Fairsky
Paint a house exterior

Best days to paint a house exterior, by city

Exterior latex paint: 40°F and up, 5°F above the dew point, 4 dry hours after. Pick a city for a live 7-day verdict from the National Weather Service forecast and the months that usually work there.

District of Columbia

Illinois

Mississippi

Nebraska

New Mexico

Rhode Island

The rules Fairsky uses

  • Needs 4 hours in a row of daylight.
  • Air at least 40°F (35–39°F is borderline).
  • No hotter than 90°F.
  • Air at least 5°F above the dew point, so surfaces don't stay damp.
  • Humidity at or below 85%. (Fairsky default)
  • Wind at or under 15 mph. (Fairsky default)
  • Gusts at or under 25 mph. (Fairsky default)
  • Rain chance at or below 20%. (Fairsky default)
  • No rain in the 6 hours before, so surfaces are dry.
  • No rain for 4 hours after you finish.
  • The first night's low stays at 40°F or warmer. (Fairsky default)

Your product's label wins.

Sources: Benjamin Moore exterior paint data sheet · Sherwin-Williams Duration exterior data sheet

The app covers 47 activities in all: see every activity and its rules.

Fairsky is not a substitute for official warnings. For warnings, go to weather.gov.

Live forecasts: National Weather Service / NOAA (public domain), fetched by your browser. Climate averages: NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020 (public domain). Activity thresholds: product data sheets, ACI and university extension guidance, linked on each page; your product’s label wins.