Modesto, California Weather
Ceanothus blooms again. Day 93 of summer. Read this microseason across nine climate regions →
Modesto weather forecast — hour by hour, 7-day outlook, NOAA radar
Conditions updated 1:00 AM PDT · Open-Meteo
- TodaySep 21Clear——86°55°—
- TuesdaySep 22Mostly Clear——87°54°+1°
- WednesdaySep 23Overcast——97°61°+10°
- ThursdaySep 24Overcast——99°66°+2°
- FridaySep 25Overcast——91°62°-8°
- SaturdaySep 26Overcast——95°63°+4°
- SundaySep 27Overcast——93°61°-2°
Air quality now AQI 57 · Moderate
AQI 57 (Moderate), driven by PM2.5. AQI flat over the last 6 hours (within ±3 points). PM2.5 at 12.4 µg/m³, PM10 at 26.6 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 12.4 µg/m³, PM10 at 26.6 µg/m³ — typical background levels with no transport signature.
- PM2.5/PM10
- 0.47
- Wind
- calm
- 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
- 4:33 PM
- Moonset
- 1:38 AM
- In sign
- ♑︎ Capricorn
Ceanothus blooms again
Read this microseason across nine climate regions →
All 72 microseasons on the year wheel →
Modesto at a glance
- Today vs. normal: Today averages 71°F (high 86°F, low 55°F), about the 72°F normal for Sep 21
- Last frost: January 31 (1991–2020 median, NOAA station 5 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 — Modesto
- Mon86°55°2%
- Tue87°54°1%
- Wed97°61°0%
- Thu99°66°0%
- Fri91°62°1%
- Sat95°63°1%
- Sun93°61°1%
- Mon95°60°0%
- Tue100°66°3%
- Wed82°65°8%
- Thu89°63°2%
- Fri92°65°3%
- Sat84°61°6%
- Sun87°59°10%
- Mon81°65°6%
Forecast data from Open-Meteo (CC BY 4.0).
Live wind & temperature near Modesto
Interactive wind and temperature map centered on Modesto — it loads in your browser. Open the full weather map.
Right now in the garden
Peak growing season
As of September 21, the growing season is at its peak — the first frost (around December 5) is weeks away. Fall transplants go in about 10–12 weeks before the first frost, September 12 to September 26 here. 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 Modesto
Modesto sits in Stanislaus County, where the year’s longest day runs 14h 46m of daylight and its shortest just 9h 33m — a swing of +5h 13m 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 283 miles to the SSE. The nearest town Modesto tracks is Stockton, roughly 29 miles to the NW.
Air quality in Modesto
Air quality in Modesto’s county has trended cleaner since 2020; its cleanest year on record was 2025 (median AQI 51). See the full air-quality history for Modesto.
Planting calendar
| Month | Plant | Harvest |
|---|---|---|
| January | lettuce, peas, spinach, radishes | — |
| February | lettuce, peas, spinach, radishes | lettuce, spinach, radishes |
| March | — | lettuce, peas, spinach, radishes |
| April | tomatoes, peppers, beans, squash | lettuce, peas, spinach |
| May | tomatoes, peppers, beans, squash | garlic |
| June | beans, squash | beans, summer squash |
| July | beans, squash | tomatoes, peppers, beans, summer squash, winter 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
July is Modesto's warmest stretch (~79°F) and December its coldest (~48°F); precipitation crests in January at 3.5 inches and ebbs in August to 0.0 inches.
| Month | Mean temp | Precip |
|---|---|---|
| January | 48° | 3.5″ |
| February | 51° | 3.2″ |
| March | 54° | 2.9″ |
| April | 60° | 1.4″ |
| May | 68° | 0.5″ |
| June | 74° | 0.0″ |
| July | 79° | 0.0″ |
| August | 78° | 0.0″ |
| September | 73° | 0.1″ |
| October | 65° | 0.6″ |
| November | 54° | 2.3″ |
| December | 48° | 3.1″ |
Regional context
Similar climates Rouse, CA, Bystrom, CA, Airport, CA
Modesto's climate, from modelled 1991-2020 normals (EC_Earth3P_HR model via Open-Meteo), pairs 48°F Januarys with 79°F Julys — a 31°F swing. About 17.7 inches of precipitation falls each year.
Cool-season fronts carry Modesto's rain: January logs 3.5 inches, against August's 0.0 inches — winter does the heavy lifting in Modesto. That cool-season-wet pattern aligns Modesto with places like Rouse, CA, Bystrom, CA and Airport, CA.
Modesto's growing window opens around January 31, once Modesto's overnight lows stop freezing — sow lettuce, chard, arugula, and mustard greens. Hold Modesto's tender crops — tomatoes, peppers, basil — until 10-14 days past Modesto's last frost. It shuts near December 5, when freezes return to Modesto and tender plants need cover. Sheltered Modesto yards can escape a light frost.
Similar climates: Rouse, CA, Bystrom, CA, Airport, CA, West Modesto, CA, Parklawn, CA.
Frequently asked
- When does it freeze in Modesto?
- Frost typically leaves Modesto by January 31 and returns to Modesto near December 5.
- What is the rainy season in Modesto?
- Modesto sees its heaviest rain in January (around 3.5 inches), part of roughly 18 inches a year.
- What is the warmest month in Modesto?
- On average July tops the year in Modesto at about 79°F.
- What is the coldest month in Modesto?
- The coldest stretch in Modesto falls in December, around 48°F on average.
- When can I start a vegetable garden in Modesto?
- Around January 31, start frost-hardy crops in Modesto; tomatoes and basil belong a fortnight later.
- What hardiness zone is Modesto?
- Since December in Modesto averages 48°F, Modesto's USDA zone follows that floor — confirm it by ZIP.
- What is the 10-day forecast for Modesto?
- Modesto'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 Modesto?
- See this week's day-by-day rain chances for Modesto in the daily forecast above, and the next 24 hours in the hourly chart.
- What is the weather like right now in Modesto?
- Current conditions for Modesto and the next 24 hours — temperature, precipitation chance, and wind by the hour — are in the hourly forecast chart above.
- How often is the Modesto forecast updated?
- The Modesto forecast on this page is built from Open-Meteo weather-model data and refreshes regularly through the day.
- When are sunrise and sunset in Modesto?
- Today's sunrise and sunset times for Modesto 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 Modesto?
- The next few days in Modesto's forecast are the most reliable; accuracy declines beyond about a week as weather-model uncertainty grows.
Modesto sits at 37.6°N; its climate zone is hot-summer Mediterranean (Köppen approximation).
ZIP codes in Modesto
- 95350
- 95351
- 95352
- 95353
- 95354
- 95355
- 95356
- 95357
- 95358
- 95397