When to paint a house exterior in San Francisco, CA
When to paint in San Francisco, CA
A long painting season, with room to reschedule. The painting window is April to October, with 7 good months a year. The best month is July, at about 31 painting days. Book a painter by February.
If you want the house done in April to October, call for quotes in February or earlier; a job pushed past October is likely to wait until next year. For a deck, the months with enough staining days to spare are Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov.
- 1Jan
- 3Feb
- 5Mar
- 13Apr
- 25May
- 28Jun
- 31Jul
- 28Aug
- 25Sep
- 22Oct
- 7Nov
- 1Dec
Month by month
| Month | Painting days | Staining days | With low-temp paint | Avg low / high |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 1 | 1 | 15 | 46° / 60°F |
| February | 3 | 1 | 19 | 46° / 64°F |
| March | 5 | 3 | 18 | 48° / 65°F |
| April | 13 | 13 | 25 | 50° / 68°F |
| May | 25 | 25 | 28 | 52° / 70°F |
| June | 28 | 28 | 28 | 55° / 74°F |
| July | 31 | 30 | 31 | 56° / 74°F |
| August | 28 | 26 | 28 | 57° / 75°F |
| September | 25 | 24 | 25 | 57° / 77°F |
| October | 22 | 20 | 25 | 54° / 75°F |
| November | 7 | 5 | 21 | 48° / 66°F |
| December | 1 | under 1 | 16 | 45° / 60°F |
Deck stain does best in July. Low-temperature paint adds about 90 days a year here.
Towns near San Francisco compared
4 get fewer, down to 90 a year. A gap like that between towns is usually elevation, a coast or a lake, which is why a painter from a few towns over can be on a different schedule. Daly City, Pacifica are read from the same station as San Francisco, so their numbers match; the real difference is the distance from that station.
| Place | From San Francisco | Painting days a year | Window | Station |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mill Valley, CA | 30 mi northeast | 163 | May to October | Metro Oakland International Airport |
| San Anselmo, CA | 31 mi northeast | 90 | June to September | Petaluma Municipal Airport |
| Daly City, CA | 31 mi east | 188 | April to October | same station |
| Larkspur, CA | 31 mi northeast | 90 | June to September | Petaluma Municipal Airport |
| Pacifica, CA | 31 mi east | 188 | April to October | same station |
| Corte Madera, CA | 32 mi northeast | 163 | May to October | Metro Oakland International Airport |
How San Francisco ranks in CA
Of 376 CA places with 10,000 people or more, San Francisco (population 827,526, 4th largest) ranks 120th for painting days, 61 days above the state median of 128. The longest season in the state is Santa Clarita, 269 days, 341 miles southeast. The shortest is Susanville at 4. Switching to low-temperature paint here is worth 90 extra days, more than most of the summer months on their own.
Where these numbers come from
Daily records from San Francisco International A (37.2 miles away), 2015 to 2024, NOAA Global Summary of the Day. A month is good at 12+ painting days and possible at 6+.