Pool season · Texas
McKinney Pool Season: the Year on One Bar
Last updated: July 25, 2026 · dates · water temp
This is the one-page view of McKinney's pool year: both model windows, the estimated water-temperature curve, and today's live position on the season bar. The detailed checklists live on the opening and closing guides; this page is the calendar you check between them.
McKinney, TX — 161 swim days a yearReading it takes ten seconds: 52 dots, one per week. Solid teal is McKinney's swim season; the hollow teal run before it (March 10 to March 31) is when to open; the hollow amber run after is when to close, with November 8 as the deadline; gray is the covered season. Today's marker shows where you stand in that cycle right now.
The McKinney pool calendar
Opening — target March 17
Target March 17; the practical window runs March 10–March 31, and the 7-day mean crosses the 61°F threshold around March 31. Cold-water starts are the cheap ones.
Closing — deadline November 8
Hold the cover until October 30, then winterize by November 8, a week ahead of the November 15 freeze normal. Late and cold beats early and warm.
Estimated water temperature by month
Monthly averages of the site's water model run on McKinney's own normals — the shape of a typical year, not a forecast. The widget above shows where the current year actually sits.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 46° | 46° | 53° | 61° | 68° | 77° | 82° | 84° | 80° | 71° | 60° | 51° |
Warmest water typically July–September (peaking near 84°F); heaters and covers shift any month up.
Every station tells its own story: compare this curve with McAllen's pool season and Mesquite's — neighboring normals stations can shift the windows by a week or more. The full ranking lives on the Texas season index.
McKinney pool season FAQ
When should I open my pool in McKinney, TX?
Target March 17. That date backs off two weeks from the day McKinney's 7-day mean temperature reaches 61°F, so you start up in cold, algae-resistant water. Work the full checklist in the McKinney opening guide.
When should I close my pool in McKinney?
The closing deadline is November 8 — late enough that the water has cooled out of the algae zone, early enough to beat McKinney's first-freeze normal by about a week. See the McKinney closing guide for the winterizing steps.
How long is the swim season in McKinney?
McKinney averages 161 days a year with normal highs of 80°F or better — about 9 days later than the Texas median. The Texas season index ranks all 68 covered cities by the same metric.
How warm does pool water get in McKinney?
An unheated pool near McKinney typically peaks around 84°F in high summer and bottoms out near 45°F in winter, spending roughly 3 months at or above the 78°F comfort line most swimmers prefer. The month-by-month curve above shows the whole cycle; the methodology page explains the ±5°F error bars.
Email me when McKinney hits the closing window
Data: NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals via Mckinney Municipal Airport (4.4 mi); live outlook by Open-Meteo. Attribution: sources · assumptions: methodology.