Petrozavodsk climate
Petrozavodsk (Karelia, Russia) has a warm-summer humid continental climate (Köppen Dfb). The average temperature over the year is 3 °C37 °F, and about 792 mm31 in of precipitation falls in an average year.
Temperature by month
Precipitation by month
Petrozavodsk climate table
| Month | High °C°F | Low °C°F | Mean °C°F | Precip. mmin | Frost days |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | −1015 | −154 | −1210 | 431.7 | 31 |
| Feb | −818 | −156 | −1112 | 361.4 | 28 |
| Mar | −228 | −916 | −622 | 421.7 | 30 |
| Apr | 541 | −130 | 236 | 491.9 | 18 |
| May | 1457 | 643 | 1050 | 722.8 | 2 |
| Jun | 1864 | 1152 | 1458 | 913.6 | 0 |
| Jul | 2170 | 1558 | 1864 | 1003.9 | 0 |
| Aug | 1966 | 1355 | 1660 | 1124.4 | 0 |
| Sep | 1356 | 846 | 1151 | 712.8 | 0 |
| Oct | 541 | 134 | 337 | 662.6 | 12 |
| Nov | −228 | −621 | −424 | 602.4 | 26 |
| Dec | −720 | −1211 | −915 | 481.9 | 30 |
| Year | 2170 | −154 | 337 | 79231 | 178 |
“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 | 99% | 79% | 0.2 | 6:10 |
| Feb | 98% | 76% | 0.9 | 8:47 |
| Mar | 96% | 72% | 2.3 | 11:32 |
| Apr | 87% | 73% | 3.9 | 14:39 |
| May | 78% | 73% | 5.0 | 17:34 |
| Jun | 76% | 73% | 5.4 | 19:34 |
| Jul | 80% | 70% | 5.0 | 18:41 |
| Aug | 83% | 69% | 3.8 | 15:54 |
| Sep | 88% | 74% | 2.2 | 12:47 |
| Oct | 93% | 85% | 0.9 | 9:48 |
| Nov | 97% | 89% | 0.3 | 6:57 |
| Dec | 98% | 84% | 0.1 | 5:17 |
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 Petrozavodsk is like
The warmest month is July, with an average high of 21 °C70 °F and a low of 15 °C58 °F. The coldest is January, when highs average −10 °C15 °F and lows −15 °C4 °F. The climate is extremely continental — the average temperature swings by 30.5 °C54.9 °F between the coldest and the warmest month.
Annual precipitation is moderate at about 792 mm31 in. The wettest three-month stretch is June–August, which brings 38% of the annual total. The wettest month is August (112 mm4.4 in), the driest is February (36 mm1.4 in).
Relative humidity ranges from 76% in June to 99% in January. The clearest skies (lowest average cloud amount, 69%) are typical of August. Average wind speed near the ground ranges from 4 km/h (3 mph) in November to 7 km/h (4 mph) in April. Daylight lasts from about 5.3 hours in December to 19.6 hours in June.
A lasting snow cover is typical in November–April, when the average snow depth in the reanalysis exceeds 10 cm (deepest in March, about 38 cm).
Best time to visit Petrozavodsk
Based on these averages, the most comfortable months for sightseeing and outdoor activities are July: average highs of 21 °C70 °F to 21 °C70 °F with 100 mm3.9 in to 100 mm3.9 in of precipitation per month.
The most challenging month is January, which is cold, with average highs of −10 °C15 °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 Petrozavodsk
- Winter (December–February) — highs −1015 to −7 °C20 °F, lows −154 to −12 °C11 °F, about 42 mm1.7 in of precipitation a month. Pack heavy insulated clothing, thermal base layers, a warm hat, mittens and insulated boots.
- Spring (March–May) — highs −228 to 14 °C57 °F, lows −916 to 6 °C43 °F, about 55 mm2.1 in of precipitation a month. Pack a warm coat, layers and closed shoes and shoes with good grip, as frost is common.
- Summer (June–August) — highs 1864 to 21 °C70 °F, lows 1152 to 15 °C58 °F, about 101 mm4.0 in of precipitation a month. Pack light layers — T-shirts plus a light sweater or jacket and an umbrella or light rain jacket.
- Autumn (September–November) — highs −228 to 13 °C56 °F, lows −621 to 8 °C46 °F, about 66 mm2.6 in of precipitation a month. Pack a warm coat, layers and closed shoes.
How Petrozavodsk compares
Compared with Saint Petersburg, about 300 km to the southwest, Petrozavodsk is on average 1.9 °C3.5 °F cooler and receives a similar amount of precipitation. The difference is largest in January (3.5 °C6.4 °F cooler).
Of the 169 places in Russia covered by World Climates, Petrozavodsk is the 107th warmest by annual mean temperature and the 25th 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: Kuopio (Finland, Dfb), Jyväskylä (Finland, Dfb) and Oulu (Finland, Dfc).
Nearby places
- Saint Petersburg 300 km · 5 °C40 °F · 800 mm31 in
- Cherepovets 353 km · 3 °C38 °F · 887 mm35 in
- Kuopio 365 km · 3 °C37 °F · 883 mm35 in
- Velikiy Novgorod 401 km · 5 °C41 °F · 876 mm34 in
- Severodvinsk 413 km · 1 °C34 °F · 775 mm31 in
- Vologda 416 km · 3 °C37 °F · 811 mm32 in
- Arkhangelsk 437 km · 1 °C34 °F · 813 mm32 in
- Jyväskylä 453 km · 4 °C39 °F · 807 mm32 in
Frequently asked questions
What is the warmest month in Petrozavodsk?
July is the warmest month in Petrozavodsk, with an average high of 21 °C (70 °F) and an average low of 15 °C (58 °F).
What is the coldest month in Petrozavodsk?
January is the coldest month, with an average high of -10 °C (15 °F) and an average low of -15 °C (4 °F).
When does it rain the most in Petrozavodsk?
August is the wettest month with about 112 mm (4.4 in) of precipitation; February is the driest with about 36 mm (1.4 in).
What is the best time to visit Petrozavodsk?
Judging by long-term averages, the most comfortable months are July.
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.