Showing: Jul · Brian Zhu / Unsplash
USA · Americas
Best time to visit Seattle
July
Jul scores highest overall — reliable weather and strong local atmosphere. Set your priorities below to personalise this result.
What matters most to you?
All 12 months — click any to expand
Jul
Brian Zhu / Unsplash
The best month — 18mm rain, 25°C, 10 hours of sun, and the Bite of Seattle in full swing.
25°C
High
15°C
Low
18mm
Rain
10h
Sun/day
What you gain
- ↑Only 18mm rain: the driest month in the Pacific Northwest by far — nearly guaranteed blue-sky days
- ↑Bite of Seattle food festival (mid-July): 60+ restaurants serving the city's full culinary range in Seattle Center
- ↑Mt Rainier day trips at peak accessibility — Paradise visitor area open, wildflowers at 1,600m in bloom
What you sacrifice
- ↓Hotel prices at annual peak — downtown Seattle is expensive in July with no apology
- ↓Pike Place Market becomes a genuine struggle on summer weekends; arrive before 9am or after 4pm
- ↓Occasional smoke from Cascade wildfires can affect air quality and Mt Rainier visibility in late July
Jul scores highest overall — reliable weather and strong local atmosphere. Set your priorities below to personalise this result.
Jul
The best month — 18mm rain, 25°C, 10 hours of sun, and the Bite of Seattle in full swing.
25°C
High
18mm
Rain
10h
Sun
- ↑Only 18mm rain: the driest month in the Pacific Northwest by far — nearly guaranteed blue-sky days
- ↑Bite of Seattle food festival (mid-July): 60+ restaurants serving the city's full culinary range in Seattle Center
- ↑Mt Rainier day trips at peak accessibility — Paradise visitor area open, wildflowers at 1,600m in bloom
- ↓Hotel prices at annual peak — downtown Seattle is expensive in July with no apology
- ↓Pike Place Market becomes a genuine struggle on summer weekends; arrive before 9am or after 4pm
- ↓Occasional smoke from Cascade wildfires can affect air quality and Mt Rainier visibility in late July
Top travel windows
★ BestJuly
Best overall
Highest combined score
25°C
High
18mm
Rain
10h
Sun
March
Best for value
Lowest prices & fees
12°C
High
69mm
Rain
7.5h
Sun
February
Fewest crowds
Quietest month
10°C
High
95mm
Rain
5.2h
Sun
Breakdown by priority
Best for weather
July
25°C high · 18mm rain · 10hrs sun/day
Best for budget
March
University of Washington Quad cherry blossoms (mid-March–early April): 30 Yoshino cherry trees in peak bloom
Fewest crowds
February
95mm vs January's 130mm — a meaningful improvement; dry spells between rain systems more frequent
Where to stay in Seattle
All neighbourhoods →
Pike Place & Capitol Hill
The market, the waterfront, and Seattle's creative LGBTQ+ heart — the city's most essential two neighbourhoods.
10/10
Central
10/10
Walk
9/10
Transit
Belltown & South Lake Union
Space Needle, Amazon's campus, and Chihuly Garden — Seattle's tech epicentre and most modern face.
9/10
Central
9/10
Walk
8/10
Transit
Also exploring
New York
USA
A city that never fully quiets — but its personality shifts dramatically by season, from sweltering humid summers to crisp autumn perfection to blizzard-prone winters.
Rio de Janeiro
Brazil
A Southern Hemisphere city where summer (December–March) brings Carnival and 264mm of rain simultaneously, and the real sweet spot is the dry Southern winter — June to September — when most travellers don't think to come.
Mexico City
Mexico
A highland metropolis at 2,240 metres where the altitude tempers the heat to perpetual spring in the dry months, Día de Muertos transforms Mixquic and Azcapotzalco into one of the world's great ceremonies, and the October–April dry season gives the clearest conditions for exploring what is genuinely one of the planet's finest food, museum, and architecture cities.
Month by month breakdown
January#12▾
Gains
- ↑Pike Place Market at its most local: fishing, produce, and coffee without summer tour groups blocking every stall
- ↑Seattle Art Museum and Chihuly Garden accessible without queues at the year's lowest prices
- ↑Hotel rates at annual lows — downtown Seattle affordable for the first and only time
Sacrifices
- ↓Only 2 sunshine hours daily — overcast almost continuously; Puget Sound views grey and muted
- ↓130mm rain across the month: waterproofs are non-negotiable, not optional
- ↓No outdoor rooftop culture, no ferry deck lounging — the city turns inward
February#9▾
Gains
- ↑95mm vs January's 130mm — a meaningful improvement; dry spells between rain systems more frequent
- ↑Seattle Restaurant Week (late Feb/early Mar) offers fixed-price menus at high-end restaurants
- ↑Ski season at Snoqualmie Pass at full capacity — day trips to the Cascades from the city
Sacrifices
- ↓Still fundamentally a grey, rainy winter month — 3 sunshine hours is not a convincing argument for visiting
- ↓Capitol Hill bar scene is active but the outdoor culture Seattleites love is still months away
- ↓Ferry deck views of Puget Sound frequently lost to low cloud and drizzle
March#8▾
Gains
- ↑University of Washington Quad cherry blossoms (mid-March–early April): 30 Yoshino cherry trees in peak bloom
- ↑Seattle Restaurant Week extends into March; good-value dining at Capitol Hill and Belltown spots
- ↑4 sunshine hours — on clear days, Mt Rainier becomes visible from downtown for the first time since autumn
Sacrifices
- ↓95mm rain — same volume as February; spring is slow to arrive in the Pacific Northwest
- ↓Cherry blossom timing is weather-dependent; early seasons can peak and fall within a 5-day window
- ↓Tourism still low season — some outdoor venues not yet at full operation
April#6▾
Gains
- ↑Gasworks Park and Discovery Park accessible in real comfort for the first time since autumn
- ↑Puget Sound ferry crossings to Bainbridge Island: 35 minutes of waterway views improving dramatically
- ↑Outdoor coffee culture awakens — the city's real character emerges on the first dry weekends
Sacrifices
- ↓75mm rain still a factor — April showers are real, and blue-sky days can flip to wet afternoons quickly
- ↓Prices rising from winter lows as spring tourism begins
- ↓Mt Rainier viewpoint trails can still be closed with snow at elevation
May#3▾
Gains
- ↑Seattle International Film Festival (SIFF) launches in late May: the largest film festival in the US by attendance
- ↑Farmers markets at Capitol Hill, Fremont, and Ballard all at full operation with spring produce
- ↑Long evenings (sunset 20:30) ideal for rooftop bars and Puget Sound ferry runs after work hours
Sacrifices
- ↓55mm rain — the month still brings regular showers between sunny spells
- ↓Hotel prices at moderate-high; SIFF draws visitors and competes for central accommodation
- ↓Crowds noticeably building: Pike Place Market weekends require patience
June#4▾
Gains
- ↑SIFF runs through mid-June: world cinema in venues across Capitol Hill and downtown
- ↑Seattle Pride (late June): Capitol Hill's rainbow-flag-lined streets host one of the West Coast's most vibrant celebrations
- ↑21°C and 8 sunshine hours with 45mm rain — the best weather-to-crowd ratio before July surge
Sacrifices
- ↓Prices climbing toward their summer peak; "June gloom" occasionally brings cloudy mornings before afternoon sun
- ↓Accommodation fills quickly for Pride weekend — book 2–3 months ahead
- ↓The full summer tourist wave approaching; Pike Place is rarely quiet on weekends now
July#1▾
Gains
- ↑Only 18mm rain: the driest month in the Pacific Northwest by far — nearly guaranteed blue-sky days
- ↑Bite of Seattle food festival (mid-July): 60+ restaurants serving the city's full culinary range in Seattle Center
- ↑Mt Rainier day trips at peak accessibility — Paradise visitor area open, wildflowers at 1,600m in bloom
Sacrifices
- ↓Hotel prices at annual peak — downtown Seattle is expensive in July with no apology
- ↓Pike Place Market becomes a genuine struggle on summer weekends; arrive before 9am or after 4pm
- ↓Occasional smoke from Cascade wildfires can affect air quality and Mt Rainier visibility in late July
August#2▾
Gains
- ↑Seafair (early August): Blue Angels air show over Lake Washington and hydroplane races — a uniquely Pacific Northwest spectacle
- ↑Bumbershoot music festival (Labor Day weekend, late Aug/early Sep): rock, hip-hop, and arts at Seattle Center
- ↑9.5 sunshine hours and only 22mm rain — the warmth holds into the evenings for rooftop bars and deck dining
Sacrifices
- ↓Peak season crowds throughout: tourist volumes as high as July, Bumbershoot weekend sells out months ahead
- ↓Wildfire smoke risk from eastern Washington and BC increases in August — can affect air quality for days
- ↓Prices remain at July peak with no sign of relenting until September
September#5▾
Gains
- ↑Bumbershoot (Labor Day weekend): one of America's most eclectic music and arts festivals closes the summer
- ↑Prices drop 20–30% from August peak while temperatures still hit 21°C and rain stays low at 40mm
- ↑Farmers market season peaks: Ballard and Capitol Hill markets at maximum produce variety with fewer crowds
Sacrifices
- ↓Rain returns gradually through September — more unpredictable than July/August, with occasional wet spells
- ↓Bumbershoot weekend (early September) competes with hotel availability and prices briefly spike
- ↓Mt Rainier high trails begin closing in late September as first snow falls at elevation
October#7▾
Gains
- ↑Seattle Seahawks season in full swing — catching a game at Lumen Field is a genuine experience
- ↑Museum season opens: SAM, MoPOP, and the new Olympic Sculpture Park all at their least crowded
- ↑Prices easing from summer peak: 20–25% below August rates for the same central hotels
Sacrifices
- ↓90mm rain and only 4 sunshine hours — October marks the definitive end of outdoor Seattle
- ↓Ferry and Puget Sound views frequently rain-obscured; Mt Rainier invisible for days at a stretch
- ↓The city's coffee-house-and-bookshop season begins — fine if you love that, limiting if you don't
November#10▾
Gains
- ↑Hotel rates approaching winter lows — downtown Seattle genuinely affordable again
- ↑Pike Place Market and Seattle Center at their least crowded; Space Needle observation deck queue minimal
- ↑Indoor Seattle at its best: MoPOP, the Chihuly Garden (indoor galleries), and the city's coffee shop culture at full intensity
Sacrifices
- ↓150mm rain — the heaviest month of the year; expect rain on most days and plan accordingly
- ↓Only 2.5 sunshine hours: the famous Seattle grey is not an exaggeration, it's a daily reality
- ↓Thanksgiving week brings domestic travel surge, briefly pushing prices and airport crowds up
December#11▾
Gains
- ↑WinterFest at Seattle Center: Winterfest ice rink, holiday market, and the Space Needle lit for the season
- ↑Pike Place Market Christmas decorations and the fish market's holiday atmosphere genuinely festive
- ↑NYE fireworks from the Space Needle broadcast live — staying in Seattle for New Year is an experience
Sacrifices
- ↓150mm rain and only 2 sunshine hours — the darkest and wettest month of the year alongside November
- ↓Christmas and New Year weeks see accommodation prices spike significantly above surrounding weeks
- ↓Many of the outdoor activities that make Seattle special are entirely unavailable
How this is calculated
Climate data
Open Meteo ERA5
30-year normals (1991–2020). Temperature, rainfall, sunshine, humidity.
Price & crowd
Tourism research
Seasonal pricing from tourism authority data. Directional — compares months within a destination only.
Personalisation
Weighted scoring
Your priorities change the weights. Budget-first users get different results than weather-first users.
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July is the best time to visit Seattle
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