Merced, California Weather
Ceanothus blooms again. Day 93 of summer. Read this microseason across nine climate regions →
Merced weather forecast — hour by hour, 7-day outlook, NOAA radar
Conditions updated 12:50 AM PDT · Open-Meteo
- TodaySep 21Clear——86°58°—
- TuesdaySep 22Clear——91°55°+5°
- WednesdaySep 23Clear——98°61°+7°
- ThursdaySep 24Overcast——101°66°+3°
- FridaySep 25Overcast——95°61°-6°
- SaturdaySep 26Overcast——98°63°+3°
- SundaySep 27Overcast——95°61°-3°
Air quality now AQI 90 · Moderate
AQI 90 (Moderate), driven by PM2.5. AQI flat over the last 6 hours (within ±3 points). PM2.5 at 13.6 µg/m³, PM10 at 37.1 µg/m³ — typical background levels with no transport signature.
OK No precautions needed for the general population; unusually sensitive individuals may consider limiting prolonged outdoor exertion.
What's driving it
PM × Wind × Precip
PM2.5 at 13.6 µg/m³, PM10 at 37.1 µg/m³ — typical background levels with no transport signature.
- PM2.5/PM10
- 0.37
- Wind
- light
- Recent rain
- 0h in last 6h
- Pattern
- background
Trends
Seven days of AQI and PM2.5.
Hourly air-quality data from the Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service, charted across the past and next several days. Dashed lines mark the AQI breakpoints at 50 (Good → Moderate) and 100 (Moderate → Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups).
September dries up ditches or breaks down bridges.
- Moonrise
- 4:30 PM
- Moonset
- 1:37 AM
- In sign
- ♑︎ Capricorn
Ceanothus blooms again
Read this microseason across nine climate regions →
All 72 microseasons on the year wheel →
Merced at a glance
- Today vs. normal: Today averages 72°F (high 86°F, low 58°F), about the 71°F normal for Sep 21
- Last frost: March 3 (1991–2020 median, NOAA station 4 km away)
- Microseason: Sep 21–25
- Planting calendar: September — plant beans, squash, fall brassicas, carrots; harvest tomatoes, peppers, beans, summer squash, winter squash
15-Day Forecast — Merced
- Mon86°57°3%
- Tue91°55°1%
- Wed98°61°0%
- Thu101°66°0%
- Fri95°61°0%
- Sat98°63°1%
- Sun95°61°1%
- Mon97°59°1%
- Tue103°64°4%
- Wed79°60°4%
- Thu82°64°3%
- Fri89°67°6%
- Sat83°62°6%
- Sun85°57°10%
- Mon73°64°10%
Forecast data from Open-Meteo (CC BY 4.0).
Live wind & temperature near Merced
Interactive wind and temperature map centered on Merced — it loads in your browser. Open the full weather map.
Right now in the garden
Late season
As of September 21, the first frost (around November 24) is about 9 weeks away. Frost-tender plants keep producing until then. This city's planting calendar for September: plant beans, squash, fall brassicas, and carrots; harvest tomatoes, peppers, beans, summer squash, and winter squash.
Sun & seasons in Merced
Merced sits in Merced County, where the year’s longest day runs 14h 44m of daylight and its shortest just 9h 35m — a swing of +5h 9m between the June and December solstices. Clocks spring forward on Sunday, March 8, 2026 and fall back on Sunday, November 1, 2026.
Los Angeles, the state’s largest city, lies about 249 miles to the SSE. The nearest town Merced tracks is Modesto, roughly 37 miles to the NW.
Air quality in Merced
Air quality in Merced’s county has trended cleaner since 2020; its cleanest year on record was 2025 (median AQI 50). See the full air-quality history for Merced.
Planting calendar
| Month | Plant | Harvest |
|---|---|---|
| February | lettuce, peas, spinach, radishes | — |
| March | lettuce, peas, spinach, radishes | lettuce, spinach, radishes |
| April | tomatoes, peppers, beans, squash | lettuce, peas, spinach, radishes |
| May | tomatoes, peppers, beans, squash | lettuce, peas, spinach, garlic |
| June | beans, squash | beans, summer squash, garlic |
| July | tomatoes, peppers, beans, squash | tomatoes, peppers, beans, summer squash |
| August | tomatoes, peppers, beans, squash | tomatoes, peppers, beans, summer squash, winter squash |
| September | beans, squash, fall brassicas, carrots | tomatoes, peppers, beans, summer squash, winter squash |
| October | garlic (overwinter) | tomatoes, peppers, beans, summer squash, winter squash |
| November | garlic (overwinter) | tomatoes, peppers, beans, summer squash, winter squash, fall brassicas, carrots |
| December | — | fall brassicas, carrots |
A year in weather
Merced's warmest month is July (~78°F mean) and its coldest is December (~46°F). Rainfall peaks in January (2.7 inches) and bottoms out in August (0.0 inches).
| Month | Mean temp | Precip | Rainy days |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 46° | 2.7″ | 6 |
| February | 50° | 2.2″ | 6 |
| March | 54° | 1.9″ | 5 |
| April | 59° | 1.0″ | 3 |
| May | 67° | 0.6″ | 2 |
| June | 73° | 0.1″ | 0 |
| July | 78° | 0.0″ | 0 |
| August | 77° | 0.0″ | 0 |
| September | 73° | 0.1″ | 0 |
| October | 64° | 0.7″ | 2 |
| November | 53° | 1.2″ | 3 |
| December | 46° | 2.0″ | 5 |
Regional context
Similar climates Franklin, CA, Bear Creek, CA, University of California-Merced, CA
In Merced, NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 normals put January near 46°F and July near 78°F — a 33°F seasonal arc — with about 12.5 inches of precipitation over 32 rainy or snowy days.
Merced's moisture rides winter storm tracks: January brings 2.7 inches over 5.8 wet days, while August sees only 0.0 inches across 0.0 days in the dry warm season. It is a winter-storm rhythm Merced shares with places like Franklin, CA, Bear Creek, CA and University of California-Merced, CA.
Merced reaches its last hard frost near March 3; that is the cue for lettuce, chard, arugula, and mustard greens. Tomatoes and peppers do best set out two weeks later in Merced, once nights clear the mid-40s°F. By November 24, frost is back in Merced — protect or harvest anything tender. Open lawns in Merced whiten first when frost returns.
Similar climates: Franklin, CA, Bear Creek, CA, University of California-Merced, CA, Tuttle, CA, McSwain, CA.
Frequently asked
- When does it freeze in Merced?
- Frost typically leaves Merced by March 3 and returns to Merced near November 24.
- What is the rainy season in Merced?
- January is the wettest month in Merced, about 2.7 inches on average; the year totals roughly 13 inches.
- What is the warmest month in Merced?
- July is Merced's warmest month, averaging about 78°F.
- What is the coldest month in Merced?
- Merced bottoms out in December, with a mean near 46°F.
- When can I start a vegetable garden in Merced?
- Time tomatoes in Merced for two weeks after March 3; peas and greens start at Merced's frost line.
- How many rainy days does Merced get?
- Merced records around 32 days of measurable precipitation annually.
- What hardiness zone is Merced?
- Merced's USDA zone comes from its December mean (46°F); enter the ZIP on the USDA lookup for the number.
- What is the 10-day forecast for Merced?
- Merced's extended outlook — daily high and low temperatures and precipitation chances for each upcoming day — is in the daily forecast above.
- Will it rain this week in Merced?
- See this week's day-by-day rain chances for Merced in the daily forecast above, and the next 24 hours in the hourly chart.
- What is the weather like right now in Merced?
- Current conditions for Merced and the next 24 hours — temperature, precipitation chance, and wind by the hour — are in the hourly forecast chart above.
- How often is the Merced forecast updated?
- The Merced forecast on this page is built from Open-Meteo weather-model data and refreshes regularly through the day.
- When are sunrise and sunset in Merced?
- Today's sunrise and sunset times for Merced are in the Almanac section above, along with civil dawn, civil dusk, and day length. Day length is longest near the summer solstice and shortest near the winter solstice.
- How accurate is the weather forecast for Merced?
- The next few days in Merced's forecast are the most reliable; accuracy declines beyond about a week as weather-model uncertainty grows.
Merced sits at 37.3°N; its climate zone is hot-summer Mediterranean (Köppen approximation).
ZIP codes in Merced
- 95340
- 95341
- 95343
- 95348