Budapest weather in mid-late June?

I suggest looking at day-by-day actual weather data for June 2018, June 2017, etc., on timeanddate.com. Look at the last five years or so to get an idea of the range of what you might reasonably expect. I've linked to the stats for June 2018.

You can also take a look at monthly averages on the Wikipedia page for Budapest, but the period averaged probably cuts off at 2010, and as we all know, weather has gotten wackier since then.

I had much warmer than expected weather in Budapest during the first half of May last year (four consecutive days in the 80s at the beginning of the month), but this year could be totally different. I take waterproof shoes only when I expect to encounter weather that is quite chilly as well as wet. I didn't consider that likely on last year's trip, and I never wished for something waterproof, though I did get hailed on in the midst of two heavy downpours. Other folks might be more bothered by wet feet than I am; it's cold I hate.

Anything a traveler will tell you will be anecdotal at best. I've gone a few times a year for nearly 17 years and the best I can offer is anecdotal. Check the published averages at a place like this: https://www.holiday-weather.com/budapest/averages/ Like the stock brokers say, these are historical averages and are no guarantee of future returns.

I used to live in Budapest.

"I'm coming across differing information about Budapest's weather. One book, I think it was Lonely Planet, said June can still be quite rainy and cool, but elsewhere I'm seeing sunny and max. 7 days of rain."

Both can be right, although it would be very unusual to get really cool in June.

Our elders used to say: If it rains on the day of St. Medard(8th June) it's going to rain for the next 40 days. The truth in this was probably that in certain years June can be wetter than avarage, however this is less and less likely due to the climate change the climate of Hungary is getting warmer and drier.

"Also, is the rain likely to be of the ongoing drizzle or the short-term drenching kind?"

It could be both kinds.

But, in general terms, I only cringe when I have to be there in July or August.

This just isnt a place with a monsoon season. Every month, at least in the tourist season is pretty much the same when it comes to rain. Some a day more, others a day or two less. The volume doesn't vary dramatically either. The things that will have a greater impact on enjoyment are the number of tourists and the temperature. July and August is the high season for tourism and can be very hot, brutally so since Europeans haven't mastered air conditioning to American standards .... when it exists at all. My favorite time is mid September to mid October. Just seems more pleasant then.

Yes, July and August tend to be very hot and humid.

Actually, it looks like the St. Medard thing must be a Europe wide phenomenon:

"As a child, St Medardus was said to have once been sheltered from rain by an eagle which hovered over him. This is how he was most commonly depicted, and is why he is associated with weather, good or bad, and why he is held to protect those who work in the open air.[3][9] The weather legend concerning St Medardus is similar to Saint Swithun in England. The French rhyme is: Quand il pleut à la Saint-Médard, il pleut quarante jours plus tard (If it rains on St Medardus' Day, it rains for forty days more).[10] "

Thanks everybody!

I'll check out those links, but it sounds like the consensus is, "it's variable." I'll probably stick with my usual approach (layers, Marmot rain jacket, umbrella, shoes with rubber soles) and hope for the best. I was in the Baltics last July during the heatwave. I'll happily take cold and some rain over that!

Caroline

It's variable, but with climate change hitting us hard it'll be more likely very hot.

I dont think you will need too many layers in June. Maybe you will get luck and there will be a repeat of 2017, a very mild summer. We all need to get our trips in over the next 12 years. Time is running short!