San Luis Obispo weather by month & the best time to visit
🇺🇸 United States · seaside town · Mediterranean climate
The best time to visit San Luis Obispo is June — its sunniest month (Sunshine Score 99/100), with July and August close behind. San Luis Obispo averages about 3,588 hours of sunshine a year. Daytime highs around 23°C / 73°F and roughly 6 mm of rain in June.
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- Sun hours / year
- 3,588
- Sunniest month
- June
- Peak score
- 99/100
- Rain / year
- 401 mm
- Midday UV at peak
- 10 (very high)
- Sea at warmest
- 17°C / 63°F
- Population
- 47k
- Elevation
- 56 m
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When is the best time to visit San Luis Obispo?
For sunshine, the best time to visit San Luis Obispo is June, then July and August. The dullest month is January (57/100, 79 mm of rain). The full month-by-month picture is in the table below.
How sunny is San Luis Obispo?
San Luis Obispo is one of the sunniest places on Earth: about 3,588 hours of sunshine a year. June (99/100) is noticeably better than January (57). It ranks #24 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 55% of the annual 401 mm.
Sunshine Score by month
| Month | Score | Day high | Night low | Rain | UV | Sea |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 57 | 16° / 61°F | 9° / 48°F | 79 mm | 3 | 15° / 59°F |
| February | 58 | 16° / 61°F | 9° / 48°F | 69 mm | 4 | 15° / 59°F |
| March | 66 | 17° / 63°F | 10° / 50°F | 62 mm | 6 | 15° / 59°F |
| April | 79 | 18° / 64°F | 10° / 50°F | 29 mm | 7 | 14° / 57°F |
| May | 97 | 20° / 68°F | 12° / 54°F | 14 mm | 9 | 15° / 59°F |
| June | 99 | 23° / 73°F | 13° / 55°F | 6 mm | 10 | 15° / 59°F |
| July | 99 | 24° / 75°F | 15° / 59°F | 4 mm | 10 | 17° / 63°F |
| August | 99 | 25° / 77°F | 15° / 59°F | 3 mm | 9 | 16° / 61°F |
| September | 99 | 25° / 77°F | 15° / 59°F | 6 mm | 8 | 16° / 61°F |
| October | 96 | 22° / 72°F | 14° / 57°F | 22 mm | 5 | 17° / 63°F |
| November | 86 | 19° / 66°F | 11° / 52°F | 34 mm | 3 | 13° / 55°F |
| December | 58 | 16° / 61°F | 9° / 48°F | 73 mm | 2 | 13° / 55°F |
Sea temperature in San Luis Obispo by month
The sea off San Luis Obispo is warmest in July at around 17°C / 63°F, and coolest in November 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 San Luis Obispo on the interactive sunshine globe →
Nearby places for sunshine
- Santa Barbara United States · 116 km · best in Jul · 3,525 h sun/yr
- Monterey United States · 185 km · best in Aug · 3,366 h sun/yr
- Fresno United States · 190 km · best in May · 3,516 h sun/yr
- Los Angeles United States · 250 km · best in Jun · 3,009 h sun/yr
- San Francisco United States · 307 km · best in Sep · 2,879 h sun/yr
- Ontario United States · 308 km · best in May · 3,804 h sun/yr
Nearest destinations
- Santa Maria United States · 41 km · 3,121 h sun/yr · best in Jul
- Bakersfield United States · 145 km · 3,612 h sun/yr · best in May
- Merced United States · 228 km · 3,486 h sun/yr · best in May
Head-to-head
How San Luis Obispo compares month by month: San Luis Obispo vs Fresno · San Luis Obispo vs Santa Barbara · San Luis Obispo vs Monterey · all comparisons
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