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Dunedin weather by month: averages, rainfall & climate trends

Temperature-wise, the seasons in Dunedin are gentle: monthly means drift only 9.8°C over the whole year. The heavier rain months run from October to March. Dunedin weather by month: average temperatures, rainfall, extremes and how the climate has changed since 1940.

Today vs average

+8.4°Chigh well above average

25° / 10°Today
16° / 8°Average
see today in detail →

How it's changed

+2.1°Caverage temperature, 2016–2025 vs 1940–1949average temperature vs 1940–4917frost days a year now (2016–2025) · 39 in the 1940sfrost days a year · 39 in the 1940s17days above 25°C a year now (2016–2025) · 3 in the 1940sdays above 25°C · 3 in the 1940s+2.1°C vs the 1940s · see how it's changed →
Weather by montha typical year, averaged over the full recordJanuary, rain 95 mmhigh 20°low 11°February, rain 71 mmhigh 20°low 11°March, rain 69 mmhigh 18°low 10°April, rain 57 mmhigh 16°low 7°May, rain 53 mmhigh 13°low 5°June, rain 48 mmhigh 10°low 3°July, rain 47 mmhigh 10°low 2°August, rain 44 mmhigh 11°low 3°September, rain 53 mmhigh 14°low 5°October, rain 78 mmhigh 16°low 7°November, rain 88 mmhigh 17°low 8°December, rain 101 mmhigh 18°low 10°wettest month December, 101 mm · 805 mm a yearsee month by month →

Right now

What it's doing today vs the historical average for this date.
Overcast

Right now

24.8°

19°feels like
40%humidity
10°dew point
41 km/hfrom NW
UV index4.8
sunrise06:24sunset20:19day length13h 55m
TodayOvercast25°10°
TueMostly clear13°8°
WedOvercast20°8°
ThuPartly cloudy14°7°
FriPartly cloudy12°7°
SatMostly clear14°6°
SunOvercast21°10°

On this date: October 26

Today (forecast)
25° / 10°
Average for October 26
16° / 8°

High well above average · +8.4°C

  • Highest since 1940: 23.2° · 1960
  • Lowest since 1940: 1.5° · 2011
  • One year ago: 16° / 7°

Every October 26 in history, coldest to hottest

▲ Daily highs▼ Daily lows

Dots show daily highs (top) and lows (bottom) for each October 26 on record (n = 87). Outlined dots are today's forecast.

Area we sample

Each city's history comes from one ERA5 grid cell, about 28 km across, shown by the dashed box. Near mountains or coasts, conditions can vary across the cell.

Location & data

Historical weather for Dunedin is sampled from the ECMWF ERA5 reanalysis at 45.87°S, 170.50°E, with daily records since 1940.

Coordinates
45.87°S, 170.50°E
Time zone
Pacific/Auckland
Period
1940–2026
Data source
ERA5 (ECMWF)

Last 30 days

25 of the last 31 days were warmer than the historical average for that date. Average difference: +2.5°C.

Each bar is one day, from morning low to afternoon high. Warm-colored bars are days whose mean ran above average; cool bars ran below. The dot inside the bar is the daily mean. The shaded band is the typical 10–90% range expected for that date. Average = the day's mean temperature averaged across every year of record (1940–2026) for that calendar date.

This date over the years

One dot per year, showing the mean temperature on this calendar date. Dots are warmer or cooler than the long-term average (dashed line); the shaded band is the typical 10–90% range, and the highlighted dot is today's forecast. Based on ERA5 reanalysis: modelled estimates, not station readings.

Weather by month

Average temperatures and rainfall for each month: a typical year, from the full record.

Climate overview

January brings the year's peak warmth, with afternoons typically reaching 19.7°C and nights around 11.4°C. In a typical recent year, around 15 days reach 25°C or more. In July, the coolest month, afternoons reach about 9.6°C and nights dip to 2.0°C.

Dunedin picks up roughly 805 mm a year, with a peak of 101 mm in December and as little as 44 mm in August.

The record here starts in 1940, and since then the annual mean in Dunedin has climbed 2.1°C from the first ten years to the last ten. Frost days have thinned out, from around 40 a year in the first decade to about 15 now.

Climate graph (climograph)

January is the warmest month, July the coolest: a yearly swing of 10°C. Wettest month: December (~101 mm). Whole year averages ~805 mm of rain.

Bars = average monthly rainfall (right axis). Lines = average daily high and low (left axis). Average = each month's value averaged across every year of record (1940–2026).

Rainy days by month

About 104 rainy days a year: most in December (~12), fewest in July (~6).

Bars = average number of days with ≥ 2 mm per month. Hover for the monthly rainfall total.

Monthly wind

Average daily peak wind at 10 m, by month.

Monthly solar energy

Average daily incoming solar energy in megajoules per square metre: the record's own proxy for how sunny the month is.

Dunedin month by month: what to expect

Typical conditions for each month, averaged across the full record (since 1940). Daylight is the time from sunrise to sunset. Highest and Lowest are the most extreme values in the ERA5 dataset (modelled since 1940), so they can differ from official weather-station readings.

MonthAvg highAvg lowRainRainy daysDaylightHighestLowest
January19.7°11.4°95 mm1115.2 h33.1° (2018)4.2° (2001)
February19.7°11.2°71 mm913.9 h31.7° (2023)3.1° (2021)
March18.3°9.9°69 mm812.4 h30.0° (2019)0.8° (1954)
April15.7°7.3°57 mm810.7 h27.1° (2025)−2.7° (1941)
May12.6°4.8°53 mm79.3 h22.9° (2016)−7.5° (1988)
June10.0°2.6°48 mm68.5 h19.9° (2024)−5.0° (2015)
July9.6°2.0°47 mm68.8 h18.8° (2014)−7.4° (1995)
August11.2°2.9°44 mm610.0 h20.5° (2021)−4.8° (2016)
September13.6°4.6°53 mm811.7 h24.3° (2023)−3.9° (1940)
October15.6°6.6°78 mm1113.3 h27.0° (1977)−2.0° (1943)
November17.1°8.4°88 mm1114.8 h29.9° (2025)−0.3° (1995)
December18.5°10.3°101 mm1215.5 h30.5° (2015)2.9° (1982)

How it's changed

Year-by-year signals from 1940 to today.

Climate stripes

Annual mean shifted from 1940–1949 to 2016–2025 by +2.1°C.

Each vertical stripe is one year. Color encodes how much that year's annual mean differed from the long-term average. Average = each year's annual mean compared to the average of all years (1940–2026). cooler ← → warmer

Annual mean temperature

Long-term trend: +0.19°C per decade.

One point per year, showing the temperature averaged across the whole year. The dashed line is the least-squares long-term trend. Based on ERA5 reanalysis: modelled estimates, not station readings.

Seasonal warming

Jun–Aug is warming fastest: +0.25°C per decade.

Each faint line is one three-month period's average per year; the bold dashed line is its long-term trend. Different parts of the year often warm at different rates. Based on ERA5 reanalysis: modelled estimates, not station readings.

Hot days vs frost days

Days ≥ 25°C per year: 3.0 early in the record → 16.6 recently. Frost days: 39 → 17.

Thin lines are raw yearly counts; thick lines are the smoothed trend that removes year-to-year noise. The hot-day threshold is auto-picked per city so the line actually moves. Average = a centered 5-year rolling average to smooth weather noise.

Yearly hot & cold extremes

Hottest day since 1940 in 2018, coldest in 1988: 33.1°C / −7.5°C.

One point per year: the single hottest and coldest day recorded that year.

Annual rainfall

~805 mm/year on average. Last decade: +1% vs that average. Long-term trend: +4 mm per decade.

One bar per year of total rainfall. Dashed line is the long-term average. Average = the average annual rainfall across every year of record (1940–2026).

Day-by-day grid

Each tiny square is one calendar day across the full record, about 30,000 days per city. Use the mode switch above the chart: Anomaly colors each day by how far it ran from the historical average for that date (red = warmer, blue = cooler), Daily mean temp shows the absolute mean temperature for the day (useful to see seasons and heatwaves), and Precipitation shows daily rainfall (useful to spot wet/dry seasons and droughts). Average = the long-term average for that calendar date (1940–2026).

Frequently asked questions about Dunedin

Which is the warmest month in Dunedin?
On long-term average, the warmest month in Dunedin is January (mean daily temperature of about 15.0°C) and the coolest is July (about 5.2°C).
How does today's temperature in Dunedin compare to the historical average?
On October 26, 2026, Dunedin is forecast to reach a high of 24.9°C and a low of 10.0°C. The long-term average for this date (the full record since 1940) is a high of 16.5°C and a low of 7.7°C, so today's high is 8.4°C warmer than that average.
How much has Dunedin warmed since 1940?
Comparing the first decade of the record (1940–1949) with the most recent (2016–2025), the annual mean temperature in Dunedin is about 2.1°C warmer.
How much does it rain in Dunedin?
Dunedin receives about 805 mm of precipitation per year on long-term average, with December typically the wettest month.
What is the average temperature in Dunedin?
Over the full record (since 1940), the annual mean temperature in Dunedin is about 10.4°C. The warmest month is January and the coolest is July.
What are the average temperatures in Dunedin by month?
Average daily highs and lows for each month in Dunedin (°C, full record since 1940): January 20°/11°, February 20°/11°, March 18°/10°, April 16°/7°, May 13°/5°, June 10°/3°, July 10°/2°, August 11°/3°, September 14°/5°, October 16°/7°, November 17°/8°, December 18°/10°.
What is the weather like in Dunedin in summer?
December to February is summer in Dunedin, and it is mild. Daytime highs sit at 18–20°C and nights at 10–11°C; January is the warmest month. Rain is steady at around 89 mm a month, spread over roughly 11 days. No season is wetter.
What is the weather like in Dunedin in winter?
June to August is winter in Dunedin, and it is on the cool side. Afternoons run 10–11°C and nights 2–3°C; July is the coldest month. Rain falls on about 6 days a month, adding up to around 46 mm. It is the driest season of the year.
What is the weather like in Dunedin in spring?
In spring, September through November, Dunedin is fairly mild. Expect 14–17°C by day and 5–8°C at night, with November the warmest month. Rain picks up through the season: 8 rainy days and 53 mm in September, 11 days and 88 mm in November.
What is the weather like in Dunedin in autumn?
Autumn in Dunedin (March to May) is fairly mild. It cools from 18°C by day and 10°C at night in March to 13°C and 5°C in May. Rain falls on about 8 days a month, adding up to around 60 mm.
How many days a year does it rain in Dunedin?
On long-term average, Dunedin has about 104 days a year with at least 2 mm of rain or snow. The annual total is roughly 805 mm.

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