Copiapó climate — normals and trends
Copiapó (Chile) has a cold desert climate (BWk) under the Köppen-Geiger classification. Its mean annual temperature is 17.0 °C and it receives 32 mm of precipitation per year.
These figures are normals computed over 86 complete calendar years, from 1940 to 2025, using ERA5 reanalysis data from the Copernicus programme.
The warmest month is January (20.2 °C on average) and the coldest is July (12.8 °C). Rainfall peaks in June.
Copiapó averages 1 frost days, 0 hot days (≥ 30 °C) and 5 rainy days per year.
No statistically significant temperature trend emerges for Copiapó between 1940 and 2025: over this span, year-to-year swings outweigh the climate signal.
The hottest day of the period reached 32.0 °C (on 25 August 1987) and the coldest -4.2 °C (on 17 July 2005).
Data from ERA5 reanalysis (Copernicus Climate Change Service), redistributed under a CC-BY 4.0 licence. Normals are recomputed whenever the archive is updated.
Climate normals · ERA5
CopiapóAtacama
- coords
- -27.37°, -70.33°
- period
- 1940–2025 · 86 yrs
Mean daily temperature
17.0°C
Average daily high
23.1°C
Average daily low
11.3°C
Annual rainfall
32mm
Sunshine / day
11.7h
Mean relative humidity
45%
Average peak wind
13.9km/h
Seasonal range
7.4°C
Frost days (< 0 °C)
1 d/yr
Hot days (≥ 30 °C)
0 d/yr
Rainy days (≥ 1 mm)
5 d/yr
Annual snowfall
0.1 cm
Average feels-like high
21.8 °C
Average feels-like low
8.9 °C
Average peak gust
33.3 km/h
Tropical nights (≥ 20 °C)
0 d/yr
Solar radiation
24.7 MJ/m²
Has the climate changed?
One stripe per year, 1940 to 2025
No clear trend over this period
Over a short window, year-to-year swings outweigh the climate signal. Try 86 years.
Trend fitted by linear regression (ordinary least squares) on annual means. A trend is shown only when it is statistically significant (p < 0.05).
A climograph overlays rainfall (bars) and temperature (line): the standard reading in climatology, where you can see at a glance whether the warm season is also the dry one.
Records for the period
Hottest day
32.0 °C
25 August 1987
Coldest day
-4.2 °C
17 July 2005
Wettest day
56 mm
25 March 2015
Windiest day
24.0 km/h
17 October 1941
Strongest gust
91.1 km/h
14 June 1942
Hottest feels-like
31.8 °C
18 January 1998
Coldest feels-like
-9.8 °C
17 July 2005
Snowiest day
2.7 cm
15 June 1940
Sunniest day
13.6 h
10 January 2025
Normals computed over complete calendar years 1940–2025.
A specific year
Pick a year and see how it compares to normal — warmer, drier or more extreme than usual?
Across the whole year
Month by month
| High | vs. normal | Precipitation | vs. normal | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 26.2 °C | +0.3 °C | 0 mm | -0 mm |
| Feb | 26.8 °C | +0.9 °C | 0 mm | -1 mm |
| Mar | 26.0 °C | +0.9 °C | 0 mm | -2 mm |
| Apr | 23.8 °C | +0.4 °C | 0 mm | -2 mm |
| May | 22.2 °C | +0.6 °C | 0 mm | -6 mm |
| Jun | 19.4 °C | -0.5 °C | 3 mm | -5 mm |
| Jul | 21.1 °C | +1.3 °C | 0 mm | -6 mm |
| Aug | 20.3 °C | -0.7 °C | 7 mm | +2 mm |
| Sep | 23.2 °C | +1.2 °C | 0 mm | -2 mm |
| Oct | 23.9 °C | +0.5 °C | 0 mm | -0 mm |
| Nov | 24.8 °C | +0.4 °C | 0 mm | -0 mm |
| Dec | 25.5 °C | +0.2 °C | 0 mm | -0 mm |
The year's extremes
What was the weather like that day?
Your birthday, a wedding, a memorable trip: discover the actual weather for any date since 1940.
Frequently asked questions
What is the climate of Copiapó?
Copiapó has a cold desert climate (Köppen BWk). Over 1940-2025, the average annual temperature is 17.0 °C and it receives 32 mm of precipitation per year.
What is the hottest day ever recorded in Copiapó?
The hottest day measured in Copiapó between 1940 and 2025 was 25 August 1987, reaching 32.0 °C.
What is the coldest day in Copiapó?
The coldest day measured in Copiapó between 1940 and 2025 was 17 July 2005, at -4.2 °C.
Does it snow in Copiapó?
Almost never: Copiapó sees virtually no snow, with about 1 frost days per year.
Has the climate of Copiapó warmed?
Between 1940 and 2025, no statistically significant temperature trend emerges in Copiapó.
What is the wettest day in Copiapó?
The wettest day measured in Copiapó between 1940 and 2025 was 25 March 2015, with 56 mm of rain in 24 hours.
What was the windiest day in Copiapó?
The windiest day measured in Copiapó between 1940 and 2025 was 17 October 1941, with winds reaching 24.0 km/h.
What is the warmest month in Copiapó?
The warmest month in Copiapó is January (20.2 °C on average); the coldest is July (12.8 °C).
How much does it rain in Copiapó?
Copiapó receives on average 32 mm of precipitation per year, spread over about 5 rainy days.
Is it sunny in Copiapó?
Copiapó gets on average 11.7 hours of sunshine per day, roughly 4,271 hours per year over 1940-2025.
What is the biggest single-day snowfall in Copiapó?
The heaviest 24-hour snowfall measured in Copiapó between 1940 and 2025 was 15 June 1940, with 2.7 cm.
Are there tropical nights in Copiapó?
Almost never: tropical nights (temperature staying above 20 °C) are virtually non-existent in Copiapó.
What was the most extreme apparent temperature in Copiapó?
In Copiapó, between 1940 and 2025, the highest apparent temperature reached 31.8 °C on 18 January 1998, and the lowest was -9.8 °C on 17 July 2005.
Compare Copiapó with another city
Pick a second city: its normals will be set against these, indicator by indicator.
Nearby cities
The climate around Copiapó