What Are the Warmest Cities in South Carolina?

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

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 South Carolina that have the highest average yearly temperatures. Later in the article I share a table with 29 most populous cities in South Carolina.

Top 10 Warmest Cities in South Carolina

Here are the top 10 warmest places in South Carolina ranked by their daily mean temperature. The differences between the top 10 cities are small as they all share the same humid subtropical climate. However, the temperatures of these cities are still noticeably higher than the average for all 29 cities I researched for this article (63.4 °F).

For the top five cities I also give average winter and summer temperatures.

1. Beaufort – daily mean temperature of 67.35 °F

The warmest city in South Carolina is Beaufort, the second-oldest city in the state (behind Charleston). It’s a small town with about 13,500 residents, located on Port Royal Island. It has been awarded various prestigious titles, such as “The Best Small Southern Town” by Southern Living and “Top 50 Adventure Town” by National Geographic Adventure.

The state’s warmest city enjoys mild winters with average daily highs of 60-64 °F and lows of 40-43 °F. This means that warm weather is common even in the coldest months. Meanwhile, summers are hot, with highs of 89-92 °F and lows of 71-75 °F. While the difference between Beaufort, Charleston, and other cities in the top 10 isn’t that big, the average temperature of Beaufort is 8.15 °F higher than in the coldest city of South Carolina (Walhalla).

Winter temperatures: highs of 60-64 °F, lows of 40-43 °F

Summer temperatures: highs of 89-92 °F, lows of 71-75 °F

2. Charleston – daily mean temperature of 67.2 °F

The second warmest city in South Carolina is the most populous city of the state: Charleston. Due to its location on the coast, Charleston enjoys the least extreme weather in the state. It has much smaller differences between daytime and nighttime temperatures compared to other cities in South Carolina.

Compared to Beaufort’s average temperature, Charleston is slightly cooler. Other than that, if you’re looking for the best weather in South Carolina, there’s no huge difference between these two destinations.

Compared to the second most populous city in South Carolina (and its capital), Columbia, Charleston is almost three degrees warmer on average. Columbia’s average annual high temperature is over two degrees higher but nights in Columbia are 8 degrees colder on average.

Winter temperatures: highs of 58-60 °F, lows of 44-47 °F

Summer temperatures: highs of 84-88 °F, lows of 74-77 °F

3. Bluffton – daily mean temperature of 66.5 °F

Bluffton is a city of about 28,000 inhabitants, located about 32 miles southwest of Beaufort, near Hilton Head Island, at the very southern tip of the state.

Compared to Beaufort, it has slightly cooler nighttime temperatures. It also has cooler temperatures in the summer during the day (which is a good thing if you’re looking for a place with cooler summers). The very southeast corner of the state attracts many new residents. Bluffton is one of the fastest growing cities in South Carolina.

Winter temperatures: highs of 60-64 °F, lows of 40-43 °F

Summer temperatures: highs of 86-90 °F, lows of 71-74 °F

4. Moncks Corner – daily mean temperature of 66.1 °F

Moncks Corner is a town of about 12,000 people, situated 33 miles north of Charleston. It’s located near Lake Moultrie, the third largest lake in South Carolina. Moncks Corner has a similar climate to Charleston, only its distance from the coast makes it summers hotter by about 2 degrees.

Winter temperatures: highs of 59-62 °F, lows of 38-41 °F

Summer temperatures: highs of 90-93 °F, lows of 70-74 °F

5. Hilton Head Island – daily mean temperature of 66 °F

Hilton Head Island is a resort town and barrier island located about 31 miles northeast of Savannah, Georgia. It’s a perfect option for those who want to live in a small city as close to the coast as possible while enjoying great weather. Hilton Head is known for its eco-friendly development with very high tree cover.

Winter temperatures: highs of 61-63 °F, lows of 38-41 °F

Summer temperatures: highs of 87-90 °F, lows of 69-72 °F

6. North Charleston – daily mean temperature of 65.9 °F

North Charleston is the third most populous city in South Carolina (the second is Columbia, not featured in the top 10). The city is located about 10 miles northwest of Charleston, close to the airport. The distance is short but it still has an impact on the local climate. Because downtown Charleston’s climate is more strongly moderated by the ocean, it has noticeably higher nighttime temperatures. For example, in the winter, Charleston has average lows of about 43-47 °F compared to 37-41 °F in North Charleston.

7. Orangeburg – daily mean temperature of 65.55 °F

Orangeburg is a town of about 13,000 residents, located 45 miles south of Columbia. Due to its inland location, it has higher daytime temperatures during the winter (by 1-3 degrees) and much hotter summers than Charleston (by up to 5 degrees). In fact, it has the warmest annual high temperature. It has much colder nights, though, which may be welcome during its hot summer but isn’t ideal during the winter (the lowest average lows are 36 °F compared to 43 °F in Charleston).

8. Georgetown – daily mean temperature of 65.05 °F

Georgetown is the third oldest city in South Carolina. It’s located by Winyah Bay, a confluence of several rivers draining into the Atlantic Ocean. Georgetown is about 61 miles northeast of Charleston. Because it’s not directly on the coast as Charleston is, it has hotter summers and higher diurnal variations in temperature.

9. Barnwell – daily mean temperature of 65 °F

Barnwell is a small town with a population of about 5,000 residents. It’s located about 61 miles southwest of Columbia, close to the state’s border with Georgia. Like other inland cities in South Carolina, its weather is hotter in the summer than coastal destinations. It also has colder nighttime temperatures.

10. Conway – daily mean temperature of 64.55 °F

The tenth warmest city in South Carolina is Conway. Conway is a city of about 25,000 residents, located 15 miles northwest of the popular vacation resort of Myrtle Beach. Conway has the lowest nighttime temperatures in this top10 ranking, with average winter lows of 35-38 °F. Still, on the whole, it’s warmer than 19 other cities in South Carolina not featured in this ranking (but featured in the table below).

Video Summary of the Warmest South Carolina Cities

29 Biggest Cities in South Carolina Ranked by Daily Mean Temperature

Bluffton is the third warmest city in South Carolina

I created the table below by researching data for the most populous municipalities in South Carolina. When I couldn’t find data for a given city, I moved on to another. While the list includes 29 cities, some of the bigger cities may be missing because there was no data for them. Please check the closest geographically city then.

City	Average high temperature (°F)	Average low temperature (°F)	Daily mean temperature (°F)
Beaufort	76.8	57.9	67.35
Charleston	73.3	61.1	67.2
Bluffton	76	57	66.5
Moncks Corner	76.5	55.7	66.1
Hilton Head Island	76	56	66
North Charleston	76.2	55.6	65.9
Orangeburg	77.2	53.9	65.55
Georgetown	75.6	54.5	65.05
Barnwell	75	55	65
Conway	75.3	53.8	64.55
Bamberg	76	53	64.5
Columbia	75.6	53	64.3
Florence	75.6	52.8	64.2
Sumter	75	53	64
Aiken	74.9	52	63.45
Lexington	75	51	63
Darlington	75	50.6	62.8
Blythewood	74	51	62.5
Myrtle Beach	72.4	52.3	62.35
Rock Hill	73.1	51.1	62.1
Clemson	73	50	61.5
Abbeville	73	50	61.5
Greenville	72.3	50.4	61.35
Spartanburg	73.1	49.3	61.2
Laurens	73.2	48.6	60.9
Pickens	72	49.2	60.6
Chester	72.4	48.2	60.3
Travelers Rest	71	48	59.5
Walhalla	71	47.4	59.2

Check the Warmest Cities in Neighboring States

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

Also check my article on the warmest cities in the US in every state. In my article on what state has the best weather I also included South Carolina due to its warm year round climate.