Mombasa climate
Mombasa (Kenya) has a tropical savanna (dry summer) climate (Köppen As). The average temperature over the year is 27 °C81 °F, and about 894 mm35 in of precipitation falls in an average year.
Temperature by month
Precipitation by month
Mombasa climate table
| Month | High °C°F | Low °C°F | Mean °C°F | Precip. mmin |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 3594 | 2474 | 2984 | 251.0 |
| Feb | 3596 | 2475 | 2985 | 150.6 |
| Mar | 3493 | 2476 | 2985 | 622.4 |
| Apr | 3289 | 2476 | 2882 | 1295.1 |
| May | 3086 | 2374 | 2780 | 2178.5 |
| Jun | 2984 | 2271 | 2578 | 742.9 |
| Jul | 2984 | 2170 | 2577 | 361.4 |
| Aug | 3085 | 2170 | 2578 | 291.1 |
| Sep | 3188 | 2271 | 2679 | 381.5 |
| Oct | 3289 | 2272 | 2781 | 983.8 |
| Nov | 3290 | 2374 | 2882 | 1044.1 |
| Dec | 3392 | 2475 | 2883 | 692.7 |
| Year | 3596 | 2170 | 2781 | 89435 |
“Year” row: highest monthly high, lowest monthly low, annual mean and annual total.
| Month | Humid. | Cloud | Solar | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 69% | 53% | 6.2 | 12:20 |
| Feb | 67% | 52% | 6.4 | 12:15 |
| Mar | 71% | 52% | 6.2 | 12:08 |
| Apr | 79% | 59% | 5.4 | 12:01 |
| May | 82% | 60% | 4.7 | 11:56 |
| Jun | 78% | 52% | 4.7 | 11:53 |
| Jul | 75% | 50% | 4.9 | 11:54 |
| Aug | 73% | 45% | 5.3 | 11:59 |
| Sep | 71% | 38% | 5.9 | 12:05 |
| Oct | 73% | 43% | 6.2 | 12:12 |
| Nov | 77% | 47% | 6.3 | 12:18 |
| Dec | 74% | 48% | 6.3 | 12:21 |
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 Mombasa is like
The warmest month is February, with an average high of 35 °C96 °F and a low of 24 °C75 °F. The coldest is July, when highs average 29 °C84 °F and lows 21 °C70 °F. Seasonal differences are small — just 4.5 °C8.1 °F between the warmest and the coolest month.
Annual precipitation is moderate at about 894 mm35 in. The wettest three-month stretch is April–June, which brings 47% of the annual total. Months with less than 20 mm0.8 in on average: February. The wettest month is May (217 mm8.5 in), the driest is February (15 mm0.6 in).
Relative humidity ranges from 67% in February to 82% in May. The clearest skies (lowest average cloud amount, 38%) are typical of September. Average wind speed near the ground ranges from 8 km/h (5 mph) in November to 15 km/h (9 mph) in July.
Best time to visit Mombasa
Based on these averages, the most comfortable months for sightseeing and outdoor activities are July and August: average highs of 29 °C84 °F to 30 °C85 °F with 29 mm1.1 in to 36 mm1.4 in of precipitation per month.
The most challenging month is May, which is very wet (217 mm8.5 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.
What to pack for Mombasa
- Wetter months (April and May, October and November) — highs 3086 to 32 °C90 °F, lows 2272 to 24 °C76 °F, about 137 mm5.4 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 (December–March, June–September) — highs 2984 to 35 °C96 °F, lows 2170 to 24 °C76 °F, about 43 mm1.7 in of precipitation a month. Pack very light, breathable clothing, a sun hat and plenty of water.
How Mombasa compares
Compared with Dar es Salaam, about 311 km to the south, Mombasa is on average 0.4 °C0.8 °F warmer and receives 21% less precipitation (894 mm35 in vs 1,131 mm45 in). The difference is largest in February (1.4 °C2.5 °F warmer).
Of the 18 places in Kenya covered by World Climates, Mombasa is the 5th warmest by annual mean temperature and the 9th wettest by annual precipitation. See all of them on the Kenya climate page.
Places in other countries with the most similar temperature and rainfall pattern (seasons shifted for the other hemisphere where needed): Tanga (Tanzania, Aw), Cap-Haïtien (Haiti, BSh) and La Romana (Dominican Republic, BSh).
The same NASA POWER grid cell also contains Matuga (pop. 194,252). Their long-term averages in this dataset are essentially the same as for Mombasa, so they do not have separate pages.
Nearby places
- Jomvu 10 km · 27 °C81 °F · 894 mm35 in
- Malindi 106 km · 27 °C81 °F · 848 mm33 in
- Tanga 129 km · 27 °C80 °F · 987 mm39 in
- Handeni 238 km · 23 °C73 °F · 1,455 mm57 in
- Zanzibar 240 km · 27 °C81 °F · 1,008 mm40 in
- Moshi 270 km · 24 °C75 °F · 699 mm28 in
- Dar es Salaam 311 km · 27 °C80 °F · 1,131 mm45 in
- Kibaha 313 km · 26 °C78 °F · 1,244 mm49 in
Frequently asked questions
What is the warmest month in Mombasa?
February is the warmest month in Mombasa, with an average high of 35 °C (96 °F) and an average low of 24 °C (75 °F).
What is the coldest month in Mombasa?
July is the coldest month, with an average high of 29 °C (84 °F) and an average low of 21 °C (70 °F).
When does it rain the most in Mombasa?
May is the wettest month with about 217 mm (8.5 in) of precipitation; February is the driest with about 15 mm (0.6 in).
What is the best time to visit Mombasa?
Judging by long-term averages, the most comfortable months are July and August.
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 185 m, while Mombasa lies at about 20 m. Temperatures on this page were therefore adjusted by +1.1 °C1.9 °F using the standard lapse rate of 6.5 °C per 1,000 m.