Elgin, IL Climate


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Elgin, IL has a typical midwestern climate, with hot and humid summers and cold winters. Average temperatures range from 37°F in January to 79°F in July. Summer temperatures are often moderated by the cool lake breeze off Lake Michigan. Winters are cold and snowy, with average snowfall of about 33 inches per year. During spring and fall, Elgin enjoys mild temperatures with fewer storms than other parts of the Midwest.

Elgin, Illinois gets 38 inches of rain, on average, per year. The US average is 38 inches of rain per year.

Elgin averages 33 inches of snow per year. The US average is 28 inches of snow per year.

On average, there are 190 sunny days per year in Elgin. The US average is 205 sunny days.

Elgin gets some kind of precipitation, on average, 121 days per year. Precipitation is rain, snow, sleet, or hail that falls to the ground. In order for precipitation to be counted you have to get at least .01 inches on the ground to measure.


Weather Highlights

Summer High: the July high is around 85 degrees
Winter Low: the January low is 13
Rain: averages 38 inches of rain a year
Snow: averages 33 inches of snow a year


Bestplaces Comfort Index

The annual BestPlaces Comfort Index for Elgin is 6.8 (10=best), which means it is less comfortable than most places in Illinois.

8.8 Summer - 4.4 Winter
June, September and August are the most pleasant months in Elgin, while January and December are the least comfortable months.

  ClimateElgin, IllinoisUnited States
  37.9 in.38.1 in.
  32.6 in.27.8 in.
  120.5 days106.2 days
  190 days205 days
  84.6°85.8°
  12.7°21.7°
  6.87
  3.54.3
  745 ft.2443 ft.
Climate
YOU SHOULD KNOW

Many people confuse weather and climate but they are different. Weather is the conditions of the atmosphere over a short period of time, and climate is how the atmosphere is over long periods of time.

Weather is how the atmosphere is behaving and its effects upon life and human activities. Weather can change from minute-to-minute. Most people think of weather in terms of temperature, humidity, precipitation, cloudiness, brightness, visibility, wind, and atmospheric pressure.

Climate is the description of the long-term pattern of weather in a place. Climate can mean the average weather for a particular region and time period taken over 30 years. Climate is the average of weather over time.

July is the hottest month for Elgin with an average high temperature of 84.6°, which ranks it as cooler than most places in Illinois. In Elgin, there are 5 comfortable months with high temperatures in the range of 70-85°. The most pleasant months of the year for Elgin are September, June and August.
In Elgin, there are 17.0 days annually when the high temperature is over 90°, which is about average compared to other places in Illinois.
January has the coldest nighttime temperatures for Elgin with an average of 12.7°. This is one of the coldest places in Illinois.
In Elgin, there are 144.4 days annually when the nighttime low temperature falls below freezing, which is one of the coldest places in Illinois.
In Elgin, there are 11.6 days annually when the nighttime low temperature falls below zero°, which is colder than most places in Illinois.
The humidity is usually comfortable in Elgin but some summer months can be sticky or muggy. July is the most humid month, though humidity is low for most of the year. The most humid months are July, August and June.
August is the wettest month in Elgin with 4.7 inches of rain, and the driest month is February with 1.6 inches. The wettest season is Autumn with 34% of yearly precipitation and 14% occurs in Spring, which is the driest season. The annual rainfall of 37.9 inches in Elgin means that it is drier than most places in Illinois.
May is the rainiest month in Elgin with 12.1 days of rain, and February is the driest month with only 7.7 rainy days. There are 120.5 rainy days annually in Elgin, which is rainier than most places in Illinois. The rainiest season is Summer when it rains 28% of the time and the driest is Spring with only a 23% chance of a rainy day.
An annual snowfall of 32.6 inches in Elgin means that it is snowier than most places in Illinois. January is the snowiest month in Elgin with 10.9 inches of snow, and 6 months of the year have significant snowfall.
Reviews for Elgin
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When I first moved to Elgin 2 years ago I did not like it. I lived in a mobile home park near the river and highway 90 in a senior community that over prices it's lot  More

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Hi, as a way of updating the post for Elgin and providing a rebuttal for some of the negative reviews, I've decided to post on this board. I've lived in Elgin since  More

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Over 14 years ago

I have lived in Elgin my whole life and it is very sad to read these comments about my town.... I'm a senior at South Elgin High School and I will be graduating this  More

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