How common is measurable rain in Sacramento during August?
Friday’s sprinkles raise a bigger question about our rainfall history.
SACRAMENTO, Calif. —
Tropical moisture drifting into Northern California brought light showers to parts of the region Friday. Most of the rain fell across the San Joaquin Valley before moving into the foothills and Sierra.
The band of rain stayed too far south to bring Sacramento more than an occasional sprinkle, leaving the city with no measurable precipitation. Still, getting this close to August rain is notable.
Records from Sacramento Executive Airport show measurable August rainfall is relatively uncommon. Since record-keeping began there in 1941, only 20 of 79 years (with complete data) recorded measurable rain during the month. Just four of those years measured rain on more than one day.
The greatest number of August rainy days occurred in 1976, when the airport recorded measurable rainfall on four days.
August rain has become even less common in recent decades. Only three of the past 25 Augusts recorded measurable rainfall: 2003, 2020, and 2024. This is a rate of just 12%.
Sacramento may have missed out this time, but we’ll take the cooler temperatures and cloudy skies as a win.
See 24-hour rain totals below:
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