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PrintWestchester’s Comfort Index Higher Than Average, Temperatures Cooler
Though fewer sunny days and more snow may not sound desirable, the overall effect is a far more comfortable climate than others are used to.
We’re Cooler Than the Rest of the Country...Literally
According to Sperling’s Best Places, in July, our average high temperature is 84.3°F, while in the country as a whole it’s 86.5°F. Those two+ degrees may not seem like much of a big deal, but they can mean the difference between barbecuing outside with friends and cloistering yourself alone inside air conditioning. And it’s not like we pay for our summers with a crushing winter, either. Westchester’s average January low is a chilly 20.1°F, but, in the rest of the country, it’s still 20.5°F. Of course, we do get more snow (31.9 inches per year here compared with 25 inches per year everywhere else), and we have fewer sunny days (200 to the country’s 205), but, what are you going to do, move to the desert? Chances are, becoming a snowbird won’t make you as happy as you think. If you go by the “Comfort Index”—which takes into account a combination of afternoon summer temperatures and humidity, with a high score indicating a more comfortable climate—we beat the national average. Our Comfort Index is a 49, while the average for the entire United States is just 44. That’s something you can brag about to your dry-heat-loving friends who disappear to Arizona every winter. (The Comfort Index in Phoenix? A scant 45.)
