Tucson Monthly & Seasonal Reviews for 2025

The January outlook from the Climate Prediction Center for Tucson favored above-normal monthly mean temperatures (58% above vs. 9% below) and below-normal total precipitation amounts (59% below vs. 8% above).

The new year started as 2024 ended, with well above normal temperatures through the 4th, highlighted by a near-record high of 85° on the 3rd. This tied the earliest first 85° or warmer date on record. The average first 85° date on March 4th. Cooler, near or slightly above normal temperatures occurred on the 5th through the 8th.

A weather system moving across northern Sonora Mexico brought scattered sprinkles to very light showers to the metro area on the 8th. A cooler air mass settled in with this system and remained here through the 14th. High temperatures were in the mid to upper 50s on the 8th, 9th & 10th, then in the upper 50s to the lower 60s from the 11th through the 14th. Low temperatures were in the mid to upper 30s on the 9th, gradually getting colder over the next several mornings with mid-20s to the lower 30s on the 12th and 13th, and then the 20s with isolated areas in the upper teens on the 14th. The low temperature at the airport on the 11th of 32° ended a record streak of 364 days of nonfreezing low temperatures. The previous record was 351 days from 2014.

A brief warm-up on the 15th & 16th with the highs in the lower 70s. Due to gusty easterly winds on the morning of the 16th, the low temperatures across the metro area ranged from the upper 30s to the lower 50s with the airport recording a low of 52°.

Cooler than normal temperatures settled in again across the area for the next week with high temperatures mostly in the lower to mid-60s and lows in the 30s. During this period, the surface moisture was really dry with the dew points being below zero from the 21st through the 25th with daily low average dew point records being set on the 23rd & 24th at 9° below zero. Due to the very dry near surface air and clear skies on these days, low temperatures were in the 20s to mid-30s with low temperatures at the airport being 27° on the 22nd and 24° on the 23rd. The 24° is the coldest low temperature at the airport since February 5, 2020, and the coldest in January since 2013 when it was 17° on the 13th and 24° on the 14th.

Warmer temperatures settled in over a three-day period from the 24th to 26th with highs in the lower 70s and lows in the lower to mid-40s.

A colder weather system moved into the area on the 28th and 29th bringing the first widespread precipitation to the area since November 3rd. The last five days of the month had highs in the 50s to mid-60s while lows were mostly in the 30s.

The monthly average temperature of 51.0° is 2.6° below normal and ranks as the 61st coolest January on record. Temperature extremes for the month ranged from a high of 85° on the 3rd to a low of 24° on the 23rd. There was a total of 7 days with freezing low temperatures which is the most in January since 2013 when there were 12 days. On a side note, there were only 4 days with freezing low temperatures in all of 2024.

Rainfall amounts, using several sources like rainlog.org, the Pima County Regional Flood Control District gages, and CoCoRaHS, ranged from trace to 0.25". The Tucson International Airport, the official recording spot in Tucson, recorded 0.10" which is nearly three-quarters of an inch below normal and ranks as the 25th driest January on record. The first four months of the hydrological water year, October through January, have been really dry with only 0.53" being recorded at the airport. This ranks as the 4th driest first four months of the water year on record.

One month remains in climatological Winter and so far it has been warmer (55.3° or +1.9°) and drier (0.10" or -1.54") than normal. The historical Winter precipitation ranking with one month left stands at 2nd driest.

Looking ahead into February

A weak La Niña will continue in the equatorial Pacific through the end of Winter. The February outlook from the Climate Prediction Center for Tucson favors above normal monthly mean temperatures (40% above vs. 27% below) and leans slightly to below-normal total precipitation amounts (34% below vs. 33% above).

Coming off the coolest January since 2013, the first 10 days of February were very warm as strong high pressure aloft brought well above-normal high temperatures in the mid-70s to mid-80s. Record highs were set on the 3rd and 4th with 86° occurring both days.

The monthly average temperature of 61.7° is 5.5° above normal and ranks as the 2nd warmest February on record. Temperature extremes for the month ranged from a high of 86° on the 3rd, 4th, 24th & 25th to a low of 38° on the 1st. This is the 27th February on record in which the official site didn't record a low temperature of 32° or colder.

La Niña-ish conditions were forecast for the 2024-25 Winter season. Under most La Niña conditions, a drier than normal winter typically occurs across the desert southwest. The Climate Prediction Center temperature and precipitation outlook for Tucson called for the following:

• a 58% chance that the seasonal mean temperatures will be above normal
• a 9% chance that the seasonal mean temperatures will be below normal
• a 58% chance that the seasonal total precipitation will be below normal
• a 9% chance that the seasonal total precipitation will be above normal

The monthly historical breakdowns were:

• December: Warmest and driest on record
• January: Coolest since 2013 and 25th driest on record
• February: 2nd warmest and 27th driest on record

The seasonal average temperature of 57.4° is 3.1° above normal and goes into the record books as the 2nd warmest Winter on record. The Winter of 2017-18 is the warmest on record with an average seasonal temperature of 57.9°. Temperature extremes ranged from a high of 86° on February 3rd, 4th, 24th, and 25th to a low of 24° on January 23rd.

Precipitation across the metro area, using several sources like rainlog.org, the Pima County Regional Flood Control District gages, and CoCoRaHS, was mostly less than a third of an inch /0.33"/ with isolated spots recording between 0.50" and 0.90". The Tucson International Airport, which is the official recording location in Tucson, recorded a quarter of an inch /0.25"/ which is just under two and a half inches below normal and ranks as the 2nd driest Winter season on record.

The yearly mean temperature of 56.1°, which is 1.2° above normal, ranks as the 12th warmest January/February period on record. It has been a really dry start to 2025 with Tucson International Airport, the official recording location in Tucson, recording only a quarter of an inch (0.25") which is almost an inch and a half below normal and ranks as the 10th driest January/February period on record.

The March outlook from the Climate Prediction Center for Tucson is for equal chances for either below, near, or normal monthly mean temperatures and total precipitation amounts.

The Spring season outlook from the Climate Prediction Center for Tucson favors below-normal total seasonal precipitation amounts (50% below vs 17% above) and above-normal monthly mean temperatures (52% above vs 15% below).

March saw a roller-coaster ride in temperatures during the first 20 days of the month then transitioned to well above-normal temperatures during the last 10 days of the month. The month had nine occurrences of double-digit day-to-day high temperature changes during the month.

The month started off warm with highs on the 1st in the lower 80s. The first in a series of weather systems to impact the area during the first 20 days of the month moved through on the 3rd, bringing gusty winds, some very light rain and high temperatures in the 60s on the 3rd and 4th.

A brief warm-up to the upper 70s on the 5th was followed up with a stronger weather system that brought strong gusty winds, a little more rain and much cooler temperatures on the 7th with highs only in the upper 50s.

Once again the area saw a rebound in temperatures with highs in the lower 80s on the 10th. This didn't last long as a a pair of weather systems impacted that area from the 12th to the 15th with scattered light showers, gusty winds and a return to much cooler temperatures with highs on the 14th in the mid to upper 50s. The most notable weather parameter that occurred during this four-day period was wind gusts over 50 mph on the 13th with the airport recording a wind gusts of 51 mph. This became the 4th time since 1955 that the airport has recorded a wind gust over 50 mph in the month of March.

Another big warm-up over the next several days with highs on the 17th in the mid to upper 80s. Another weather system brought significantly cooler temperatures on the 18th with highs 20 to 25 degrees cooler than the previous day. This system will be the last one that had significantly cooler temperatures associated with it.

The last 10 days of the month were very warm with the first 90° & 95° high temperatures of 2025 occurring on the 24th and 25th respectively. The high of 96° on the 25th set a new daily record, besting the old daily record of 94° from way back in 1896, and ranks as the 3rd warmest March daily high temperature on record. Overnight cloud cover kept temperatures elevated into the morning of the 26th where the low temperature at the airport of 66° not only set a daily record warm low temperature but also tied the monthly warmest low temperature on record.

The monthly average temperature of 63.0° is 1.1° above-normal and ranks as the 15th warmest March on record, tied with 2007 & 2018. The above normal month breaks a string of three consecutive below-normal Marches. Temperature extremes for the month ranged from a high of 96° on the 25th to a low of 37° on the 9th.

Rainfall amounts across the metro area, using several sources like rainlog.org, the Pima County Regional Flood Control District gages, and CoCoRaHS, ranged widely from 0.05" to 0.50" with localized spots up to 0.80" near the Catalina mountains. The International airport, which is the official recording spot in Tucson, recorded just under a quarter of an inch /0.23"/ which ranks as the 34th driest March on record, tied with 1942.

The average yearly temperature of 58.5° is slightly over one degree ABOVE normal (+1.1°) and ranks as the 8th warmest on record through the end of March.

Rainfall at the Tucson International Airport, the official location in Tucson, of 0.48" is 1.76" BELOW normal & ranks as the 7th driest January through March period on record. The water year rainfall is at the halfway mark it has been really dry with only 0.91" being recorded at the airport which ranks as the 3rd driest first half of the water year period on record.

The April outlook from the Climate Prediction Center for Tucson favors above-normal monthly mean temperatures (46% above vs 21% below) and below-normal total precipitation amounts (39% below vs 28% above).

Tucsonans endured another dry month with no change in the severe drought conditions that started the month. The other main news of the month was the earliest calendar date occurrence of the first triple-digit high.

The month started off cooler than normal with high temperatures in the 60s and 70s during the first six days of the month. The cooler temperatures were associated with a weather system that brought scattered light rain to the area on the 4th.

Strong high pressure would then build over the area during the week bringing the hottest temperatures so far in 2025 with the first triple-digit high of the year occurring on the 11th (101°). This shattered the previous record earliest date of April 19 which occurred in 1989. The table below shows the evolution of the first triple-digit calendar date since 1895.

A weather system brought a brief cooldown on the 18th and 19th with high temperatures in the 70s along with isolated light showers on the 19th. The remainder of the month was dry with highs ranging from 80° to 90°.

The monthly average temperature of 69.2° is just over one degree above normal and ranks as the 21st warmest April on record. tied with 1950, 1959 & 2014. Temperature extremes for the month ranged from a high of 101° on the 11th to a low of 42° on the 5th. There were four daily record temperatures set or tied during April. Two were record highs (101° on the 11th, old record 99° in 2023; and 99° on the 12th, old record 96° in 1988) and two were record warm lows (64° on 13th, tied record previously set in 2023; and 66° on 14th, old record 65° in 2008).

Rainfall totals across the metro area using sources like rainlog.org, the Pima County Regional Flood Control District gages, and CoCoRaHS, were mostly less than a tenth of an inch with isolated higher totals. The International Airport, which is the official recording spot in Tucson, recorded five hundredths of an inch with ranks as the 47th driest April on record, tied with 1982 & 2008.

The average yearly temperature of 61.2° is slightly over one degree ABOVE normal (+1.1°) and ranks as the 8th warmest on record through the end of April.

Rainfall at the Tucson International Airport, the official location in Tucson, is well-below normal with just over a half an inch /0.53"/ being recorded. This is just under 2" BELOW normal & ranks as the 4th driest January through April period on record. The water year rainfall is also well-below normal with just under one inch /0.96"/ being recorded at the airport. This ranks as the 3rd driest October to April period on record.

The May outlook from the Climate Prediction Center for Tucson calls for equal chances (EC) of below, near, or above for both total precipitation amounts & monthly mean temperatures.

Rainfall amounts across the metro area, using several sources like rainlog.org, the Pima County Regional Flood Control District gages and CoCoRaHS, mostly were less than a quarter of an inch with localized spots up to a half of an inch. The International Airport, which is the official recording spot in Tucson, recorded three-hundredths /0.03"/ of an inch of rain. Considering that May is one of the driest calendar months for Tucson, the 0.03" ranks on the wet side of the 131 year historical record as the 61st wettest May on record.

The Spring season outlook for Tucson, issued on February 20th by the Climate Prediction Center, favored above-normal monthly mean temperatures (52% above vs 15% below) below-normal total seasonal precipitation amounts (50% below vs 17% above).

The seasonal average temperature of 69.9° was 1.0° above-normal and ranks as the 13th warmest on record. Temperature extremes ranged from a high of 104° on May 22nd to a low of 37° on March 9th. A record was set for the longest stretch between the 1st (April 11th) and 2nd (May 21st) occurrence of a triple-digit high. The 40 days eclipsed the old record of 35 days which occurred in 2023 (April 30 to June 4).

Rainfall amounts across the metro area, using several sources like rainlog.org, the Pima County Regional Flood Control District gages, and CoCoRaHS, ranged from 0.25" to 0.50" with localized amounts to 1". The International airport, which is the official recording spot in Tucson, recorded 0.31" which is 0.69" below-normal. This ranks as the 18th driest Spring on record, tied with 1956 & 2021.

2025

The average yearly temperature, through the end of May, of 64.5° is 1.0° above-normal and ranks as the 9th warmest on record, tied with 2016 & 2022.

Rainfall at the Tucson International Airport, the official location in Tucson, is well below-normal with just over a half an inch /0.56"/ being recorded. This is 2.12" below-normal and ranks as the 5th driest January through May period on record. The water year is also well below-normal since October 1st with nearly 1.00" /0.99"/ being recorded which ranks as the 2nd driest water year to date on record with four months left in the water year calendar.

This high level of surface moisture would dry out to typical June levels over the next several weeks with temperatures heating up. The first 105° & 110° highs of 2025 occurred on the 9th (3:34 pm) and 15th (1:53 PM) respectively.

The month ended on a dusty note as outflows from thunderstorms in Graham & Cochise counties sent a wall of dust across the metro area during the evening hours on the 30th..

The monthly average temperature of 88.3° is 2.2° above normal and ranks as the 12th warmest June on record. Temperature extremes for the month ranged from a high of 113° on the 19th to a low of 65° on the 1st & 2nd. No daily temperature records were set.

Most of the rainfall across the metro area occurred on the 1st with a few isolated light showers occurring toward the end of the month. Using several sources like rainlog.org, the Pima County Regional Flood Control District gages and CoCoRaHS, rainfall totals across the metro area were mostly less than 0.50" with isolated spots recording up to 0.80". The International airport, which is the official recording spot in Tucson, recorded just over a third-of-an-inch (0.35") which is slightly above-normal and ranks as the 29th wettest June on record..

The average yearly temperature, through the end of June, of 68.5° ranks as the 7th warmest on record, tied with 2002.

The July outlook from the Climate Prediction Center for Tucson slightly favors above-normal monthly mean temperatures (39% above vs 28% below) and slightly favors above-normal total precipitation amounts (40% above vs 27% below).

The July outlook from the Climate Prediction Center for Tucson favored above-normal monthly mean temperatures (39% above vs 28% below) and favored above-normal total precipitation amounts (40% above vs 27% below).

The monthly average temperature of 89.8° ranks as the 11th warmest July on record. Temperature extremes range from 113° on the 9th to 68° on the 16th. The 113° on the 9th set a daily record (old record 111° from 2024), was one degree off the all-time July record high of 114° which occurred on July 4, 1989 & July 28, 1995, and ranks as the 3rd hottest July day on record, tied with two other dates that were 113°.

Rainfall amounts across the metro area, using several sources like rainlog.org, the Pima County Regional Flood Control District gages and CoCoRaHS, varied widely from a half an inch to nearly 5.00". The International Airport, which is the official recording spot in Tucson, recorded 1.88" which is a third of an inch below normal. The image below is courtesy of the Pima County Regional Flood Control District

Monsoon 2025 is running below normal through the end of July with 1.88" being recorded at the Tucson International Airport. This ranks as the 53rd driest first 47 days of the monsoon on record, tied with 1918 & 1996. Rainfall totals across the Tucson metro area for the season so far ranged widely from 0.67" to 3.00" with isolated spots up to 5.00".

The average yearly temperature, through the end of July, of 71.6° ranks as the 6th warmest on record, tied with 2016. Rainfall at the Tucson International Airport, the official location in Tucson, of 2.79" is two and a third inches below normal and ranks as the 10th driest January through July period on record. The water year rainfall since October 1st of 3.22" is nearly just over four inches below normal and ranks as the 4th driest water year to date with two months left in the water year calendar.

The August outlook from the Climate Prediction Center for Tucson strongly favors above-normal monthly mean temperatures (69% above vs 3% below) and equal chances for either below-, near- or above-normal total precipitation amounts (33% above vs 33% below).

The Climate Prediction Center's official August outlook for Tucson, issued on July 31st, indicated a strong likelihood of a hotter-than-average month. The forecast had a 69% probability of above normal monthly mean temperatures, compared to just a 3% chance of a cooler-than-normal month. In contrast, the precipitation outlook showed equal chances (33%) for below-, near-, or above-normal total precipitation amounts. 

The month started off as July ended, hot, with a string of triple-digit high temperatures that ended at 20 consecutive days on the 13th making it the longest stretch so far in 2025. In this stretch, Tucson went through a period of extreme heat on the 6th and 7th where the all-time August record high temperature of 112° was tied on the 7th. The previous occurrence of 112° was on August 1, 1993. The next day saw Tucson tie its warmest August low temperature on record of 85° which previously occurred on August 1, 1914 & August 6, 2023. During this time period, there were only three days with showers & thunderstorms impacting the area: isolated on the 1st & 9th, scattered on the 13th.

High temperatures for the next four days would be in the mid to upper 90s with isolated showers and thunderstorms on the 14th, 15th & 16th. The 16th was noteworthy as an isolated thunderstorm moving from the University of Arizona campus west to downtown produced strong winds and flash flooding from up to 2" of rain falling in less than a hour.

Triple-digit high temperatures returned for the next week (18th to 24th) with highs ranging from 102° to 106°. Isolated to widely scattered showers and thunderstorms occurred on the 20th & 21st. The 20th was noteworthy as a severe thunderstorms moved from Oro Valley to Marana producing locally heavy rain and severe wind gusts with the Marana Regional Airport recording a wind gust of 59 mph.

The remainder of the month saw high temperatures in the 90s to 102° with isolated showers and thunderstorms occurring on the 25th, 26th, 28th & 29th. The most noteworthy event was on the 25th with isolated heavy rain occurring in Oro Valley and Marana.

August 2025 was the 2nd hottest August on record, with a monthly average temperature of 90.6° (+3.7° above normal). This also ranks as the 5th hottest calendar month on record. Monthly temperature extremes ranged from a record-tying high of 112° on the 7th to a low of 72° on the 27th. A total of eight daily temperatures records were set or tied: two for record highs and six for record warm lows. (see graphic on right for additional temperature details)

Across the metro area, rainfall totals during the summer thunderstorm season varied widely, as is typical. Utilizing data from rainlog.org, Pima County Regional Flood Control District gages, and CoCoRaHS, amounts ranged from a trace to 1.00", with some localized areas recording up to 2.00". The International Airport, which is the official recording spot in Tucson, recorded only 0.11", making this August the third driest on record, behind 0.08" in 1924 and 0.10" in 1926.

Each Summer in the 21st century has had a top 10 hottest ranking at the time of occurrence, except for three Summers (2001, 2008 & 2021). So, Tucsonans know coming into Summer that it will most likely be a hot one. What is unknown when the season starts is how hot it will be. The outlook for this summer, issued by the Climate Prediction Center on May 22nd, favored above-normal mean temperatures at 53% above vs 14% below. Thanks to the 12th warmest June; the 11th warmest July; and the 2nd hottest August on record, Summer 2025 goes into the record books as the 4th hottest Summer on record.

Seasonal temperature extremes ranged from a high of 113° on June 19th & July 9th to a low of 65° on June 1st & 2nd. There were 67 days with highs 100° or hotter, 39 days with highs 105° or hotter, and 7 days with highs 110° or hotter. A total of 13 daily temperatures records were set or tied: three for record highs and ten for record warm lows.

The Climate Prediction Center's summer precipitation outlook, issued on May 22nd, ever so slightly favored above-normal rainfall (35%) over below-normal (32%) and near-normal (33%). As is typical during the summer thunderstorm season, rainfall amounts varied significantly across the metro area, with data from sources like rainlog.org, Pima County Regional Flood Control District gages, and CoCoRaHS showing a range of 0.75" to 3.50" with some localized areas recording higher amounts. The International Airport, which is the official recording spot in Tucson, recorded 2.34" which is slightly more than two inches below normal and ranks as the 15th driest Summer on record.

Due to persistent unfavorable atmospheric conditions, the 2025 Monsoon delivered well below-normal rainfall to the Tucson area. As is typical with the summer thunderstorms, rainfall totals varied widely across the metro area, with totals ranging from 0.75" to 3.50" with locally higher amounts. Rainfall at the Tucson International Airport, the official location in Tucson, is well below normal (-2.38") with only 1.99" being recorded. This ranks as the 13th driest Monsoon on record at the end of August.

The average yearly temperature, through the end of August, of 74.0° is 1.6° above normal and ranks as the 3rd warmest on record, tied with 2014 & 2015. Tucson is on pace to record it's 27th consecutive year with an above-normal average yearly temperature.

Rainfall at the Tucson International Airport, the official location in Tucson, has been scare this year with only 2.90" being recorded. This is 4.20" below normal and ranks as the 2nd driest January through August period on record. Rainfall amounts across the metro area through the end of August, ranged from 1.50" to 6.00" with locally higher amounts.

The water year statistics are even more stark. Since October 1st, Tucson is enduring the DRIEST water year on record with only 3.33" being recorded at the Tucson International Airport. This is nearly six inches below normal and with only one month remaining in the water year calendar, the 3.33" is tracking well below the current driest water year on record of 4.72" set in 1901-1902. Rainfall amounts across the metro area, with one month left in the water year calendar, ranged from 1.50" to 6.50" with locally higher amounts.

The September outlook from the Climate Prediction Center for Tucson is for equal chances for either below-, near- or above-normal monthly mean temperatures and total monthly precipitation amounts (33% above vs 33% below).