Do I need to bring long clothes/sweaters to Houston? (Mart: 2013, live)

[Jenn32]

Since I am from the west coast, we actually have cold winters here where we need long clothes (sweaters, pants, etc.). Do people never wear long clothes/sweaters/long pants/jeans here in Houston due to it being hot year-round? I am debating whether I should sell all of my long clothes/sweaters/jeans/long plants. All I need is summer clothes and a rain coat maybe right?

[MaryleeII]

Are you visiting, or moving to Houston?


We do have three seasons in Texas, and it does get cold in Houston in the winter. Don't let anyone talk you into just bringing shorts! Even now, in the heat of the summer, people still wear jeans, lightweight pants, closed shoes, socks, lightweight shirts, etc. At least a windbreaker type jacket or loose sweater would also be recommended. The heat can be like a blast furnace during the summer, but we don't walk around dressed for life at the beach! Don't forget, the inside (where you'll be most of the time), is air conditioned.


If you're planning to move here, do bring your heavier clothes. You can decide what to discard later. I have two parkas, one medium and one heavy weight, and a variety of sweaters, for the winters, and do get use out of them.

[txdemo]

December through early March is California weather. Cool and beautiful perfect weather. Some very cold days in the 30's, 40's and occasional 20's during January.

[elnina]

He's, you will need long pants, sweaters, and light parka. Ladies even enjoy wearing fancy boots when it gets colder (45F and below).
Also, depends where you will work, shorts and sleeveless tops will not belong to your professional attire.

[DanielWayne]

It's far from hot year around. There are typically a few days each year where it dips into freezing temps, and last year there were some days in the 20s. That being said, the weather can get wacky. If Christmas Day had tee shirts and flip flop weather (and this can happen), nobody would even blink.

[ndcairngorm]

Another thing to note: people in the Houston area tend to "dress up" a little more than Northwesterners and people from some other more "preppy" northern states. Work attire might consist of dressy dresses where in the Northwest we might wear slacks and blazer with Doc Martins or some such.

Depends entirely on what kind of place you end up in, but in general people don't go around in shorts and T shirt after September, not in downtown Houston. And some places keep their buildings so cold people are glad of their long sleeves and sweaters inside.

[Texyn]

From time to time during winter, Houston does experience cold snaps that drop the temperature to freezing or below. But, most of the time, these cold temperatures are brief and confined solely to the early morning hours. From there, the powers of the low latitude sunshine ensure that even a freezing morning can shoot right up to 60s by afternoon.

The coldest daytime conditions here are associated with periods of overrunning. This is a type of overcast day caused by a shallow, cold air mass. The shallowness of the air mass means that upper air flow continues flowing in from the ocean, rather than switching to flow from overland as with typical cold fronts. So the warm ocean air rises over the denser colder air, condensing and creating the overcast. And with the lack of sunshine, daytime temps don't get to rise much out of the 50s, or even 40s. On the flipside, the cloud cover traps heat, meaning that nighttime lows can still be well above freezing despite the cold day. These overrunning conditions don't happen every year, though, and even with colder-than-normal winters like this past one, they constitute only a handful of days at most.

The bottom line is that Houston isn't hot year round in the sense that South Florida and the Caribbean are. It's still overall warm/mild in winter, just with some cold interruptions mixed in. You can still keep your long clothes, but just know that you'll be using them FAR less frequently, and that they will be taking a back seat to the summer clothes.

Check out these two links if you haven't already. The first is a climate chart based on NWS values, to allow you to get a general sense of the weather here. The second is the actual NWS site, where you can toggle settings to find the metrics you're looking for:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Climate_of_Houston
National Weather Service Climate

[Texyn]

Originally Posted by ndcairngorm

Another thing to note: people in the Houston area tend to "dress up" a little more than Northwesterners and people from some other more "preppy" northern states. Work attire might consist of dressy dresses where in the Northwest we might wear slacks and blazer with Doc Martins or some such.

In fairness, this may be due to the differences in industry seen with Houston compared to those areas. But still, the practice is quite counterintuitive considering the magnitude and length of warmth here compared to those areas. Is it any wonder that people cry so much about heat here, when they aren't dressing well for it?

[cBach]

Originally Posted by txdemo

December through early March is California weather. Cool and beautiful perfect weather. Some very cold days in the 30's, 40's and occasional 20's during January.

California never gets days in the 30's, 40's, and 20's. Most California winter days are in the 60's and 70's (and sometimes 80's and 90's) in Southern California and in the 50's & 60's in Northern California (with some 70's thrown in). When I lived in Northern California, the "coldest" highs were in the low 50's and the nighttime lows never got below 34. Southern California is even warmer.

[Jeohnny]

Originally Posted by cBach

California never gets days in the 30's, 40's, and 20's. Most California winter days are in the 60's and 70's (and sometimes 80's and 90's) in Southern California and in the 50's & 60's in Northern California (with some 70's thrown in). When I lived in Northern California, the "coldest" highs were in the low 50's and the nighttime lows never got below 34. Southern California is even warmer.

The mountains do