Worcester, Massachusetts Weather
Apples hang heavy on the branch. Day 93 of summer. Read this microseason across nine climate regions →
Worcester weather forecast — hour by hour, 7-day outlook, NOAA radar
Conditions updated 10:20 AM EDT · Open-Meteo
- TodaySep 21Overcast later31%0.04″65°53°—
- TuesdaySep 22Overcast——61°47°-4°
- WednesdaySep 23Overcast——61°44°0°
- ThursdaySep 24Overcast21%—63°43°+2°
- FridaySep 25Overcast52%—67°47°+4°
- SaturdaySep 26Overcast55%—72°50°+5°
- SundaySep 27Overcast49%—74°53°+2°
Air quality now AQI 28 · Good
AQI 28 (Good), driven by Ozone. AQI flat over the last 6 hours (within ±3 points). Ozone at AQI 33. Overcast through the UV peak window (cloud cover ~92%) — afternoon ozone should stay flat.
OK No precautions needed for the general population; unusually sensitive individuals may consider limiting prolonged outdoor exertion during the projected peak around 6 PM.
What's driving it
Ozone × UV × Sky
Ozone at AQI 33. Overcast through the UV peak window (cloud cover ~92%) — afternoon ozone should stay flat.
- Present
- AQI 33
- UV peak
- 4.2 at 1 PM
- Sky at peak
- overcast
- Projected peak
- AQI 9
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
- 4:26 PM
- Moonset
- 12:58 AM
- In sign
- ♑︎ Capricorn
Apples hang heavy on the branch
Read this microseason across nine climate regions →
All 72 microseasons on the year wheel →
Worcester at a glance
- Today vs. normal: Today averages 59°F (high 65°F, low 53°F), about the 60°F normal for Sep 21
- Last frost: May 1 (1991–2020 median, NOAA station 19 km away)
- Microseason: Sep 21–25
- Planting calendar: September — plant garlic (overwinter); harvest tomatoes, peppers, beans, summer squash, winter squash
16-Day Forecast — Worcester
- Mon65°53°31%
- Tue61°47°0%
- Wed61°44°1%
- Thu63°43°21%
- Fri67°47°52%
- Sat72°50°55%
- Sun74°53°49%
- Mon70°49°23%
- Tue72°48°16%
- Wed69°51°21%
- Thu65°55°21%
- Fri68°51°20%
- Sat65°44°13%
- Sun70°48°17%
- Mon71°53°26%
- Tue57°39°19%
Forecast data from Open-Meteo (CC BY 4.0).
Live wind & temperature near Worcester
Interactive wind and temperature map centered on Worcester — 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 10) 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 Worcester
Worcester sits in Worcester County, where the year’s longest day runs 15h 16m of daylight and its shortest just 9h 5m — a swing of +6h 11m between the June and December solstices. Clocks spring forward on Sunday, March 8, 2026 and fall back on Sunday, November 1, 2026.
Boston, the state’s largest city, lies about 37 miles to the E. The nearest town Worcester tracks is Boston, roughly 37 miles to the E.
Air quality in Worcester
Air quality in Worcester’s county has trended cleaner since 2020; its cleanest year on record was 2024 (median AQI 37). See the full air-quality history for Worcester.
Planting calendar
| Month | Plant | Harvest |
|---|---|---|
| April | lettuce, peas, spinach, radishes | — |
| May | lettuce, peas, spinach, radishes | lettuce, spinach, radishes |
| June | tomatoes, peppers, beans, squash | lettuce, peas, spinach, radishes |
| July | tomatoes, peppers, beans, squash, fall brassicas, carrots | lettuce, peas, spinach, beans, summer squash, garlic |
| August | — | tomatoes, peppers, beans, summer squash, garlic |
| September | garlic (overwinter) | tomatoes, peppers, beans, summer squash, winter squash |
| October | — | tomatoes, peppers, beans, summer squash, winter squash, fall brassicas, carrots |
| November | — | fall brassicas, carrots |
A year in weather
In Worcester, July runs warmest near 71°F and January coldest around 25°F, while October is the wettest month (4.8 inches) and February the driest (3.3 inches).
| Month | Mean temp | Precip | Rainy days |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 25° | 3.5″ | 7 |
| February | 27° | 3.3″ | 7 |
| March | 35° | 4.2″ | 7 |
| April | 46° | 4.1″ | 8 |
| May | 57° | 3.6″ | 8 |
| June | 65° | 4.2″ | 8 |
| July | 71° | 3.9″ | 7 |
| August | 69° | 4.1″ | 6 |
| September | 62° | 4.2″ | 6 |
| October | 51° | 4.8″ | 7 |
| November | 40° | 4.0″ | 7 |
| December | 31° | 4.3″ | 8 |
Regional context
Similar climates Whitinsville, MA, South Lancaster, MA, East Douglas, MA
Worcester swings from 25°F in January to 71°F in July (46°F) per NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 normals; precipitation in Worcester runs about 48.3 inches on roughly 84 measurable days.
Rainfall in Worcester splits evenly between the seasons: October tops out at 4.8 inches over 6.8 rainy days, and February logs 3.3 inches across 6.6 — neither half of Worcester's year dominates. That lines Worcester up with places like Whitinsville, MA, South Lancaster, MA and East Douglas, MA, fed by overlapping storm tracks.
Once Worcester passes May 1, freezes fade and Worcester's beds take kale, peas, spinach, and parsnips. Tomatoes and peppers do best set out two weeks later in Worcester, once nights clear the mid-40s°F. The season ends by October 10 in Worcester, once hard frosts set back in. That date is a median: Worcester freezes sooner in half of years.
Similar climates: Whitinsville, MA, South Lancaster, MA, East Douglas, MA, Marlborough, MA, Cordaville, MA.
Frequently asked
- When does it freeze in Worcester?
- Worcester's last spring frost lands near May 1, and in Worcester the first fall frost follows around October 10.
- What is the rainy season in Worcester?
- October is the wettest month in Worcester, about 4.8 inches on average; the year totals roughly 48 inches.
- What is the warmest month in Worcester?
- The warmest stretch in Worcester comes in July, around 71°F on average.
- What is the coldest month in Worcester?
- On average January is the chilliest month in Worcester, about 25°F.
- When can I start a vegetable garden in Worcester?
- Time tomatoes in Worcester for two weeks after May 1; peas and greens start at Worcester's frost line.
- How many rainy days does Worcester get?
- Worcester records around 84 days of measurable precipitation annually.
- What hardiness zone is Worcester?
- Worcester sits in the USDA zone set by January lows near 25°F; the USDA ZIP tool gives the band.
- What is the 10-day forecast for Worcester?
- Worcester'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 Worcester?
- See this week's day-by-day rain chances for Worcester in the daily forecast above, and the next 24 hours in the hourly chart.
- What is the weather like right now in Worcester?
- Current conditions for Worcester and the next 24 hours — temperature, precipitation chance, and wind by the hour — are in the hourly forecast chart above.
- How often is the Worcester forecast updated?
- The Worcester forecast on this page is built from Open-Meteo weather-model data and refreshes regularly through the day.
- When are sunrise and sunset in Worcester?
- Today's sunrise and sunset times for Worcester 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 Worcester?
- The next few days in Worcester's forecast are the most reliable; accuracy declines beyond about a week as weather-model uncertainty grows.
Worcester sits at 42.3°N; its climate zone is warm-summer humid continental (Köppen approximation).
ZIP codes in Worcester
- 01601
- 01602
- 01603
- 01604
- 01605
- 01606
- 01607
- 01608
- 01609
- 01610
- 01613
- 01614
- 01615
- 01653
- 01655