Lancaster climate
Lancaster (California, United States) has a cold semi-arid climate (Köppen BSk). The average temperature over the year is 17 °C63 °F, and about 286 mm11 in of precipitation falls in an average year.
Temperature by month
Precipitation by month
Lancaster climate table
| Month | High °C°F | Low °C°F | Mean °C°F | Precip. mmin | Frost days |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 1559 | 337 | 948 | 602.4 | 5 |
| Feb | 1661 | 337 | 1049 | 622.5 | 5 |
| Mar | 2067 | 541 | 1254 | 381.5 | 2 |
| Apr | 2272 | 744 | 1458 | 180.7 | 0 |
| May | 2781 | 1050 | 1965 | 80.3 | 0 |
| Jun | 3391 | 1457 | 2374 | 10.0 | 0 |
| Jul | 3697 | 1864 | 2781 | 30.1 | 0 |
| Aug | 3697 | 1864 | 2780 | 10.1 | 0 |
| Sep | 3391 | 1660 | 2476 | 30.1 | 0 |
| Oct | 2679 | 1151 | 1965 | 150.6 | 0 |
| Nov | 2068 | 643 | 1355 | 210.8 | 1 |
| Dec | 1458 | 236 | 847 | 552.2 | 6 |
| Year | 3697 | 236 | 1763 | 28611 | 20 |
“Year” row: highest monthly high, lowest monthly low, annual mean and annual total. Frost days are for the whole grid cell.
| Month | Humid. | Cloud | Solar | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 58% | 42% | 3.2 | 10:04 |
| Feb | 60% | 42% | 4.0 | 10:53 |
| Mar | 59% | 40% | 5.4 | 11:52 |
| Apr | 55% | 35% | 6.6 | 13:01 |
| May | 49% | 29% | 7.5 | 13:58 |
| Jun | 38% | 21% | 8.1 | 14:28 |
| Jul | 33% | 17% | 7.9 | 14:16 |
| Aug | 31% | 14% | 7.4 | 13:27 |
| Sep | 34% | 17% | 6.3 | 12:20 |
| Oct | 41% | 25% | 4.8 | 11:14 |
| Nov | 47% | 33% | 3.6 | 10:18 |
| Dec | 57% | 42% | 2.9 | 9:50 |
Humid. = average relative humidity at 2 m; cloud = average cloud amount; solar = average daily solar energy reaching the ground in kWh/m² (all-sky); daylight in hours:minutes, calculated for the 15th of each month.
What the climate of Lancaster is like
The warmest month is July, with an average high of 36 °C97 °F and a low of 18 °C64 °F. The coldest is December, when highs average 14 °C58 °F and lows 2 °C36 °F. Seasons are strongly marked: the warmest month is on average 18.7 °C33.7 °F warmer than the coldest.
It is dry, with about 286 mm11 in of precipitation per year. The wettest three-month stretch is December–February, which brings 62% of the annual total. Months with less than 20 mm0.8 in on average: April–October. The wettest month is February (62 mm2.5 in), the driest is June (1 mm0.0 in).
Relative humidity ranges from 31% in August to 60% in February. The clearest skies (lowest average cloud amount, 14%) are typical of August. Average wind speed near the ground ranges from 7 km/h (4 mph) in September to 9 km/h (5 mph) in April. Daylight lasts from about 9.8 hours in December to 14.5 hours in June.
Best time to visit Lancaster
Based on these averages, the most comfortable months for sightseeing and outdoor activities are March–May and October and November: average highs of 20 °C67 °F to 27 °C81 °F with 8 mm0.3 in to 38 mm1.5 in of precipitation per month.
The most challenging month is July, which is hot, with average highs of 36 °C97 °F.
Comfort score: months are ranked by how close they come to an average high of 21–28 °C (70–82 °F), lows above 5 °C (41 °F), little precipitation and moderate humidity. The best-ranked months of each place are recommended, even where none meets all of these. These are general rules of thumb applied to long-term averages.
What to pack for Lancaster
- Winter (December–February) — highs 1458 to 16 °C61 °F, lows 236 to 3 °C37 °F, about 59 mm2.3 in of precipitation a month. Pack long sleeves, a sweater and a medium jacket and an extra layer for the cooler mornings and evenings.
- Spring (March–May) — highs 2067 to 27 °C81 °F, lows 541 to 10 °C50 °F, about 21 mm0.8 in of precipitation a month. Pack light layers — T-shirts plus a light sweater or jacket and an extra layer for the cooler mornings and evenings.
- Summer (June–August) — highs 3391 to 36 °C97 °F, lows 1457 to 18 °C64 °F, about 2 mm0.1 in of precipitation a month. Pack very light, breathable clothing, a sun hat and plenty of water and an extra layer for the cooler mornings and evenings.
- Autumn (September–November) — highs 2068 to 33 °C91 °F, lows 643 to 16 °C60 °F, about 13 mm0.5 in of precipitation a month. Pack light summer clothes such as T-shirts, shorts or light dresses and an extra layer for the cooler mornings and evenings.
How Lancaster compares
Compared with Santa Clarita, about 50 km to the southwest, Lancaster is on average 2 °C3.5 °F cooler and receives 16% less precipitation (286 mm11 in vs 341 mm13 in). The difference is largest in December (2.3 °C4.1 °F cooler).
Of the 222 places in the United States covered by World Climates, Lancaster is the 79th warmest by annual mean temperature and the 209th wettest by annual precipitation. See all of them on the United States climate page.
Places in other countries with the most similar temperature and rainfall pattern: Khuraybat as Suq (Jordan, BSk), Irbid (Jordan, Csa) and Amman (Jordan, BSk).
The same NASA POWER grid cell also contains Palmdale (pop. 158,351). Their long-term averages in this dataset are essentially the same as for Lancaster, so they do not have separate pages.
Nearby places
- Santa Clarita 50 km · 19 °C66 °F · 341 mm13 in
- West Covina 72 km · 19 °C67 °F · 331 mm13 in
- Los Angeles 72 km · 19 °C67 °F · 331 mm13 in
- Victorville 79 km · 17 °C63 °F · 235 mm9.3 in
- Thousand Oaks 87 km · 17 °C62 °F · 402 mm16 in
- Anaheim 98 km · 20 °C67 °F · 331 mm13 in
- San Bernardino 102 km · 19 °C67 °F · 289 mm11 in
- Long Beach 104 km · 20 °C68 °F · 331 mm13 in
Frequently asked questions
What is the warmest month in Lancaster?
July is the warmest month in Lancaster, with an average high of 36 °C (97 °F) and an average low of 18 °C (64 °F).
What is the coldest month in Lancaster?
December is the coldest month, with an average high of 14 °C (58 °F) and an average low of 2 °C (36 °F).
When does it rain the most in Lancaster?
February is the wettest month with about 62 mm (2.5 in) of precipitation; June is the driest with about 1 mm (0.0 in).
What is the best time to visit Lancaster?
Judging by long-term averages, the most comfortable months are March–May and October and November.
About this data
All figures are 25-year averages (January 2001 – December 2025) from the NASA POWER project. Temperature, humidity, wind and precipitation come from the MERRA-2 reanalysis (precipitation is the bias-corrected MERRA-2 product), cloud and solar values from CERES satellite data. They describe a grid cell of roughly 50–70 km, not a single weather station, so they can differ from airport records — most of all on coasts, in mountains and for rainfall. Average highs and lows are the monthly mean temperature plus/minus half of the average daily temperature range. Counts of rainy days are not part of this dataset.
The grid cell’s average elevation is 786 m, while Lancaster lies at about 719 m. Temperatures on this page were therefore adjusted by +0.4 °C0.8 °F using the standard lapse rate of 6.5 °C per 1,000 m.