Rolleston climate — normals and trends
Rolleston (New Zealand) has a temperate oceanic climate (Cfb) under the Köppen-Geiger classification. Its mean annual temperature is 11.4 °C and it receives 623 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 (16.8 °C on average) and the coldest is July (5.5 °C). Rainfall peaks in October.
Rolleston averages 34 frost days, 1 hot days (≥ 30 °C) and 108 rainy days per year.
Rolleston has warmed by +1.9 °C between 1940 and 2025, or +0.23 °C per decade. This trend is statistically significant.
The number of frost days there went from about 56 to 12 per year over the period.
The hottest day of the period reached 35.9 °C (on 7 February 1973) and the coldest -8.2 °C (on 6 July 2003).
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
RollestonCanterbury
- coords
- -43.58°, 172.38°
- period
- 1940–2025 · 86 yrs
Mean daily temperature
11.4°C
Average daily high
16.3°C
Average daily low
6.8°C
Annual rainfall
623mm
Sunshine / day
9.5h
Mean relative humidity
75%
Average peak wind
19.4km/h
Seasonal range
11.3°C
Frost days (< 0 °C)
34 d/yr
Hot days (≥ 30 °C)
1 d/yr
Rainy days (≥ 1 mm)
108 d/yr
Annual snowfall
2.5 cm
Average feels-like high
14.6 °C
Average feels-like low
4.2 °C
Average peak gust
37.4 km/h
Tropical nights (≥ 20 °C)
0 d/yr
Solar radiation
15.1 MJ/m²
Has the climate changed?
One stripe per year, 1940 to 2025
+1.9 °C
since 1940
+0.2 °C per decade · r² = 0.55 · 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
35.9 °C
7 February 1973
Coldest day
-8.2 °C
6 July 2003
Wettest day
58 mm
11 April 1968
Windiest day
62.5 km/h
28 January 1955
Strongest gust
114.5 km/h
11 April 1968
Hottest feels-like
36.7 °C
7 February 1973
Coldest feels-like
-12.3 °C
6 July 2003
Snowiest day
17.1 cm
12 June 2006
Sunniest day
15.0 h
3 January 1940
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 | 19.6 °C | -2.3 °C | 56 mm | +7 mm |
| Feb | 22.0 °C | +0.3 °C | 31 mm | -14 mm |
| Mar | 20.5 °C | +0.5 °C | 68 mm | +22 mm |
| Apr | 17.6 °C | +0.6 °C | 123 mm | +76 mm |
| May | 15.6 °C | +1.9 °C | 85 mm | +33 mm |
| Jun | 11.4 °C | +0.7 °C | 91 mm | +40 mm |
| Jul | 11.8 °C | +1.5 °C | 53 mm | -4 mm |
| Aug | 12.3 °C | +0.6 °C | 35 mm | -18 mm |
| Sep | 16.2 °C | +2.1 °C | 50 mm | +5 mm |
| Oct | 17.6 °C | +1.3 °C | 95 mm | +35 mm |
| Nov | 21.3 °C | +3.0 °C | 39 mm | -19 mm |
| Dec | 21.3 °C | +1.0 °C | 59 mm | -1 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 Rolleston?
Rolleston has a temperate oceanic climate (Köppen Cfb). Over 1940-2025, the average annual temperature is 11.4 °C and it receives 623 mm of precipitation per year.
What is the hottest day ever recorded in Rolleston?
The hottest day measured in Rolleston between 1940 and 2025 was 7 February 1973, reaching 35.9 °C.
What is the coldest day in Rolleston?
The coldest day measured in Rolleston between 1940 and 2025 was 6 July 2003, at -8.2 °C.
Does it snow in Rolleston?
Yes. Rolleston gets on average 2.5 cm of snow per year and has around 34 frost days.
Has the climate of Rolleston warmed?
Yes: Rolleston warmed by +1.9 °C between 1940 and 2025, a statistically significant trend.
What is the wettest day in Rolleston?
The wettest day measured in Rolleston between 1940 and 2025 was 11 April 1968, with 58 mm of rain in 24 hours.
What was the windiest day in Rolleston?
The windiest day measured in Rolleston between 1940 and 2025 was 28 January 1955, with winds reaching 62.5 km/h.
What is the warmest month in Rolleston?
The warmest month in Rolleston is January (16.8 °C on average); the coldest is July (5.5 °C).
How much does it rain in Rolleston?
Rolleston receives on average 623 mm of precipitation per year, spread over about 108 rainy days.
Is it sunny in Rolleston?
Rolleston 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 Rolleston?
The heaviest 24-hour snowfall measured in Rolleston between 1940 and 2025 was 12 June 2006, with 17.1 cm.
Are there tropical nights in Rolleston?
Almost never: tropical nights (temperature staying above 20 °C) are virtually non-existent in Rolleston.
What was the most extreme apparent temperature in Rolleston?
In Rolleston, between 1940 and 2025, the highest apparent temperature reached 36.7 °C on 7 February 1973, and the lowest was -12.3 °C on 6 July 2003.
Compare Rolleston with another city
Pick a second city: its normals will be set against these, indicator by indicator.
Nearby cities
The climate around Rolleston