Grays has some of the warmest summer afternoons among UK towns
January mornings start at about 2.5°C (36°F). Rain peaks in November and eases off in March. It is a dry place: less rain falls here than on almost every UK town. Homes need heating from November to March, the months averaging under 10°C.
Met Office 1991–2020 averages for the town itself.
A year in Grays at a glance
Each month’s typical high and low, in °C.
What a year in Grays feels like
Typical highs and lows by season and by month, from the Met Office’s 1991–2020 averages.
About 543 mm of rain a year
November is the wettest month and March the driest. About 11 days a year bring 10 mm (0.4 in) or more. 74th wettest of 81 Essex towns of 2,500+.
Rain by month
Millimetres
Sunshine by month
Hours of bright sunshine at Heathrow
30 air frosts and 22 days of 25°C a year
On about 30 nights a year the air drops below freezing, and on about under 1 days it stays below freezing all day. About 22 days a year reach 25°C (77°F).
Day counts are 1991–2020 averages from the Met Office’s 2 km grid. The Met Office calls a day of 25°C or more a summer day and a night below 0°C an air frost; ground frosts, on grass, come more often.
The Met Office station at Heathrow
Heathrow is 34 miles west of Grays, 25 m (82 ft) above sea level. It is the nearest of the 37 long-running stations the Met Office publishes in full; at that distance read it for sunshine and the station’s own record, not as the town’s figures.
| Month | High | Low | Rain | Air frosts | Sun (hours) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 8.4°C | 2.7°C | 59 mm | 6.8 | 59 |
| February | 9.0°C | 2.6°C | 45 mm | 6.2 | 76 |
| March | 11.7°C | 4.1°C | 39 mm | 3.0 | 120 |
| April | 15.0°C | 6.0°C | 42 mm | 0.8 | 169 |
| May | 18.4°C | 9.1°C | 46 mm | 0.0 | 197 |
| June | 21.6°C | 12.0°C | 47 mm | 0.0 | 197 |
| July | 23.9°C | 14.2°C | 46 mm | 0.0 | 206 |
| August | 23.4°C | 14.1°C | 54 mm | 0.0 | 192 |
| September | 20.2°C | 11.6°C | 50 mm | 0.0 | 150 |
| October | 15.8°C | 8.8°C | 65 mm | 0.3 | 111 |
| November | 11.5°C | 5.3°C | 67 mm | 2.7 | 68 |
| December | 8.8°C | 3.1°C | 57 mm | 7.2 | 53 |
| Year | 15.6°C | 7.8°C | 616 mm | 27 | 1,597 |
Met Office historic station data, Heathrow (London Airport), 1991–2020 months averaged (a month needs 20 of the 30 years; estimated values counted, missing months left out). Sunshine: Kipp & Zonen recorder.
How Grays compares
Against the 2,537 towns and cities of 2,500 or more across the UK, each with its own Met Office averages, and its place among Essex towns that size.
Nearby towns’ climate
The nearest towns of 1,000+ within 12 miles: a hill, a valley or the sea can make a real difference over a few miles.
| Town | July high | January low | Rain a year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grays | 23.6°C | 2.5°C | 543 mm |
| Chadwell St Mary 1.7 mi | 22.9°C 0.8°C cooler | 2.6°C about the same | 574 mm |
| Chafford Hundred and West Thurrock 1.7 mi | 23.6°C about the same | 2.6°C about the same | 556 mm |
| Tilbury 2.1 mi | 23.5°C about the same | 2.8°C about the same | 544 mm |
| Orsett 2.3 mi | 22.8°C 0.9°C cooler | 2.5°C about the same | 570 mm |
| South Ockendon 2.6 mi | 23.3°C about the same | 2.4°C about the same | 600 mm |
| Southfields 2.9 mi | 22.9°C 0.8°C cooler | 2.5°C about the same | 574 mm |
Grays weather by month
Average daily high and low, mean temperature and rain, 1991–2020, for the town itself (the Met Office’s HadUK-Grid).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Rain |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 8.3°C 47°F | 2.5°C 36°F | 5.3°C | 48 mm 1.9 in |
| February | 9.0°C 48°F | 2.5°C 37°F | 5.8°C | 37 mm 1.5 in |
| March | 11.4°C 53°F | 3.6°C 39°F | 7.5°C | 32 mm 1.3 in |
| April | 14.9°C 59°F | 5.3°C 42°F | 10.1°C | 34 mm 1.3 in |
| May | 18.0°C 64°F | 8.1°C 47°F | 13.0°C | 41 mm 1.6 in |
| June | 21.7°C 71°F | 11.5°C 53°F | 16.6°C | 49 mm 1.9 in |
| July | 23.6°C 75°F | 13.5°C 56°F | 18.6°C | 40 mm 1.6 in |
| August | 23.3°C 74°F | 13.3°C 56°F | 18.3°C | 54 mm 2.1 in |
| September | 20.4°C 69°F | 11.1°C 52°F | 15.7°C | 44 mm 1.7 in |
| October | 15.9°C 61°F | 8.4°C 47°F | 12.2°C | 55 mm 2.1 in |
| November | 11.7°C 53°F | 5.4°C 42°F | 8.5°C | 58 mm 2.3 in |
| December | 8.9°C 48°F | 3.0°C 37°F | 5.9°C | 52 mm 2.0 in |
| Year | 15.6°C | 7.3°C | 11.5°C | 543 mm |
Where Grays’s numbers come from
Averages over 30 years, not a forecast.
- Mean temperature, rain and day counts: HadUK-Grid 1991–2020 averages for the 2 Met Office 2 km grid squares whose centre lies inside Grays’s built-up area.
- Highs and lows: the Met Office publishes average daily maxima and minima on its 12 km grid; each is moved by the difference between the town’s 2 km mean temperature and the 12 km square’s, which carries the town’s own height and setting over.
- Weather station and sunshine: Met Office historic station data for Heathrow (London Airport), 34 miles away, months of 1991–2020 averaged.
- Comparisons: every town and city of 2,500 or more across the UK, all four nations, read the same way.
Met Office HadUK-Grid · Met Office Climate Data Portal · Historic station data. Open Government Licence v3.0.
Questions about Grays’s climate
How warm does Grays get in summer?
July is the warmest month, with average highs of 23.6°C (75°F). About 22 days a year reach 25°C (77°F), more than 96% of UK towns.
How cold does Grays get in winter?
January nights average 2.5°C (36°F). The air drops below freezing on about 30 nights a year, and about under 1 days a year stay below freezing all day.
How much rain does Grays get?
About 543 mm (21 in) a year, less than almost every UK town. November is the wettest month (58 mm) and March the driest (32 mm).
How sunny is it?
The nearest Met Office station with a sunshine record, Heathrow (34 miles away), averages 1,597 hours of bright sunshine a year. Sunshine isn’t on the town grid, so this is the station’s figure.
Where do these figures come from?
The Met Office’s HadUK-Grid 1991–2020 averages, which turn thousands of weather stations into a map of the UK in 2 km squares; the page reads the squares inside Grays. They are 30-year averages, not a forecast.
Contains Met Office data © Crown copyright 2026, Open Government Licence v3.0. HadUK-Grid 1991–2020 averages via the Met Office Climate Data Portal; station averages from Met Office historic station data. Today’s forecast for Grays →
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026 (ONS boundaries). Northern Ireland: Source: NISRA; contains Land & Property Services data and Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland information, © Crown copyright, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Scotland: contains National Records of Scotland data, Registers of Scotland data and SEPA data, © Crown copyright / © SEPA 2025, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.