Sausalito Weather

Sausalito has some of the most pleasant year-round weather in the Bay Area. The annual average high sits at 67.4 degrees with lows around 51.6, and the town earns an impressive comfort score of 82 out of 100. With 248 perfect days per year, you're looking at a climate that genuinely delivers on its reputation. Summers are warm and mostly sunny, with June and July averaging highs around 78 degrees. Spring is exceptional, especially April, which averages 72.3-degree highs and a comfort score of 91. Fall starts strong in September (78 degrees) but cools sharply in October to 61 degrees. Winters are mild by any national standard, rarely dropping below freezing, but November and December bring the most rain and are the least comfortable months. Sausalito's position on the sheltered Marin waterfront means it gets less wind and fog than hilltop neighbors like the Marin Headlands, making it one of the more reliably comfortable spots in the region. For a broader look at how the seasons play out, see our guide to the Bay Area's four seasons.

Sausalito gets a moderate amount of fog, averaging 108 foggy days per year, but it is not in the same category as San Francisco or the outer coast. The town sits in a partial rain shadow created by the Marin hills, which blocks some of the marine layer that rolls in from the west. What fog Sausalito does see tends to arrive in the morning and burn off by late morning or early afternoon, especially in summer. Average fog hours per day come in at 2.2, which is meaningful but manageable. The pattern is most pronounced from June through August when the marine layer thickens over the Bay. You will often find Sausalito in clear sunshine while the Golden Gate is completely socked in. That said, the town can get direct fog pushes when the layer is deep enough to spill over the ridge. If you are trying to plan around fog, mornings before 10 a.m. are the riskiest window. Our article on why fog forms along the Northern California coast explains the mechanics behind this pattern in detail.

April is the single best month to visit Sausalito if you want to maximize comfort. It averages 72.3-degree highs and 51.9-degree lows with a comfort score of 91, and the hills are still green from winter rains. June and July are a close second, both averaging highs of 78 degrees with comfort scores of 90, and while some morning fog is possible, afternoons are typically warm and clear. May is also excellent at 70.5 degrees. The September window deserves more credit than it gets: 78-degree highs, a comfort score of 87, and the crowds are thinner than July. What you're really getting in late summer and early fall is the best of everything. The worst months are November and December, which bring the most rain and overcast days. Sausalito receives about 26.3 inches of rain per year spread across 71 rainy days, so winter is not relentlessly wet, but it is noticeably greyer. If you're specifically trying to avoid rain, check our breakdown of the rainiest months in the Bay Area. For a deep dive on Sausalito's climate specifically, see Sausalito weather.

Sausalito is windier than you might expect from a calm-looking waterfront town. The reason is geography: it sits at the southern end of Marin County, directly adjacent to the Golden Gate, which acts as the primary wind funnel for the entire Bay Area. When afternoon thermal pressure gradients pull marine air inland, a significant portion of that flow moves right through the Gate and past Sausalito's shoreline. Winds are most noticeable on sunny summer afternoons, typically picking up between noon and 3 p.m. and reaching 15 to 25 mph on strong days. The waterfront promenade and marina can feel quite breezy even when downtown Sausalito, a few blocks back and slightly uphill, feels calm. If wind is a concern, mornings are almost always more sheltered. Nearby Tiburon sits further east in the bay and generally sees less wind exposure. The Marin Headlands to the west catch the full brunt of incoming flow and are significantly windier. For more context on why Bay Area wind behaves this way, read our explainer on why the Bay Area has so much wind.

Layering is the right strategy for Sausalito in almost every season. Even on a warm summer day with a forecast high of 78 degrees, the waterfront can feel 10 to 15 degrees cooler if the wind is up or if morning fog is lingering. A light jacket or fleece that you can tie around your waist covers most scenarios from spring through fall. In summer, start your morning visit with a medium-weight layer and expect to shed it by noon. If you're planning to walk the waterfront promenade or sit outside at one of the restaurants on the water, bring something wind-resistant even in July. In winter, a proper jacket is appropriate. December averages just 58 degrees for a high, and with wind and occasional drizzle, it can feel genuinely cold. Spring and fall are the trickiest seasons because a 65-degree day with sun feels warm until a cloud passes. The short answer: never leave your accommodation without at least one extra layer in your bag. The Bay Area layering guide covers this in detail if you want to plan a full wardrobe.

Sausalito is consistently warmer and less foggy than San Francisco, especially in summer. While the Sunset and Richmond districts of SF can sit under dense fog for days at a stretch, Sausalito benefits from being on the lee side of the Marin hills. The marine layer that pours in through the Golden Gate tends to push west toward the ocean-facing neighborhoods of SF rather than back up toward Sausalito. The practical result: on a typical July day, San Francisco's western neighborhoods might see highs of 58 to 62 degrees under fog, while Sausalito reaches 76 to 80 degrees in afternoon sunshine. Even Sausalito's winter temperatures tend to run slightly warmer than the city. The microclimate difference between these two places separated by less than a mile of water is a perfect example of why Bay Area residents treat local weather as hyperlocal. Our article on Bay Area microclimates explains why these dramatic differences exist across short distances. If you want to explore the bay's other warm pockets, Angel Island and Tiburon are both worth comparing.

Sausalito receives about 26.3 inches of rain per year across 71 rainy days, which puts it in a moderate range for the Bay Area. By comparison, the Marin hills directly to the west receive considerably more precipitation because orographic lift wrings moisture out of incoming storms before they reach the waterfront. Sausalito's sheltered position means it sees a bit less rain than Tennessee Valley Beach just a few miles west. Nearly all of Sausalito's rain falls between November and March. The summer months are essentially dry: June through September combined might see one or two light rain events in a typical year. This Mediterranean precipitation pattern means winters are genuinely rainy and grey at times, but the summers feel almost desert-dry. If you visit between April and October, rain is simply not something you need to plan around. November and December are the months to watch, and consecutive rainy days are more common in January and February. The Bay Area rainy month guide has the full seasonal breakdown if you're planning a trip during the wet season.

Sausalito averages 9.4 sun hours per day and 248 perfect days per year, which puts it firmly in the sunny camp by Northern California standards. The summer months are the sunniest, with June through August delivering comfort scores of 89 to 90 and minimal rain. Morning fog can limit early sun, but afternoons are typically clear and bright. Spring is also excellent, especially April and May, where sunny afternoons are the norm. The cloudiest stretch runs from October through February, when storm systems bring overcast skies and rain. Even in winter, though, the Bay Area often sees clear stretches between storms, and a bright January day in Sausalito with views across to San Francisco can be genuinely beautiful. October deserves a mention as a transition month: the comfort score drops to 77 and clouds increase noticeably, but it is not yet the rainy season proper. The 108 foggy days per year are concentrated heavily in the summer morning window rather than spread evenly, so Sausalito's daytime hours in summer end up sunnier than that count might suggest. Compare that to the much foggier conditions on the other side of the ridge at places like the Marin Headlands.

In Sausalito, summer morning fog typically clears between 10 a.m. and noon on most days. The fog that reaches Sausalito comes primarily from the marine layer pushing through the Golden Gate, and as solar heating warms the land surface, the fog retreats back toward the bay and eventually dissipates. On particularly strong marine layer days it can hold until 1 or 2 p.m., but those are less common for Sausalito than for the western neighborhoods of San Francisco. The key variable is how deep the marine layer is: shallow layers burn off quickly, while deep ones can persist through most of the morning. June tends to have the most persistent morning fog because the pressure gradient driving the marine layer inland is at its seasonal peak. July and August often see the layer thin out a bit, leading to faster morning clearing. If you have a specific outdoor plan in Sausalito, scheduling it for after noon gives you the best chance of clear skies. Our article on why morning fog forms in the Bay Area walks through the full physics of how and why this daily fog cycle operates.