Macao
2 cities
Climate overview
Macao is a tiny Chinese Special Administrative Region of approximately 33 km² situated on the Pearl River estuary's western shore, roughly 60 km west of Hong Kong. The territory comprises the Macau Peninsula, the original Portuguese colony with its UNESCO-listed historic centre, plus the islands of Taipa and Coloane, now linked by reclaimed land forming the Cotai casino strip.
Mostly low-lying with modest hills reaching 170 m at Coloane Alto, Macao is surrounded by the Pearl River delta's brown estuarine waters. This setting produces a humid subtropical climate with strong monsoon influence: hot wet summers dominated by the southeast monsoon and frequent typhoons, alongside cooler dry winters marked by occasional cold snaps from continental China.
Macao sees highs of 19°C and lows of 13°C in January and highs of 31°C and lows of 26°C in July, with 2,030 mm of rainfall concentrated almost entirely between April and September, peaking during the southwest monsoon and typhoon season. Coloane Alto and the Cotai strip experience similar conditions.
The dry winter from December through February brings cool grey weather with humidity still ranging from about 70 to 80 percent, while spring ushers in a moist spell of persistent fog and condensation. Temperature extremes span from −1.8°C in January 1948 to 38.9°C in July 1930.
Major climate events include the severe Typhoon Hato in August 2017 (the strongest typhoon to hit Macau in 53 years, causing 10 deaths, US$1.56 billion in losses, prolonged power outages, and severe storm-surge flooding) followed by Typhoon Mangkhut in September 2018. Other threats include recurrent Pearl River estuary storm surges, accelerating sea-level rise threatening Cotai's reclaimed casinos, intensifying summer heatwaves, and deteriorating air quality amplified by Pearl River delta pollution.
Our archive covers 2 Macanese cities with daily ERA5 reanalysis data going back to 1940. The hottest July afternoons are in Taipa, with average highs around 30.4°C, while Macau has the coldest January nights, with average lows near 13.1°C. Comparing the last decade against the 1940–1970 baseline, mean temperatures across these cities have risen by about 1.1°C.
How the climate has shifted in Macao
Average across 2 cities with full ERA5 coverage: 1940–1970 baseline vs the last decade (2016–2025).
- Annual mean temperature
- 22.7°C→23.8°C
- Days above 30°C per year
- 39 days→100 days+61
- Frost days per year
- 0 days→0 days+0
- Tropical nights (≥20°C) per year
- 221 nights→236 nights+16
What's unusual right now
From a snapshot of the world's largest cities updated each hour. Today's mean temperature compared with each city's long-term average for the same calendar date (ERA5 climatology, 1940 onward). Last 30 days uses each city's rolling daily-mean vs its monthly average. Not a global ranking.
Running warm
Warmer than usual