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Seattle has more rainy days than Miami, New York or Boston

Bar chart of average days per year with measurable rain, 1991–2020: Portland 157, Seattle 156, Miami 141, Boston 128, Chicago 126, New York 125, Washington D.C. 118, Atlanta 116, Houston 104.

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Seattle averages 156 days a year with at least 0.01 inch of rain, more than Miami (141), Boston (128), Chicago (126), New York (125), Washington, D.C. (118), Atlanta (116) and Houston (104). Only Portland, Ore., at 157 days, has slightly more. NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals.

Average days per year with at least 0.01 inch of precipitation, 1991–2020, at the main weather station of Seattle and eight other large U.S. cities.

Credit: FactHub Research Team; data from NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020

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What this chart asks

How many days a year does it rain in Seattle compared with other big U.S. cities?

Why it is shown this way

  • Bars compare one count across cities; the y axis starts at zero so bar lengths are proportional.
  • Seattle gets its own color so readers can find it; every bar is also labeled by city on the x axis.
  • Rain days and inches of rain are shown in two separate charts rather than on one dual-axis chart.

Data and accessibility

Download chart data · Open accessible table · Download PNG · Download SVG

Dataset us-city-rain-normals, analysis seattle-vs-wet-cities

Sources

This chart draws on the sources of the dataset versions it visualizes.

Rainfall and rainy days in 16 U.S. cities, 1991–2020 normals

  1. NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020, annual/seasonal normals (Access Data Service) Primary source for every value

    Retrieved November 5, 2026. U.S. Government work (public domain). Allowed without restriction

    Reliability: Government. NOAA's National Centers for Environmental Information computes the official U.S. climate normals every decade from quality-controlled daily observations at National Weather Service stations. It is federally funded and has no stake in which city is rainier.

  2. NOAA NCEI: U.S. Climate Normals overview and documentation Definitions and methodology of the normals

    Retrieved November 5, 2026. U.S. Government work (public domain). Allowed without restriction

    Reliability: Government. NOAA's documentation page for the 1991–2020 normals, describing how they are computed. Federally funded.

Limitations

  • A rain day is any day with at least 0.01 inch, so a light drizzle counts the same as a downpour.
  • One station per city (usually the main airport; Central Park for New York).
  • Portland, Ore. (157 days) has slightly more rain days than Seattle (156).

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