Data is programmed into and read from a set of target memory cells. When reading the data, temperature compensation is provided. The temperature compensation is based on temperature information and the state of one or more neighbor memory cells. In one embodiment, when data is read from set of target memory cells, the system senses the current temperature and determines the differences in temperature between the current temperature and the temperature at the time the data was programmed. If the difference in temperature is greater than a threshold, then the process of reading the data includes providing temperature compensation based on temperature information and neighbor state information. In one alternative, the decision to provide the temperature compensation can be triggered by conditions other than a temperature differential.