Climate & Weather in Charleston
Charleston has a genuine humid subtropical climate -- hot, humid summers (July daily highs averaging near 90°F, with heat-index readings that can exceed 104°F) and mild winters (lows/highs commonly cited around 43-57°F) -- with average annual humidity around 72% and a real, recurring hurricane season from June through November, peaking August through October.
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Learn moreA Genuine Humid Subtropical Climate, Not a Desert or Four-Season Profile
Charleston's climate is shaped by its coastal, humid subtropical setting, distinct from both the sustained dry heat of Phoenix/Tucson and the genuine four-season, low-humidity profile of Denver, both covered elsewhere in this project. This produces real, hot, muggy summers and comparatively mild winters -- a real seasonal variation, but nothing close to the cold-winter, four-season experience of more northern or higher-elevation metros in this project's build.
Summer: Hot and Genuinely Humid
Summer (June through September) is hot and humid in Charleston. The daily maximum temperature in August averages around 89-90°F, with the combination of heat and humidity producing a perceived (heat-index) temperature that can exceed 104°F on the hottest, most humid days. Average annual humidity runs about 72%, ranging from 67% in February to 79% in August -- meaning even Charleston's least-humid month still carries meaningfully more moisture than a dry climate's peak.
Winter: Genuinely Mild, Not Cold
Winter temperatures in Charleston are commonly cited in the 43-57°F range, with average lows around 40°F -- genuinely mild by US standards, without the sustained cold, snow, or ice covered for northern and mountain metros elsewhere in this project. This mild-winter profile is a real, distinct draw for movers and retirees specifically seeking to avoid harsh winters, covered further on the retiring topic page.
Hurricane Season: A Real, Recurring Annual Factor
As detailed fully on the flood-hurricane-risk topic page, Charleston sits within the Atlantic hurricane season every year (June through November, highest-risk window August through October) -- a real, current, recurring climate factor distinct from, but related to, the historic Hurricane Hugo benchmark and the area's separate, non-storm-related tidal-flooding pattern.
Sea-Level Rise Is a Real, Disclosed, Ongoing Climate Trend
As detailed on the flood-hurricane-risk topic page, NOAA projects roughly another foot of sea-level rise in the Charleston area by 2050 -- a real, current, and ongoing climate trend directly tied to the area's tidal-flooding pattern, disclosed here as a genuine long-term climate consideration rather than treated as a separate, unrelated topic from Charleston's day-to-day weather.
Key takeaways
- Charleston has a genuine humid subtropical climate -- hot, humid summers (August daily highs near 89-90°F, heat index above 104°F on the hottest days) and mild winters (43-57°F) -- distinct from both desert-dry heat and four-season, low-humidity climates covered elsewhere in this project.
- Average annual humidity runs about 72%, ranging from 67% (February, the least humid month) to 79% (August) -- even Charleston's "driest" month carries meaningfully more moisture than a dry climate.
- Winter is genuinely mild (43-57°F typical range, lows around 40°F) -- a real, distinct draw for movers and retirees specifically avoiding harsh winters.
- Hurricane season (June-November, peak August-October) is a real, recurring annual climate factor -- see the flood-hurricane-risk topic page for the full hazard detail, including Hurricane Hugo and separate non-storm tidal flooding.
- NOAA projects roughly another foot of sea-level rise in the Charleston area by 2050 -- a real, ongoing climate trend directly tied to the area's documented tidal-flooding pattern.
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