People visit South Beach as hot weather moves through the area on Aug. 15, 2025, in Miami Beach.
Matias J. Ocner
mocner@miamiherald.com
Miami set a second consecutive high temperature record on Friday afternoon with a searing high of 96.
The results are preliminary, said National Weather Service in Miami meteorologist Nico Porcelli, but he confirms the temperature reading hit 96 degrees at 1:50 p.m. at Miami International Airport.
“It is a record,” he said.
Miami’s previous record on a July 31 date was 95 degrees and first set in 1986, 40 years ago. That 95 record was repeated on July 31, 1999.
The normal temperature for July 31 in Miami is 91, according to the weather service’s Climatological Daily Report.
On Thursday, July 30, Miami also soared to 96, nudging out a 95-degree hot weather record set in 2015.
Friday was the third consecutive day in which South Florida was put under a heat advisory by the weather service for feels-like temperatures between 105 and 110.
A fourth day and another record falling on Saturday isn’t guaranteed, however.
“It’s going to be pretty similar to the last few days, where we’re having heat indices between 105 and 110,” Porcelli said.
But whether those numbers hold for a required two-hour period won’t be determined until the weather service’s overnight staff determines whether to issue an advisory or not, he said.
“Due to the higher chances of thunderstorms for tomorrow, I would anticipate that the window of those hottest temperatures will probably be a little bit less,” Porcelli said Friday. “Once again, it’s kind of like a 50-50 chance that we may issue or not. I’m going to leave that decision to the forecaster later tonight.”
The Miami forecast for Saturday calls for 90 degrees. That would fall short of a 95 degree Aug. 1 mark last seen in 1999.
This story was originally published July 31, 2026 at 6:08 PM.
Miami Herald
Miami Herald consumer trends reporter Howard Cohen, a 2017 Media Excellence Awards winner, has covered pop music, theater, health and fitness, obituaries, municipal government, breaking news and general assignment. He started his career in the Features department at the Miami Herald in 1991. Cohen is an adjunct professor at the University of Miami School of Communication.
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