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Otaru weather by month: averages, rainfall & climate trends

Seasons run to extremes in Otaru: monthly means span 25.9°C between the coldest month and the warmest. The heavier rain months run from July to December. Otaru weather by month: average temperatures, rainfall, extremes and how the climate has changed since 1940.

Today vs average

+0.5°Chigh near average

12° / 7°Today
12° / 7°Average
see today in detail →

How it's changed

+2.4°Caverage temperature, 2016–2025 vs 1940–1949average temperature vs 1940–4999frost days a year now (2016–2025) · 134 in the 1940sfrost days a year · 134 in the 1940s31days above 25°C a year now (2016–2025) · 14 in the 1940sdays above 25°C · 14 in the 1940s+2.4°C vs the 1940s · see how it's changed →
Weather by montha typical year, averaged over the full recordJanuary, rain 107 mmhigh −2°low −6°February, rain 88 mmhigh −2°low −5°March, rain 86 mmhigh 2°low −2°April, rain 77 mmhigh 8°low 3°May, rain 86 mmhigh 13°low 8°June, rain 85 mmhigh 18°low 13°July, rain 117 mmhigh 22°low 18°August, rain 163 mmhigh 24°low 20°September, rain 153 mmhigh 21°low 17°October, rain 129 mmhigh 14°low 10°November, rain 128 mmhigh 7°low 3°December, rain 122 mmhigh 1°low −3°wettest month August, 163 mm · 1,339 mm a yearsee month by month →

Right now

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

Right now

8.6°

7°feels like
69%humidity
3°dew point
4 km/hfrom S
UV index0.0
sunrise06:04sunset16:35day length10h 31m
TueOvercast12°7°
WedPartly cloudy6°4°
ThuOvercast11°4°
FriPartly cloudy17°11°
SatPartly cloudy14°4°
SunOvercast5°3°
MonShowers5°2°

On this date: October 26

Today (forecast)
12° / 7°
Average for October 26
12° / 7°

High near average · +0.5°C

  • Highest since 1940: 19.3° · 2014
  • Lowest since 1940: 1.7° · 1970
  • One year ago: 13° / 11°

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 Otaru is sampled from the ECMWF ERA5 reanalysis at 43.19°N, 141.00°E, with daily records since 1940.

Coordinates
43.19°N, 141.00°E
Time zone
Asia/Tokyo
Period
1940–2026
Data source
ERA5 (ECMWF)

Last 30 days

24 of the last 31 days were warmer than the historical average for that date. Average difference: +1.5°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

The warmest month is August, with typical afternoon highs of 24.0°C and nights around 20.4°C. Roughly 30 days a year now top 25°C. In January, the coolest month, afternoons reach about −2.1°C and nights dip to −5.5°C.

The yearly total for Otaru comes to about 1,339 mm; monthly amounts range from 77 mm in April up to 163 mm in August. Precipitation falls on roughly 161 days in a typical year.

The record here starts in 1940, and since then the annual mean in Otaru has climbed 2.4°C from the first ten years to the last ten. Where the first decade averaged 135 frost days a year, the recent one saw about 100.

Climate graph (climograph)

August is the warmest month, January the coolest: a yearly swing of 26°C. Wettest month: August (~163 mm). Whole year averages ~1,339 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 161 rainy days a year: most in December (~20), fewest in April (~9).

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.

Otaru 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
January−2.1°−5.5°107 mm199.1 h8.0° (2023)−14.0° (1979)
February−1.5°−5.2°88 mm1610.3 h11.4° (2024)−13.4° (1978)
March2.1°−2.0°86 mm1311.6 h13.4° (2018)−11.6° (1986)
April7.5°2.6°77 mm913.2 h20.5° (2024)−5.3° (1941)
May13.0°8.0°86 mm1014.5 h27.7° (2019)−0.2° (1955)
June17.5°13.1°85 mm915.2 h27.9° (2025)6.6° (1954)
July21.9°18.2°117 mm1114.9 h30.8° (2025)10.7° (2018)
August24.0°20.4°163 mm1213.8 h31.5° (2023)13.7° (1962)
September20.6°16.6°153 mm1312.3 h28.6° (2012)7.5° (1969)
October14.2°10.2°129 mm1410.8 h24.4° (2022)0.3° (1974)
November6.6°2.9°128 mm169.5 h19.3° (2023)−7.6° (1971)
December0.5°−2.8°122 mm208.8 h12.4° (2021)−13.1° (1952)

How it's changed

Year-by-year signals from 1940 to today.

Climate stripes

Annual mean shifted from 1940–1949 to 2016–2025 by +2.4°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: +0.28°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

Mar–May is warming fastest: +0.32°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: 13.6 early in the record → 30.5 recently. Frost days: 134 → 99.

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 2023, coldest in 1979: 31.5°C / −14.0°C.

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

Annual rainfall

~1,339 mm/year on average. Last decade: +13% vs that average. Long-term trend: +36 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 Otaru

Which is the warmest month in Otaru?
On long-term average, the warmest month in Otaru is August (mean daily temperature of about 22.0°C) and the coolest is January (about −3.8°C).
How does today's temperature in Otaru compare to the historical average?
On October 26, 2026, Otaru is forecast to reach a high of 12.1°C and a low of 7.0°C. The long-term average for this date (the full record since 1940) is a high of 11.6°C and a low of 7.5°C, so today's high is 0.5°C warmer than that average.
How much has Otaru warmed since 1940?
Comparing the first decade of the record (1940–1949) with the most recent (2016–2025), the annual mean temperature in Otaru is about 2.4°C warmer.
How much does it rain in Otaru?
Otaru receives about 1,339 mm of precipitation per year on long-term average, with August typically the wettest month.
What is the average temperature in Otaru?
Over the full record (since 1940), the annual mean temperature in Otaru is about 8.3°C. The warmest month is August and the coolest is January.
What are the average temperatures in Otaru by month?
Average daily highs and lows for each month in Otaru (°C, full record since 1940): January −2°/−6°, February −2°/−5°, March 2°/−2°, April 8°/3°, May 13°/8°, June 18°/13°, July 22°/18°, August 24°/20°, September 21°/17°, October 14°/10°, November 7°/3°, December 1°/−3°.
What is the weather like in Otaru in summer?
In summer, June through August, Otaru is wet and mild. June starts at 18°C by day and 13°C at night; by August it is 24°C and 20°C. Rain rises from 85 mm on 9 days in June to 163 mm on 12 days in August.
What is the weather like in Otaru in winter?
December to February is winter in Otaru, and it is wet and cold, with afternoons close to freezing. Daytime highs sit at −2 to 1°C and nights at −6 to −3°C; January is the coldest month. Rain and snow fall on about 18 days a month, adding up to around 105 mm.
What is the weather like in Otaru in spring?
In spring, March through May, Otaru is cold. March is still 2°C in the afternoon and −2°C at night, May already 13°C and 8°C. Rain and snow are steady at around 83 mm a month, spread over roughly 11 days. It is the driest season of the year.
What is the weather like in Otaru in autumn?
In autumn, September through November, Otaru is wet and cool. September still brings 21°C afternoons and 17°C nights, November only 7°C and 3°C. Rain falls on about 14 days a month, adding up to around 136 mm.
How many days a year does it rain in Otaru?
On long-term average, Otaru has about 161 days a year with at least 2 mm of rain or snow. The annual total is roughly 1,339 mm.

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