9 | 14° / 57°F |
| September | 98 | 20° / 68°F | 13° / 55°F | 5 mm | 7 | 15° / 59°F |
| October | 87 | 19° / 66°F | 12° / 54°F | 23 mm | 5 | 15° / 59°F |
| November | 68 | 17° / 63°F | 11° / 52°F | 48 mm | 3 | 13° / 55°F |
| December | 40 | 14° / 57°F | 9° / 48°F | 106 mm | 2 | 13° / 55°F |
Sea temperature in Monterey by month
The sea off Monterey is warmest in July at around 15°C / 59°F, and coolest in May at 13°C / 55°F. It never reaches comfortable swimming temperatures (21°C+). Month-by-month sea-surface temperatures are in the Sea column of the table above.
See Monterey on the interactive sunshine globe →
Nearby places for sunshine
- San Francisco United States · 124 km · best in Sep · 2,879 h sun/yr
- San Luis Obispo United States · 185 km · best in Jun · 3,588 h sun/yr
- Fresno United States · 191 km · best in May · 3,516 h sun/yr
- Santa Rosa United States · 230 km · best in Jul · 3,311 h sun/yr
- Sacramento United States · 236 km · best in Jun · 3,401 h sun/yr
- Santa Barbara United States · 301 km · best in Jul · 3,525 h sun/yr
Nearest destinations
- San Carlos United States · 109 km · 2,879 h sun/yr · best in Sep
- Merced United States · 141 km · 3,486 h sun/yr · best in May
- Stockton United States · 155 km · 3,452 h sun/yr · best in Jun
Head-to-head
How Monterey compares month by month: Monterey vs San Francisco · Monterey vs Fresno · Monterey vs Santa Rosa · Monterey vs San Luis Obispo · all comparisons
Put the Monterey sunshine badge on your site
A compact badge showing Monterey's sunshine at a glance — free to embed under CC BY 4.0. Paste this wherever you'd like it to appear:
Live preview — this is exactly what your readers see: