Austin · Month comparison
February vs October
October ranks #1 overall vs February at #4. Austin's finest month — ACL Festival plus Formula 1 Grand Prix in perfect 26°C weather.
February
#4 of 12 months
Best match
The last quiet month before SXSW transforms the city — warm afternoons, good value.
- ↑16°C highs: warm enough for outdoor dining and kayaking the Colorado River without crowds
- ↑SXSW anticipation builds — music venues showcase emerging artists in unofficial pre-shows
October
#1 of 12 months
Best match
Austin's finest month — ACL Festival plus Formula 1 Grand Prix in perfect 26°C weather.
- ↑ACL Music Festival (two weekends): 75+ acts across 8 stages in Zilker Park — one of the USA's best
- ↑Formula 1 US Grand Prix (late October): Circuit of the Americas, the biggest F1 race in America
| Factor | February | October |
|---|---|---|
| Weather score | 7 | 9 |
| Value score | 7 | 4 |
| Crowd score | 7 | 4 |
| Events score | 6 | 10 |
| Atmosphere | 7 | 9 |
| Avg high temp | 16°C | 26°C |
| Monthly rain | 99mm | 129mm |
| Daily sunshine | 6.5hrs | 7.5hrs |
February trade-offs
- ↓Occasional cold fronts can drop temperatures sharply — Austin weather is unpredictable
- ↓Little in the way of headline events until SXSW week
- ↓Some outdoor venues and food trucks keep reduced winter hours
October trade-offs
- ↓The most expensive month by a distance: hotels triple or quadruple for ACL and F1 weekends
- ↓Zilker Park and South Congress flooded with 450,000+ ACL attendees across the two weekends
- ↓Book rooms 6–12 months in advance for October — last-minute availability essentially zero
Scores compare months within Austin. Climate data: Open Meteo ERA5 30-year normals (1991–2020). Methodology →