Penza climate
Penza (Penza Oblast, Russia) has a warm-summer humid continental climate (Köppen Dfb). The average temperature over the year is 5 °C41 °F, and about 586 mm23 in of precipitation falls in an average year.
Temperature by month
Precipitation by month
Penza climate table
| Month | High °C°F | Low °C°F | Mean °C°F | Precip. mmin | Frost days |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | −817 | −155 | −1211 | 451.8 | 31 |
| Feb | −720 | −156 | −1113 | 361.4 | 28 |
| Mar | 031 | −817 | −424 | 401.6 | 30 |
| Apr | 1152 | 033 | 642 | 441.7 | 16 |
| May | 2068 | 847 | 1458 | 542.1 | 1 |
| Jun | 2374 | 1355 | 1864 | 642.5 | 0 |
| Jul | 2780 | 1560 | 2170 | 582.3 | 0 |
| Aug | 2678 | 1457 | 2068 | 471.8 | 0 |
| Sep | 1966 | 846 | 1356 | 502.0 | 0 |
| Oct | 949 | 134 | 542 | 562.2 | 13 |
| Nov | 133 | −524 | −229 | 502.0 | 26 |
| Dec | −622 | −1211 | −916 | 441.7 | 31 |
| Year | 2780 | −155 | 541 | 58623 | 177 |
“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 | 97% | 72% | 0.8 | 8:03 |
| Feb | 96% | 71% | 1.8 | 9:45 |
| Mar | 93% | 69% | 3.4 | 11:41 |
| Apr | 78% | 64% | 4.2 | 13:54 |
| May | 73% | 58% | 5.6 | 15:50 |
| Jun | 73% | 59% | 6.0 | 16:56 |
| Jul | 69% | 54% | 5.9 | 16:28 |
| Aug | 66% | 54% | 4.8 | 14:45 |
| Sep | 70% | 66% | 3.1 | 12:35 |
| Oct | 81% | 74% | 1.6 | 10:27 |
| Nov | 91% | 75% | 0.7 | 8:32 |
| Dec | 96% | 74% | 0.5 | 7:33 |
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 Penza is like
The warmest month is July, with an average high of 27 °C80 °F and a low of 15 °C60 °F. The coldest is January, when highs average −8 °C17 °F and lows −15 °C5 °F. The climate is extremely continental — the average temperature swings by 32.6 °C58.8 °F between the coldest and the warmest month.
Annual precipitation is moderate at about 586 mm23 in. Rain is spread fairly evenly through the year. The wettest month is June (64 mm2.5 in), the driest is February (36 mm1.4 in).
Relative humidity ranges from 66% in August to 97% in January. The clearest skies (lowest average cloud amount, 54%) are typical of August. Average wind speed near the ground ranges from 8 km/h (5 mph) in July to 15 km/h (9 mph) in February. Daylight lasts from about 7.6 hours in December to 16.9 hours in June.
A lasting snow cover is typical in November–March, when the average snow depth in the reanalysis exceeds 10 cm (deepest in February, about 48 cm).
Best time to visit Penza
Based on these averages, the most comfortable months for sightseeing and outdoor activities are May–September: average highs of 19 °C66 °F to 27 °C80 °F with 47 mm1.8 in to 64 mm2.5 in of precipitation per month.
The most challenging month is January, which is cold, with average highs of −8 °C17 °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 Penza
- Winter (December–February) — highs −817 to −6 °C22 °F, lows −155 to −12 °C11 °F, about 41 mm1.6 in of precipitation a month. Pack heavy insulated clothing, thermal base layers, a warm hat, mittens and insulated boots.
- Spring (March–May) — highs 031 to 20 °C68 °F, lows −817 to 8 °C47 °F, about 46 mm1.8 in of precipitation a month. Pack a warm coat, layers and closed shoes and an extra layer for the cooler mornings and evenings.
- Summer (June–August) — highs 2374 to 27 °C80 °F, lows 1355 to 15 °C60 °F, about 56 mm2.2 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.
- Autumn (September–November) — highs 133 to 19 °C66 °F, lows −524 to 8 °C46 °F, about 52 mm2.0 in of precipitation a month. Pack a warm coat, layers and closed shoes.
How Penza compares
Compared with Saratov, about 196 km to the south, Penza is on average 1.5 °C2.6 °F cooler and receives 28% more precipitation (586 mm23 in vs 460 mm18 in). The difference is largest in July (2.6 °C4.7 °F cooler).
Of the 169 places in Russia covered by World Climates, Penza is the 54th warmest by annual mean temperature and the 109th wettest by annual precipitation. See all of them on the Russia climate page.
Places in other countries with the most similar temperature and rainfall pattern: Ust-Kamenogorsk (Kazakhstan, Dfa), Thunder Bay (Canada, Dfb) and Saskatoon (Canada, Dfb).
Nearby places
- Saransk 110 km · 4 °C40 °F · 613 mm24 in
- Saratov 196 km · 7 °C44 °F · 460 mm18 in
- Engels 204 km · 7 °C45 °F · 460 mm18 in
- Balakovo 229 km · 6 °C43 °F · 482 mm19 in
- Syzran 230 km · 6 °C42 °F · 491 mm19 in
- Tambov 244 km · 6 °C43 °F · 584 mm23 in
- Ulyanovsk 255 km · 4 °C39 °F · 575 mm23 in
- Arzamas 256 km · 4 °C39 °F · 678 mm27 in
Frequently asked questions
What is the warmest month in Penza?
July is the warmest month in Penza, with an average high of 27 °C (80 °F) and an average low of 15 °C (60 °F).
What is the coldest month in Penza?
January is the coldest month, with an average high of -8 °C (17 °F) and an average low of -15 °C (5 °F).
When does it rain the most in Penza?
June is the wettest month with about 64 mm (2.5 in) of precipitation; February is the driest with about 36 mm (1.4 in).
What is the best time to visit Penza?
Judging by long-term averages, the most comfortable months are May–September.
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 216 m, while Penza lies at about 156 m. Temperatures on this page were therefore adjusted by +0.4 °C0.7 °F using the standard lapse rate of 6.5 °C per 1,000 m.