Barnstaple climate — normals and trends
Barnstaple (United Kingdom) has a temperate oceanic climate (Cfb) under the Köppen-Geiger classification. Its mean annual temperature is 10.0 °C and it receives 831 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 July (15.5 °C on average) and the coldest is February (5.1 °C). Rainfall peaks in December.
Barnstaple averages 20 frost days, 0 hot days (≥ 30 °C) and 156 rainy days per year.
Barnstaple has warmed by +1.4 °C between 1940 and 2025, or +0.16 °C per decade. This trend is statistically significant.
The number of frost days there went from about 30 to 10 per year over the period.
The hottest day of the period reached 31.7 °C (on 18 July 2022) and the coldest -11.3 °C (on 24 January 1945).
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
BarnstapleEngland
- coords
- 51.08°, -4.06°
- period
- 1940–2025 · 86 yrs
Mean daily temperature
10.0°C
Average daily high
12.6°C
Average daily low
7.5°C
Annual rainfall
831mm
Sunshine / day
7.9h
Mean relative humidity
84%
Average peak wind
24.3km/h
Seasonal range
10.4°C
Frost days (< 0 °C)
20 d/yr
Hot days (≥ 30 °C)
0 d/yr
Rainy days (≥ 1 mm)
156 d/yr
Annual snowfall
9.6 cm
Average feels-like high
9.8 °C
Average feels-like low
4.1 °C
Average peak gust
45.4 km/h
Tropical nights (≥ 20 °C)
0 d/yr
Solar radiation
10.9 MJ/m²
Has the climate changed?
One stripe per year, 1940 to 2025
+1.4 °C
since 1940
+0.2 °C per decade · r² = 0.37 · 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
31.7 °C
18 July 2022
Coldest day
-11.3 °C
24 January 1945
Wettest day
49 mm
14 June 1980
Windiest day
80.5 km/h
25 January 1990
Strongest gust
151.6 km/h
25 January 1990
Hottest feels-like
33.5 °C
29 July 1948
Coldest feels-like
-16.2 °C
24 January 1945
Snowiest day
12.2 cm
19 February 1978
Sunniest day
15.9 h
21 June 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 | 7.5 °C | +0.4 °C | 113 mm | +36 mm |
| Feb | 8.1 °C | +0.8 °C | 70 mm | +7 mm |
| Mar | 11.4 °C | +2.3 °C | 12 mm | -52 mm |
| Apr | 14.9 °C | +3.6 °C | 88 mm | +31 mm |
| May | 16.7 °C | +2.5 °C | 31 mm | -34 mm |
| Jun | 18.7 °C | +2.0 °C | 88 mm | +29 mm |
| Jul | 19.8 °C | +1.5 °C | 45 mm | -17 mm |
| Aug | 20.5 °C | +2.1 °C | 44 mm | -23 mm |
| Sep | 16.6 °C | 0.0 °C | 118 mm | +51 mm |
| Oct | 13.9 °C | +0.3 °C | 82 mm | +1 mm |
| Nov | 11.6 °C | +1.5 °C | 141 mm | +58 mm |
| Dec | 9.4 °C | +1.3 °C | 136 mm | +52 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 Barnstaple?
Barnstaple has a temperate oceanic climate (Köppen Cfb). Over 1940-2025, the average annual temperature is 10.0 °C and it receives 831 mm of precipitation per year.
What is the hottest day ever recorded in Barnstaple?
The hottest day measured in Barnstaple between 1940 and 2025 was 18 July 2022, reaching 31.7 °C.
What is the coldest day in Barnstaple?
The coldest day measured in Barnstaple between 1940 and 2025 was 24 January 1945, at -11.3 °C.
Does it snow in Barnstaple?
Yes. Barnstaple gets on average 9.6 cm of snow per year and has around 20 frost days.
Has the climate of Barnstaple warmed?
Yes: Barnstaple warmed by +1.4 °C between 1940 and 2025, a statistically significant trend.
What is the wettest day in Barnstaple?
The wettest day measured in Barnstaple between 1940 and 2025 was 14 June 1980, with 49 mm of rain in 24 hours.
What was the windiest day in Barnstaple?
The windiest day measured in Barnstaple between 1940 and 2025 was 25 January 1990, with winds reaching 80.5 km/h.
What is the warmest month in Barnstaple?
The warmest month in Barnstaple is July (15.5 °C on average); the coldest is February (5.1 °C).
How much does it rain in Barnstaple?
Barnstaple receives on average 831 mm of precipitation per year, spread over about 156 rainy days.
Is it sunny in Barnstaple?
Barnstaple gets on average 7.9 hours of sunshine per day, roughly 2,884 hours per year over 1940-2025.
What is the biggest single-day snowfall in Barnstaple?
The heaviest 24-hour snowfall measured in Barnstaple between 1940 and 2025 was 19 February 1978, with 12.2 cm.
Are there tropical nights in Barnstaple?
Almost never: tropical nights (temperature staying above 20 °C) are virtually non-existent in Barnstaple.
What was the most extreme apparent temperature in Barnstaple?
In Barnstaple, between 1940 and 2025, the highest apparent temperature reached 33.5 °C on 29 July 1948, and the lowest was -16.2 °C on 24 January 1945.
Compare Barnstaple with another city
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Nearby cities
The climate around Barnstaple