USA · Key West
Best Time to Dive in Key West, Florida Keys
24.45°N 81.80°W
The best conditions run March to July for the long days — 12.9 hours of light against 11.4. The marine life holds steady all year, so the weather picks the month. The wider season runs February to July.
- Best time
- Mar–Jul
- Water
- 24–30 °C
- Visibility
- 10–25 m
- Season runs
- Feb–Jul
- Dived from
- day boat
- Tidal range
- 0.4–0.7 m
- Species logged
- 14
Where it is
111 km across · coastline from Natural Earth 10m
Diving in Key West, Florida Keys — monthly breakdown
A year of scuba diving conditions at a glance. Hover a month to isolate it.
| January | February | March | April | May | June | July | August | September | October | November | December | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conditions | Moderate | Good | Good | Good | Excellent | Excellent | Excellent | Poor | Poor | Poor | Poor | Moderate |
| Water temp (°C) | 24 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 29 | 30 | 30 | 30 | 29 | 27 | 26 |
| Visibility (m) | 10–20 | 15–25 | 15–25 | 15–25 | 15–25 | 10–20 | 10–20 | 15–25 | 15–25 | 15–25 | 15–25 | 15–25 |
| Marine life | Peak | Peak | Peak | Peak | Peak | Peak | Peak | Peak | Peak | Peak | Peak | Peak |
| Best time | Peak | Peak | Peak | Peak | Peak |
Excellent Good Moderate PoorPeak season Mar–Jul
Long-term averages, 2016–2025. Visibility is estimated from satellite chlorophyll-a. Water temperature is the surface mean; it is cooler at depth.
The Key West, Florida Keys diving season
February to July · Peak season
6 monthsJFMAMJJASOND
- Water temperature
- 24–30 °C
- Visibility
- 15–25 m
- Rain
- 9 days a month
Diving conditionsExpect some swell. It rains less.
Marine lifeGoliath grouper (near-guaranteed), Great hammerhead (hit-or-miss) peak at Key West, Florida Keys in these months.
August to November · Off season
4 monthsJFMAMJJASOND
- Water temperature
- 27–30 °C
- Visibility
- 15–25 m
- Rain
- 16 days a month
Diving conditionsIt rains more. The sea is calmer.
Marine lifeGoliath grouper (near-guaranteed) peaks at Key West, Florida Keys in these months.
December to January · Shoulder season
2 monthsJFMAMJJASOND
- Water temperature
- 24–26 °C
- Visibility
- 15–25 m
- Rain
- 7 days a month
Diving conditionsThe sea is rougher. The wind is up.
Marine lifeGoliath grouper (near-guaranteed) peaks at Key West, Florida Keys in these months.
- Water temperature is satellite sea-surface temperature, so expect it cooler below the thermocline.
- Visibility is estimated from satellite chlorophyll-a.
Florida Keys water temperature and weather
1,419 underwater observation records · 32 surveyed years of ocean data · 10 years of sea temperature
Water & weather
Key West, Florida Keys water temperature by month
The dashed line is the monthly average. Eight days in ten fall inside the band.
10th to 90th percentile rangemonthly mean
4
rough days a month
Seas top 1.5 m on 14% of days. Enough to cancel a day boat
3
blowy days a month
Gusts over 40 km/h, about where a day boat stays in port
11
wet days a month
2 of them bring heavy rain
| Month | Swell | Gusts over 40 km/h | Wet days | Heavy rain | Air | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 1.8 m | 18% | 8 | 2 | 23 °C | 10.6 h |
| February | 1.8 m | 9% | 6 | 1 | 24 °C | 11.2 h |
| March | 1.8 m | 14% | 4 | 1 | 25 °C | 11.8 h |
| April | 1.9 m | 6% | 6 | 1 | 26 °C | 12.6 h |
| May | 1.3 m | 6% | 10 | 3 | 27 °C | 13.2 h |
| June | 1.2 m | 3% | 16 | 3 | 29 °C | 13.5 h |
| July | 1.2 m | 2% | 15 | 2 | 30 °C | 13.4 h |
| August | 1.3 m | 5% | 17 | 4 | 30 °C | 12.9 h |
| September | 1.1 m | 4% | 19 | 5 | 29 °C | 12.1 h |
| October | 1.9 m | 12% | 18 | 4 | 28 °C | 11.4 h |
| November | 1.8 m | 15% | 9 | 2 | 26 °C | 10.8 h |
| December | 1.8 m | 13% | 7 | 2 | 25 °C | 10.5 h |
Swell is the rough end of the month: nine days in ten come in under it. Sea temperature covers 10 years, waves 4.
Pick your week
48 weeks from the daily record. Darker is better, against this site's own year. Pick a month for the detail.
| Week 1 | January week 1: Good | February week 1: Moderate | March week 1: Excellent | April week 1: Excellent | May week 1: Excellent | June week 1: Excellent | July week 1: Excellent | August week 1: Poor | September week 1: Poor | October week 1: Poor | November week 1: Poor | December week 1: Good |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Week 2 | January week 2: Moderate | February week 2: Good | March week 2: Good | April week 2: Good | May week 2: Excellent | June week 2: Good | July week 2: Excellent | August week 2: Poor | September week 2: Poor | October week 2: Moderate | November week 2: Poor | December week 2: Moderate |
| Week 3 | January week 3: Poor | February week 3: Good | March week 3: Good | April week 3: Moderate | May week 3: Good | June week 3: Excellent | July week 3: Good | August week 3: Moderate | September week 3: Poor | October week 3: Poor | November week 3: Moderate | December week 3: Poor |
| Week 4 | January week 4: Poor | February week 4: Excellent | March week 4: Good | April week 4: Good | May week 4: Good | June week 4: Excellent | July week 4: Good | August week 4: Poor | September week 4: Poor | October week 4: Poor | November week 4: Moderate | December week 4: Moderate |
Excellent Good Moderate PoorBest week to go: fourth of June
January, week by week
| Week | Conditions | Water | Swell | Wind | Rain chance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | Good | 25 °C | 1.5 m | 30 km/h | 20% |
| Week 2 | Moderate | 25 °C | 1.7 m | 32 km/h | 25% |
| Week 3 | Poor | 24 °C | 2.0 m | 33 km/h | 27% |
| Week 4 | Poor | 24 °C | 2.0 m | 31 km/h | 27% |
February, week by week
| Week | Conditions | Water | Swell | Wind | Rain chance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | Moderate | 24 °C | 2.0 m | 29 km/h | 22% |
| Week 2 | Good | 24 °C | 1.9 m | 29 km/h | 21% |
| Week 3 | Good | 25 °C | 1.7 m | 30 km/h | 21% |
| Week 4 | Excellent | 25 °C | 1.4 m | 30 km/h | 17% |
March, week by week
| Week | Conditions | Water | Swell | Wind | Rain chance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | Excellent | 25 °C | 1.4 m | 29 km/h | 16% |
| Week 2 | Good | 25 °C | 1.7 m | 30 km/h | 17% |
| Week 3 | Good | 25 °C | 1.8 m | 31 km/h | 15% |
| Week 4 | Good | 25 °C | 1.9 m | 31 km/h | 12% |
April, week by week
| Week | Conditions | Water | Swell | Wind | Rain chance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | Excellent | 26 °C | 2.0 m | 30 km/h | 12% |
| Week 2 | Good | 26 °C | 1.8 m | 30 km/h | 19% |
| Week 3 | Moderate | 26 °C | 1.9 m | 30 km/h | 23% |
| Week 4 | Good | 26 °C | 1.9 m | 29 km/h | 21% |
May, week by week
| Week | Conditions | Water | Swell | Wind | Rain chance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | Excellent | 27 °C | 1.5 m | 27 km/h | 21% |
| Week 2 | Excellent | 27 °C | 1.3 m | 26 km/h | 30% |
| Week 3 | Good | 28 °C | 1.3 m | 26 km/h | 37% |
| Week 4 | Good | 28 °C | 1.3 m | 26 km/h | 38% |
June, week by week
| Week | Conditions | Water | Swell | Wind | Rain chance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | Excellent | 28 °C | 1.3 m | 25 km/h | 50% |
| Week 2 | Good | 29 °C | 1.2 m | 25 km/h | 61% |
| Week 3 | Excellent | 29 °C | 1.2 m | 24 km/h | 53% |
| Week 4 | Excellent | 29 °C | 1.1 m | 23 km/h | 40% |
July, week by week
| Week | Conditions | Water | Swell | Wind | Rain chance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | Excellent | 30 °C | 1.0 m | 22 km/h | 37% |
| Week 2 | Excellent | 30 °C | 1.0 m | 23 km/h | 46% |
| Week 3 | Good | 30 °C | 1.1 m | 24 km/h | 55% |
| Week 4 | Good | 30 °C | 1.4 m | 23 km/h | 51% |
August, week by week
| Week | Conditions | Water | Swell | Wind | Rain chance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | Poor | 30 °C | 1.4 m | 23 km/h | 51% |
| Week 2 | Poor | 30 °C | 1.2 m | 23 km/h | 53% |
| Week 3 | Moderate | 30 °C | 1.0 m | 23 km/h | 51% |
| Week 4 | Poor | 30 °C | 1.2 m | 24 km/h | 61% |
September, week by week
| Week | Conditions | Water | Swell | Wind | Rain chance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | Poor | 30 °C | 1.1 m | 24 km/h | 66% |
| Week 2 | Poor | 30 °C | 0.9 m | 21 km/h | 61% |
| Week 3 | Poor | 30 °C | 0.9 m | 21 km/h | 63% |
| Week 4 | Poor | 30 °C | 1.6 m | 23 km/h | 66% |
October, week by week
| Week | Conditions | Water | Swell | Wind | Rain chance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | Poor | 29 °C | 1.8 m | 27 km/h | 64% |
| Week 2 | Moderate | 29 °C | 1.5 m | 28 km/h | 62% |
| Week 3 | Poor | 29 °C | 1.8 m | 30 km/h | 55% |
| Week 4 | Poor | 28 °C | 2.1 m | 32 km/h | 47% |
November, week by week
| Week | Conditions | Water | Swell | Wind | Rain chance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | Poor | 28 °C | 2.2 m | 31 km/h | 39% |
| Week 2 | Poor | 27 °C | 2.0 m | 30 km/h | 35% |
| Week 3 | Moderate | 27 °C | 1.7 m | 30 km/h | 30% |
| Week 4 | Moderate | 27 °C | 1.6 m | 29 km/h | 24% |
December, week by week
| Week | Conditions | Water | Swell | Wind | Rain chance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | Good | 26 °C | 1.5 m | 28 km/h | 20% |
| Week 2 | Moderate | 26 °C | 1.9 m | 29 km/h | 24% |
| Week 3 | Poor | 25 °C | 2.0 m | 31 km/h | 29% |
| Week 4 | Moderate | 25 °C | 1.8 m | 30 km/h | 22% |
10 years of daily records, averaged into weeks.
Gear & storms
What to wear
Off the coldest water of each month, not the average — that is what the suit has to cope with.
| January | February | March | April | May | June | July | August | September | October | November | December | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Suit | January: 5 mm | February: 5 mm | March: 3 mm | April: 3 mm | May: 3 mm | June: skin | July: skin | August: skin | September: skin | October: skin | November: 3 mm | December: 3 mm |
- Jan–Feb5 mm full suit
- Mar–May3 mm full suit
- Jun–Octskin or 3 mm shorty
- Nov–Dec3 mm full suit
Swell through the year
The rough end of each month — nine days in ten come in under it.
Amber is over 1.5 m.
Tides
Tropical storms
9 of the last 30 Septembers saw a tropical storm pass within 250 km. Anything has been recorded Jul–Nov.
Share of the last 30 years with a storm that month.
- NOAASea surface temperature, from OISST and MUR
- ERA5Wind, waves, rain and air temperature, via Open-Meteo
- OBISMarine species records within 60 km
- IBTrACSTropical cyclone tracks, 1996 to 2025
Key West, Florida Keys marine life — what you'll see diving
| Species | When | Observed window | Reliability | Evidence | Records |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nurse shark | All year | Near-guaranteed | 287 | ||
| Southern stingray | All year | Near-guaranteed | 91 | ||
| Goliath grouper | All year | Near-guaranteed | 105 | ||
| Nassau grouper | May–Jul, Sep | Near-guaranteed | 106 | ||
| Loggerhead turtle | All year | Likely | 47 | ||
| Spotted eagle ray | All year | Likely | 51 | ||
| Manatee | Jan–Apr | Likely | 117 | ||
| Lemon shark | All year | Likely | 53 | ||
| Green turtle | All year | Likely | 36 | ||
| Bottlenose dolphin | Dec–Feb | Likely | 75 | ||
| Silky shark | Jan, Mar | Hit-or-miss | 200 | ||
| Great hammerhead | Feb | Hit-or-miss | 19 | ||
| Bull shark | Jan–Feb | Hit-or-miss | 11 | ||
| Yellowfin tuna | Jan, Apr | Hit-or-miss | 95 |
Peak Present
- Observed window
- Months with records. Peak is where most of them fall.
- Reliability
- Near-guaranteed in 60% of surveyed years or more
- Likely 30% to 60%
- Hit-or-miss under 30%
- Evidence
- Years it was seen, out of the years anyone surveyed.
- Records
- OBIS sightings within 60 km.
These are sightings people logged, not a full survey of the reef. A species missing from a month may just mean nobody recorded one.
Diving Key West, Florida Keys — common questions
- When is the best time to dive Key West, Florida Keys?
- The best conditions run March to July for the long days — 12.9 hours of light against 11.4. The marine life holds steady all year, so the weather picks the month. The wider season runs February to July.
- When is the diving season in Key West, Florida Keys?
- The diving season in Key West, Florida Keys runs February to July, and it is at its best March to July.
- Is the diving in Key West, Florida Keys good for beginners?
- Yes. It suits Open Water divers, so it works for a first trip after certification.
- How warm is the water in Key West, Florida Keys?
- Between 24 and 30 °C at the surface across the year, coldest in January and warmest in August. It runs cooler below the thermocline.
- What wetsuit do I need in Key West, Florida Keys?
- A 5 mm full suit covers the coldest water of the year. In the warmest months a skin or 3 mm shorty is enough.
- What is the visibility like in Key West, Florida Keys?
- Roughly 10 to 25 m depending on the month. That is estimated from satellite chlorophyll-a rather than measured in the water.
- What will I see diving Key West, Florida Keys?
- The most consistently recorded species are Nurse shark (near-guaranteed), Southern stingray (near-guaranteed) and Goliath grouper (near-guaranteed), from 1,419 records within 60 km.
- Does Key West, Florida Keys get tropical storms?
- Yes. Over 30 years of records a storm passed within 250 km in Jul–Nov, most often in September at 9 of 30 years.
- Is there current in Key West, Florida Keys?
- The tide rises and falls 0.7 m around the full and new moon, against 0.4 m in between. How much of that becomes current depends on the shape of the channel.
- When should I avoid Key West, Florida Keys?
- September–October are the weakest months for conditions.
- How do you dive Key West, Florida Keys?
- Mostly from day boats. Trips run through the season, Feb–Jul.