By Devon Thorsby, U.S. News | Reference Source
Avoid the extremes in these metro areas.
The weather in your area can be a major factor in how much you enjoy living there. Since many people prefer clear skies and warm temperatures, U.S. News looked for the metro areas among the 150 largest in the U.S. considered for the Best Places to Live rankings that offer the most moderate temperatures and plenty of sunshine. We looked for places that had the fewest average number of days above 90 degrees and below 32 degrees Fahrenheit, and for those with the fewest fully cloudy days, as reported by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Centers for Environmental Information. Read on for the Best Places to Live in the U.S. for the Weather, counting down to the top spot.
#1 Santa Barbara, California
Best Places 2020-2021 Rank: 104
Metro Population: 443,738
Days Below Freezing: 6
Days Above 90 Degrees: 3
Mean Number of Clear or Partly Cloudy Days: 286
A little northwest of Los Angeles along the California coast, Santa Barbara benefits from beach breezes and the beauty of Los Padres National Forest, located directly north of the metro area. With as many as 286 clear or partly cloudy days per year and less than three months’ worth of cloudy days, on average, Santa Barbara tops the list of the Best Places to Live in the U.S. for the Weather.
