NJ gets to enjoy three whole days of generally nice weather

The Bottom Line

The next three days are looking lovely for New Jersey, although not perfect. We will enjoy generally bright skies, manageable humidity, and seasonable temperatures. Once showers clear out early Thursday morning, the rest of the day looks dry and pleasant with highs in the 80s. Most of Friday should be good too, although evening rain showers could get in the way of some outdoor activities. Saturday should be a spectacular summer day, from start to finish. But Sunday's forecast is trending cloudier, cooler, and wetter — while we may salvage the early part of the day, rain will move in eventually and could be heavy at times. At least that storm system will keep the heat and humidity at bay, with no widespread 90s or 100s in the forecast through at least the middle of next week for New Jersey.

Weather Hazards

There are no watches, warnings, or advisories in effect for New Jersey. A low risk of rip currents will continue for the Jersey Shore on Thursday and Friday, which is good news for beachgoers.

Extreme heat is not expected to be a problem here for the foreseeable future. That is a very welcome break after August’s hot and stormy start, and after July’s wild swings too.

The one weather issue to watch will be Sunday’s storm system. It could produce 1 to 2 inches of rainfall, enough for some ponding and flooding issues if the rain comes down hard enough or long enough. Stronger thunderstorm cells may develop as well. So while the next few days are mostly calm, keep your Sunday plans flexible for now.

Climatological Context

August 13 is the 225th day of 2026.

Normal high temperatures are around 85 degrees, while normal low temperatures range from 65 to 69 degrees.

August is, on average, New Jersey’s second hottest and second wettest month of the year.

Thursday

I am happy to say there is more “nice” than “not” in New Jersey’s forecast, especially over the next three days. We just have one or two bumps in the road to talk about. Otherwise, this will be a beautiful stretch of summer weather.

Thursday morning is starting around 70 degrees across New Jersey. Some areas of central and especially northern New Jersey will find puddles and residual mist from overnight rain. (Parts of Warren and Morris counties picked up almost an inch of fresh rainfall.)

The rest of Thursday checks all the boxes for a nice summer day: bright skies, a light breeze, dry weather, manageable humidity, and seasonably warm temperatures. Highs will reach the mid to upper 80s.

Thunderstorm chances are very low. We get to catch our collective breath here with relatively quiet, pleasant weather.

In addition, Thursday night should be New Jersey’s coolest night since the middle of last week, with widespread 60s in the forecast. Lows will settle in the upper 60s on average, under partly cloudy skies.

Friday

Friday will be another mostly good summer day.

Expect sunshine early, followed by increasing clouds through the afternoon. High temperatures will reach the mid 80s, which is right around normal for mid-August.

The one snag: a chance of evening showers, starting around dinnertime. That could interfere with some outdoor plans later Friday, even though most of the day should stay dry and pleasant.

Saturday

Saturday flips back to perfectly pleasant, from start to finish.

Expect partly sunny skies, comfortable humidity levels, and highs in the lower 80s.

Sunday & Beyond

Sigh. And then along comes Sunday. That is when our next storm system is set to arrive. And latest model guidance is not trending in a favorable direction, as rain moves in eventually.

This one is all about timing. I think we have a chance of salvaging at least Sunday morning, although skies will become mostly cloudy to overcast. The latest forecast calls for rain arriving as early as midday through the afternoon hours, and continuing into Sunday night. That rain could be heavy at times.

Total rainfall may end up on the order of an inch or two for much of the Garden State, and some stronger thunderstorm cells could be embedded too, adding some extra nastiness to the day and night. Plus, the clouds and rain will keep temperatures on the cool side, limited to the 70s for most.

At this point, I would keep plans flexible for Sunday. There is still a chance for the forecast to evolve and shift a bit more over the next 72 hours. I truly hate to see rain affect a good chunk of a summer weekend, so we will be watching this one very closely — stay tuned for regular forecast updates between now and then.

There is some good news about Sunday's storm system: it is keeping heat and humidity suppressed. While New Jersey gets wet, Washington DC and beyond gets baked and broiled. But no widespread 90s and 100s are expected here in New Jersey through at least the middle of next week. For mid-August in New Jersey, that may be a reasonable tradeoff after all.

Dan Zarrow is Chief Meteorologist for Townsquare Media New Jersey. Follow him on Facebook for the latest forecast and realtime weather updates.