Chennai climate
Chennai (Tamil Nadu, India) has a tropical savanna (dry winter) climate (Köppen Aw). The average temperature over the year is 28 °C83 °F, and about 1,253 mm49 in of precipitation falls in an average year.
Temperature by month
Precipitation by month
Chennai climate table
| Month | High °C°F | Low °C°F | Mean °C°F | Precip. mmin |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 2882 | 2169 | 2476 | 170.7 |
| Feb | 3087 | 2170 | 2678 | 60.2 |
| Mar | 3493 | 2374 | 2984 | 150.6 |
| Apr | 3696 | 2679 | 3187 | 261.0 |
| May | 3697 | 2781 | 3289 | 552.2 |
| Jun | 3595 | 2780 | 3187 | 682.7 |
| Jul | 3493 | 2679 | 3086 | 1084.3 |
| Aug | 3391 | 2578 | 2985 | 1325.2 |
| Sep | 3289 | 2577 | 2983 | 1455.7 |
| Oct | 3087 | 2577 | 2882 | 26410 |
| Nov | 2983 | 2374 | 2679 | 29211 |
| Dec | 2781 | 2271 | 2576 | 1264.9 |
| Year | 3697 | 2169 | 2883 | 1,25349 |
“Year” row: highest monthly high, lowest monthly low, annual mean and annual total.
| Month | Humid. | Cloud | Solar | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 77% | 36% | 5.0 | 11:26 |
| Feb | 71% | 29% | 5.8 | 11:42 |
| Mar | 66% | 30% | 6.4 | 12:02 |
| Apr | 66% | 37% | 6.5 | 12:25 |
| May | 65% | 54% | 5.9 | 12:44 |
| Jun | 64% | 77% | 5.2 | 12:53 |
| Jul | 67% | 83% | 4.9 | 12:49 |
| Aug | 72% | 81% | 4.9 | 12:33 |
| Sep | 77% | 72% | 5.1 | 12:11 |
| Oct | 80% | 63% | 4.6 | 11:49 |
| Nov | 82% | 61% | 4.2 | 11:30 |
| Dec | 80% | 51% | 4.2 | 11:21 |
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 Chennai is like
The warmest month is May, with an average high of 36 °C97 °F and a low of 27 °C81 °F. The coldest is January, when highs average 28 °C82 °F and lows 21 °C69 °F. Seasonal differences are small — just 7.4 °C13.4 °F between the warmest and the coolest month.
It is wet, with about 1,253 mm49 in of precipitation per year. The wettest three-month stretch is September–November, which brings 56% of the annual total. Months with less than 20 mm0.8 in on average: January–March. The wettest month is November (292 mm11 in), the driest is February (6 mm0.2 in).
Relative humidity ranges from 64% in June to 82% in November. The clearest skies (lowest average cloud amount, 29%) are typical of February. Average wind speed near the ground ranges from 9 km/h (6 mph) in October to 13 km/h (8 mph) in May. Daylight lasts from about 11.4 hours in December to 12.9 hours in June.
Best time to visit Chennai
Based on these averages, the most comfortable months for sightseeing and outdoor activities are January: average highs of 28 °C82 °F to 28 °C82 °F with 17 mm0.7 in to 17 mm0.7 in of precipitation per month.
The most challenging month is November, which is very wet (292 mm11 in) and humid (82% relative humidity).
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.
Chennai weather by month
- January28 °C82 °F / 21 °C69 °F
- February30 °C87 °F / 21 °C70 °F
- March34 °C93 °F / 23 °C74 °F
- April36 °C96 °F / 26 °C79 °F
- May36 °C97 °F / 27 °C81 °F
- June35 °C95 °F / 27 °C80 °F
- July34 °C93 °F / 26 °C79 °F
- August33 °C91 °F / 25 °C78 °F
- September32 °C89 °F / 25 °C77 °F
- October30 °C87 °F / 25 °C77 °F
- November29 °C83 °F / 23 °C74 °F
- December27 °C81 °F / 22 °C71 °F
What to pack for Chennai
- Wetter months (July–December) — highs 2781 to 34 °C93 °F, lows 2271 to 26 °C79 °F, about 178 mm7.0 in of precipitation a month. Pack very light, breathable clothing, a sun hat and plenty of water and an umbrella or light rain jacket.
- Drier months (January–June) — highs 2882 to 36 °C97 °F, lows 2169 to 27 °C81 °F, about 31 mm1.2 in of precipitation a month. Pack very light, breathable clothing, a sun hat and plenty of water.
How Chennai compares
Compared with Bengaluru, about 291 km to the west, Chennai is on average 4.9 °C8.9 °F warmer and receives 49% more precipitation (1,253 mm49 in vs 843 mm33 in). The difference is largest in June (7.1 °C12.7 °F warmer).
Of the 382 places in India covered by World Climates, Chennai is the 9th warmest by annual mean temperature and the 106th wettest by annual precipitation. See all of them on the India climate page.
Places in other countries with the most similar temperature and rainfall pattern: Phan Rang-Tháp Chàm (Vietnam, Aw), Tuy Hòa (Vietnam, Aw) and Ninh Hòa (Vietnam, Aw).
The same NASA POWER grid cell also contains Ambattur (pop. 466,205), Avadi (pop. 345,996), Tiruvottiyur (pop. 249,446) and Madhavaram (pop. 119,105). Their long-term averages in this dataset are essentially the same as for Chennai, so they do not have separate pages.
Nearby places
- Pallavaram 19 km · 28 °C83 °F · 1,253 mm49 in
- Kanchipuram 69 km · 28 °C82 °F · 1,253 mm49 in
- Tirupati 111 km · 28 °C82 °F · 988 mm39 in
- Vellore 126 km · 27 °C81 °F · 1,059 mm42 in
- Chittoor 129 km · 26 °C79 °F · 1,059 mm42 in
- Puducherry 137 km · 28 °C83 °F · 1,153 mm45 in
- Nellore 155 km · 28 °C83 °F · 1,005 mm40 in
- Tiruvannamalai 162 km · 27 °C81 °F · 1,086 mm43 in
Frequently asked questions
What is the warmest month in Chennai?
May is the warmest month in Chennai, with an average high of 36 °C (97 °F) and an average low of 27 °C (81 °F).
What is the coldest month in Chennai?
January is the coldest month, with an average high of 28 °C (82 °F) and an average low of 21 °C (69 °F).
When does it rain the most in Chennai?
November is the wettest month with about 292 mm (11.5 in) of precipitation; February is the driest with about 6 mm (0.2 in).
What is the best time to visit Chennai?
Judging by long-term averages, the most comfortable months are January.
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.