Salem Metro Area, OR Climate

The Salem, OR Metro Area has a mild climate that is conducive to many outdoor activities. Winters are wet with temperatures rarely falling below freezing, while summers are typically dry and warm. Average summer highs reach the mid-eighties, with occasional days in the nineties and above. Average winter lows stay above freezing and range from the upper twenties to lower thirties. Salem enjoys a moderate amount of sunshine year-round, seeing an average of 200 sunny days per year with 193 days of rain. Snowfall is light and only occurs on an average of five days annually.

Salem Metro Area, Oregon gets 48 inches of rain, on average, per year. The US average is 38 inches of rain per year.

Salem Metro Area averages 10 inches of snow per year. The US average is 28 inches of snow per year.

On average, there are 159 sunny days per year in Salem Metro Area. The US average is 205 sunny days.

Salem Metro Area gets some kind of precipitation, on average, 153 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 81 degrees
Winter Low: the January low is 34
Rain: averages 48 inches of rain a year
Snow: averages 10 inches of snow a year

Bestplaces Comfort Index

The annual BestPlaces Comfort Index for the Salem metro area is 7.2 (10=best), which means it is about average compared to other places in Oregon.

9.2 Summer - 5.2 Winter

August, July and September are the most pleasant months in the Salem metro area, while December and January are the least comfortable months.

Climate	Salem, Oregon	United States
	48.4 in.	38.1 in.
	10.2 in.	27.8 in.
	153.4 days	106.2 days
	159 days	205 days
	80.6°	85.8°
	34.0°	21.7°
	7.2	7
	3	4.3
	1226 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.

August is the hottest month for the Salem metro area with an average high temperature of 81.1°, which ranks it as cooler than most places in Oregon. In the Salem metro area, there are 4 comfortable months with high temperatures in the range of 70-85°. The most pleasant months of the year for the Salem metro area are September, July and August.

In the Salem metro area, there are 12.1 days annually when the high temperature is over 90°, which is cooler than most places in Oregon.

December has the coldest nighttime temperatures for the Salem metro area with an average of 33.3°. This is about average compared to other places in Oregon.

In the Salem metro area, there are 53.8 days annually when the nighttime low temperature falls below freezing, which is about average compared to other places in Oregon.

In the Salem metro area, there are 0.1 days annually when the nighttime low temperature falls below zero°, which is colder than most places in Oregon.

Humidity in the Salem metro area is generally quite low and comfortable. There are few days during the summer when the humidity becomes unpleasant. The most humid months (but still comfortable) are August, July and June.

December is the wettest month in the Salem metro area with 8.0 inches of rain, and the driest month is July with 0.6 inches. The wettest season is Spring with 43% of yearly precipitation and 7% occurs in Autumn, which is the driest season. The annual rainfall of 48.4 inches in the Salem metro area means that it is wetter than most places in Oregon.

November is the rainiest month in the Salem metro area with 19.3 days of rain, and August is the driest month with only 3.3 rainy days. There are 153.4 rainy days annually in the Salem metro area, which is rainier than most places in Oregon. The rainiest season is Spring when it rains 35% of the time and the driest is Autumn with only a 10% chance of a rainy day.

An annual snowfall of 10.2 inches in the Salem metro area means that it is snowier than most places in Oregon. February is the snowiest month in the Salem metro area with 2.7 inches of snow, and 6 months of the year have significant snowfall.

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