Ashburton climate — normals and trends
Ashburton (New Zealand) has a temperate oceanic climate (Cfb) under the Köppen-Geiger classification. Its mean annual temperature is 11.2 °C and it receives 682 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 (16.2 °C on average) and the coldest is July (5.5 °C). Rainfall peaks in December.
Ashburton averages 18 frost days, 0 hot days (≥ 30 °C) and 113 rainy days per year.
Ashburton has warmed by +1.9 °C between 1940 and 2025, or +0.22 °C per decade. This trend is statistically significant.
The number of frost days there went from about 34 to 2 per year over the period.
The hottest day of the period reached 33.2 °C (on 15 February 1982) and the coldest -7.6 °C (on 17 July 1956).
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
AshburtonCanterbury
- coords
- -43.90°, 171.73°
- period
- 1940–2025 · 86 yrs
Mean daily temperature
11.2°C
Average daily high
15.3°C
Average daily low
7.5°C
Annual rainfall
682mm
Sunshine / day
9.3h
Mean relative humidity
77%
Average peak wind
20.6km/h
Seasonal range
10.7°C
Frost days (< 0 °C)
18 d/yr
Hot days (≥ 30 °C)
0 d/yr
Rainy days (≥ 1 mm)
113 d/yr
Annual snowfall
2.0 cm
Average feels-like high
13.7 °C
Average feels-like low
4.7 °C
Average peak gust
36.0 km/h
Tropical nights (≥ 20 °C)
0 d/yr
Solar radiation
14.5 MJ/m²
Has the climate changed?
One stripe per year, 1940 to 2025
+1.9 °C
since 1940
+0.2 °C per decade · r² = 0.58 · 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
33.2 °C
15 February 1982
Coldest day
-7.6 °C
17 July 1956
Wettest day
80 mm
17 May 1993
Windiest day
64.7 km/h
1 August 1975
Strongest gust
114.5 km/h
1 August 1975
Hottest feels-like
34.9 °C
7 February 1973
Coldest feels-like
-12.7 °C
17 July 1956
Snowiest day
24.6 cm
12 June 2006
Sunniest day
15.0 h
28 December 1973
Normals computed over complete calendar years 1940–2025.
A specific year
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Across the whole year
Month by month
| High | vs. normal | Precipitation | vs. normal | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 18.5 °C | -1.6 °C | 70 mm | +11 mm |
| Feb | 21.1 °C | +1.0 °C | 24 mm | -30 mm |
| Mar | 19.7 °C | +1.0 °C | 81 mm | +27 mm |
| Apr | 17.1 °C | +1.1 °C | 107 mm | +51 mm |
| May | 15.1 °C | +2.2 °C | 90 mm | +33 mm |
| Jun | 11.2 °C | +1.0 °C | 104 mm | +52 mm |
| Jul | 11.1 °C | +1.3 °C | 46 mm | -12 mm |
| Aug | 12.0 °C | +0.9 °C | 27 mm | -29 mm |
| Sep | 15.9 °C | +2.5 °C | 41 mm | -5 mm |
| Oct | 17.1 °C | +1.8 °C | 104 mm | +42 mm |
| Nov | 20.1 °C | +3.1 °C | 31 mm | -32 mm |
| Dec | 19.4 °C | +0.7 °C | 77 mm | +11 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 Ashburton?
Ashburton has a temperate oceanic climate (Köppen Cfb). Over 1940-2025, the average annual temperature is 11.2 °C and it receives 682 mm of precipitation per year.
What is the hottest day ever recorded in Ashburton?
The hottest day measured in Ashburton between 1940 and 2025 was 15 February 1982, reaching 33.2 °C.
What is the coldest day in Ashburton?
The coldest day measured in Ashburton between 1940 and 2025 was 17 July 1956, at -7.6 °C.
Does it snow in Ashburton?
Yes. Ashburton gets on average 2.0 cm of snow per year and has around 18 frost days.
Has the climate of Ashburton warmed?
Yes: Ashburton warmed by +1.9 °C between 1940 and 2025, a statistically significant trend.
What is the wettest day in Ashburton?
The wettest day measured in Ashburton between 1940 and 2025 was 17 May 1993, with 80 mm of rain in 24 hours.
What was the windiest day in Ashburton?
The windiest day measured in Ashburton between 1940 and 2025 was 1 August 1975, with winds reaching 64.7 km/h.
What is the warmest month in Ashburton?
The warmest month in Ashburton is January (16.2 °C on average); the coldest is July (5.5 °C).
How much does it rain in Ashburton?
Ashburton receives on average 682 mm of precipitation per year, spread over about 113 rainy days.
Is it sunny in Ashburton?
Ashburton gets on average 9.3 hours of sunshine per day, roughly 3,395 hours per year over 1940-2025.
What is the biggest single-day snowfall in Ashburton?
The heaviest 24-hour snowfall measured in Ashburton between 1940 and 2025 was 12 June 2006, with 24.6 cm.
Are there tropical nights in Ashburton?
Almost never: tropical nights (temperature staying above 20 °C) are virtually non-existent in Ashburton.
What was the most extreme apparent temperature in Ashburton?
In Ashburton, between 1940 and 2025, the highest apparent temperature reached 34.9 °C on 7 February 1973, and the lowest was -12.7 °C on 17 July 1956.
Compare Ashburton with another city
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Nearby cities
The climate around Ashburton