Lalibela climate — normals and trends
Lalibela (Ethiopia) has a subtropical highland, dry winter climate (Cwb) under the Köppen-Geiger classification. Its mean annual temperature is 16.1 °C and it receives 1,504 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 May (18.2 °C on average) and the coldest is August (14.3 °C). Rainfall peaks in August.
Lalibela averages 0 frost days, 0 hot days (≥ 30 °C) and 125 rainy days per year.
Lalibela has warmed by +2.2 °C between 1940 and 2025, or +0.26 °C per decade. This trend is statistically significant.
The hottest day of the period reached 30.8 °C (on 14 May 2002) and the coldest 2.5 °C (on 7 January 2017).
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
LalibelaAmhara
- coords
- 12.03°, 39.05°
- period
- 1940–2025 · 86 yrs
Mean daily temperature
16.1°C
Average daily high
22.5°C
Average daily low
10.4°C
Annual rainfall
1,504mm
Sunshine / day
10.8h
Mean relative humidity
58%
Average peak wind
9.2km/h
Seasonal range
3.9°C
Frost days (< 0 °C)
0 d/yr
Hot days (≥ 30 °C)
0 d/yr
Rainy days (≥ 1 mm)
125 d/yr
Annual snowfall
0.0 cm
Average feels-like high
22.2 °C
Average feels-like low
8.8 °C
Average peak gust
31.7 km/h
Tropical nights (≥ 20 °C)
0 d/yr
Solar radiation
21.4 MJ/m²
Has the climate changed?
One stripe per year, 1940 to 2025
+2.2 °C
since 1940
+0.3 °C per decade · r² = 0.72 · 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
30.8 °C
14 May 2002
Coldest day
2.5 °C
7 January 2017
Wettest day
131 mm
28 April 1969
Windiest day
19.8 km/h
2 April 1941
Strongest gust
78.1 km/h
31 August 2013
Hottest feels-like
31.1 °C
12 April 2024
Coldest feels-like
-1.7 °C
7 January 2017
Sunniest day
12.4 h
16 May 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 | 24.2 °C | +1.2 °C | 0 mm | -8 mm |
| Feb | 25.6 °C | +1.5 °C | 3 mm | -14 mm |
| Mar | 25.0 °C | +0.4 °C | 58 mm | +9 mm |
| Apr | 26.0 °C | +1.3 °C | 32 mm | -30 mm |
| May | 25.4 °C | +0.7 °C | 45 mm | -31 mm |
| Jun | 25.5 °C | +2.1 °C | 27 mm | -90 mm |
| Jul | 20.1 °C | +0.7 °C | 571 mm | +104 mm |
| Aug | 18.9 °C | -0.2 °C | 680 mm | +189 mm |
| Sep | 20.7 °C | +0.3 °C | 335 mm | +164 mm |
| Oct | 21.6 °C | -0.3 °C | 11 mm | -16 mm |
| Nov | 22.7 °C | +0.5 °C | 0 mm | -13 mm |
| Dec | 23.0 °C | +0.7 °C | 0 mm | -6 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 Lalibela?
Lalibela has a subtropical highland, dry winter climate (Köppen Cwb). Over 1940-2025, the average annual temperature is 16.1 °C and it receives 1,504 mm of precipitation per year.
What is the hottest day ever recorded in Lalibela?
The hottest day measured in Lalibela between 1940 and 2025 was 14 May 2002, reaching 30.8 °C.
What is the coldest day in Lalibela?
The coldest day measured in Lalibela between 1940 and 2025 was 7 January 2017, at 2.5 °C.
Does it snow in Lalibela?
Almost never: Lalibela sees virtually no snow, with about 0 frost days per year.
Has the climate of Lalibela warmed?
Yes: Lalibela warmed by +2.2 °C between 1940 and 2025, a statistically significant trend.
What is the wettest day in Lalibela?
The wettest day measured in Lalibela between 1940 and 2025 was 28 April 1969, with 131 mm of rain in 24 hours.
What was the windiest day in Lalibela?
The windiest day measured in Lalibela between 1940 and 2025 was 2 April 1941, with winds reaching 19.8 km/h.
What is the warmest month in Lalibela?
The warmest month in Lalibela is May (18.2 °C on average); the coldest is August (14.3 °C).
How much does it rain in Lalibela?
Lalibela receives on average 1,504 mm of precipitation per year, spread over about 125 rainy days.
Is it sunny in Lalibela?
Lalibela gets on average 10.8 hours of sunshine per day, roughly 3,942 hours per year over 1940-2025.
Are there tropical nights in Lalibela?
Almost never: tropical nights (temperature staying above 20 °C) are virtually non-existent in Lalibela.
What was the most extreme apparent temperature in Lalibela?
In Lalibela, between 1940 and 2025, the highest apparent temperature reached 31.1 °C on 12 April 2024, and the lowest was -1.7 °C on 7 January 2017.
Compare Lalibela with another city
Pick a second city: its normals will be set against these, indicator by indicator.
Nearby cities
The climate around Lalibela