United States
In numbers
29m
Highest point
37,661
People
29°C
Warmest sea
August
When to go to Hilton Head Island
Best for the beach from May to August and in October.
The sea is warmest in August (29 °C) and coolest in February (15 °C). Comfortable swimming (21 °C or more): from May to October.
Averages 1991–2020. Sea: NOAA OISST, the water within 35 km of the coast. Air, rain and sun: NASA POWER. Best months weigh warm afternoons (23–30 °C), sea of 24 °C or more and few wet days.
Island in Beaufort County, South Carolina, United States
Hilton Head Island is an island in United States. Its highest point rises to 29 m. About 37,661 people live on it.
Getting there
- Hilton Head Airport (HHH)nearest airport with scheduled flights · 5 km in a straight lineCar hire at SAV airport (Savannah)Discover Cars · Affiliate link↗
- From May to August and Octoberbest months to go (from 30 years of averages)
Plan the trip
Ferries, stays and things to do
Some links above are affiliate links: if you book through them we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you. It never changes what the data on this page says.
The shape of the land.
On average the island stands 10 m above the sea. 100 % of it is below 200 m.
- 100 %0–50 m
Share of the island's area in each altitude band, from the Copernicus DEM (30 m, read at 30–240 m on large islands).
Towns on the island
- Hilton Head Island40,512 people
Month by month
The weather on the island.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Afternoon high (°C) | 15 | 16 | 18 | 21 | 25 | 28 | 29 | 29 | 28 | 24 | 20 | 17 |
| Night low (°C) | 10 | 11 | 14 | 18 | 22 | 26 | 27 | 27 | 25 | 21 | 16 | 13 |
| Sea (°C) | 16 | 15 | 16 | 19 | 23 | 27 | 29 | 29 | 28 | 24 | 20 | 17 |
| Rain (mm) | 63 | 78 | 82 | 72 | 89 | 148 | 129 | 157 | 106 | 89 | 56 | 85 |
| Wet days | 10 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 12 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 16 | 10 | 8 | 9 |
| Sun h/day | 5.8 | 6.0 | 7.1 | 8.9 | 9.2 | 8.9 | 8.8 | 7.9 | 7.2 | 7.1 | 6.5 | 5.3 |
| Wind (km/h) | 22 | 21 | 21 | 20 | 20 | 18 | 18 | 17 | 20 | 20 | 21 | 21 |
Averages 1991–2020 for the ~55 km NASA POWER cell over the island; the sea from NOAA OISST.
Recent years
Warmer and cooler years at sea.
Each month's sea temperature compared with its 1991–2020 average, in degrees.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | −1.5 | −1.4 | +0.1 | +1.3 | ±0.0 | −0.7 | +0.5 | +0.9 | +0.5 | +0.1 | +1.2 | −1.3 |
| 2021 | −2.3 | −2.6 | −0.8 | −0.4 | −0.6 | −0.5 | −0.6 | +0.4 | +0.4 | +1.2 | −2.1 | −1.2 |
| 2022 | −1.6 | −2.8 | +0.1 | +0.9 | +0.7 | +1.1 | +1.0 | +0.4 | +0.4 | −2.0 | −0.7 | −2.0 |
| 2023 | −2.7 | −0.7 | +1.3 | +0.9 | −0.5 | −1.9 | +0.9 | +1.3 | +0.8 | −1.2 | −1.0 | −2.2 |
| 2024 | −3.1 | −1.9 | −0.1 | +0.2 | +1.1 | +0.8 | +1.5 | +0.1 | −1.0 | −0.7 | +0.8 | −2.3 |
| 2025 | −4.7 | −2.7 | −1.2 | +1.5 | +1.5 | +1.2 | +1.0 | +0.3 | −0.9 | −1.3 | −1.8 | −2.6 |
+1 warmer than usual −1 cooler than usual
Photos
Seen by visitors.
About these numbers
| Names, area, population | Wikidata (Q42533627) · CC0 |
|---|---|
| Outline | Natural Earth · public domain |
| Sea temperature | NOAA OISST v2.1 · 1991–2020 |
| Climate | NASA POWER · 1991–2020 |
| Relief, 3D model | Copernicus DEM GLO-30 · © DLR e.V., © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, Copernicus/ESA |
| Beaches, ports, lighthouses, trails | © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL |
| Towns | GeoNames · CC BY 4.0 |
| Images | EOX Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 · CC BY 4.0; Wikimedia Commons |
Every figure is an average, an estimate or a count from a public dataset. Licences and methods: data sources.
The family
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