Dihok climate
Dihok (Iraq) has a hot semi-arid climate (Köppen BSh). The average temperature over the year is 20 °C68 °F, and about 383 mm15 in of precipitation falls in an average year.
Temperature by month
Precipitation by month
Dihok climate table
| Month | High °C°F | Low °C°F | Mean °C°F | Precip. mmin |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 1050 | 235 | 643 | 502.0 |
| Feb | 1254 | 337 | 846 | 481.9 |
| Mar | 1763 | 744 | 1254 | 632.5 |
| Apr | 2373 | 1152 | 1763 | 582.3 |
| May | 3086 | 1762 | 2474 | 271.1 |
| Jun | 38101 | 2373 | 3187 | 60.2 |
| Jul | 42108 | 2780 | 3594 | 20.1 |
| Aug | 42107 | 2780 | 3493 | 20.1 |
| Sep | 3697 | 2272 | 2985 | 40.1 |
| Oct | 2882 | 1661 | 2272 | 301.2 |
| Nov | 1865 | 847 | 1356 | 401.6 |
| Dec | 1254 | 439 | 846 | 542.1 |
| Year | 42108 | 235 | 2068 | 38315 |
“Year” row: highest monthly high, lowest monthly low, annual mean and annual total.
| Month | Humid. | Cloud | Solar | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 67% | 54% | 2.4 | 9:54 |
| Feb | 67% | 53% | 3.3 | 10:47 |
| Mar | 62% | 49% | 4.6 | 11:51 |
| Apr | 58% | 53% | 5.7 | 13:06 |
| May | 45% | 40% | 7.0 | 14:07 |
| Jun | 25% | 16% | 8.2 | 14:40 |
| Jul | 18% | 16% | 7.9 | 14:27 |
| Aug | 18% | 18% | 7.2 | 13:34 |
| Sep | 22% | 20% | 6.0 | 12:22 |
| Oct | 37% | 37% | 4.2 | 11:10 |
| Nov | 54% | 45% | 3.0 | 10:08 |
| Dec | 64% | 54% | 2.2 | 9:39 |
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 Dihok is like
The warmest month is July, with an average high of 42 °C108 °F and a low of 27 °C80 °F. The coldest is January, when highs average 10 °C50 °F and lows 2 °C35 °F. Seasons are strongly marked: the warmest month is on average 28.7 °C51.6 °F warmer than the coldest.
It is dry, with about 383 mm15 in of precipitation per year. The wettest three-month stretch is February–April, which brings 44% of the annual total. Months with less than 20 mm0.8 in on average: June–September. The wettest month is March (63 mm2.5 in), the driest is August (2 mm0.1 in).
Relative humidity ranges from 18% in July to 67% in January. The clearest skies (lowest average cloud amount, 16%) are typical of July. Average wind speed near the ground ranges from 6 km/h (4 mph) in December to 8 km/h (5 mph) in July. Daylight lasts from about 9.6 hours in December to 14.7 hours in June.
Best time to visit Dihok
Based on these averages, the most comfortable months for sightseeing and outdoor activities are April and October and November: average highs of 18 °C65 °F to 28 °C82 °F with 30 mm1.2 in to 58 mm2.3 in of precipitation per month.
The most challenging month is July, which is hot, with average highs of 42 °C108 °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.
What to pack for Dihok
- Winter (December–February) — highs 1050 to 12 °C54 °F, lows 235 to 4 °C39 °F, about 51 mm2.0 in of precipitation a month. Pack long sleeves, a sweater and a medium jacket.
- Spring (March–May) — highs 1763 to 30 °C86 °F, lows 744 to 17 °C62 °F, about 49 mm1.9 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 38101 to 42 °C108 °F, lows 2373 to 27 °C80 °F, about 3 mm0.1 in of precipitation a month. Pack very light, breathable clothing, a sun hat and plenty of water.
- Autumn (September–November) — highs 1865 to 36 °C97 °F, lows 847 to 22 °C72 °F, about 24 mm1.0 in of precipitation a month. Pack light summer clothes such as T-shirts, shorts or light dresses and an extra layer for the cooler mornings and evenings.
How Dihok compares
Compared with Mosul, about 60 km to the south, Dihok is on average 1.7 °C3 °F cooler and receives 22% more precipitation (383 mm15 in vs 315 mm12 in). The difference is largest in May (2 °C3.7 °F cooler).
Of the 39 places in Iraq covered by World Climates, Dihok is the 34th warmest by annual mean temperature and the wettest by annual precipitation. See all of them on the Iraq climate page.
Places in other countries with the most similar temperature and rainfall pattern: Cizre (Turkey, Csa), Silopi (Turkey, BSh) and Al Qamishli (Syria, BSh).
The same NASA POWER grid cell also contains Sumayl (pop. 152,512) and Simele (pop. 152,512). Their long-term averages in this dataset are essentially the same as for Dihok, so they do not have separate pages.
Nearby places
- Sinah 8 km · 19 °C67 °F · 383 mm15 in
- Mosul 60 km · 22 °C71 °F · 315 mm12 in
- Silopi 63 km · 20 °C68 °F · 378 mm15 in
- Cizre 88 km · 20 °C68 °F · 446 mm18 in
- Xebat 89 km · 21 °C70 °F · 331 mm13 in
- Baḥarkah 112 km · 20 °C68 °F · 331 mm13 in
- Erbil 118 km · 20 °C69 °F · 283 mm11 in
- Khasnahzan 127 km · 19 °C67 °F · 301 mm12 in
Frequently asked questions
What is the warmest month in Dihok?
July is the warmest month in Dihok, with an average high of 42 °C (108 °F) and an average low of 27 °C (80 °F).
What is the coldest month in Dihok?
January is the coldest month, with an average high of 10 °C (50 °F) and an average low of 2 °C (35 °F).
When does it rain the most in Dihok?
March is the wettest month with about 63 mm (2.5 in) of precipitation; August is the driest with about 2 mm (0.1 in).
What is the best time to visit Dihok?
Judging by long-term averages, the most comfortable months are April and October and November.
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 949 m, while Dihok lies at about 510 m. Temperatures on this page were therefore adjusted by +2.9 °C5.1 °F using the standard lapse rate of 6.5 °C per 1,000 m.