Tulcán climate — normals and trends
Tulcán (Ecuador) has a subpolar oceanic climate (Cfc) under the Köppen-Geiger classification. Its mean annual temperature is 9.6 °C and it receives 2,481 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 March (10.0 °C on average) and the coldest is July (8.5 °C). Rainfall peaks in April.
Tulcán averages 0 frost days, 0 hot days (≥ 30 °C) and 326 rainy days per year.
Tulcán has warmed by +1.8 °C between 1940 and 2025, or +0.21 °C per decade. This trend is statistically significant.
The hottest day of the period reached 19.9 °C (on 12 April 2004) and the coldest 0.8 °C (on 17 August 1978).
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
TulcánCarchi
- coords
- 0.81°, -77.72°
- period
- 1940–2025 · 86 yrs
Mean daily temperature
9.6°C
Average daily high
14.1°C
Average daily low
6.4°C
Annual rainfall
2,481mm
Sunshine / day
9.5h
Mean relative humidity
86%
Average peak wind
8.9km/h
Seasonal range
1.5°C
Frost days (< 0 °C)
0 d/yr
Hot days (≥ 30 °C)
0 d/yr
Rainy days (≥ 1 mm)
326 d/yr
Annual snowfall
0.0 cm
Average feels-like high
13.5 °C
Average feels-like low
4.7 °C
Average peak gust
36.9 km/h
Tropical nights (≥ 20 °C)
0 d/yr
Solar radiation
16.2 MJ/m²
Has the climate changed?
One stripe per year, 1940 to 2025
+1.8 °C
since 1940
+0.2 °C per decade · r² = 0.70 · p = < 0.001
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
19.9 °C
12 April 2004
Coldest day
0.8 °C
17 August 1978
Wettest day
90 mm
21 December 1947
Windiest day
22.4 km/h
28 July 2013
Strongest gust
78.8 km/h
10 July 1994
Hottest feels-like
24.5 °C
12 April 2004
Coldest feels-like
-2.8 °C
17 August 1978
Snowiest day
0.6 cm
10 January 1942
Sunniest day
12.0 h
5 October 1941
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 | 15.1 °C | +0.7 °C | 270 mm | +46 mm |
| Feb | 14.5 °C | 0.0 °C | 410 mm | +182 mm |
| Mar | 14.8 °C | +0.3 °C | 413 mm | +140 mm |
| Apr | 14.9 °C | +0.5 °C | 332 mm | +51 mm |
| May | 14.2 °C | +0.1 °C | 261 mm | +41 mm |
| Jun | 13.5 °C | +0.3 °C | 207 mm | +50 mm |
| Jul | 12.9 °C | +0.1 °C | 275 mm | +140 mm |
| Aug | 13.1 °C | -0.2 °C | 161 mm | +73 mm |
| Sep | 13.5 °C | -0.7 °C | 129 mm | +22 mm |
| Oct | 13.7 °C | -1.0 °C | 277 mm | +35 mm |
| Nov | 13.9 °C | -0.9 °C | 353 mm | +82 mm |
| Dec | 14.6 °C | +0.1 °C | 99 mm | -157 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 Tulcán?
Tulcán has a subpolar oceanic climate (Köppen Cfc). Over 1940-2025, the average annual temperature is 9.6 °C and it receives 2,481 mm of precipitation per year.
What is the hottest day ever recorded in Tulcán?
The hottest day measured in Tulcán between 1940 and 2025 was 12 April 2004, reaching 19.9 °C.
What is the coldest day in Tulcán?
The coldest day measured in Tulcán between 1940 and 2025 was 17 August 1978, at 0.8 °C.
Does it snow in Tulcán?
Almost never: Tulcán sees virtually no snow, with about 0 frost days per year.
Has the climate of Tulcán warmed?
Yes: Tulcán warmed by +1.8 °C between 1940 and 2025, a statistically significant trend.
What is the wettest day in Tulcán?
The wettest day measured in Tulcán between 1940 and 2025 was 21 December 1947, with 90 mm of rain in 24 hours.
What was the windiest day in Tulcán?
The windiest day measured in Tulcán between 1940 and 2025 was 28 July 2013, with winds reaching 22.4 km/h.
What is the warmest month in Tulcán?
The warmest month in Tulcán is March (10.0 °C on average); the coldest is July (8.5 °C).
How much does it rain in Tulcán?
Tulcán receives on average 2,481 mm of precipitation per year, spread over about 326 rainy days.
Is it sunny in Tulcán?
Tulcán gets on average 9.5 hours of sunshine per day, roughly 3,468 hours per year over 1940-2025.
What is the biggest single-day snowfall in Tulcán?
The heaviest 24-hour snowfall measured in Tulcán between 1940 and 2025 was 10 January 1942, with 0.6 cm.
Are there tropical nights in Tulcán?
Almost never: tropical nights (temperature staying above 20 °C) are virtually non-existent in Tulcán.
What was the most extreme apparent temperature in Tulcán?
In Tulcán, between 1940 and 2025, the highest apparent temperature reached 24.5 °C on 12 April 2004, and the lowest was -2.8 °C on 17 August 1978.
Compare Tulcán with another city
Pick a second city: its normals will be set against these, indicator by indicator.
Nearby cities
The climate around Tulcán