Kandy climate — normals and trends
Kandy (Sri Lanka) has a tropical rainforest climate (Af) under the Köppen-Geiger classification. Its mean annual temperature is 22.3 °C and it receives 1,622 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 (23.8 °C on average) and the coldest is January (20.4 °C). Rainfall peaks in November.
Kandy averages 0 frost days, 16 hot days (≥ 30 °C) and 224 rainy days per year.
Kandy has warmed by +1.3 °C between 1940 and 2025, or +0.16 °C per decade. This trend is statistically significant.
The hottest day of the period reached 35.2 °C (on 29 March 1953) and the coldest 11.4 °C (on 10 February 1967).
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
KandyCentral Province
- coords
- 7.29°, 80.63°
- period
- 1940–2025 · 86 yrs
Mean daily temperature
22.3°C
Average daily high
26.3°C
Average daily low
19.3°C
Annual rainfall
1,622mm
Sunshine / day
10.1h
Mean relative humidity
82%
Average peak wind
12.2km/h
Seasonal range
3.4°C
Frost days (< 0 °C)
0 d/yr
Hot days (≥ 30 °C)
16 d/yr
Rainy days (≥ 1 mm)
224 d/yr
Annual snowfall
0.0 cm
Average feels-like high
29.2 °C
Average feels-like low
21.5 °C
Average peak gust
39.5 km/h
Tropical nights (≥ 20 °C)
136 d/yr
Solar radiation
19.0 MJ/m²
Has the climate changed?
One stripe per year, 1940 to 2025
+1.3 °C
since 1940
+0.2 °C per decade · r² = 0.52 · 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
35.2 °C
29 March 1953
Coldest day
11.4 °C
10 February 1967
Wettest day
237 mm
20 December 2014
Windiest day
30.3 km/h
3 November 1978
Strongest gust
102.2 km/h
24 November 1978
Hottest feels-like
38.3 °C
3 May 2024
Coldest feels-like
10.1 °C
29 January 1941
Sunniest day
12.4 h
7 June 1948
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 | 23.9 °C | 0.0 °C | 343 mm | +235 mm |
| Feb | 26.7 °C | +1.3 °C | 40 mm | -35 mm |
| Mar | 27.5 °C | -0.1 °C | 99 mm | +3 mm |
| Apr | 28.2 °C | -0.1 °C | 239 mm | +80 mm |
| May | 27.8 °C | 0.0 °C | 104 mm | -18 mm |
| Jun | 27.5 °C | +0.7 °C | 68 mm | -10 mm |
| Jul | 27.3 °C | +0.8 °C | 103 mm | +13 mm |
| Aug | 27.7 °C | +1.1 °C | 44 mm | -47 mm |
| Sep | 28.2 °C | +1.2 °C | 82 mm | -28 mm |
| Oct | 27.6 °C | +1.3 °C | 273 mm | +36 mm |
| Nov | 25.3 °C | +0.2 °C | 673 mm | +409 mm |
| Dec | 24.9 °C | +0.9 °C | 109 mm | -84 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 Kandy?
Kandy has a tropical rainforest climate (Köppen Af). Over 1940-2025, the average annual temperature is 22.3 °C and it receives 1,622 mm of precipitation per year.
What is the hottest day ever recorded in Kandy?
The hottest day measured in Kandy between 1940 and 2025 was 29 March 1953, reaching 35.2 °C.
What is the coldest day in Kandy?
The coldest day measured in Kandy between 1940 and 2025 was 10 February 1967, at 11.4 °C.
Does it snow in Kandy?
Almost never: Kandy sees virtually no snow, with about 0 frost days per year.
Has the climate of Kandy warmed?
Yes: Kandy warmed by +1.3 °C between 1940 and 2025, a statistically significant trend.
What is the wettest day in Kandy?
The wettest day measured in Kandy between 1940 and 2025 was 20 December 2014, with 237 mm of rain in 24 hours.
What was the windiest day in Kandy?
The windiest day measured in Kandy between 1940 and 2025 was 3 November 1978, with winds reaching 30.3 km/h.
What is the warmest month in Kandy?
The warmest month in Kandy is May (23.8 °C on average); the coldest is January (20.4 °C).
How much does it rain in Kandy?
Kandy receives on average 1,622 mm of precipitation per year, spread over about 224 rainy days.
Is it sunny in Kandy?
Kandy gets on average 10.1 hours of sunshine per day, roughly 3,687 hours per year over 1940-2025.
Are there tropical nights in Kandy?
Yes: Kandy has on average 136 tropical nights per year (temperature staying above 20 °C), over 1940-2025.
What was the most extreme apparent temperature in Kandy?
In Kandy, between 1940 and 2025, the highest apparent temperature reached 38.3 °C on 3 May 2024, and the lowest was 10.1 °C on 29 January 1941.
Compare Kandy with another city
Pick a second city: its normals will be set against these, indicator by indicator.
Nearby cities
The climate around Kandy