Sandakan climate — normals and trends

Q: What is the climate of Sandakan?

Sandakan has a tropical rainforest climate (Köppen Af). Over 1940-2025, the average annual temperature is 26.4 °C and it receives 2,992 mm of precipitation per year.

Q: What is the hottest day ever recorded in Sandakan?

The hottest day measured in Sandakan between 1940 and 2025 was 27 April 1998, reaching 38.6 °C.

Q: What is the coldest day in Sandakan?

The coldest day measured in Sandakan between 1940 and 2025 was 18 March 1943, at 19.9 °C.

Q: Does it snow in Sandakan?

Almost never: Sandakan sees virtually no snow, with about 0 frost days per year.

Q: Has the climate of Sandakan warmed?

Yes: Sandakan warmed by +2.1 °C between 1940 and 2025, a statistically significant trend.

Q: What is the wettest day in Sandakan?

The wettest day measured in Sandakan between 1940 and 2025 was 11 December 2021, with 216 mm of rain in 24 hours.

Q: What was the windiest day in Sandakan?

The windiest day measured in Sandakan between 1940 and 2025 was 26 December 1996, with winds reaching 25.5 km/h.

Q: What is the warmest month in Sandakan?

The warmest month in Sandakan is April (27.1 °C on average); the coldest is January (25.5 °C).

Q: How much does it rain in Sandakan?

Sandakan receives on average 2,992 mm of precipitation per year, spread over about 326 rainy days.

Q: Is it sunny in Sandakan?

Sandakan gets on average 10.2 hours of sunshine per day, roughly 3,723 hours per year over 1940-2025.

Sandakan (Malaysia) has a tropical rainforest climate (Af) under the Köppen-Geiger classification. Its mean annual temperature is 26.4 °C and it receives 2,992 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 April (27.1 °C on average) and the coldest is January (25.5 °C). Rainfall peaks in October.

Sandakan averages 0 frost days, 273 hot days (≥ 30 °C) and 326 rainy days per year.

Sandakan has warmed by +2.1 °C between 1940 and 2025, or +0.24 °C per decade. This trend is statistically significant.

The hottest day of the period reached 38.6 °C (on 27 April 1998) and the coldest 19.9 °C (on 18 March 1943).

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

SandakanSabah

coords: 5.84°, 118.12°
period: 1940–2025 · 86 yrs

AfTropical rainforestWarmest monthAprilColdest monthJanuaryWettest monthOctoberDriest monthApril

Mean daily temperature

26.4°C

Average daily high

31.1°C

Average daily low

23.3°C

Annual rainfall

2,992mm

Sunshine / day

10.2h

Mean relative humidity

87%

Average peak wind

10.3km/h

Seasonal range

1.6°C

Frost days (< 0 °C)

0 d/yr

Hot days (≥ 30 °C)

273 d/yr

Rainy days (≥ 1 mm)

326 d/yr

Annual snowfall

0.0 cm

Average feels-like high

38.1 °C

Average feels-like low

28.0 °C

Average peak gust

26.4 km/h

Tropical nights (≥ 20 °C)

365 d/yr

Solar radiation

18.8 MJ/m²

Has the climate changed?

One stripe per year, 1940 to 2025

+2.1 °C

since 1940

+0.2 °C per decade · r² = 0.86 · p = < 0.001

19402025

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

38.6 °C

27 April 1998

Coldest day

19.9 °C

18 March 1943

Wettest day

216 mm

11 December 2021

Windiest day

25.5 km/h

26 December 1996

Strongest gust

57.2 km/h

14 October 1970

Hottest feels-like

46.1 °C

17 May 2024

Coldest feels-like

22.4 °C

29 January 1993

Sunniest day

12.0 h

3 July 2007

Year	Hottest day	Coldest day	Annual mean	Rainfall	Hot days
2025	36.3 °C26 July 2025	22.4 °C7 October 2025	27.4 °C	4,025 mm	335
2024	38.6 °C22 April 2024	23.0 °C18 February 2024	28.1 °C	3,067 mm	346
2023	36.0 °C27 June 2023	22.3 °C4 January 2023	27.5 °C	3,504 mm	340
2022	35.1 °C29 August 2022	22.2 °C14 February 2022	27.0 °C	4,140 mm	329
2021	35.2 °C12 July 2021	21.6 °C18 January 2021	27.1 °C	3,949 mm	327
2020	37.2 °C15 April 2020	21.7 °C23 January 2020	27.5 °C	2,782 mm	353
2019	37.4 °C17 April 2019	20.8 °C28 February 2019	27.7 °C	2,345 mm	350
2018	35.3 °C15 May 2018	22.0 °C15 February 2018	27.3 °C	2,981 mm	351
2017	36.1 °C2 September 2017	22.5 °C21 June 2017	27.2 °C	3,753 mm	340
2016	36.8 °C11 April 2016	22.2 °C17 March 2016	27.6 °C	3,027 mm	352
2015	36.2 °C24 July 2015	21.9 °C18 March 2015	27.5 °C	2,125 mm	335
2014	35.5 °C5 May 2014	21.2 °C29 January 2014	27.0 °C	3,237 mm	327
2013	35.1 °C26 September 2013	22.4 °C16 January 2013	27.0 °C	3,178 mm	327
2012	34.5 °C13 November 2012	22.4 °C28 January 2012	26.9 °C	3,512 mm	339
2011	34.5 °C29 August 2011	22.4 °C23 July 2011	26.9 °C	3,882 mm	320
2010	35.1 °C4 March 2010	21.2 °C9 February 2010	27.2 °C	2,937 mm	343
2009	34.6 °C5 August 2009	22.1 °C5 February 2009	27.0 °C	3,219 mm	333
2008	34.5 °C20 October 2008	22.2 °C10 August 2008	26.7 °C	3,735 mm	324
2007	34.7 °C9 May 2007	22.1 °C5 March 2007	26.9 °C	3,129 mm	325
2006	33.9 °C8 June 2006	22.5 °C25 May 2006	26.9 °C	2,600 mm	331
2005	35.7 °C2 May 2005	21.1 °C17 January 2005	26.9 °C	2,216 mm	303
2004	35.4 °C5 September 2004	21.8 °C19 February 2004	26.9 °C	2,211 mm	314
2003	35.3 °C10 June 2003	21.8 °C26 February 2003	26.7 °C	2,537 mm	289
2002	36.1 °C19 August 2002	21.2 °C8 February 2002	26.9 °C	2,221 mm	314
2001	34.4 °C28 August 2001	21.9 °C30 December 2001	26.7 °C	2,977 mm	308
2000	34.6 °C10 May 2000	22.2 °C23 January 2000	26.7 °C	3,273 mm	319
1999	34.2 °C4 June 1999	22.3 °C22 June 1999	26.5 °C	3,475 mm	309
1998	38.6 °C27 April 1998	21.5 °C2 February 1998	27.6 °C	2,403 mm	332
1997	36.6 °C9 June 1997	20.6 °C2 January 1997	26.9 °C	2,316 mm	314
1996	35.1 °C1 August 1996	20.9 °C31 December 1996	26.6 °C	3,230 mm	284
1995	35.8 °C10 May 1995	21.9 °C14 January 1995	26.7 °C	3,035 mm	306
1994	34.4 °C30 April 1994	19.9 °C23 February 1994	26.6 °C	2,790 mm	312
1993	35.3 °C29 April 1993	20.0 °C30 January 1993	26.6 °C	2,539 mm	283
1992	37.3 °C19 April 1992	20.6 °C22 February 1992	26.7 °C	2,209 mm	298
1991	34.9 °C17 April 1991	21.2 °C5 January 1991	26.7 °C	2,541 mm	307
1990	35.1 °C26 August 1990	21.1 °C25 February 1990	26.8 °C	2,372 mm	306
1989	34.0 °C29 July 1989	21.3 °C12 December 1989	26.4 °C	2,965 mm	296
1988	35.0 °C26 April 1988	21.7 °C11 December 1988	26.7 °C	3,057 mm	311
1987	37.2 °C20 April 1987	20.9 °C2 January 1987	26.9 °C	2,454 mm	312
1986	33.8 °C7 May 1986	20.1 °C19 February 1986	26.4 °C	3,355 mm	271
1985	33.5 °C30 May 1985	20.0 °C12 January 1985	26.3 °C	3,033 mm	295
1984	33.6 °C25 June 1984	21.8 °C14 February 1984	26.1 °C	3,691 mm	250
1983	38.0 °C5 April 1983	21.2 °C15 February 1983	26.9 °C	2,618 mm	304
1982	33.4 °C2 July 1982	21.8 °C26 July 1982	26.4 °C	2,750 mm	292
1981	34.0 °C9 August 1981	21.7 °C6 March 1981	26.4 °C	2,999 mm	277
1980	33.8 °C25 May 1980	21.5 °C6 March 1980	26.4 °C	3,402 mm	298
1979	34.3 °C3 October 1979	21.3 °C11 January 1979	26.5 °C	2,952 mm	289
1978	33.6 °C10 October 1978	21.8 °C4 January 1978	26.4 °C	3,296 mm	287
1977	34.0 °C6 May 1977	21.2 °C20 December 1977	26.2 °C	3,574 mm	255
1976	33.7 °C11 September 1976	21.6 °C27 January 1976	26.1 °C	3,406 mm	262
1975	33.1 °C8 April 1975	21.6 °C24 January 1975	25.9 °C	3,356 mm	248
1974	33.5 °C31 May 1974	21.7 °C23 March 1974	25.9 °C	3,293 mm	240
1973	33.4 °C2 March 1973	20.1 °C2 February 1973	26.2 °C	3,195 mm	280
1972	33.0 °C19 May 1972	21.1 °C14 January 1972	26.1 °C	2,638 mm	257
1971	34.6 °C6 May 1971	20.1 °C17 January 1971	25.9 °C	3,284 mm	234
1970	34.4 °C19 March 1970	21.4 °C22 February 1970	26.0 °C	3,284 mm	258
1969	34.0 °C8 April 1969	20.2 °C4 March 1969	26.1 °C	2,813 mm	268
1968	33.4 °C27 September 1968	19.9 °C25 January 1968	25.8 °C	2,965 mm	234
1967	35.0 °C11 April 1967	20.3 °C24 March 1967	25.7 °C	2,835 mm	227
1966	32.5 °C12 April 1966	20.2 °C29 March 1966	25.6 °C	2,962 mm	183
1965	32.8 °C18 April 1965	20.1 °C19 February 1965	25.7 °C	2,516 mm	241
1964	33.2 °C29 April 1964	21.5 °C23 January 1964	25.9 °C	2,904 mm	226
1963	34.1 °C19 June 1963	20.6 °C9 April 1963	26.0 °C	3,241 mm	262
1962	33.7 °C30 July 1962	21.6 °C24 September 1962	25.8 °C	3,541 mm	250
1961	33.2 °C23 May 1961	21.0 °C22 January 1961	26.0 °C	2,836 mm	251
1960	33.3 °C22 August 1960	21.3 °C16 December 1960	26.1 °C	2,952 mm	259
1959	33.8 °C15 May 1959	21.4 °C19 January 1959	26.1 °C	2,613 mm	273
1958	35.2 °C16 April 1958	20.9 °C28 March 1958	26.3 °C	2,600 mm	249
1957	33.3 °C21 April 1957	20.8 °C2 January 1957	26.1 °C	2,641 mm	263
1956	33.1 °C18 November 1956	21.6 °C4 January 1956	25.6 °C	3,675 mm	229
1955	32.7 °C23 April 1955	21.4 °C7 March 1955	25.6 °C	3,549 mm	218
1954	32.5 °C2 May 1954	21.5 °C31 July 1954	25.6 °C	3,331 mm	192
1953	35.5 °C1 May 1953	21.3 °C26 January 1953	26.1 °C	2,428 mm	237
1952	33.0 °C14 May 1952	20.9 °C17 February 1952	26.0 °C	2,517 mm	234
1951	33.0 °C10 May 1951	20.0 °C19 March 1951	25.9 °C	2,541 mm	234
1950	32.7 °C16 May 1950	21.2 °C14 February 1950	25.6 °C	2,825 mm	200
1949	31.9 °C13 December 1949	20.4 °C1 July 1949	25.2 °C	4,016 mm	96
1948	31.8 °C9 June 1948	21.2 °C4 April 1948	25.3 °C	2,968 mm	142
1947	31.7 °C23 May 1947	20.9 °C9 March 1947	25.5 °C	3,005 mm	152
1946	31.9 °C13 May 1946	21.4 °C25 December 1946	25.5 °C	2,778 mm	166
1945	31.5 °C9 September 1945	21.6 °C2 March 1945	25.4 °C	3,331 mm	132
1944	35.6 °C12 May 1944	20.3 °C23 February 1944	25.8 °C	2,457 mm	204
1943	32.7 °C21 June 1943	19.9 °C18 March 1943	25.2 °C	2,676 mm	128
1942	33.3 °C25 April 1942	21.3 °C17 December 1942	25.5 °C	2,429 mm	190
1941	33.6 °C12 March 1941	20.3 °C9 February 1941	25.7 °C	2,720 mm	214
1940	32.3 °C8 July 1940	20.8 °C18 January 1940	25.6 °C	2,618 mm	182

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?

Year

Across the whole year

Average daily high

32.4 °C

+1.3 °C

Hot days (≥ 30 °C)

335 d/yr

+62

Frost days (< 0 °C)

0 d/yr

Annual rainfall

4025 mm

+1033 mm

Month by month

	High	vs. normal	Precipitation	vs. normal
Jan	31.4 °C	+2.1 °C	566 mm	+280 mm
Feb	31.4 °C	+1.7 °C	305 mm	+92 mm
Mar	31.7 °C	+0.9 °C	490 mm	+293 mm
Apr	32.5 °C	+0.5 °C	304 mm	+131 mm
May	33.2 °C	+1.0 °C	303 mm	+52 mm
Jun	32.8 °C	+1.1 °C	209 mm	-49 mm
Jul	33.7 °C	+2.2 °C	149 mm	-88 mm
Aug	32.7 °C	+0.9 °C	320 mm	+69 mm
Sep	32.6 °C	+0.9 °C	427 mm	+150 mm
Oct	32.2 °C	+0.8 °C	270 mm	-20 mm
Nov	32.5 °C	+1.7 °C	296 mm	+19 mm
Dec	31.9 °C	+1.9 °C	386 mm	+103 mm

The year's extremes

Hottest day

36.3 °C

26 Jul 2025

Coldest day

22.4 °C

7 Oct 2025

Wettest day

88.1 mm

22 Jan 2025

Windiest day

16.6 km/h

18 Nov 2025

Strongest gust

46.8 km/h

5 Nov 2025

Hottest feels-like

45.1 °C

29 Mar 2025

Coldest feels-like

26.4 °C

7 Oct 2025

Sunniest day

12.0 h

18 Apr 2025

What was the weather like that day?

Your birthday, a wedding, a memorable trip: discover the actual weather for any date since 1940.

Date

Frequently asked questions

What is the climate of Sandakan?

Sandakan has a tropical rainforest climate (Köppen Af). Over 1940-2025, the average annual temperature is 26.4 °C and it receives 2,992 mm of precipitation per year.

What is the hottest day ever recorded in Sandakan?

The hottest day measured in Sandakan between 1940 and 2025 was 27 April 1998, reaching 38.6 °C.

What is the coldest day in Sandakan?

The coldest day measured in Sandakan between 1940 and 2025 was 18 March 1943, at 19.9 °C.

Does it snow in Sandakan?

Almost never: Sandakan sees virtually no snow, with about 0 frost days per year.

Has the climate of Sandakan warmed?

Yes: Sandakan warmed by +2.1 °C between 1940 and 2025, a statistically significant trend.

What is the wettest day in Sandakan?

The wettest day measured in Sandakan between 1940 and 2025 was 11 December 2021, with 216 mm of rain in 24 hours.

What was the windiest day in Sandakan?

The windiest day measured in Sandakan between 1940 and 2025 was 26 December 1996, with winds reaching 25.5 km/h.

What is the warmest month in Sandakan?

The warmest month in Sandakan is April (27.1 °C on average); the coldest is January (25.5 °C).

How much does it rain in Sandakan?

Sandakan receives on average 2,992 mm of precipitation per year, spread over about 326 rainy days.

Is it sunny in Sandakan?

Sandakan gets on average 10.2 hours of sunshine per day, roughly 3,723 hours per year over 1940-2025.

Are there tropical nights in Sandakan?

Yes: Sandakan has on average 365 tropical nights per year (temperature staying above 20 °C), over 1940-2025.

What was the most extreme apparent temperature in Sandakan?

In Sandakan, between 1940 and 2025, the highest apparent temperature reached 46.1 °C on 17 May 2024, and the lowest was 22.4 °C on 29 January 1993.

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