Prescott vs Phoenix Temperatures, Month by Month

Prescott runs about 17°F cooler than Phoenix by day and about 24°F cooler at night. The night figure is the one nobody quotes, and it is the one that decides whether a summer trip is pleasant.

Here is every month, from the 1991 to 2020 climate normals.

Average high temperatures

Average overnight lows

Source: NOAA 1991 to 2020 climate normals. Prescott’s official station sits near Watson Woods on the north side of town at roughly 5,100 feet; Phoenix reports from Sky Harbor.

The nights are the story

Look at July. The daytime gap is 17°F, which is a lot. The overnight gap is 24°F, which is the difference between a city that does not cool off and a place where you close the windows at 2 a.m.

A Phoenix July night bottoms out at 85°F on average. That is warmer than a Prescott July afternoon is unpleasant. Prescott’s July night bottoms out at 61°F, and up in Groom Creek it is closer to 56°F. You want a blanket.

This is also why a hot tub makes sense here and does not down there. At 56°F outside, a hot tub in July is a reasonable idea.

What the extra 1,300 feet does

Our cabins are not in Prescott proper. They are in Groom Creek, about six miles south and roughly 1,300 feet higher than the town’s climate station.

Air cools by about 3.5°F for every 1,000 feet of elevation, so Groom Creek runs roughly 4 to 5°F cooler than the numbers in the tables above:

Derived from the standard lapse rate, not from a station in Groom Creek. Treat these as close, not official.

That cuts both ways, and it is worth saying plainly: the same 1,300 feet that gives you a 56-degree July night gives you a colder January and more snow. We wrote about what that actually means for the drive.

The month-by-month verdict

• June is the biggest single relief. Phoenix averages 104°F and has not yet picked up monsoon humidity, and the overnight gap is at its widest, 25°F. Prescott is dry, warm and green.
• July and August bring the monsoon to both places. Prescott gets afternoon thunderstorms that clear the air and drop the temperature 15 degrees in an hour. This is the busiest time here for a reason.
• September is the quiet favorite. Phoenix is still at 100°F, Prescott is at 82°F, and the crowds have gone home.
• October and November are the best hiking months, with highs in the 60s and 70s and cold, clear nights.
• December through February is a different trip. Prescott genuinely freezes, with average lows of 24°F. That is the fireplace-and-hot-tub version of a visit, not the lake version.

One thing people get wrong

The common line is that Prescott is 20 to 30 degrees cooler than Phoenix. It is not, on average. The average daytime gap never exceeds 19°F in any month.

The 20-plus figure comes from comparing the worst Phoenix day to a normal Prescott day, and on those days it is fair enough: when Phoenix hits 110°F, Prescott is usually high 80s to low 90s, and Groom Creek a few degrees under that. But the honest year-round number is 14 to 19 degrees by day, and 21 to 26 degrees at night.

The night number is the better one anyway.

Where to stay

Both of our cabins are in Groom Creek at about 6,400 feet, with covered decks, a private hot tub, and air conditioning for the rare warm afternoon. Check the calendar, or read the rest of the summer escape guide.