Portland's weather belies the stereotype of the rainy Pacific Northwest. Do you think Portland or Seattle are the rainiest cities in the United States? Well, think again.
Mobile, Alabama, actually topped a new list of soggiest cities, with more than 5 feet of rainfall annually, according to a study conducted by San Francisco-based WeatherBill, Inc.
The Southeast dominated the most rainy list, while the Pacific Northwest never enters the list until Olympia, Washington pops up at number 24.
The 10 rainiest cities in the U.S. by amount of annual rainfall include:
Mobile, Alabama--67 inches average annual rainfall; 59 average annual rainy days Pensacola, Florida--65 inches average annual rainfall; 56 average annual rainy days New Orleans, Louisiana--64 inches average annual rainfall; 59 average annual rainy days West Palm Beach, Florida--63 inches average annual rainfall; 58 average annual rainy days Lafayette, Louisiana--62 inches average annual rainfall; 55 average annual rainy days Baton Rouge, Louisiana--62 inches average annual rainfall; 56 average annual rainy days Miami, Florida--62 inches average annual rainfall; 57 average annual rainy days Port Arthur, Texas--61 inches average annual rainfall; 51 average annual rainy days Tallahassee, Florida--61 inches average annual rainfall; 56 average annual rainy days Lake Charles, Louisiana--58 inches average annual rainfall; 50 average annual rainy days
The study ranked 195 cities by the amount of rainfall they received annually over a 30-year period, although Olympia actually had the most rainy days on average across the three decades (63) of all the cities in the study. Mobile came in second on the latter scale, with 59 average annual rainy days.
Southeastern cities are so prevalent on the list because the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico fuel storms that frequently soak the region, particularly between June and November.
The study also found that in the past 30 years, the East and Southeast seemed to be getting wetter, while the West got drier. Florida, Louisiana and Alabama were the wettest states, while California, Montana, Nevada and Arizona were the driest (Las Vegas took the top spot for driest city).
Average rainfall was highest in the United States between July and September and lowest between January and March.
Which is not to say that it doesn't rain in Portland. It does, on average, 36.3" per year. But the precipitation keeps Portland impossibly green - and helps enforce a casual, comfortable dress code.
Winter low temperatures hover around 35° F (2°C), and summer highs rarely surpass 85° F (29°C). The lowest temperature ever recorded in Portland was -3°F (-19° C), set on February 2, 1950.
- NUMBER1EXPERTS™ 
