July was hottest month in US since 1895, says NOAA

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) says July 2026 was the hottest month ever recorded in the United States since records began in 1895.

In a report released on Monday, the agency said the average temperature across the contiguous US was 76.9°F, which was 3.3°F above the 20th-century average.

NOAA said the figure made July the warmest month in the 132-year record, surpassing the previous records set in July 1936 and July 2012 by about 0.1 to 0.2°F.

It attributed the extreme heat to long, intense heat domes that produced record temperatures across the East Coast, Plains and Southwestern states.

“Above-average temperatures extended across the entire CONUS in July, with much-above-average temperatures observed throughout much of the interior West, Southwest, Rockies, northern Plains and Upper Midwest, as well as parts of the Gulf Coast and Southeast,” the report reads.

“All CONUS states were at least 1°F above their 20th-century average, with 13 states ranking among their five warmest Julys. Wyoming recorded its warmest July and warmest month on record, with temperatures 5.1°F above average and 0.9°F warmer than its previous July record set in 2007.”

NOAA said the average daytime maximum temperature across the US was 89.5°F, 2.9°F above average, ranking as the sixth-warmest month on record for average high temperatures.

“Overnight minimum temperatures averaged 64.2°F, 3.7°F above average, ranking as the warmest month on record for average low temperatures, surpassing July 2022 by 0.7°F,” it added.

NOAA said much of the interior West, Southwest, Rockies, northern Plains and Upper Midwest, as well as parts of the Gulf Coast and Southeast, experienced much-above-average temperatures.

Despite the widespread heat, the US recorded below-average precipitation overall during the month.

However, some areas experienced significant rainfall, including major flash flooding in the Texas Hill Country and eastern New York.

Alaska recorded a contrasting trend, with an average July temperature of 51.8°F, which was 0.9°F below its 1925–2000 average and placed the state in the coolest third of its 102-year record.

“Hawai’i’s average temperature was 69.4°F, 0.6°F above the 1991–2020 average, ranking in the middle third of the 36-year record,” NOAA said.

“While overnight minimum temperatures were above- to much-above average across the island chain, daytime temperatures were near or below average for the month.”

According to Climate Central, July temperatures in 229 US cities have increased by an average of 2.6°F since 1970, with the highest rates of warming recorded in cities across the Pacific Northwest and Southwest.

Denver and Salt Lake City recorded their warmest Julys in 2026, while Miami, Los Angeles and Minneapolis were among cities that experienced a top-five warmest July.(TheCable)