What Are the Warmest Cities in Oregon?

KEY TAKEAWAYS
The three warmest cities in Oregon are Ontario, Medford, and Grants Pass.

In this article I’m going to share with you my ranking of the warmest places in Oregon.

I created my list by researching data provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and other climate data providers.

Below I’m listing the top 10 warmest places in Oregon that have the highest average yearly temperatures. Later in the article I share a table with 50 most populous cities in Oregon.

You may also be interested in reading my article on the warmest cities in the Pacific Northwest.

You may also want to read my article “Where Does It Not Snow in Oregon?” where I list places where you won’t need a snow shovel.

You’ll also enjoy reading my article on the best weather in Oregon, including places with lowest cloud cover, highest temperatures, etc.

Top 10 Warmest Cities in Oregon

Here are the top 10 warmest places in Oregon ranked by their daily mean temperature. Because Oregon has a fairly uniform climate compared to other states, the annual daily mean temperature of these destinations is only slightly higher than the average for the 50 cities I researched for this article (52.38 °F).

1. Ontario – daily mean temperature of 56.1 °F

Lying along the Snake River at the Idaho border, the small city of Ontario is the warmest place in Oregon. But there’s a caveat: Ontario is so warm because it features a cold desert climate with some of the hottest summers in the entire state (temperatures go up to 93 °F). Its winters are much colder than in other cities featured in this top10 ranking (temperatures during the day reach 39-45 °F). If your definition of best weather is less extreme yearly variations in temperature, Ontario is not the best choice. But if you’re after a lot of sun, Ontario is one of the top sunny places in Oregon.

2. Medford – daily mean temperature of 55.95 °F

Medford, located in Southern Oregon, is a city of 85,000 people. It features a Mediterranean climate with hot summers and mild winters. Medford benefits from a rain shadow effect as it’s located between the Cascade Range and Siskiyou Mountains. This makes its climate drier and sunnier than locations north of the city, in the Willamette Valley, where 70% of Oregon’s population lives.

While it’s not the sunniest city in Oregon, it has much more days of blue skies than other parts of the state. The difference between Medford’s mild climate and Ontario’s high desert climate is very noticeable, too. Daily highs in the winter are between 46-54 °F compared to 39-45 °F. Summer highs are about 2-3 degrees cooler. If you’re looking for the warmest location in Oregon that has mild winters and hot summers, Medford is one of the best options.

If you were to look for the warmest place in Oregon right now every day of the year, most of the time Medford would win.

3. Grants Pass – daily mean temperature of 55.6 °F

Grants Pass has a population of about 39,000 inhabitants. Its motto “It’s the climate!” is fitting: it has some of the best weather in Oregon, with its area usually showing up in forecast maps with more favorable weather than the rest of the state. While it features similar temperatures to Medford, its lows in the winter are higher, with no month getting average nighttime temperatures close to freezing. More specifically, while Medford sees winter lows of 32-34 °F, Grants Pass gets 35-36 °F. Because Grants Pass is only 30 miles west of Medford, it benefits from the same rain shadow effect and is one of the sunniest cities in Oregon that’s not a high desert.

4. Oregon City – daily mean temperature of 55.15 °F

Oregon City is located on the Willamette River, near the southern city limits of Portland. The city is a part of the Portland Metropolitan Area. It’s the first city in this ranking located in the heart of Oregon, in the Willamette Valley. Oregon City has the same mild winters as Grants Pass. Its summers are cooler than both Grants Pass and Medford, with average daily highs not going above 83 °F (compared to 91 °F in the two cities in southern Oregon).

5. Roseburg – daily mean temperature of 55.15 °F

Roseburg is a city of 24,000 people, located 69 miles north of Grants Pass. Roseburg used to be known for its lumber industry. These days, it’s home to many vineyards and wineries. It has milder winters than all previous cities on the list, with daily highs between 48-55 °F and lows like in Oregon City. It has cooler summers than nearby cities, too, with average highs more resembling those of Oregon City (Roseburg has summers that are about a degree warmer).

6. Portland – daily mean temperature of 55.05 °F

The most populous city in Oregon has a romantic story related to its climate. It’s said that its cool spring nights and moderate winters encourage spectacular rose blooms. This is why Portland has been called the City of Roses since 1905. Compared to the previous cities in this ranking, Portland gets more precipitation (though less than Oregon City). Its summers are cooler than any of the previous cities, with average highs not getting above 82 °F. Winter months are also cooler than in all the previous cities except for the desert-influenced Ontario.

7. West Linn – daily mean temperature of 55 °F

West Linn is another city forming the Portland metro. It’s right across the Willamette River from Oregon City, on the west side of the river. Considering that the cities are 2 miles away from each other, it has virtually the same climate as Oregon City.

8. Central Point – daily mean temperature of 55 °F

Central Point is located 5 miles south of Oregon City. As West Linn, there’s no difference in climate between these locations. It has warm summers and mild winters, with sun shining less often than in the southern part of the state.

9. Salem – daily mean temperature of 54.65 °F

Salem, the third biggest city of Oregon, is situated 46 miles southwest of Portland. As a curiosity, the halfway point between the North Pole and the Equator passes through Salem’s city limits. As most cities in the Willamette Valley, Salem enjoys a mild Mediterranean climate.

10. Sutherlin – daily mean temperature of 54.5 °F

Sutherlin is located 13 miles north of Roseburg. It has slightly more precipitation. Other than that, there are no noticeable differences in weather between these two cities.

50 Biggest Cities in Oregon Ranked by Daily Mean Temperature

I created the table below by researching data for the most populous municipalities in Oregon. When I couldn’t find data for a given city, I moved on to another. While the list includes 50 cities, some of the bigger cities may be missing because there was no data for them. Please check the closest geographically city then.

Check the Warmest Cities in Neighboring States

If you’re interested in learning about the warmest cities in states neighboring Oregon, check out the following articles:

• What Are the Warmest Cities in California?
• What Are the Warmest Cities in Idaho?
• What Are the Warmest Cities in Nevada?
• What Are the Warmest Cities in Washington?

Also check my article on the warmest cities in the US in every state. Oregon is one of the best weather states if you like mild weather.

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