Seasons · 6 min read
Thanksgiving 2026 Weather: How Cold in NYC?
Thanksgiving, November 26, 2026, is one of the biggest travel days of the year in the US, and the weather shapes everything from the Macy's Parade to the drive home. We looked at 36 years of data for New York to see what the day typically brings.
Photo: Superbass, Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)
In this article
How cold will it be on Thanksgiving 2026?Will the Macy's Parade balloons fly?Why the forecast matters for travelDressing for a morning outdoorsChecking closer to the dateFrequently asked questionsHow cold will it be on Thanksgiving 2026?
Based on 36 years of data for New York (1990-2025), the average high on November 26 is around 11°C (51°F), with the average low closer to 3°C (37°F). Measurable rain has fallen on this date in 17 of those 36 years, just under half, making it one of the wetter dates on the calendar in our archive. Snow on the day itself is rare: only one of the 36 years saw any.
| Year | Notable November 26 | Value |
|---|---|---|
| 1999 | Warmest Thanksgiving | 17.4°C (63°F) |
| 2018 | Wettest & windiest Thanksgiving | 30.1mm rain, 40mph gusts |
| 2005 | Coldest Thanksgiving | 3.0°C (37°F) high |
Source: our own calculation from Open-Meteo historical weather data for Central Park, New York, 1990-2025.
Will the Macy's Parade balloons fly?
Under New York City rules put in place after a 1997 incident, the giant character balloons are grounded if sustained winds exceed 23 mph, and flown lower or pulled entirely if gusts top 34 mph. The NYPD monitors wind gauges along the route on the morning of the parade and makes the call in real time, so it's genuinely a game-time decision each year. In our 36-year dataset, gusts at or above that 34 mph threshold showed up on about 1 year in 7, most notably in 2018, when both rain and wind peaked on the same Thanksgiving. In practice, full grounding is rare: it's only happened once, back in 1971, with most high-wind years instead seeing the balloons flown lower rather than pulled from the route.
Why the forecast matters for travel
Thanksgiving week is consistently one of the busiest travel periods in the US, with the Wednesday before and the Sunday after typically the heaviest days on the road. Rain or snow anywhere along a flight path or driving route can cause delays that ripple well beyond the local area, so it's worth checking conditions both at home and at your destination, not just the day of travel but the day before and after too.
Dressing for a morning outdoors
With an average low around 3°C (37°F) and the parade starting well before the daytime high is reached, anyone watching from the street rather than indoors is dealing with conditions closer to the morning low than the afternoon high. Standing still for a few hours in that temperature, especially with any wind, feels considerably colder than walking around does, so layering and a windproof outer layer are worth it even if the forecast high looks mild.
Checking closer to the date
A 36-year average shows the range of what's typical, not what will happen this specific Thanksgiving. Check the weather in New York or the 14-day forecast in the week before November 26, and see our guide on how accurate a 14-day forecast really is for how much to trust it as the date approaches.
Frequently asked questions
How cold will it be on Thanksgiving 2026?
Based on 36 years of data for New York (1990-2025), expect a daytime high around 11°C (51°F) and an overnight low near 3°C (37°F).
Will it rain on Thanksgiving 2026?
Measurable rain has fallen on November 26 in New York in 17 of the last 36 years, just under half, making rain a real possibility rather than an exception.
Will the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade balloons fly in 2026?
That depends on the wind on the day. Balloons are grounded if sustained winds exceed 23 mph and flown lower or pulled if gusts top 34 mph, a call the NYPD makes on the morning of the parade. Full grounding is rare and has only happened once, in 1971.
Does it usually snow on Thanksgiving in New York?
Rarely. Only 1 of the 36 years in our dataset recorded any snowfall on November 26 itself, though snow becomes more common as December approaches.
Check the weather in New York or search another place on the locations page.