Santa Maria, California Weather
Ceanothus blooms again. Day 93 of summer. Read this microseason across nine climate regions →
Santa Maria weather forecast — hour by hour, 7-day outlook, NOAA radar
Conditions updated 12:30 AM PDT · Open-Meteo
- TodaySep 21Overcast——67°59°—
- TuesdaySep 22Foggy——70°57°+3°
- WednesdaySep 23Clear——83°57°+13°
- ThursdaySep 24Mostly Clear——83°60°0°
- FridaySep 25Overcast——84°59°+1°
- SaturdaySep 26Overcast——81°58°-3°
- SundaySep 27Overcast——78°55°-3°
Air quality now AQI 51 · Moderate
AQI 51 (Moderate), driven by PM2.5. AQI flat over the last 6 hours (within ±3 points). PM2.5 at 9.7 µg/m³ (AQI 52) with a 0.74 fine-to-coarse ratio and 5 mph wind — combustion smoke trapped in stagnant air, not road dust.
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 9.7 µg/m³ (AQI 52) with a 0.74 fine-to-coarse ratio and 5 mph wind — combustion smoke trapped in stagnant air, not road dust.
- PM2.5/PM10
- 0.74
- 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).
September dries up ditches or breaks down bridges.
- Moonrise
- 4:24 PM
- Moonset
- 1:44 AM
- In sign
- ♑︎ Capricorn
Ceanothus blooms again
Read this microseason across nine climate regions →
All 72 microseasons on the year wheel →
Santa Maria at a glance
- Today vs. normal: Today averages 63°F (high 67°F, low 59°F), about the 64°F normal for Sep 21
- Last frost: February 4 (1991–2020 median, NOAA station 4 km away)
- Microseason: Sep 21–25
- Planting calendar: September — plant tomatoes, peppers, beans, squash, fall brassicas, carrots; harvest tomatoes, peppers, beans, summer squash, winter squash
15-Day Forecast — Santa Maria
- Mon68°58°1%
- Tue70°57°0%
- Wed83°57°0%
- Thu83°60°0%
- Fri84°59°1%
- Sat81°58°0%
- Sun78°55°1%
- Mon83°55°5%
- Tue97°61°5%
- Wed73°66°5%
- Thu74°61°5%
- Fri81°61°3%
- Sat84°65°6%
- Sun90°68°3%
- Mon72°65°3%
Forecast data from Open-Meteo (CC BY 4.0).
Live wind & temperature near Santa Maria
Interactive wind and temperature map centered on Santa Maria — 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 13) is weeks away. Fall transplants go in about 10–12 weeks before the first frost, September 20 to October 4 here. This city's planting calendar for September: plant tomatoes, peppers, beans, squash, fall brassicas, and carrots; harvest tomatoes, peppers, beans, summer squash, and winter squash.
Sun & seasons in Santa Maria
Santa Maria sits in Santa Barbara County, where the year’s longest day runs 14h 30m of daylight and its shortest just 9h 48m — a swing of +4h 42m 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 129 miles to the ESE. The nearest town Santa Maria tracks is Santa Barbara, roughly 54 miles to the SE.
Air quality in Santa Maria
Air quality in Santa Maria’s county has trended dirtier since 2020; its cleanest year on record was 2021 (median AQI 44). See the full air-quality history for Santa Maria.
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 | — | peas, garlic |
| June | tomatoes, peppers, beans, squash | — |
| July | tomatoes, peppers, 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
In Santa Maria, August runs warmest near 65°F and December coldest around 52°F, while February is the wettest month (2.9 inches) and August the driest (0.0 inches).
| Month | Mean temp | Precip | Rainy days |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 53° | 2.7″ | 8 |
| February | 54° | 2.9″ | 8 |
| March | 55° | 2.6″ | 8 |
| April | 57° | 0.9″ | 4 |
| May | 59° | 0.4″ | 2 |
| June | 62° | 0.1″ | 1 |
| July | 64° | 0.0″ | 1 |
| August | 65° | 0.0″ | 0 |
| September | 64° | 0.1″ | 1 |
| October | 62° | 0.5″ | 3 |
| November | 57° | 1.1″ | 5 |
| December | 52° | 2.0″ | 7 |
Regional context
Similar climates Orcutt, CA, Nipomo, CA, Guadalupe, CA
Drawing on NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 normals, Santa Maria's January averages 53°F and July 64°F — 11°F apart — while precipitation totals roughly 13.3 inches over some 47 days.
Cool-season fronts carry Santa Maria's rain: February logs 2.9 inches on 8.4 days, against August's 0.0 inches on 0.4 — winter does the heavy lifting in Santa Maria. That cool-season-wet pattern aligns Santa Maria with places like Orcutt, CA, Nipomo, CA and Guadalupe, CA.
Santa Maria's growing window opens around February 4, once Santa Maria's overnight lows stop freezing — sow lettuce, chard, arugula, and mustard greens. Hold Santa Maria's tender crops — tomatoes, peppers, basil — until 10-14 days past Santa Maria's last frost. It shuts near December 13, when freezes return to Santa Maria and tender plants need cover. In about half of years, Santa Maria's last freeze comes after February 4.
Similar climates: Orcutt, CA, Nipomo, CA, Guadalupe, CA, Garey, CA, Casmalia, CA.
Frequently asked
- When does it freeze in Santa Maria?
- Frost typically leaves Santa Maria by February 4 and returns to Santa Maria near December 13.
- What is the rainy season in Santa Maria?
- Rainfall in Santa Maria peaks in February near 2.9 inches, out of about 13 inches annually.
- What is the warmest month in Santa Maria?
- Santa Maria peaks in August, when the mean runs near 65°F.
- What is the coldest month in Santa Maria?
- December is Santa Maria's coldest month, averaging about 52°F.
- When can I start a vegetable garden in Santa Maria?
- In Santa Maria, sow peas and hardy greens around February 4; Santa Maria's tomatoes and peppers wait two weeks more.
- How many rainy days does Santa Maria get?
- Expect roughly 47 wet days a year in Santa Maria.
- What hardiness zone is Santa Maria?
- Since December in Santa Maria averages 52°F, Santa Maria's USDA zone follows that floor — confirm it by ZIP.
- What is the 10-day forecast for Santa Maria?
- Santa Maria'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 Maria?
- See this week's day-by-day rain chances for Santa Maria in the daily forecast above, and the next 24 hours in the hourly chart.
- What is the weather like right now in Santa Maria?
- Current conditions for Santa Maria 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 Maria forecast updated?
- The Santa Maria 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 Maria?
- Today's sunrise and sunset times for Santa Maria 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 Maria?
- The next few days in Santa Maria's forecast are the most reliable; accuracy declines beyond about a week as weather-model uncertainty grows.
Santa Maria sits at 34.9°N; its climate zone is hot-summer Mediterranean (Köppen approximation).
ZIP codes in Santa Maria
- 93454
- 93455
- 93458