Feels Like Temperature Calculator

Calculate the 'feels like' temperature considering wind chill and heat index. Understand perceived temperature.

The air temperature a thermometer reads and the temperature a person actually perceives can diverge sharply, and this calculator estimates that perceived, "feels like" value by choosing between two different physiological models depending on conditions. In cold, windy weather (below 10°C with wind speed above roughly 4.8 km/h) it applies a metric wind chill formula: moving air strips heat away from exposed skin faster than still air at the same temperature, so stronger wind pushes the felt temperature down even though the thermometer reading hasn't changed. In hot, humid weather (above 27°C) it switches to a heat index formula instead: high humidity slows the evaporation of sweat, which is the body's main cooling mechanism, so the same air temperature feels hotter as humidity rises because the body can't shed heat as effectively. In the middle range -- neither cold-and-windy nor hot-and-humid -- neither adjustment applies and the feels-like value simply matches the actual air temperature, since wind and humidity have little perceptible effect on comfort in mild, moderate conditions. Because the two formulas only activate in their respective extremes, wind speed only moves the result when it's already cold, and humidity only moves the result when it's already hot -- both are conditional effects, not effects that show up at every temperature. These formulas are standard meteorological approximations used by weather services; actual perceived temperature also depends on factors like clothing, sun exposure, and individual physiology that no formula captures.