February brings 24°C daytime highs, 38mm of precipitation across about 3 wet days and 11.2 hours of daylight — best for hiking and cycling. The strongest run of the year is February to April. September is the quietest month: quiet and local, and still good for beach days, swimming and quiet and local.
Long-run climate normals for Key West. Month ratings compare months within Key West only — they are not a ranking of Key West against other destinations, and they are not a forecast for a specific year.
Last updated: · Live forecast data refreshes hourly.
| Best month | February — Hiking, Cycling |
| Best 3-month window | February–April |
| Quietest month | September — Quiet and local |
| Driest month | February — 38mm |
| Wettest month | September — 158mm |
| Warmest / coolest | July 33°C / February 24°C |
| Seasonality | Strongly seasonal — the months feel like different places |
| Annual rainfall | 1002mm over roughly 82 rain days |
September gets roughly 316% more precipitation than February — 158mm against 38mm. That difference, more than temperature, is what changes how a day here feels.
Daytime highs only move 9°C across the whole year (24–33°C), so timing matters far less here than rainfall does.
June gives you 13.5 hours of daylight against just 10.5 in December — a 3-hour difference in how much you can actually fit into a day.
February is the driest month at 38mm across roughly 3 wet days, while September peaks at 158mm.
March is almost as good as February, but usually quieter and cheaper. If your dates are flexible, it is the easier trip.
Key West changes character completely through the year — February and September are effectively two different destinations. Pick the month that matches what you want to do, not the highest-rated one.
Ratings compare months within Key West, not against destinations worldwide: five stars means the best time to be here, not that Key West beats anywhere else. Tags describe what the conditions actually suit.
| Month | Rating | High / Low | Precipitation | Wet days | Sun | Daylight | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | ★★★★★ | 24°C / 19°C | 45mm | 4 | 5h | 10.6h | Hiking · Cycling |
| February | ★★★★★ | 24°C / 19°C | 38mm | 3 | 8h | 11.2h | Hiking · Cycling |
| March | ★★★★★ | 25°C / 20°C | 38mm | 3 | 8h | 11.9h | All-round conditions |
| April | ★★★★★ | 27°C / 22°C | 45mm | 4 | 9h | 12.6h | Beach days · Swimming · Reliable sunshine |
| May | ★★★★☆ | 30°C / 23°C | 82mm | 7 | 10h | 13.2h | Beach days · Swimming · Reliable sunshine |
| June | ★★☆☆☆ | 32°C / 25°C | 128mm | 11 | 7h | 13.5h | Beach days · Swimming · Quiet and local |
| July | ★★☆☆☆ | 33°C / 26°C | 98mm | 8 | 5h | 13.4h | Beach days · Swimming · Quiet and local |
| August | ★★☆☆☆ | 33°C / 26°C | 132mm | 11 | 5h | 12.8h | Beach days · Swimming · Quiet and local |
| September | ★★☆☆☆ | 32°C / 25°C | 158mm | 13 | 5h | 12.1h | Beach days · Swimming · Quiet and local |
| October | ★★☆☆☆ | 30°C / 23°C | 135mm | 11 | 4h | 11.4h | Beach days · Swimming · Quiet and local |
| November | ★★★★☆ | 27°C / 22°C | 58mm | 5 | 4h | 10.8h | Beach days · Swimming |
| December | ★★★★★ | 25°C / 20°C | 42mm | 3 | 5h | 10.5h | All-round conditions |
| You are planning | Pick | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Sun & beach days | February | 8h daily sunshine, 24°C highs and only 3 rain days. |
| City walking & sightseeing | February | 24°C highs with 11.2h of daylight — long days without heat fatigue. |
| Photography & light | April | 9h of sun and 12.6h daylight give the widest window for golden-hour work. |
| Value & fewer crowds | January | Scores 77/100 — close to peak conditions but outside the busiest window. |
| Cooler-weather travel | February | 24°C highs and 19°C nights suit anyone who dislikes heat. |
Each month in Key West is described from long-run climate normals and then rated relative to the other eleven months in the same city. A five-star January in a cold destination means January is one of the best times to be there — not that it beats a Mediterranean summer.
| Factor | Weight | What it measures |
|---|---|---|
| Temperature | Described | Average daytime high and overnight low for the month, shown as measured rather than judged. |
| Precipitation | Described | Monthly millimetres and wet-day count, labelled as snow or rain/snow where temperatures make that the likely phase. |
| Sunshine & daylight | Described | Average daily sunshine hours and astronomical daylight length at mid-month, from the city’s latitude. |
| “Best for” tags | Derived | Applied only when the conditions genuinely support the activity — snow depth-friendly cold for skiing, 13–24°C and low rain risk for hiking, dark evenings at high latitude for aurora. A month with few strong use cases gets fewer tags rather than padded ones. |
| Star rating | Relative | Ranks the month against the other eleven months in the same city. Never a comparison between cities. |
Figures are long-run climate averages, not a forecast for a specific year. Where a month lacks sourced rainfall or humidity, the value is modelled from temperature range and rain frequency.
February is the best all-round month in Key West: 24°C highs, 38mm of precipitation and 11.2 hours of daylight, which suits hiking and cycling. The strongest three-month window is February to April.
September — 32°C highs, 158mm of precipitation over roughly 13 days and 12.1 hours of daylight. It is the cheapest and least crowded time to go, and it still works for beach days, swimming and quiet and local.
February is the driest month at 38mm over about 3 rain days, against 158mm in September. Across the year Key West records around 1002mm.
Yes, but the months are genuinely different trips. February suits hiking and cycling, while September suits beach days, swimming and quiet and local. Pick the month that matches what you want to do.
Daylight ranges from 10.5 hours in December to 13.5 hours in June, calculated from the city's latitude.