San Salvador climate
San Salvador (El Salvador) has a tropical savanna (dry winter) climate (Köppen Aw). The average temperature over the year is 24 °C76 °F, and about 1,489 mm59 in of precipitation falls in an average year.
Temperature by month
Precipitation by month
San Salvador climate table
| Month | High °C°F | Low °C°F | Mean °C°F | Precip. mmin |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 2781 | 2068 | 2475 | 40.2 |
| Feb | 2883 | 2169 | 2576 | 50.2 |
| Mar | 2984 | 2271 | 2577 | 80.3 |
| Apr | 2984 | 2373 | 2679 | 391.5 |
| May | 2882 | 2373 | 2577 | 1927.6 |
| Jun | 2680 | 2373 | 2576 | 2329.1 |
| Jul | 2781 | 2373 | 2577 | 1977.8 |
| Aug | 2780 | 2373 | 2576 | 2469.7 |
| Sep | 2678 | 2272 | 2475 | 28311 |
| Oct | 2678 | 2271 | 2475 | 2268.9 |
| Nov | 2679 | 2069 | 2374 | 481.9 |
| Dec | 2780 | 2068 | 2374 | 100.4 |
| Year | 2984 | 2068 | 2476 | 1,48959 |
“Year” row: highest monthly high, lowest monthly low, annual mean and annual total.
| Month | Humid. | Cloud | Solar | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 65% | 22% | 5.8 | 11:24 |
| Feb | 63% | 25% | 6.3 | 11:41 |
| Mar | 61% | 29% | 6.7 | 12:01 |
| Apr | 65% | 46% | 6.3 | 12:25 |
| May | 74% | 72% | 5.7 | 12:45 |
| Jun | 79% | 76% | 5.7 | 12:56 |
| Jul | 76% | 71% | 6.3 | 12:51 |
| Aug | 78% | 71% | 6.2 | 12:34 |
| Sep | 82% | 78% | 5.6 | 12:11 |
| Oct | 81% | 69% | 5.3 | 11:48 |
| Nov | 75% | 41% | 5.6 | 11:28 |
| Dec | 70% | 24% | 5.5 | 11:19 |
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 San Salvador is like
The warmest month is April, with an average high of 29 °C84 °F and a low of 23 °C73 °F. The coldest is November, when highs average 26 °C79 °F and lows 20 °C69 °F. Temperatures barely change through the year: the warmest and the coolest month differ by only 2.5 °C4.4 °F.
It is wet, with about 1,489 mm59 in of precipitation per year. The wettest three-month stretch is August–October, which brings 51% of the annual total. Months with less than 20 mm0.8 in on average: December–March. The wettest month is September (283 mm11 in), the driest is January (4 mm0.2 in).
Relative humidity ranges from 61% in March to 82% in September. The clearest skies (lowest average cloud amount, 22%) are typical of January. Average wind speed near the ground ranges from 8 km/h (5 mph) in August to 14 km/h (9 mph) in January. Daylight lasts from about 11.3 hours in December to 12.9 hours in June.
Best time to visit San Salvador
Based on these averages, the most comfortable months for sightseeing and outdoor activities are November–April: average highs of 26 °C79 °F to 29 °C84 °F with 4 mm0.2 in to 48 mm1.9 in of precipitation per month.
The most challenging month is September, which is very wet (283 mm11 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 San Salvador
- Wetter months (May–October) — highs 2678 to 28 °C82 °F, lows 2271 to 23 °C73 °F, about 229 mm9.0 in of precipitation a month. Pack light summer clothes such as T-shirts, shorts or light dresses and a good rain jacket or umbrella and quick-drying shoes.
- Drier months (November–April) — highs 2679 to 29 °C84 °F, lows 2068 to 23 °C73 °F, about 19 mm0.7 in of precipitation a month. Pack light summer clothes such as T-shirts, shorts or light dresses.
How San Salvador compares
Compared with Guatemala City, about 178 km to the northwest, San Salvador is on average 5.7 °C10.3 °F warmer and receives 12% more precipitation (1,489 mm59 in vs 1,332 mm52 in). The difference is largest in December (6.8 °C12.2 °F warmer).
Of the 3 places in El Salvador covered by World Climates, San Salvador is the 2nd warmest by annual mean temperature and the wettest by annual precipitation. See all of them on the El Salvador climate page.
Places in other countries with the most similar temperature and rainfall pattern: Coatepeque (Guatemala, Aw), Santa Lucía Cotzumalguapa (Guatemala, Aw) and Matagalpa (Nicaragua, Aw).
The same NASA POWER grid cell also contains Soyapango (pop. 329,708), Mejicanos (pop. 160,317) and Santa Tecla (pop. 124,694). Their long-term averages in this dataset are essentially the same as for San Salvador, so they do not have separate pages.
Nearby places
- Santa Ana 52 km · 24 °C76 °F · 1,298 mm51 in
- San Miguel 111 km · 28 °C83 °F · 1,271 mm50 in
- Chiquimula 130 km · 25 °C77 °F · 1,439 mm57 in
- Jalapa 136 km · 19 °C67 °F · 1,206 mm47 in
- Siguatepeque 178 km · 21 °C70 °F · 1,244 mm49 in
- Guatemala City 178 km · 19 °C66 °F · 1,332 mm52 in
- Santa Lucía Cotzumalguapa 211 km · 26 °C78 °F · 1,884 mm74 in
- Tegucigalpa 218 km · 23 °C73 °F · 1,167 mm46 in
Frequently asked questions
What is the warmest month in San Salvador?
April is the warmest month in San Salvador, with an average high of 29 °C (84 °F) and an average low of 23 °C (73 °F).
What is the coldest month in San Salvador?
November is the coldest month, with an average high of 26 °C (79 °F) and an average low of 20 °C (69 °F).
When does it rain the most in San Salvador?
September is the wettest month with about 283 mm (11.1 in) of precipitation; January is the driest with about 4 mm (0.2 in).
What is the best time to visit San Salvador?
Judging by long-term averages, the most comfortable months are November–April.
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 272 m, while San Salvador lies at about 653 m. Temperatures on this page were therefore adjusted by −2.5 °C4.5 °F using the standard lapse rate of 6.5 °C per 1,000 m.