Lancaster, Pennsylvania Weather
Apples hang heavy on the branch. Day 93 of summer. Read this microseason across nine climate regions →
Lancaster weather forecast — hour by hour, 7-day outlook, NOAA radar
Conditions updated 12:20 AM EDT · Open-Meteo
- TodaySep 21Light Rain later44%0.07″72°62°—
- TuesdaySep 22Rain70%0.58″63°52°-9°
- WednesdaySep 23Rain25%0.46″62°49°-1°
- ThursdaySep 24Overcast——64°50°+2°
- FridaySep 25Overcast32%—68°43°+4°
- SaturdaySep 26Overcast32%—67°49°-1°
- SundaySep 27Overcast14%—73°55°+6°
Air quality now AQI 31 · Good
AQI 31 (Good), driven by Ozone. AQI down 7 over the last 6 hours (gradual decline).
OK No precautions needed for the general population; unusually sensitive individuals may consider limiting prolonged outdoor exertion.
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
- 4:37 PM
- Moonset
- 1:23 AM
- In sign
- ♑︎ Capricorn
Apples hang heavy on the branch
Read this microseason across nine climate regions →
All 72 microseasons on the year wheel →
Lancaster at a glance
- Today vs. normal: Today averages 67°F (high 72°F, low 62°F), 2°F above the 65°F normal for Sep 21
- Last frost: April 19 (1991–2020 median, NOAA station 3 km away)
- Microseason: Sep 21–25
- Planting calendar: September — plant garlic (overwinter); harvest tomatoes, peppers, beans, summer squash, winter squash
15-Day Forecast — Lancaster
- Mon72°62°44%
- Tue63°52°70%
- Wed62°49°25%
- Thu64°50°9%
- Fri68°43°32%
- Sat67°49°32%
- Sun73°55°14%
- Mon72°50°7%
- Tue74°50°10%
- Wed80°57°14%
- Thu84°60°14%
- Fri74°58°16%
- Sat79°56°19%
- Sun79°67°24%
- Mon72°49°24%
Forecast data from Open-Meteo (CC BY 4.0).
Live wind & temperature near Lancaster
Interactive wind and temperature map centered on Lancaster — it loads in your browser. Open the full weather map.
Right now in the garden
Fall planting + final harvests
As of September 21, the season's first frost (typically October 24) is approaching. Pick what frost-tender plants still carry before the next cold front. This city's planting calendar for September: plant garlic (overwinter); harvest tomatoes, peppers, beans, summer squash, and winter squash.
Sun & seasons in Lancaster
Lancaster sits in Lancaster County, where the year’s longest day runs 15h 1m of daylight and its shortest just 9h 19m — a swing of +5h 42m between the June and December solstices. Clocks spring forward on Sunday, March 8, 2026 and fall back on Sunday, November 1, 2026.
Philadelphia, the state’s largest city, lies about 62 miles to the E. The nearest town Lancaster tracks is York, roughly 23 miles to the WSW.
Air quality in Lancaster
Air quality in Lancaster’s county has trended cleaner since 2020; its cleanest year on record was 2025 (median AQI 45). See the full air-quality history for Lancaster.
Planting calendar
| Month | Plant | Harvest |
|---|---|---|
| March | lettuce, peas, spinach, radishes | — |
| April | lettuce, peas, spinach, radishes | radishes |
| May | tomatoes, peppers, beans, squash | lettuce, peas, spinach, radishes |
| June | tomatoes, peppers, beans, squash | lettuce, peas, spinach, radishes |
| July | tomatoes, peppers, beans, squash | lettuce, peas, tomatoes, peppers, beans, summer squash, garlic |
| August | beans, squash, fall brassicas, carrots | tomatoes, peppers, beans, summer squash, winter squash |
| September | garlic (overwinter) | tomatoes, peppers, beans, summer squash, winter squash |
| October | garlic (overwinter) | tomatoes, peppers, beans, summer squash, winter squash, fall brassicas, carrots |
| November | — | fall brassicas, carrots |
A year in weather
The year in Lancaster tops out in July (~76°F) and dips lowest in January (~31°F), with September wettest at 4.8 inches and February driest at 2.5 inches.
| Month | Mean temp | Precip | Rainy days |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 31° | 3.0″ | 6 |
| February | 33° | 2.5″ | 6 |
| March | 41° | 3.5″ | 7 |
| April | 53° | 3.5″ | 7 |
| May | 62° | 3.6″ | 7 |
| June | 71° | 4.1″ | 7 |
| July | 76° | 4.5″ | 7 |
| August | 74° | 3.6″ | 6 |
| September | 67° | 4.8″ | 6 |
| October | 55° | 4.2″ | 6 |
| November | 44° | 3.3″ | 5 |
| December | 36° | 3.5″ | 7 |
Regional context
Similar climates Rohrerstown, PA, Millersville, PA, Willow Street, PA
Lancaster's climate, from NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 station normals, pairs 31°F Januarys with 76°F Julys — a 45°F swing. About 44.2 inches of precipitation falls over roughly 76 days a year.
Lancaster's precipitation spreads evenly across the seasons: September peaks at 4.8 inches on 6.1 wet days, while February holds 2.5 inches over 5.9 — no season dominates Lancaster's rain calendar. That lines Lancaster up with places like Rohrerstown, PA, Millersville, PA and Willow Street, PA, fed by overlapping storm tracks.
By April 19 the frosts ease in Lancaster, opening the season for peas, lettuce, spinach, and radishes. Hold Lancaster's tender crops — tomatoes, peppers, basil — until 10-14 days past Lancaster's last frost. Lancaster's window closes around October 24 as Lancaster's overnight lows return below freezing. In about half of years, Lancaster's last freeze comes after April 19.
Similar climates: Rohrerstown, PA, Millersville, PA, Willow Street, PA, Lampeter, PA, Witmer, PA.
Frequently asked
- When does it freeze in Lancaster?
- Frost typically leaves Lancaster by April 19 and returns to Lancaster near October 24.
- What is the rainy season in Lancaster?
- September is the wettest month in Lancaster, about 4.8 inches on average; the year totals roughly 44 inches.
- What is the warmest month in Lancaster?
- July is Lancaster's warmest month, averaging about 76°F.
- What is the coldest month in Lancaster?
- Lancaster bottoms out in January, with a mean near 31°F.
- When can I start a vegetable garden in Lancaster?
- Frost-hardy sowings begin at April 19 in Lancaster; warm-season starts follow two weeks on.
- How many rainy days does Lancaster get?
- Expect roughly 76 wet days a year in Lancaster.
- What hardiness zone is Lancaster?
- Lancaster's hardiness zone tracks its winter low; with January near 31°F, check the USDA ZIP map for the exact zone.
- What is the 10-day forecast for Lancaster?
- Lancaster'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 Lancaster?
- See this week's day-by-day rain chances for Lancaster in the daily forecast above, and the next 24 hours in the hourly chart.
- What is the weather like right now in Lancaster?
- Current conditions for Lancaster and the next 24 hours — temperature, precipitation chance, and wind by the hour — are in the hourly forecast chart above.
- How often is the Lancaster forecast updated?
- The Lancaster forecast on this page is built from Open-Meteo weather-model data and refreshes regularly through the day.
- When are sunrise and sunset in Lancaster?
- Today's sunrise and sunset times for Lancaster 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 Lancaster?
- The next few days in Lancaster's forecast are the most reliable; accuracy declines beyond about a week as weather-model uncertainty grows.
Lancaster sits at 40.0°N; its climate zone is warm-summer humid continental (Köppen approximation).
ZIP codes in Lancaster
- 17601
- 17602
- 17603
- 17606
- 17608
- 17622
- 17699