Photo: Auntalys at English Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 3.0Few UK towns get less rain than Rayleigh: 581 mm (23 in) a year
Expect July afternoons of about 22.7°C (73°F). In July, afternoons here are warmer than in 84% of UK towns. The rainiest month is October; the driest is March. Homes need heating from November to April, the months averaging under 10°C.
Met Office 1991–2020 averages for the town itself.
A year in Rayleigh at a glance
Each month’s typical high and low, in °C.
What a year in Rayleigh feels like
Typical highs and lows by season and by month, from the Met Office’s 1991–2020 averages.
About 581 mm of rain a year
October is the wettest month and March the driest. About 13 days a year bring 10 mm (0.4 in) or more. 44th wettest of 81 Essex towns of 2,500+.
Rain by month
Millimetres
Sunshine by month
Hours of bright sunshine at Manston
35 air frosts and 18 days of 25°C a year
On about 35 nights a year the air drops below freezing, and on about under 1 days it stays below freezing all day. About 18 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 Manston
Manston is 36 miles south-east of Rayleigh, 49 m (161 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 | 7.6°C | 2.5°C | 51 mm | 5.9 | 64 |
| February | 8.0°C | 2.4°C | 41 mm | 5.8 | 82 |
| March | 10.3°C | 3.9°C | 37 mm | 2.7 | 130 |
| April | 13.2°C | 5.8°C | 38 mm | 0.6 | 191 |
| May | 16.3°C | 8.7°C | 50 mm | 0.0 | 224 |
| June | 19.5°C | 11.4°C | 43 mm | 0.0 | 230 |
| July | 22.1°C | 13.7°C | 47 mm | 0.0 | 236 |
| August | 22.2°C | 14.0°C | 51 mm | 0.0 | 214 |
| September | 19.1°C | 11.9°C | 49 mm | 0.0 | 168 |
| October | 15.1°C | 9.1°C | 74 mm | 0.2 | 119 |
| November | 11.0°C | 5.6°C | 72 mm | 1.3 | 76 |
| December | 8.3°C | 3.2°C | 63 mm | 5.1 | 59 |
| Year | 14.4°C | 7.7°C | 615 mm | 22 | 1,793 |
Met Office historic station data, Manston, 1991–2020 months averaged (a month needs 20 of the 30 years; estimated values counted, missing months left out). Sunshine: Kipp & Zonen recorder.
How Rayleigh 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rayleigh | 22.7°C | 2.4°C | 581 mm |
| Thundersley and South Benfleet 2.2 mi | 22.8°C about the same | 2.6°C about the same | 568 mm |
| Hullbridge 2.3 mi | 22.9°C about the same | 2.2°C about the same | 578 mm |
| Hockley and Hawkwell 2.3 mi | 22.9°C about the same | 2.2°C about the same | 576 mm |
| North Benfleet 3.4 mi | 23.3°C 0.6°C warmer | 2.8°C about the same | 533 mm |
| Ashingdon 3.7 mi | 23.4°C 0.7°C warmer | 2.2°C about the same | 532 mm |
| Wickford 3.7 mi | 23.5°C 0.8°C warmer | 2.3°C about the same | 564 mm |
Rayleigh 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 | 7.7°C 46°F | 2.4°C 36°F | 5.0°C | 51 mm 2.0 in |
| February | 8.3°C 47°F | 2.2°C 36°F | 5.3°C | 41 mm 1.6 in |
| March | 10.9°C 52°F | 3.6°C 38°F | 7.3°C | 35 mm 1.4 in |
| April | 13.9°C 57°F | 5.1°C 41°F | 9.5°C | 40 mm 1.6 in |
| May | 17.1°C 63°F | 8.2°C 47°F | 12.6°C | 43 mm 1.7 in |
| June | 20.1°C 68°F | 11.1°C 52°F | 15.6°C | 47 mm 1.8 in |
| July | 22.7°C 73°F | 13.4°C 56°F | 18.0°C | 47 mm 1.9 in |
| August | 22.6°C 73°F | 13.4°C 56°F | 18.0°C | 49 mm 1.9 in |
| September | 19.5°C 67°F | 11.1°C 52°F | 15.3°C | 46 mm 1.8 in |
| October | 15.2°C 59°F | 8.4°C 47°F | 11.7°C | 65 mm 2.6 in |
| November | 10.8°C 51°F | 5.0°C 41°F | 7.9°C | 60 mm 2.3 in |
| December | 8.1°C 46°F | 2.6°C 37°F | 5.3°C | 57 mm 2.2 in |
| Year | 14.7°C | 7.2°C | 11.0°C | 581 mm |
Where Rayleigh’s numbers come from
Averages over 30 years, not a forecast.
- Mean temperature, rain and day counts: HadUK-Grid 1991–2020 averages for the 3 Met Office 2 km grid squares whose centre lies inside Rayleigh’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 Manston, 36 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 Rayleigh’s climate
How warm does Rayleigh get in summer?
July is the warmest month, with average highs of 22.7°C (73°F). About 18 days a year reach 25°C (77°F), more than 83% of UK towns.
How cold does Rayleigh get in winter?
February nights average 2.2°C (36°F). The air drops below freezing on about 35 nights a year, and about under 1 days a year stay below freezing all day.
How much rain does Rayleigh get?
About 581 mm (23 in) a year, less than 96% of UK towns. October is the wettest month (65 mm) and March the driest (35 mm).
How sunny is it?
The nearest Met Office station with a sunshine record, Manston (36 miles away), averages 1,793 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 Rayleigh. 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 Rayleigh →
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.