US Records Hottest Month in July 2026

The contiguous United States experienced its hottest month on record in July 2026, with average temperatures soaring to 76.9 degrees Fahrenheit, according to data released by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration on Monday. This figure surpasses the previous records set in July 1936 and July 2012, marking the warmest July and the warmest single month in the agency's 132 years of recordkeeping dating back to 1895.

The record-breaking heat was widespread, with every state in the Lower 48 recording temperatures that ranked in the warmest third of their historical July averages. Thirteen states experienced one of their five warmest Julys on record. Wyoming endured its hottest July and hottest month of any kind, with an average temperature 5.1 degrees above normal and nearly a degree warmer than its previous record set in July 2007. The national average was approximately 3.3 degrees above the 20th-century average.

The extreme conditions were driven by a persistent series of heat domes, which are areas of high pressure that trap hot air over a region. One such dome engulfed Washington, D.C., and the East Coast over the July Fourth holiday weekend, pushing temperatures...