Updated: 2026-08-10
38.1°C — that is the highest temperature ever recorded at the Oxford Met Office station, measured on 19 July 2022. It was one of the defining moments of that summer, when the city sweltered through 15 days above 38°C and a total of 63 hot days. That single figure, taken from the official Met Office records, puts Oxford's modern extremes into perspective when compared with the 19th-century series that begins in 1853.
When people ask how many extreme heat days Oxford gets per year, the answer depends on the threshold. Looking at the complete record from 1853 through 2026, the Met Office station in Oxford shows a clear pattern: days exceeding 28°C, which is the threshold for extreme heat, vary dramatically from year to year. In 1860, the maximum temperature only reached 23.1°C and there was just 1 day above 23°C. In contrast, 2018 brought 80 days above 23°C, 37 days above 26°C, and 23 days above 28°C — the most extreme heat days in any single year of the entire series.
The climate of Oxford has always had warm spells. The long-running station, which has observations from 1853 to 2026, shows that the hottest years are not all recent. For instance, 1911 saw 23 days above 28°C, with a maximum of 34.8°C. The summer of 1976, famous for its drought, produced 21 days above 28°C. And 1995 matched 1911 with 23 days above 28°C. These historical peaks are spread across more than a century, showing that extreme heat has been part of Oxford's weather for as long as reliable records exist.
Yet the most recent period stands out for its intensity. The year 2022 brought the highest maximum on record, 38.1°C, and 2025 saw 16 days above 28°C. The year 2019 produced a maximum of 36.5°C, and 2023 followed with 9 days above 28°C. The pattern of hot years alternating with cooler ones is normal, but the frequency of extreme heat days in the last decade reflects a shift that residents notice in their daily lives.
The table below gives the full annual series for the Oxford station, with the number of days each year above the three thresholds and the highest maximum temperature recorded that year. This is the complete record from 1853 to 2026, as held in the Met Office archive.
The chart shows the complete annual series. The table lists the most notable years; the full series comes from Met Office.
| Year | Days > 28°C | Days ≥ 26°C | Days ≥ 23°C | Year Max (°C) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1911 | 23 | 65 | 34 | 34.8 |
| 1931 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 23.9 |
| 1932 | 4 | 21 | 7 | 35.0 |
| 1990 | 8 | 48 | 22 | 35.1 |
| 2019 | 8 | 55 | 19 | 36.5 |
| 2020 | 11 | 57 | 18 | 35.1 |
| 2022 | 15 | 63 | 33 | 38.1 |
The table below shows the average number of days per year with a maximum above 28°C, broken down by month. These are the mean values for the entire period of record, giving a sense of when Oxford is most likely to see extreme heat. July stands out as the peak month, followed closely by August.
| Month | Average Days > 28°C |
|---|---|
| May | 2.0 |
| June | 2.3 |
| July | 3.8 |
| August | 3.2 |
| September | 2.0 |
| October | 2.0 |
Looking at the top five maximum temperatures recorded since 1853, the list is led by the exceptional heat of July 2022. The complete ranking of the five hottest days is:
The dominance of recent years in this ranking is striking. Before 1990, no day in the entire series from 1853 had reached 35.1°C. The July 2022 heatwave, with two consecutive days above 36°C, pushed the Oxford record well beyond anything measured before.
For residents planning outdoor events or for researchers studying local climate change, the complete yearly counts give the full picture. A year like 2018 stands out with 80 days at or above 23°C, but the number of truly extreme days — those above 28°C — has been climbing in the last two decades. The 2026 data, through 30 June, already shows 10 such days in the first half of the year.
Source: Met Office — Oxford station, 1853–2026.
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© 2026 HistoClima · data: Met Office (OGL v3.0) · not affiliated with Met Office · citation permitted with source.