Palopo climate

Indonesia · 2.99°S, 120.20°E · elevation 8 m · population 184,961

Warmest month
November
high 31 °C89 °F
Coldest month
August
low 23 °C73 °F
Wettest month
April
346 mm14 in
Best time to visit
—
no month fully comfortable
Annual precipitation
3,184 mm125 in
August driest
Year average
27 °C81 °F
tropical rainforest (Af)

Palopo (Indonesia) has a tropical rainforest climate (Köppen Af). The average temperature over the year is 27 °C81 °F, and about 3,184 mm125 in of precipitation falls in an average year.

Temperature by month

Average highAverage low
20°25°30°35°70°80°90°JFMAMJJASOND31°89°23°73°January: high 31 °C / 88 °F, low 24 °C / 76 °FFebruary: high 31 °C / 88 °F, low 24 °C / 76 °FMarch: high 31 °C / 88 °F, low 25 °C / 76 °FApril: high 31 °C / 87 °F, low 25 °C / 77 °FMay: high 30 °C / 87 °F, low 25 °C / 77 °FJune: high 30 °C / 85 °F, low 24 °C / 76 °FJuly: high 30 °C / 85 °F, low 23 °C / 74 °FAugust: high 30 °C / 86 °F, low 23 °C / 73 °FSeptember: high 31 °C / 87 °F, low 23 °C / 74 °FOctober: high 31 °C / 89 °F, low 24 °C / 75 °FNovember: high 31 °C / 89 °F, low 25 °C / 77 °FDecember: high 31 °C / 88 °F, low 25 °C / 76 °F

Precipitation by month

Precipitation per month (mminches)
010020030040004812JJanuary: 303 mm / 11.9 inFFebruary: 287 mm / 11.3 inMMarch: 344 mm / 13.5 inAApril: 346 mm / 13.6 inMMay: 300 mm / 11.8 inJJune: 328 mm / 12.9 inJJuly: 210 mm / 8.3 inAAugust: 152 mm / 6.0 inSSeptember: 166 mm / 6.5 inOOctober: 191 mm / 7.5 inNNovember: 221 mm / 8.7 inDDecember: 335 mm / 13.2 in34613.6

Palopo climate table

Monthly averages, 2001–2025
MonthHigh °C°FLow °C°FMean °C°FPrecip. mmin
Jan31882476288230312
Feb31882476288228711
Mar31882576288234414
Apr31872577288234614
May30872577288230012
Jun30852476278032813
Jul3085237426802108.3
Aug3086237326801526.0
Sep3187237427801666.5
Oct3189247528821917.5
Nov3189257728832218.7
Dec31882576288233513
Year3189237327813,184125

“Year” row: highest monthly high, lowest monthly low, annual mean and annual total.

Humidity, cloud, sun and daylight
MonthHumid.CloudSolarDaylight
Jan87%92%5.112:16
Feb88%91%5.212:13
Mar88%89%5.412:08
Apr89%87%5.212:03
May90%82%4.911:59
Jun90%84%4.411:57
Jul90%82%4.411:58
Aug88%77%4.812:01
Sep85%69%5.712:06
Oct84%72%5.912:11
Nov86%81%5.712:15
Dec87%90%5.212:18

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 Palopo is like

The warmest month is November, with an average high of 31 °C89 °F and a low of 25 °C77 °F. The coldest is August, when highs average 30 °C86 °F and lows 23 °C73 °F. Temperatures barely change through the year: the warmest and the coolest month differ by only 1.7 °C3 °F.

It is very wet, receiving about 3,184 mm125 in of precipitation per year. The wettest three-month stretch is March–May, which brings 31% of the annual total. The wettest month is April (346 mm14 in), the driest is August (152 mm6.0 in).

Relative humidity ranges from 84% in October to 90% in June. The clearest skies (lowest average cloud amount, 69%) are typical of September. Average wind speed near the ground ranges from 2 km/h (1 mph) in January to 3 km/h (2 mph) in August.

Best time to visit Palopo

No month comes close to our comfort ideal here. The least demanding months are August, September and October (average highs 30 °C86 °F, 31 °C87 °F and 31 °C89 °F).

The most challenging month is April, which is hot, with average highs of 31 °C87 °F, very wet (346 mm14 in) and humid (89% 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 Palopo

  • Wetter months (December–June) — highs 3085 to 31 °C88 °F, lows 2476 to 25 °C77 °F, about 320 mm13 in of precipitation a month. Pack very light, breathable clothing, a sun hat and plenty of water and a good rain jacket or umbrella and quick-drying shoes.
  • Drier months (July–November) — highs 3085 to 31 °C89 °F, lows 2373 to 25 °C77 °F, about 188 mm7.4 in of precipitation a month. Pack very light, breathable clothing, a sun hat and plenty of water and an umbrella or light rain jacket.

How Palopo compares

Compared with Palu, about 235 km to the north, Palopo has practically the same average temperature and receives 84% more precipitation (3,184 mm125 in vs 1,734 mm68 in). The difference is largest in January (0.8 °C1.5 °F warmer).

Of the 110 places in Indonesia covered by World Climates, Palopo is the 38th warmest by annual mean temperature and the 8th wettest by annual precipitation. See all of them on the Indonesia climate page.

Places in other countries with the most similar temperature and rainfall pattern (seasons shifted for the other hemisphere where needed): Bandar Seri Begawan (Brunei, Af), Kota Kinabalu (Malaysia, Af) and Ngerulmud (Palau, Af).

Nearby places

  • Parepare 130 km · 28 °C82 °F · 1,883 mm74 in
  • Watampone 173 km · 28 °C82 °F · 1,642 mm65 in
  • Palu 235 km · 27 °C81 °F · 1,734 mm68 in
  • Makassar (Ujung Pandang) 254 km · 28 °C82 °F · 1,767 mm70 in
  • Kendari 280 km · 27 °C81 °F · 2,151 mm85 in
  • Baubau 383 km · 28 °C82 °F · 1,768 mm70 in
  • Balikpapan 421 km · 27 °C81 °F · 2,469 mm97 in
  • Samarinda 439 km · 26 °C78 °F · 2,449 mm96 in

All places in Indonesia

Frequently asked questions

What is the warmest month in Palopo?

November is the warmest month in Palopo, with an average high of 31 °C (89 °F) and an average low of 25 °C (77 °F).

What is the coldest month in Palopo?

August is the coldest month, with an average high of 30 °C (86 °F) and an average low of 23 °C (73 °F).

When does it rain the most in Palopo?

April is the wettest month with about 346 mm (13.6 in) of precipitation; August is the driest with about 152 mm (6.0 in).

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 848 m, while Palopo lies at about 8 m. Temperatures on this page were therefore adjusted by +5.5 °C9.8 °F using the standard lapse rate of 6.5 °C per 1,000 m.

Sources and method