Pontefract is drier than 90% of UK towns: 612 mm (24 in) of rain a year
Midsummer highs settle at about 21.4°C (71°F). Frosty nights are scarcer than in 79% of UK towns. Only 20°C separates winter nights from summer afternoons. Windscreens need scraping on about 33 mornings a year, the nights the air drops below 0°C.
Met Office 1991–2020 averages for the town itself.
A year in Pontefract at a glance
Each month’s typical high and low, in °C.
What a year in Pontefract feels like
Typical highs and lows by season and by month, from the Met Office’s 1991–2020 averages.
About 612 mm of rain a year
August is the wettest month and March the driest. About 11 days a year bring 10 mm (0.4 in) or more. 89th wettest of 91 West Yorkshire towns of 2,500+.
Rain by month
Millimetres
Sunshine by month
Hours of bright sunshine at Bradford
33 air frosts and 10 days of 25°C a year
On about 33 nights a year the air drops below freezing, and on about under 1 days it stays below freezing all day. About 10 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 Bradford
Bradford is 21 miles north-west of Pontefract, 134 m (440 ft) above sea level. It is the nearest of the 37 long-running stations the Met Office publishes in full.
| Month | High | Low | Rain | Air frosts | Sun (hours) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 6.8°C | 1.8°C | 88 mm | 8.8 | 43 |
| February | 7.4°C | 1.8°C | 74 mm | 8.2 | 68 |
| March | 9.5°C | 2.9°C | 64 mm | 4.8 | 105 |
| April | 12.5°C | 4.7°C | 58 mm | 2.1 | 142 |
| May | 15.7°C | 7.2°C | 52 mm | 0.4 | 173 |
| June | 18.2°C | 10.1°C | 73 mm | 0.0 | 159 |
| July | 20.4°C | 12.2°C | 64 mm | 0.0 | 167 |
| August | 19.8°C | 12.0°C | 74 mm | 0.0 | 156 |
| September | 17.2°C | 9.9°C | 70 mm | 0.0 | 123 |
| October | 13.4°C | 7.1°C | 84 mm | 0.9 | 90 |
| November | 9.6°C | 4.1°C | 90 mm | 4.1 | 55 |
| December | 7.2°C | 2.0°C | 99 mm | 8.8 | 38 |
| Year | 13.1°C | 6.3°C | 890 mm | 38 | 1,320 |
Met Office historic station data, Bradford, 1991–2020 months averaged (a month needs 20 of the 30 years; estimated values counted, missing months left out). Sunshine: Campbell-Stokes recorder.
How Pontefract 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 West Yorkshire 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pontefract | 21.4°C | 1.9°C | 612 mm |
| Darrington 1.9 mi | 21.3°C about the same | 1.8°C about the same | 638 mm |
| Holmfield 2.1 mi | 21.6°C about the same | 2.0°C about the same | 606 mm |
| Featherstone 2.3 mi | 21.4°C about the same | 1.9°C about the same | 626 mm |
| Castleford 2.5 mi | 21.8°C about the same | 2.1°C about the same | 639 mm |
| Knottingley 2.6 mi | 21.6°C about the same | 2.0°C about the same | 606 mm |
| Byram 2.9 mi | 21.6°C about the same | 2.0°C about the same | 607 mm |
Pontefract 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 | 7.4°C 45°F | 1.9°C 35°F | 4.6°C | 40 mm 1.6 in |
| February | 8.1°C 47°F | 1.8°C 35°F | 5.0°C | 40 mm 1.6 in |
| March | 10.4°C 51°F | 3.0°C 37°F | 6.7°C | 39 mm 1.5 in |
| April | 13.3°C 56°F | 4.7°C 40°F | 9.0°C | 43 mm 1.7 in |
| May | 16.4°C 62°F | 7.2°C 45°F | 11.8°C | 45 mm 1.8 in |
| June | 19.3°C 67°F | 10.2°C 50°F | 14.7°C | 60 mm 2.4 in |
| July | 21.4°C 71°F | 12.2°C 54°F | 16.8°C | 53 mm 2.1 in |
| August | 21.0°C 70°F | 12.1°C 54°F | 16.6°C | 63 mm 2.5 in |
| September | 18.3°C 65°F | 10.2°C 50°F | 14.3°C | 54 mm 2.1 in |
| October | 14.2°C 58°F | 7.4°C 45°F | 10.8°C | 61 mm 2.4 in |
| November | 10.2°C 50°F | 4.3°C 40°F | 7.2°C | 61 mm 2.4 in |
| December | 7.7°C 46°F | 2.1°C 36°F | 4.9°C | 53 mm 2.1 in |
| Year | 14.0°C | 6.4°C | 10.2°C | 612 mm |
Where Pontefract’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 Pontefract’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 Bradford, 21 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 Pontefract’s climate
How warm does Pontefract get in summer?
July is the warmest month, with average highs of 21.4°C (71°F). About 10 days a year reach 25°C (77°F), fewer than 52% of UK towns.
How cold does Pontefract get in winter?
February nights average 1.8°C (35°F). The air drops below freezing on about 33 nights a year, and about under 1 days a year stay below freezing all day.
How much rain does Pontefract get?
About 612 mm (24 in) a year, less than 90% of UK towns. August is the wettest month (63 mm) and March the driest (39 mm).
How sunny is it?
The nearest Met Office station with a sunshine record, Bradford (21 miles away), averages 1,320 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 Pontefract. 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 Pontefract →
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