Santa Cruz, California Weather
California lilac blooms in winter light. Day 50 of autumn. Read this microseason across nine climate regions →
Santa Cruz weather forecast — hour by hour, 7-day outlook, NOAA radar
Conditions updated 1:29 PM PST · Open-Meteo
- TodayNov 10Clear——76°51°—
- WednesdayNov 11Clear——75°54°-1°
- ThursdayNov 12Overcast48%—68°57°-7°
- FridayNov 13Showers86%0.57″62°57°-6°
- SaturdayNov 14Drizzle49%—61°55°-1°
- SundayNov 15Overcast61%—61°54°0°
- MondayNov 16Showers56%1.0″59°53°-2°
Air quality now AQI 60 · Moderate
AQI 60 (Moderate), driven by Ozone. AQI flat over the last 6 hours (within ±3 points). Ozone at AQI 40 now. With UV 3.1 peaking around 1 PM under clear skies, surface ozone likely climbs to AQI 17.
OK No precautions needed for the general population; unusually sensitive individuals may consider limiting prolonged outdoor exertion.
What's driving it
Ozone × UV × Sky
Ozone at AQI 40 now. With UV 3.1 peaking around 1 PM under clear skies, surface ozone likely climbs to AQI 17.
- Present
- AQI 40
- UV peak
- 3.1 at 1 PM
- Sky at peak
- clear
- Projected peak
- AQI 17
PM × Wind × Precip
PM2.5 at 7.1 µg/m³ (AQI 39) with a 0.85 fine-to-coarse ratio and 5 mph wind — combustion smoke trapped in stagnant air, not road dust.
- PM2.5/PM10
- 0.85
- Wind
- light
- Recent rain
- 0h in last 6h
- Pattern
- stagnant smoke
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).
When the wind is in the west, the weather is at its best.
- Moonrise
- 8:23 AM
- Moonset
- 5:08 PM
- In sign
- ♐︎ Sagittarius
California lilac blooms in winter light
Read this microseason across nine climate regions →
All 72 microseasons on the year wheel →
Santa Cruz at a glance
- Today vs. normal: Today averages 64°F (high 76°F, low 51°F), 7°F above the 57°F normal for Nov 10
- Last frost: January 29 (1991–2020 median, NOAA station 3 km away)
- Microseason: Nov 6–10
- Planting calendar: November — plant garlic (overwinter); harvest tomatoes, peppers, beans, summer squash, winter squash
16-Day Forecast — Santa Cruz
- Tue76°51°0%
- Wed75°54°0%
- Thu68°57°48%
- Fri62°57°86%
- Sat61°55°49%
- Sun61°54°61%
- Mon59°53°56%
- Tue62°52°40%
- Wed61°56°63%
- Thu63°54°58%
- Fri60°50°24%
- Sat64°50°8%
- Sun65°53°17%
- Mon62°54°26%
- Tue62°54°16%
- Wed65°53°27%
Forecast data from Open-Meteo (CC BY 4.0).
Live wind & temperature near Santa Cruz
Interactive wind and temperature map centered on Santa Cruz — it loads in your browser. Open the full weather map.
Right now in the garden
Fall planting + final harvests
As of November 10, the season's first frost (typically December 13) is approaching. Pick what frost-tender plants still carry before the next cold front. This city's planting calendar for November: plant garlic (overwinter); harvest tomatoes, peppers, beans, summer squash, and winter squash.
Sun & seasons in Santa Cruz
Santa Cruz sits in Santa Cruz County, where the year’s longest day runs 14h 42m of daylight and its shortest just 9h 37m — a swing of +5h 5m 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 284 miles to the SE. The nearest town Santa Cruz tracks is San Jose, roughly 25 miles to the NNE.
Air quality in Santa Cruz
Air quality in Santa Cruz’s county has held roughly steady since 2020; its cleanest year on record was 2022 (median AQI 35). See the full air-quality history for Santa Cruz.
Planting calendar
| Month | Plant | Harvest |
|---|---|---|
| January | lettuce, peas, spinach, radishes | fall brassicas, carrots |
| February | lettuce, peas, spinach, radishes | lettuce, spinach, radishes |
| March | — | lettuce, peas, spinach, radishes |
| April | — | lettuce, peas, spinach |
| May | tomatoes, peppers, beans, squash | garlic |
| June | tomatoes, peppers, beans, squash | — |
| July | beans, squash | beans, summer squash |
| August | tomatoes, peppers, beans, squash | tomatoes, peppers, beans, summer squash |
| September | tomatoes, peppers, beans, squash, fall brassicas, carrots | tomatoes, peppers, beans, summer squash, winter squash |
| October | — | tomatoes, peppers, beans, summer squash, winter squash |
| November | garlic (overwinter) | tomatoes, peppers, beans, summer squash, winter squash |
| December | — | tomatoes, peppers, beans, summer squash, winter squash, fall brassicas, carrots |
A year in weather
The year in Santa Cruz tops out in August (~66°F) and dips lowest in January (~51°F), with January wettest at 5.5 inches and July driest at 0.1 inches.
| Month | Mean temp | Precip |
|---|---|---|
| January | 51° | 5.5″ |
| February | 52° | 5.0″ |
| March | 53° | 4.1″ |
| April | 56° | 1.9″ |
| May | 60° | 0.6″ |
| June | 62° | 0.1″ |
| July | 65° | 0.1″ |
| August | 66° | 0.1″ |
| September | 66° | 0.1″ |
| October | 63° | 0.8″ |
| November | 56° | 3.1″ |
| December | 51° | 4.5″ |
Regional context
Similar climates Pasatiempo, CA, Paradise Park, CA, Twin Lakes, CA
By modelled 1991-2020 normals (EC_Earth3P_HR model via Open-Meteo), Santa Cruz sees 51°F Januarys and 65°F Julys, a 14°F range, plus around 25.8 inches of precipitation.
Santa Cruz's moisture rides winter storm tracks: January brings 5.5 inches, while July sees only 0.1 inches in the dry warm season. It is a winter-storm rhythm Santa Cruz shares with places like Pasatiempo, CA, Paradise Park, CA and Twin Lakes, CA.
Santa Cruz's growing window opens around January 29, once Santa Cruz's overnight lows stop freezing — sow lettuce, chard, arugula, and mustard greens. Hold Santa Cruz's tender crops — tomatoes, peppers, basil — until 10-14 days past Santa Cruz's last frost. Around December 13, freezing nights resume in Santa Cruz and tender crops must come in. Sheltered Santa Cruz yards can escape a light frost.
Similar climates: Pasatiempo, CA, Paradise Park, CA, Twin Lakes, CA, Live Oak, CA, Pleasure Point, CA.
Frequently asked
- When does it freeze in Santa Cruz?
- Frost typically leaves Santa Cruz by January 29 and returns to Santa Cruz near December 13.
- What is the rainy season in Santa Cruz?
- Santa Cruz sees its heaviest rain in January (around 5.5 inches), part of roughly 26 inches a year.
- What is the warmest month in Santa Cruz?
- On average August tops the year in Santa Cruz at about 66°F.
- What is the coldest month in Santa Cruz?
- The coldest stretch in Santa Cruz falls in January, around 51°F on average.
- When can I start a vegetable garden in Santa Cruz?
- Around January 29, start frost-hardy crops in Santa Cruz; tomatoes and basil belong a fortnight later.
- What hardiness zone is Santa Cruz?
- Because Santa Cruz bottoms near 51°F in January, that winter low sets Santa Cruz's USDA zone — verify by ZIP.
- What is the 10-day forecast for Santa Cruz?
- Santa Cruz'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 Santa Cruz?
- See this week's day-by-day rain chances for Santa Cruz in the daily forecast above, and the next 24 hours in the hourly chart.
- What is the weather like right now in Santa Cruz?
- Current conditions for Santa Cruz and the next 24 hours — temperature, precipitation chance, and wind by the hour — are in the hourly forecast chart above.
- How often is the Santa Cruz forecast updated?
- The Santa Cruz forecast on this page is built from Open-Meteo weather-model data and refreshes regularly through the day.
- When are sunrise and sunset in Santa Cruz?
- Today's sunrise and sunset times for Santa Cruz 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 Santa Cruz?
- The next few days in Santa Cruz's forecast are the most reliable; accuracy declines beyond about a week as weather-model uncertainty grows.
Santa Cruz sits at 37.0°N; its climate zone is hot-summer Mediterranean (Köppen approximation).
ZIP codes in Santa Cruz
- 95060
- 95061
- 95062
- 95063
- 95064
- 95065
- 95067