Paris Weather by Month and the Best Time to Visit

With rain on about 109 days a year, you'll want the forecast on hand. A HelloRoam France eSIM installed before you fly keeps forecasts, maps and museum tickets on your phone from the moment you land.

Best Paris Months for Weather, Crowds and Holiday Lights

• Best weather: May, June and September. Average highs run from 68°F to 74°F, and each month averages fewer than three days of 86°F or more.
• Sunniest month: July, with about 222 hours of sunshine, followed by August and June.
• Quietest hotels: January and February. Hotels in the city of Paris were 70.1% and 71.1% full in those months in 2025, the lowest of the year.
• Busiest hotels: June, October and September, at 87.6%, 86.4% and 84.7% full in 2025.
• Holiday lights: late November into early January. Paris's tourism office lists the Champs-Élysées lights from November 22, 2026 to early January 2027, with a Christmas market back on the avenue until January 4, 2027.

September is our pick for a first trip, with warm days and fewer than one day of 86°F heat on average. The catch is that it is one of the three busiest hotel months, so book your room early.

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August brings July's heat, with about 5 days of 86°F or more. Yet Paris hotels were only 73.8% full in August 2025, less than any other month except January and February.

Paris Weather by Month: Temperature, Rain, and Sunshine Data

These figures are Météo-France's 1991 to 2020 averages for the Paris-Montsouris weather station, from its climate sheet dated June 6, 2025. We converted them to °F and inches, with the original °C and mm in parentheses. Days with rain count days with at least 1 mm (0.04 inches).

Paris gets rain often, but most of it is light. Météo-France counts 108.9 days a year with at least 1 mm of rain, and only 15.8 days with 10 mm (0.4 inches) or more. The yearly total is about 25 inches, roughly half of New York City's 49.5 inches in NOAA's 1991 to 2020 normals for Central Park.

For a US yardstick, Paris summers run cooler and its winters milder than New York's. Paris averages a 78°F high in July, against 85°F in Central Park, and a 38°F low in January, against 28°F in New York and 19°F at Chicago O'Hare.

Heat waves still happen. Paris-Montsouris set its record of 108.7°F (42.6°C) on July 25, 2019, and the city averages 14 days a year at 86°F or more, almost all from June to August. In heat advice updated in September 2026, Santé publique France, the French public health agency, says to drink water regularly, avoid physical effort and spend time somewhere cool, such as a cinema or library, during a heat wave. Read the agency's heat-wave page before a summer trip.

Winters are cold and damp rather than harsh. Nights fall to freezing or below about 21 times a year, mostly from December to February, but days that never rise above freezing average only 2.6 a year.

What Each Month Brings in Paris

• January: 46°F high, 38°F low and about 59 hours of sunshine for the whole month.
• February: 48°F high, 38°F low and the least rain of the year, about 1.6 inches.
• March: 55°F high and 42°F low, with frosty nights mostly gone. Womenswear Paris Fashion Week runs March 1 to 9, 2027.
• April: 62°F high, 46°F low and about 177 hours of sunshine. Versailles switches to high-season hours on April 1.
• May: 68°F high and 52°F low. It's the wettest month by total, about 2.7 inches, yet rain falls on only 9.2 days. Roland-Garros starts May 17, 2027.
• June: 74°F high, 58°F low and about 204 hours of sunshine. The days are the year's longest, with the sun up from about 5:47 AM to 9:58 PM around June 21. Roland-Garros ends June 6, 2027, and the Fête de la Musique brings free concerts on June 21.
• July: 78°F high and 61°F low, with the most sunshine (about 222 hours), the fewest rainy days (7.4) and the most hot days (5.5 at 86°F or more). Bastille Day falls on Wednesday, July 14, 2027.
• August: 78°F high and 61°F low, with 5 days of 86°F or more.
• September: 71°F high, 55°F low and rain on 7.5 days. Womenswear Fashion Week starts September 27, 2027.
• October: 62°F high, 50°F low and about 119 hours of sunshine. Fashion Week runs to October 5, 2027, and hotels stay busy, at 86.4% full in October 2025.
• November: 52°F high, 43°F low and about 70 hours of sunshine. Versailles moves to low-season hours on November 2, and the Champs-Élysées holiday lights switch on November 22, 2026.
• December: 46°F high, 39°F low, the least sunshine (about 57 hours) and the most rainy days (11.4). Around December 21, the sun is up only from about 8:41 AM to 4:56 PM, so plan outdoor sights for the daylight hours. Still deciding? Compare Paris with other European cities in December.

Paris Hotels Are Fullest in June, September and October

For a hard number on crowds, look at hotel occupancy. INSEE, France's statistics office, publishes it every month for hotels in the city of Paris. These are its rates as of its October 13, 2026 update (the December 2025 and August 2026 figures are provisional):

June was the fullest month in 2019, in 2025 and so far in 2026. In 2024, the Olympic year, October and September came out on top. January was the quietest month in 2019, 2024 and 2025, and so far in 2026, with February next in each full year, so a winter trip gives you the widest choice of rooms if you pack for 46°F to 48°F days.

Paris Event Dates to Check Before You Book

These are the fixed dates worth checking before you book a 2027 trip:

• Paris Fashion Week (womenswear): March 1 to 9, 2027, and September 27 to October 5, 2027, per the Fédération de la Haute Couture et de la Mode.
• Roland-Garros (the French Open): May 17 to June 6, 2027, per the tournament.
• Fête de la Musique: June 21, every year since 1982, with free concerts, per France's Ministry of Culture.
• Bastille Day (Fête nationale): Wednesday, July 14, 2027, a public holiday in France, per Service-Public.fr.
• Nuit Blanche: the City of Paris's yearly night of contemporary art ran on June 6, 2026. Check paris.fr for the 2027 date.
• Paris school holidays (zone C), per Service-Public.fr: December 19, 2026 to January 4, 2027; February 6 to 22, 2027; April 3 to 19, 2027; and summer from July 3, 2027, with classes back on September 2, 2027.

Getting Online in Paris When You Land

Set up mobile data before you fly, so directions from the airport and your hotel booking open on arrival.

You install a HelloRoam France eSIM before you leave the US. Its plan days start when it first connects to a supported network in France, and when you land you switch that line on, turn on data roaming for that line and pick it for mobile data. Your US number stays active on your main line for calls and texts. You need an unlocked phone that supports eSIM, so check your phone's eSIM support before you buy.

If Paris is one stop on a longer trip, a HelloRoam Europe data plan keeps one eSIM working across the borders of the countries it covers. To size a plan, estimate your trip's data use first.

A short stay with good hotel Wi-Fi may not need a data plan at all, and your US carrier's international option can work too. Our eSIM vs roaming comparison sets the two side by side.

What to Pack for Paris Weather Each Season

Pack layers and a compact umbrella, whatever the season. Rain falls on 7 to 11 days a month, but most rainy days bring less than 0.4 inches, so a fold-flat umbrella and a water-resistant jacket cover most of them.

Spring and Autumn

Spring and fall run on layers. April averages a 62°F high and a 46°F low, and October is similar at 62°F and 50°F, so a sweater over a light shirt, plus a light jacket, handles both ends of the day.

Summer

Summer days average 74°F to 78°F, with nights near 58°F to 61°F. Pack breathable clothes for long walks and one light layer for evenings. Expect about 5 days of 86°F or more in each of July and August.

Winter

Winter highs sit at 46°F to 48°F, with lows near 38°F to 39°F and rain on 9 to 11 days a month. Bring a warm, water-resistant coat, waterproof shoes and a thermal base layer for the coldest days.

Skip the expedition parka: with January nights averaging 38°F, standard winter layers cover most visits. For the rest of your bag, run through our complete travel packing list.

How Paris Weather Shapes Your Sightseeing Plans

Save museums for rainy days. As of October 2026, the Louvre opens until 9 PM on Wednesdays and Fridays and closes on Tuesdays. Most US adults pay its €32 rate for visitors from outside the European Economic Area, and it recommends booking a time slot, even if you get in free. Leave the Centre Pompidou off this trip: its Paris building closed on September 22, 2025 for renovation and plans to reopen in 2030.

Give Versailles a dry day, since much of the visit is outdoors in the gardens. The Palace is closed on Mondays, the gardens are free except on fountain-show and musical-garden days, and RER line C stops at Versailles Château Rive Gauche, a 10-minute walk away. High season runs from April 1 to November 1, with the Palace open from 9 AM to 6:30 PM. From November 2 to March 31, it closes at 5:30 PM.

For day-to-day plans, check Météo-France's Paris forecast each morning. Its vigilance map flags orange and red alerts for heat waves, storms, heavy rain and flooding, wind, and snow and ice.

What the State Department Says About Paris Safety

The US State Department rates France Level 2, Exercise Increased Caution, due to terrorism and unrest. It reissued the advisory on October 20, 2026. The new version adds that violence and rioting have recently occurred in France and may continue, and tells travelers to avoid demonstrations and areas of unrest. It warns that pickpocketing and phone theft are common in crowded places, such as airports, subways and train cars, tourist attractions and train stations. It also says peaceful protests and strikes happen often in Paris and can disrupt transportation. Read the full advisory on travel.state.gov before you book and again before you fly.