Ballycastle climate — normals and trends
Ballycastle (United Kingdom) has a temperate oceanic climate (Cfb) under the Köppen-Geiger classification. Its mean annual temperature is 9.5 °C and it receives 1,243 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 August (13.6 °C on average) and the coldest is February (6.0 °C). Rainfall peaks in November.
Ballycastle averages 0 frost days, 0 hot days (≥ 30 °C) and 201 rainy days per year.
Ballycastle has warmed by +0.8 °C between 1940 and 2025, or +0.09 °C per decade. This trend is statistically significant.
The hottest day of the period reached 19.0 °C (on 16 August 1955) and the coldest -2.3 °C (on 12 January 1987).
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
BallycastleNorthern Ireland
- coords
- 55.20°, -6.24°
- period
- 1940–2025 · 86 yrs
Mean daily temperature
9.5°C
Average daily high
10.5°C
Average daily low
8.6°C
Annual rainfall
1,243mm
Sunshine / day
7.8h
Mean relative humidity
82%
Average peak wind
35.8km/h
Seasonal range
7.6°C
Frost days (< 0 °C)
0 d/yr
Hot days (≥ 30 °C)
0 d/yr
Rainy days (≥ 1 mm)
201 d/yr
Annual snowfall
13.1 cm
Average feels-like high
6.7 °C
Average feels-like low
3.2 °C
Average peak gust
48.8 km/h
Tropical nights (≥ 20 °C)
0 d/yr
Solar radiation
10.0 MJ/m²
Has the climate changed?
One stripe per year, 1940 to 2025
+0.8 °C
since 1940
+0.1 °C per decade · r² = 0.23 · 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
19.0 °C
16 August 1955
Coldest day
-2.3 °C
12 January 1987
Wettest day
47 mm
30 March 2010
Windiest day
95.1 km/h
26 December 1998
Strongest gust
163.8 km/h
26 December 1998
Hottest feels-like
19.3 °C
14 August 1983
Coldest feels-like
-13.1 °C
14 January 1984
Snowiest day
14.4 cm
22 March 2013
Sunniest day
17.0 h
19 June 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 | 7.8 °C | +0.3 °C | 89 mm | -39 mm |
| Feb | 8.0 °C | +0.9 °C | 66 mm | -29 mm |
| Mar | 9.0 °C | +1.4 °C | 38 mm | -49 mm |
| Apr | 10.2 °C | +1.7 °C | 76 mm | +5 mm |
| May | 11.8 °C | +1.6 °C | 58 mm | -5 mm |
| Jun | 13.9 °C | +1.6 °C | 125 mm | +54 mm |
| Jul | 15.0 °C | +1.3 °C | 85 mm | 0 mm |
| Aug | 16.3 °C | +1.8 °C | 77 mm | -17 mm |
| Sep | 14.7 °C | +0.7 °C | 129 mm | +19 mm |
| Oct | 12.9 °C | +0.5 °C | 185 mm | +46 mm |
| Nov | 10.8 °C | +0.8 °C | 180 mm | +31 mm |
| Dec | 9.5 °C | +0.9 °C | 112 mm | -38 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 Ballycastle?
Ballycastle has a temperate oceanic climate (Köppen Cfb). Over 1940-2025, the average annual temperature is 9.5 °C and it receives 1,243 mm of precipitation per year.
What is the hottest day ever recorded in Ballycastle?
The hottest day measured in Ballycastle between 1940 and 2025 was 16 August 1955, reaching 19.0 °C.
What is the coldest day in Ballycastle?
The coldest day measured in Ballycastle between 1940 and 2025 was 12 January 1987, at -2.3 °C.
Does it snow in Ballycastle?
Yes. Ballycastle gets on average 13.1 cm of snow per year and has around 0 frost days.
Has the climate of Ballycastle warmed?
Yes: Ballycastle warmed by +0.8 °C between 1940 and 2025, a statistically significant trend.
What is the wettest day in Ballycastle?
The wettest day measured in Ballycastle between 1940 and 2025 was 30 March 2010, with 47 mm of rain in 24 hours.
What was the windiest day in Ballycastle?
The windiest day measured in Ballycastle between 1940 and 2025 was 26 December 1998, with winds reaching 95.1 km/h.
What is the warmest month in Ballycastle?
The warmest month in Ballycastle is August (13.6 °C on average); the coldest is February (6.0 °C).
How much does it rain in Ballycastle?
Ballycastle receives on average 1,243 mm of precipitation per year, spread over about 201 rainy days.
Is it sunny in Ballycastle?
Ballycastle gets on average 7.8 hours of sunshine per day, roughly 2,847 hours per year over 1940-2025.
What is the biggest single-day snowfall in Ballycastle?
The heaviest 24-hour snowfall measured in Ballycastle between 1940 and 2025 was 22 March 2013, with 14.4 cm.
Are there tropical nights in Ballycastle?
Almost never: tropical nights (temperature staying above 20 °C) are virtually non-existent in Ballycastle.
What was the most extreme apparent temperature in Ballycastle?
In Ballycastle, between 1940 and 2025, the highest apparent temperature reached 19.3 °C on 14 August 1983, and the lowest was -13.1 °C on 14 January 1984.
Compare Ballycastle with another city
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Nearby cities
The climate around Ballycastle