Handan climate
Handan (Hebei, China) has a cold semi-arid climate (Köppen BSk). The average temperature over the year is 15 °C60 °F, and about 570 mm22 in of precipitation falls in an average year.
Temperature by month
Precipitation by month
Handan climate table
| Month | High °C°F | Low °C°F | Mean °C°F | Precip. mmin | Frost days |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 540 | −523 | 031 | 50.2 | 30 |
| Feb | 948 | −327 | 337 | 100.4 | 23 |
| Mar | 1763 | 236 | 1050 | 90.4 | 10 |
| Apr | 2576 | 949 | 1762 | 311.2 | 0 |
| May | 3188 | 1661 | 2374 | 491.9 | 0 |
| Jun | 3595 | 2170 | 2883 | 622.4 | 0 |
| Jul | 3594 | 2475 | 2985 | 1576.2 | 0 |
| Aug | 3290 | 2272 | 2781 | 1285.0 | 0 |
| Sep | 2883 | 1762 | 2272 | 702.8 | 0 |
| Oct | 2272 | 1050 | 1661 | 261.0 | 0 |
| Nov | 1457 | 235 | 846 | 180.7 | 10 |
| Dec | 643 | −425 | 134 | 50.2 | 29 |
| Year | 3595 | −523 | 1560 | 57022 | 102 |
“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 | 56% | 54% | 2.3 | 9:55 |
| Feb | 54% | 56% | 2.9 | 10:48 |
| Mar | 45% | 52% | 4.3 | 11:52 |
| Apr | 43% | 59% | 5.1 | 13:05 |
| May | 42% | 62% | 5.7 | 14:06 |
| Jun | 48% | 68% | 5.2 | 14:39 |
| Jul | 62% | 70% | 4.7 | 14:26 |
| Aug | 67% | 64% | 4.5 | 13:33 |
| Sep | 62% | 61% | 3.9 | 12:21 |
| Oct | 57% | 50% | 3.2 | 11:11 |
| Nov | 57% | 46% | 2.5 | 10:10 |
| Dec | 55% | 47% | 2.2 | 9:40 |
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 Handan is like
The warmest month is July, with an average high of 35 °C94 °F and a low of 24 °C75 °F. The coldest is January, when highs average 5 °C40 °F and lows −5 °C23 °F. Seasons are strongly marked: the warmest month is on average 29.5 °C53.1 °F warmer than the coldest.
Annual precipitation is moderate at about 570 mm22 in. The wettest three-month stretch is July–September, which brings 62% of the annual total. Months with less than 20 mm0.8 in on average: November–March. The wettest month is July (157 mm6.2 in), the driest is January (5 mm0.2 in).
Relative humidity ranges from 42% in May to 67% in August. The clearest skies (lowest average cloud amount, 46%) are typical of November. Average wind speed near the ground ranges from 7 km/h (4 mph) in August to 11 km/h (7 mph) in April. Daylight lasts from about 9.7 hours in December to 14.6 hours in June.
Best time to visit Handan
Based on these averages, the most comfortable months for sightseeing and outdoor activities are April and September and October: average highs of 22 °C72 °F to 28 °C83 °F with 26 mm1.0 in to 70 mm2.8 in of precipitation per month.
The most challenging month is January, which is cold, with average highs of 5 °C40 °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 Handan
- Winter (December–February) — highs 540 to 9 °C48 °F, lows −523 to −3 °C27 °F, about 7 mm0.3 in of precipitation a month. Pack a warm coat, layers and closed shoes, an extra layer for the cooler mornings and evenings and shoes with good grip, as frost is common.
- Spring (March–May) — highs 1763 to 31 °C88 °F, lows 236 to 16 °C61 °F, about 30 mm1.2 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.
- Summer (June–August) — highs 3290 to 35 °C95 °F, lows 2170 to 24 °C75 °F, about 116 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 1457 to 28 °C83 °F, lows 235 to 17 °C62 °F, about 38 mm1.5 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 Handan compares
Compared with Shijiazhuang, about 159 km to the north, Handan is on average 0.9 °C1.6 °F warmer and receives 7% more precipitation (570 mm22 in vs 533 mm21 in). The difference is largest in November (1.5 °C2.7 °F warmer).
Of the 547 places in China covered by World Climates, Handan is the 285th warmest by annual mean temperature and the 427th 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: Amarillo (United States, BSk), Lubbock (United States, Cfa) and Albuquerque (United States, BSk).
The same NASA POWER grid cell also contains Hecun (pop. 494,412) and Linshui (pop. 109,955). Their long-term averages in this dataset are essentially the same as for Handan, so they do not have separate pages.
Nearby places
- Shahecheng 37 km · 15 °C60 °F · 558 mm22 in
- Xingtai 50 km · 15 °C60 °F · 558 mm22 in
- Anyang 58 km · 15 °C60 °F · 593 mm23 in
- Hebi 99 km · 15 °C59 °F · 613 mm24 in
- Puyang 107 km · 15 °C58 °F · 583 mm23 in
- Puyang Chengguanzhen 112 km · 15 °C59 °F · 613 mm24 in
- Qingnian 112 km · 14 °C57 °F · 555 mm22 in
- Changzhi 132 km · 11 °C51 °F · 595 mm23 in
Frequently asked questions
What is the warmest month in Handan?
July is the warmest month in Handan, with an average high of 35 °C (94 °F) and an average low of 24 °C (75 °F).
What is the coldest month in Handan?
January is the coldest month, with an average high of 5 °C (40 °F) and an average low of -5 °C (23 °F).
When does it rain the most in Handan?
July is the wettest month with about 157 mm (6.2 in) of precipitation; January is the driest with about 5 mm (0.2 in).
What is the best time to visit Handan?
Judging by long-term averages, the most comfortable months are April 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 181 m, while Handan lies at about 61 m. Temperatures on this page were therefore adjusted by +0.8 °C1.4 °F using the standard lapse rate of 6.5 °C per 1,000 m.