Salinas, California Weather
Ceanothus blooms again. Day 93 of summer. Read this microseason across nine climate regions →
Salinas weather forecast — hour by hour, 7-day outlook, NOAA radar
Conditions updated 7:24 AM PDT · Open-Meteo
- TodaySep 21Overcast——67°55°—
- TuesdaySep 22Overcast——66°56°-1°
- WednesdaySep 23Foggy——84°53°+18°
- ThursdaySep 24Overcast——80°54°-4°
- FridaySep 25Overcast——78°54°-2°
- SaturdaySep 26Overcast——73°52°-5°
- SundaySep 27Overcast——69°51°-4°
Air quality now AQI 53 · Moderate
AQI 53 (Moderate), driven by PM2.5. AQI flat over the last 6 hours (within ±3 points). PM2.5 at 14.4 µg/m³ (AQI 61) with a 0.78 fine-to-coarse ratio and 3 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 14.4 µg/m³ (AQI 61) with a 0.78 fine-to-coarse ratio and 3 mph wind — combustion smoke trapped in stagnant air, not road dust.
- PM2.5/PM10
- 0.78
- Wind
- calm
- 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
- 4:33 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 →
Salinas at a glance
- Today vs. normal: Today averages 61°F (high 67°F, low 55°F), 3°F below the 64°F normal for Sep 21
- Last frost: January 29 (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
16-Day Forecast — Salinas
- Mon67°55°3%
- Tue66°56°3%
- Wed84°53°0%
- Thu80°54°0%
- Fri78°54°1%
- Sat73°52°0%
- Sun69°51°1%
- Mon85°50°1%
- Tue94°60°1%
- Wed95°63°3%
- Thu99°67°1%
- Fri98°67°6%
- Sat96°66°0%
- Sun86°57°0%
- Mon76°52°3%
- Tue71°49°3%
Forecast data from Open-Meteo (CC BY 4.0).
Live wind & temperature near Salinas
Interactive wind and temperature map centered on Salinas — 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 10) is weeks away. Fall transplants go in about 10–12 weeks before the first frost, September 17 to October 1 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 Salinas
Salinas sits in Monterey County, where the year’s longest day runs 14h 40m of daylight and its shortest just 9h 39m — a swing of +5h 2m 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 254 miles to the SE. The nearest town Salinas tracks is Santa Cruz, roughly 30 miles to the NW.
Air quality in Salinas
Air quality in Salinas’s county has held roughly steady since 2020; its cleanest year on record was 2025 (median AQI 38). See the full air-quality history for Salinas.
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 | 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
Salinas peaks at about 64°F in September and bottoms near 51°F in December; January brings the heaviest rain (2.6 inches) and July the least (0.0 inches).
| Month | Mean temp | Precip | Rainy days |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 52° | 2.6″ | 6 |
| February | 53° | 2.4″ | 6 |
| March | 55° | 2.1″ | 5 |
| April | 57° | 0.9″ | 3 |
| May | 59° | 0.4″ | 1 |
| June | 62° | 0.1″ | 0 |
| July | 63° | 0.0″ | 0 |
| August | 64° | 0.0″ | 0 |
| September | 64° | 0.1″ | 0 |
| October | 62° | 0.6″ | 1 |
| November | 56° | 1.3″ | 3 |
| December | 51° | 2.1″ | 5 |
Regional context
Similar climates Boronda, CA, Spreckels, CA, Prunedale, CA
Drawing on NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 normals, Salinas's January averages 52°F and July 63°F — 11°F apart — while precipitation totals roughly 12.6 inches over some 31 days.
Cool-season fronts carry Salinas's rain: January logs 2.6 inches on 6.0 days, against July's 0.0 inches on 0.0 — winter does the heavy lifting in Salinas. That groups Salinas with places like Boronda, CA, Spreckels, CA and Prunedale, CA on the same cool-season storm track.
The cool-season window in Salinas starts at January 29, when nights stop freezing — think lettuce, chard, arugula, and mustard greens. Warm-soil crops in Salinas wait about two weeks past Salinas's last frost, once the soil warms. Salinas's window closes around December 10 as Salinas's overnight lows return below freezing. Sheltered Salinas yards can escape a light frost.
Similar climates: Boronda, CA, Spreckels, CA, Prunedale, CA, Castroville, CA, Marina, CA.
Frequently asked
- When does it freeze in Salinas?
- In Salinas, expect the last spring frost near January 29; Salinas's first autumn frost comes around December 10.
- What is the rainy season in Salinas?
- Rainfall in Salinas peaks in January near 2.6 inches, out of about 13 inches annually.
- What is the warmest month in Salinas?
- Salinas peaks in September, when the mean runs near 64°F.
- What is the coldest month in Salinas?
- December is Salinas's coldest month, averaging about 51°F.
- When can I start a vegetable garden in Salinas?
- In Salinas, sow peas and hardy greens around January 29; Salinas's tomatoes and peppers wait two weeks more.
- How many rainy days does Salinas get?
- Salinas averages about 31 days with measurable rain or snow each year.
- What hardiness zone is Salinas?
- With December around 51°F, Salinas's zone reflects that minimum — the USDA ZIP map confirms Salinas's band.
- What is the 10-day forecast for Salinas?
- Salinas'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 Salinas?
- See this week's day-by-day rain chances for Salinas in the daily forecast above, and the next 24 hours in the hourly chart.
- What is the weather like right now in Salinas?
- Current conditions for Salinas and the next 24 hours — temperature, precipitation chance, and wind by the hour — are in the hourly forecast chart above.
- How often is the Salinas forecast updated?
- The Salinas forecast on this page is built from Open-Meteo weather-model data and refreshes regularly through the day.
- When are sunrise and sunset in Salinas?
- Today's sunrise and sunset times for Salinas 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 Salinas?
- The next few days in Salinas's forecast are the most reliable; accuracy declines beyond about a week as weather-model uncertainty grows.
Salinas sits at 36.7°N; its climate zone is hot-summer Mediterranean (Köppen approximation).
ZIP codes in Salinas
- 93901
- 93902
- 93905
- 93906
- 93907
- 93908
- 93915