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Xining weather by month: averages, rainfall & climate trends

Xining swings through a wide annual range, with 25.2°C between the monthly means of its warmest and coldest months. Most of the year's rain is packed into the months from May to October. Xining weather by month: average temperatures, rainfall, extremes and how the climate has changed since 1940.

Today vs average

+1.3°Chigh near average

15° / −1°Today
13° / 1°Average
see today in detail →

How it's changed

+1.8°Caverage temperature, 2016–2025 vs 1940–1949average temperature vs 1940–49157frost days a year now (2016–2025) · 174 in the 1940sfrost days a year · 174 in the 1940s7days above 30°C a year now (2016–2025) · 1 in the 1940sdays above 30°C · 1 in the 1940s+1.8°C vs the 1940s · see how it's changed →
Weather by montha typical year, averaged over the full recordJanuary, rain 6 mmhigh 1°low −15°February, rain 9 mmhigh 5°low −11°March, rain 23 mmhigh 10°low −4°April, rain 40 mmhigh 15°low 1°May, rain 59 mmhigh 19°low 7°June, rain 72 mmhigh 22°low 11°July, rain 96 mmhigh 24°low 13°August, rain 106 mmhigh 23°low 12°September, rain 98 mmhigh 19°low 8°October, rain 49 mmhigh 14°low 1°November, rain 13 mmhigh 7°low −8°December, rain 5 mmhigh 2°low −14°wettest month August, 106 mm · 577 mm a yearsee month by month →

Right now

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

Right now

10.4°

8°feels like
52%humidity
1°dew point
3 km/hfrom NE
UV index4.7
sunrise07:23sunset18:32day length11h 09m
TodayClear15°−1°
TueMostly clear8°0°
WedMostly clear12°−1°
ThuClear16°0°
FriClear16°−2°
SatMostly clear11°3°
SunOvercast7°4°

On this date: October 19

Today (forecast)
15° / −1°
Average for October 19
13° / 1°

High near average · +1.3°C

  • Highest since 1940: 21.4° · 2015
  • Lowest since 1940: −11.6° · 1989
  • One year ago: 13° / 3°

Every October 19 in history, coldest to hottest

▲ Daily highs▼ Daily lows

Dots show daily highs (top) and lows (bottom) for each October 19 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 Xining is sampled from the ECMWF ERA5 reanalysis at 36.63°N, 101.76°E, with daily records since 1940.

Coordinates
36.63°N, 101.76°E
Time zone
Asia/Shanghai
Period
1940–2026
Data source
ERA5 (ECMWF)

Last 30 days

18 of the last 31 days were warmer than the historical average for that date. Average difference: +0.5°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 year peaks in July, at around 23.7°C by mid-afternoon, with nights around 13.0°C. At the other extreme, January brings afternoon highs of about 1.4°C and typical overnight lows of −15.0°C. Around 155 days a year dip below freezing.

In total, Xining averages about 577 mm of precipitation a year; August is usually the wettest month (106 mm) and December the driest (5 mm).

The record here starts in 1940, and since then the annual mean in Xining has climbed 1.8°C from the first ten years to the last ten. That last decade has also been the warmest in the record.

Climate graph (climograph)

July is the warmest month, January the coolest: a yearly swing of 25°C. Wettest month: August (~106 mm). Whole year averages ~577 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 74 rainy days a year: most in September (~12), fewest in December (almost none).

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.

Xining 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
January1.4°−15.0°6 mm19.8 h13.1° (2014)−28.0° (2008)
February4.6°−10.6°9 mm110.7 h18.2° (2009)−26.4° (1995)
March9.8°−4.2°23 mm411.7 h26.3° (2007)−18.6° (1984)
April15.1°1.4°40 mm612.9 h29.9° (1998)−15.6° (1970)
May19.0°6.7°59 mm814.0 h30.8° (2024)−7.2° (1955)
June21.8°10.6°72 mm914.5 h31.9° (2014)−0.9° (1980)
July23.7°13.0°96 mm1114.3 h36.4° (2010)5.3° (1979)
August23.2°12.5°106 mm1113.4 h33.1° (2010)5.1° (1962)
September18.8°8.2°98 mm1212.2 h30.1° (2010)−1.5° (1979)
October13.6°1.1°49 mm711.0 h25.0° (2016)−16.5° (1957)
November6.6°−7.7°13 mm210.0 h18.1° (2023)−25.6° (1967)
December1.9°−14.1°5 mm09.5 h13.9° (2016)−30.2° (1975)

How it's changed

Year-by-year signals from 1940 to today.

Climate stripes

Annual mean shifted from 1940–1949 to 2016–2025 by +1.8°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: +0.24°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

Dec–Feb is warming fastest: +0.29°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 ≥ 30°C per year: 0.6 early in the record → 6.5 recently. Frost days: 174 → 157.

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 2010, coldest in 1975: 36.4°C / −30.2°C.

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

Annual rainfall

~577 mm/year on average. Last decade: −2% vs that average. Long-term trend: −12 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 Xining

Which is the warmest month in Xining?
On long-term average, the warmest month in Xining is July (mean daily temperature of about 18.3°C) and the coolest is January (about −6.9°C).
How does today's temperature in Xining compare to the historical average?
On October 19, 2026, Xining is forecast to reach a high of 14.5°C and a low of −0.8°C. The long-term average for this date (the full record since 1940) is a high of 13.2°C and a low of 0.6°C, so today's high is 1.3°C warmer than that average.
How much has Xining warmed since 1940?
Comparing the first decade of the record (1940–1949) with the most recent (2016–2025), the annual mean temperature in Xining is about 1.8°C warmer.
How much does it rain in Xining?
Xining receives about 577 mm of precipitation per year on long-term average, with August typically the wettest month.
What is the average temperature in Xining?
Over the full record (since 1940), the annual mean temperature in Xining is about 6.6°C. The warmest month is July and the coolest is January.
What are the average temperatures in Xining by month?
Average daily highs and lows for each month in Xining (°C, full record since 1940): January 1°/−15°, February 5°/−11°, March 10°/−4°, April 15°/1°, May 19°/7°, June 22°/11°, July 24°/13°, August 23°/12°, September 19°/8°, October 14°/1°, November 7°/−8°, December 2°/−14°.
What is the weather like in Xining in summer?
In summer, June through August, Xining is pleasantly warm. Daytime highs sit at 22–24°C and nights at 11–13°C; July is the warmest month. Rain falls on about 11 days a month, adding up to around 92 mm. No season is wetter.
What is the weather like in Xining in winter?
December to February is winter in Xining, and it is dry and cold. Afternoons run 1–5°C and nights −15 to −11°C; January is the coldest month. Hardly any rain or snow falls.
What is the weather like in Xining in spring?
Spring in Xining (March to May) is cool. It warms from 10°C by day and −4°C at night in March to 19°C and 7°C in May. Rain rises from 23 mm on 4 days in March to 59 mm on 8 days in May.
What is the weather like in Xining in autumn?
September to November is autumn in Xining, and it is cool. September still brings 19°C afternoons and 8°C nights, November only 7°C and −8°C. Rain falls off from 98 mm on 12 days in September to 13 mm on 2 days in November.
How many days a year does it rain in Xining?
On long-term average, Xining has about 74 days a year with at least 2 mm of rain or snow. The annual total is roughly 577 mm.

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