Running in New Orleans Heat: The Month-by-Month Almanac
When is it too hot to run in New Orleans, and does waking up early actually help? We computed the answer from ten full years of hourly weather data (2016–2025) at our Uptown coordinates: the average feels-like temperature at 6am (the classic dawn run) versus 4pm, and how many mornings per month never offer a cool window at all. Published by NOLA Chill, the recovery studio at 6045 Magazine Street; a companion to our New Orleans Heat & Recovery Index.
The month-by-month table
| Month | 6am feels-like (avg) | 4pm feels-like (avg) | Dawn advantage | Mornings ≥80°F (days/yr) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 45.7°F | 55.6°F | 9.9°F | 0.0 |
| February | 53.1°F | 63.8°F | 10.8°F | 0.0 |
| March | 58.7°F | 70.1°F | 11.4°F | 0.1 |
| April | 64.3°F | 75.9°F | 11.7°F | 0.2 |
| May | 75.5°F | 85.8°F | 10.3°F | 9.4 |
| June | 84.2°F | 92.6°F | 8.4°F | 25.5 |
| July | 87.3°F | 95.0°F | 7.8°F | 30.5 |
| August | 87.5°F | 94.8°F | 7.3°F | 30.6 |
| September | 81.8°F | 90.2°F | 8.4°F | 22.9 |
| October | 69.8°F | 79.7°F | 9.9°F | 6.0 |
| November | 57.4°F | 67.9°F | 10.5°F | 0.2 |
| December | 51.8°F | 61.1°F | 9.3°F | 0.0 |
“Mornings ≥80°F” counts days whose 6am feels-like temperature was already at or above 80°F: mornings with no cool window.
What the data actually says
- In July and August there is no cool window. The 6am feels-like averages 87°F, and essentially every day of both months (30.5 and 30.6 days respectively) starts at 80°F or hotter. The dawn run in a New Orleans summer is the least-hot option, not a cool one.
- The dawn advantage is real but modest in summer: running at 6am instead of 4pm saves about 8°F in June–September, and 10–12°F in spring and fall, when it matters less.
- The glory season is December through March: dawn feels-like temperatures of 46–59°F. That is genuinely excellent running weather, which is why the city’s big races cluster in late winter and early spring.
- May is the turn: the first month where hot mornings appear in numbers (about 9 per year). This is the month to start acclimatizing, not August.
Running it anyway: practical notes
This is not medical advice; it is what the numbers imply. Summer training here means accepting that no start time rescues you, so runners adapt effort instead: slower paces at the same heart rate, shorter hard sessions, water or electrolytes on anything past 45 minutes, and one to two weeks of deliberate acclimatization when the first 80°F-morning stretch arrives in May. Shade routes (the St. Charles neutral ground, Audubon Park’s oaks) beat open levee paths by several degrees of radiant heat. And recovery is where summer runners feel the difference most. Cooling down fast after a hot run is the whole point of our studio: a first whole body cryotherapy session is $25 if you want to try the 3-to-5-minute version of winter.
Methodology
Hourly apparent-temperature data from the Open-Meteo historical archive (ERA5 reanalysis) at 29.9228°N, 90.1225°W, for all days from January 1, 2016 through December 31, 2025 (ten complete years). “6am” and “4pm” are the 06:00 and 16:00 America/Chicago hourly values; monthly figures are simple means across all ten years. “Mornings ≥80°F” is the count of days whose 06:00 apparent temperature was at or above 80°F, divided by ten. Retrieved July 15, 2026. Weather data by Open-Meteo.com (CC BY 4.0).
More from our data desk
New Orleans Heat & Recovery Index · The Evidence Library · US South Cryotherapy Price Index
Cite this page
Free to reference with attribution (CC BY 4.0). Suggested citation:
NOLA Chill (2026). Running in New Orleans Heat: Month-by-Month Almanac, 2016–2025. Retrieved from https://nolachill.com/running-in-new-orleans-heat/. Underlying weather data: Open-Meteo (ERA5).
Last verified: July 15, 2026. Refreshed annually each winter with the completed year’s data.
Frequently asked questions
What time should I run in New Orleans in summer?
As early as you can, but with honest expectations. At 6am in July and August the feels-like temperature still averages 87°F; it is about 8°F cooler than late afternoon, which is meaningful but not cool.
Is there any cool time of day in a New Orleans July?
Statistically, no: over 2016–2025, 30.5 of July’s 31 mornings were already at or above 80°F feels-like by 6am.
What are the best months for running in New Orleans?
December through March: dawn feels-like averages of 46–59°F, and hot mornings are essentially nonexistent. That window is why the city’s major races are scheduled in late winter and early spring.
When should I start heat acclimatization in New Orleans?
May: the first month with a meaningful number of 80°F-plus mornings (about 9 per year). Waiting until June means adapting during the hard part.