ERA5 almanac comparison — 8 years of real data
Palm Springs Desert vs Santa Barbara: weather in August
Essentially a tie in August: Palm Springs Desert is 94% clear historically, Santa Barbara is 96% clear (8-year ERA5 average) — within the noise. Avg high 108°F vs 86°F. Pick based on flight time or price, not weather — the weather won't decide this one for you.
What you are reading: 8-year historical averages, not a forecast.
Either destination can still surprise you this specific August. For this
week’s actual forecast, each destination links to its live page below.
Palm Springs Desert
CA
- Clear days, August
- 94%
- Sample size
- n=248 days
- Avg high
- 108°F
- Early August (1st–15th)
- 92%
- Late August (16th–end)
- 95%
- Rain frequency
- 3% of days
Santa Barbara
CA
- Clear days, August
- 96%
- Sample size
- n=248 days
- Avg high
- 86°F
- Early August (1st–15th)
- 98%
- Late August (16th–end)
- 94%
- Rain frequency
- 2% of days
Compare Palm Springs Desert vs Santa Barbara in another month
All percentages are historical averages from the ERA5 reanalysis via Open-Meteo, 8 full years (2018–2025). “Clear” means avg high ≥ 72 °F, precipitation < 1 mm, and a non-precipitation weather code. This is history, not a forecast. The live 7-day outlook for any destination is on its own page and may differ from the long-run average. Data from Open-Meteo.