Southampton climate
Southampton is warmest in July, with average highs of 21 °C, and coldest in February, when nights average 3.0 °C. November is the wettest month (77 mm) and March the driest (50 mm). Figures are 1991–2020 climate normals.
Across a full year Southampton averages 738 mm of rain, 6 days above 25 °C and 20 days below freezing.
United Kingdom · population 269,781 · 1991–2020 normals
Temperature below 0 °C to above 30 °C Rain band height is that month’s share of the wettest month
- Warmest month July 21 °C
- Coldest month February 3.0 °C
- Driest month March 50 mm
- Wettest month November 77 mm
- Least cloud July 62 % cloud
- Hottest on record August 32 °C
- Coldest on record February -7.6 °C
What to expectSouthampton through the year
Southampton has a clear annual cycle: average daily highs run from 8.1 °C in February to 21 °C in July, a swing of 12 °C in mean temperature across the year.
Counted across a normal year, 6 days a year reach 25 °C, 0 of them reach 30 °C, 20 nights drop below freezing. The warmest reading in the 1991–2020 record is 32 °C, in August.
Rain is spread fairly evenly through the year, from 50 mm in March to 77 mm in November. There is no dry season to aim for.
Month by month
| Month | Avg high | Rainfall | Cloud |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 7.8 °C | 68 mm | 72 % |
| February | 8.1 °C | 53 mm | 71 % |
| March | 10.2 °C | 50 mm | 70 % |
| April | 12.9 °C | 56 mm | 64 % |
| May | 16.0 °C | 57 mm | 66 % |
| June | 18.7 °C | 54 mm | 66 % |
| July | 20.7 °C | 53 mm | 62 % |
| August | 20.5 °C | 65 mm | 64 % |
| September | 18.2 °C | 55 mm | 65 % |
| October | 14.5 °C | 76 mm | 68 % |
| November | 10.8 °C | 77 mm | 72 % |
| December | 8.3 °C | 73 mm | 71 % |
Temperature month by month
| Month | Avg high | Avg low | Mean | Record high | Record low | Days above 25 °C | Days above 30 °C | Days below 0 °C |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 7.8 °C | 3.4 °C | 5.7 °C | 13.9 °C | -6.0 °C | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| February | 8.1 °C | 3.0 °C | 5.6 °C | 16.2 °C | -7.6 °C | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| March | 10.2 °C | 4.2 °C | 7.2 °C | 17.9 °C | -4.4 °C | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| April | 12.9 °C | 5.8 °C | 9.3 °C | 23.6 °C | -1.8 °C | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| May | 16.0 °C | 8.7 °C | 12.5 °C | 25.0 °C | 1.0 °C | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| June | 18.7 °C | 11.6 °C | 15.3 °C | 29.2 °C | 4.6 °C | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| July | 20.7 °C | 13.6 °C | 17.3 °C | 31.0 °C | 8.3 °C | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| August | 20.5 °C | 13.8 °C | 17.2 °C | 32.2 °C | 7.8 °C | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| September | 18.2 °C | 11.9 °C | 15.0 °C | 26.2 °C | 3.6 °C | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| October | 14.5 °C | 9.4 °C | 12.0 °C | 23.8 °C | -0.4 °C | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| November | 10.8 °C | 6.2 °C | 8.6 °C | 17.0 °C | -3.0 °C | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| December | 8.3 °C | 4.0 °C | 6.2 °C | 14.6 °C | -5.8 °C | 0 | 0 | 4 |
Rain, sun and wind month by month
| Month | Rainfall | Wet days | Daylight | Cloud cover | Humidity | Wind |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 68 mm | 11 | 8.4 h/day | 72 % | 85 % | 25 km/h |
| February | 53 mm | 10 | 10 h/day | 71 % | 83 % | 24 km/h |
| March | 50 mm | 10 | 12 h/day | 70 % | 80 % | 22 km/h |
| April | 56 mm | 11 | 14 h/day | 64 % | 77 % | 21 km/h |
| May | 57 mm | 10 | 16 h/day | 66 % | 76 % | 20 km/h |
| June | 54 mm | 10 | 17 h/day | 66 % | 76 % | 19 km/h |
| July | 53 mm | 10 | 16 h/day | 62 % | 75 % | 19 km/h |
| August | 65 mm | 10 | 15 h/day | 64 % | 77 % | 19 km/h |
| September | 55 mm | 9 | 13 h/day | 65 % | 78 % | 20 km/h |
| October | 76 mm | 11 | 11 h/day | 68 % | 82 % | 22 km/h |
| November | 77 mm | 12 | 9.0 h/day | 72 % | 85 % | 23 km/h |
| December | 73 mm | 11 | 8.0 h/day | 71 % | 86 % | 24 km/h |
How Southampton compares
The same four figures for nearby destinations, so the numbers above have something to be read against. Summer high is the warmest month's average high; winter low is the coldest month's average low.
| Destination | Summer high | Winter low | Rain per year | Days above 25 °C |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Southampton | 21 °C | 3.0 °C | 738 mm | 6 |
| Portsmouth · United Kingdom | 21 °C | 3.3 °C | 714 mm | 6 |
| Bournemouth · United Kingdom | 20 °C | 4.0 °C | 749 mm | 4 |
| Reading · United Kingdom | 21 °C | 2.1 °C | 666 mm | 10 |
| Swindon · United Kingdom | 21 °C | 1.7 °C | 724 mm | 7 |
Planning a trip? See the best time to visit Southampton.
QuestionsCommon questions about Southampton’s climate
When is the best time to visit Southampton?
That depends on what you want, so the honest answer is a comparison rather than a single month. June, July, August sit closest to 20 °C on average, July is the warmest month and March the driest. The month-by-month table above has the full picture.
How hot does Southampton get?
In July, the warmest month, daily highs average 21 °C. About 0 days a year pass 30 °C. The highest value in the 1991–2020 record is 32 °C.
How cold does it get in winter?
Nights average 3.0 °C in February, the coldest month. A normal year has 20 nights below freezing.
Which month is wettest in Southampton?
November, averaging 77 mm over 12 days with rain. The driest month is March with 50 mm. The year as a whole averages 738 mm.
Are these figures a forecast?
No. They are 1991–2020 climate normals: the average of thirty years, which describes what a month is usually like in Southampton rather than what any particular week will bring. Individual years can differ substantially from the normal.
Data sources and method
- ERA5 / ERA5-Land reanalysis — Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S), ECMWF. Copernicus Licence
- Open-Meteo — Open-Meteo.com. CC BY 4.0
- NOAA OISST v2.1 — NOAA Physical Sciences Laboratory. Public domain
- GeoNames — GeoNames.org. CC BY 4.0
- Normal period
- 1991–2020
- Dataset version
- era5-1991-2020-scores1.1
- Last processed
Measured values come from ERA5 reanalysis and are reproduced unchanged. Calculated by us: monthly rankings, daylight hours, beach and comfort scores. Full formulas are on the methodology page.
Contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information 2026. Neither the European Commission nor ECMWF is responsible for any use that may be made of the Copernicus information or data it contains.