Beijing climate
Beijing (Beijing, China) has a cold semi-arid climate (Köppen BSk). The average temperature over the year is 13 °C55 °F, and about 533 mm21 in of precipitation falls in an average year.
Temperature by month
Precipitation by month
Beijing climate table
| Month | High °C°F | Low °C°F | Mean °C°F | Precip. mmin | Frost days |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 235 | −1014 | −425 | 20.1 | 31 |
| Feb | 542 | −720 | −131 | 60.2 | 28 |
| Mar | 1457 | −130 | 643 | 90.4 | 23 |
| Apr | 2373 | 643 | 1458 | 240.9 | 3 |
| May | 3085 | 1456 | 2271 | 381.5 | 0 |
| Jun | 3391 | 1966 | 2679 | 843.3 | 0 |
| Jul | 3392 | 2271 | 2882 | 1516.0 | 0 |
| Aug | 3289 | 2069 | 2679 | 1084.3 | 0 |
| Sep | 2781 | 1458 | 2170 | 642.5 | 0 |
| Oct | 2068 | 643 | 1355 | 301.2 | 2 |
| Nov | 1050 | −228 | 439 | 140.6 | 22 |
| Dec | 337 | −817 | −327 | 20.1 | 31 |
| Year | 3392 | −1014 | 1355 | 53321 | 140 |
“Year” row: highest monthly high, lowest monthly low, annual mean and annual total. Frost days are for the whole grid cell.
| Month | Humid. | Cloud | Solar | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 51% | 45% | 2.3 | 9:38 |
| Feb | 49% | 49% | 3.0 | 10:38 |
| Mar | 42% | 44% | 4.4 | 11:50 |
| Apr | 39% | 52% | 5.3 | 13:13 |
| May | 39% | 56% | 5.9 | 14:22 |
| Jun | 52% | 66% | 5.2 | 14:59 |
| Jul | 64% | 68% | 4.7 | 14:44 |
| Aug | 67% | 63% | 4.6 | 13:44 |
| Sep | 60% | 54% | 4.1 | 12:24 |
| Oct | 57% | 44% | 3.2 | 11:04 |
| Nov | 55% | 41% | 2.4 | 9:55 |
| Dec | 53% | 40% | 2.1 | 9:21 |
Humid. = average relative humidity at 2 m; cloud = average cloud amount; solar = average daily solar energy reaching the ground in kWh/m² (all-sky); daylight in hours:minutes, calculated for the 15th of each month.
What the climate of Beijing is like
The warmest month is July, with an average high of 33 °C92 °F and a low of 22 °C71 °F. The coldest is January, when highs average 2 °C35 °F and lows −10 °C14 °F. The climate is extremely continental — the average temperature swings by 31.8 °C57.2 °F between the coldest and the warmest month.
Annual precipitation is moderate at about 533 mm21 in. The wettest three-month stretch is June–August, which brings 65% of the annual total. Months with less than 20 mm0.8 in on average: November–March. The wettest month is July (151 mm6.0 in), the driest is January (2 mm0.1 in).
Relative humidity ranges from 39% in April to 67% in August. The clearest skies (lowest average cloud amount, 40%) are typical of December. Average wind speed near the ground ranges from 6 km/h (4 mph) in August to 10 km/h (6 mph) in April. Daylight lasts from about 9.3 hours in December to 15.0 hours in June.
A lasting snow cover is typical in January and February, when the average snow depth in the reanalysis exceeds 10 cm (deepest in January, about 12 cm).
Best time to visit Beijing
Based on these averages, the most comfortable months for sightseeing and outdoor activities are April and May and September and October: average highs of 20 °C68 °F to 30 °C85 °F with 24 mm0.9 in to 64 mm2.5 in of precipitation per month.
The most challenging month is January, which is cold, with average highs of 2 °C35 °F.
Comfort score: months are ranked by how close they come to an average high of 21–28 °C (70–82 °F), lows above 5 °C (41 °F), little precipitation and moderate humidity. The best-ranked months of each place are recommended, even where none meets all of these. These are general rules of thumb applied to long-term averages.
Beijing weather by month
- January2 °C35 °F / −10 °C14 °F
- February5 °C42 °F / −7 °C20 °F
- March14 °C57 °F / −1 °C30 °F
- April23 °C73 °F / 6 °C43 °F
- May30 °C85 °F / 14 °C56 °F
- June33 °C91 °F / 19 °C66 °F
- July33 °C92 °F / 22 °C71 °F
- August32 °C89 °F / 20 °C69 °F
- September27 °C81 °F / 14 °C58 °F
- October20 °C68 °F / 6 °C43 °F
- November10 °C50 °F / −2 °C28 °F
- December3 °C37 °F / −8 °C17 °F
What to pack for Beijing
- Winter (December–February) — highs 235 to 5 °C42 °F, lows −1014 to −7 °C20 °F, about 3 mm0.1 in of precipitation a month. Pack a winter coat, hat, gloves and warm, non-slip boots, an extra layer for the cooler mornings and evenings and shoes with good grip, as frost is common.
- Spring (March–May) — highs 1457 to 30 °C85 °F, lows −130 to 14 °C56 °F, about 24 mm0.9 in of precipitation a month. Pack light layers — T-shirts plus a light sweater or jacket and an extra layer for the cooler mornings and evenings.
- Summer (June–August) — highs 3289 to 33 °C92 °F, lows 1966 to 22 °C71 °F, about 115 mm4.5 in of precipitation a month. Pack very light, breathable clothing, a sun hat and plenty of water and an umbrella or light rain jacket.
- Autumn (September–November) — highs 1050 to 27 °C81 °F, lows −228 to 14 °C58 °F, about 36 mm1.4 in of precipitation a month. Pack light layers — T-shirts plus a light sweater or jacket and an extra layer for the cooler mornings and evenings.
How Beijing compares
Of the 547 places in China covered by World Climates, Beijing is the 379th warmest by annual mean temperature and the 451st wettest by annual precipitation. See all of them on the China climate page.
Places in other countries with the most similar temperature and rainfall pattern: Nampo (North Korea, Dwa), Pueblo (United States, BSk) and Hamhŭng (North Korea, Dwa).
The same NASA POWER grid cell also contains Mentougou (pop. 197,772). Their long-term averages in this dataset are essentially the same as for Beijing, so they do not have separate pages.
Nearby places
- Daxing 20 km · 13 °C55 °F · 514 mm20 in
- Tongzhou 23 km · 12 °C54 °F · 553 mm22 in
- Shunyi 32 km · 12 °C54 °F · 553 mm22 in
- Langfang 51 km · 12 °C54 °F · 530 mm21 in
- Sanhe 58 km · 12 °C54 °F · 553 mm22 in
- Tianjin 108 km · 13 °C55 °F · 533 mm21 in
- Xuanhua 138 km · 10 °C49 °F · 439 mm17 in
- Baoding 140 km · 13 °C56 °F · 516 mm20 in
Frequently asked questions
What is the warmest month in Beijing?
July is the warmest month in Beijing, with an average high of 33 °C (92 °F) and an average low of 22 °C (71 °F).
What is the coldest month in Beijing?
January is the coldest month, with an average high of 2 °C (35 °F) and an average low of -10 °C (14 °F).
When does it rain the most in Beijing?
July is the wettest month with about 151 mm (6.0 in) of precipitation; January is the driest with about 2 mm (0.1 in).
What is the best time to visit Beijing?
Judging by long-term averages, the most comfortable months are April and May and September and October.
About this data
All figures are 25-year averages (January 2001 – December 2025) from the NASA POWER project. Temperature, humidity, wind and precipitation come from the MERRA-2 reanalysis (precipitation is the bias-corrected MERRA-2 product), cloud and solar values from CERES satellite data. They describe a grid cell of roughly 50–70 km, not a single weather station, so they can differ from airport records — most of all on coasts, in mountains and for rainfall. Average highs and lows are the monthly mean temperature plus/minus half of the average daily temperature range. Counts of rainy days are not part of this dataset.
The grid cell’s average elevation is 222 m, while Beijing lies at about 49 m. Temperatures on this page were therefore adjusted by +1.1 °C2 °F using the standard lapse rate of 6.5 °C per 1,000 m.