Sandakan climate
Sandakan (Malaysia) has a tropical rainforest climate (Köppen Af). The average temperature over the year is 27 °C81 °F, and about 2,886 mm114 in of precipitation falls in an average year.
Temperature by month
Precipitation by month
Sandakan climate table
| Month | High °C°F | Low °C°F | Mean °C°F | Precip. mmin |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 2781 | 2678 | 2680 | 38015 |
| Feb | 2781 | 2578 | 2680 | 2509.8 |
| Mar | 2882 | 2678 | 2780 | 2088.2 |
| Apr | 2984 | 2780 | 2882 | 1485.8 |
| May | 2984 | 2780 | 2882 | 1566.1 |
| Jun | 2883 | 2679 | 2781 | 1947.6 |
| Jul | 2883 | 2679 | 2781 | 2168.5 |
| Aug | 2883 | 2679 | 2781 | 2108.3 |
| Sep | 2883 | 2679 | 2781 | 2309.1 |
| Oct | 2883 | 2679 | 2781 | 26210 |
| Nov | 2882 | 2679 | 2781 | 27311 |
| Dec | 2882 | 2679 | 2780 | 35914 |
| Year | 2984 | 2578 | 2781 | 2,886114 |
“Year” row: highest monthly high, lowest monthly low, annual mean and annual total.
| Month | Humid. | Cloud | Solar | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 87% | 75% | 4.2 | 11:49 |
| Feb | 85% | 65% | 4.8 | 11:56 |
| Mar | 84% | 60% | 5.4 | 12:04 |
| Apr | 83% | 54% | 5.7 | 12:15 |
| May | 84% | 64% | 5.5 | 12:23 |
| Jun | 85% | 72% | 5.1 | 12:28 |
| Jul | 85% | 77% | 5.1 | 12:26 |
| Aug | 85% | 73% | 5.3 | 12:18 |
| Sep | 84% | 75% | 5.2 | 12:09 |
| Oct | 85% | 75% | 4.9 | 11:59 |
| Nov | 86% | 71% | 4.6 | 11:51 |
| Dec | 87% | 74% | 4.3 | 11:47 |
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 Sandakan is like
The warmest month is May, with an average high of 29 °C84 °F and a low of 27 °C80 °F. The coldest is February, when highs average 27 °C81 °F and lows 25 °C78 °F. Temperatures barely change through the year: the warmest and the coolest month differ by only 1.4 °C2.5 °F.
It is very wet, receiving about 2,886 mm114 in of precipitation per year. The wettest three-month stretch is November–January, which brings 35% of the annual total. The wettest month is January (380 mm15 in), the driest is April (148 mm5.8 in).
Relative humidity ranges from 83% in April to 87% in January. The clearest skies (lowest average cloud amount, 54%) are typical of April. Average wind speed near the ground ranges from 5 km/h (3 mph) in June to 8 km/h (5 mph) in February.
Best time to visit Sandakan
No month comes close to our comfort ideal here. The least demanding months are April, May and June (average highs 29 °C84 °F, 29 °C84 °F and 28 °C83 °F).
The most challenging month is January, which is very wet (380 mm15 in) and humid (87% 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 Sandakan
- Wetter months (October–February) — highs 2781 to 28 °C83 °F, lows 2578 to 26 °C79 °F, about 305 mm12 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 (March–September) — highs 2882 to 29 °C84 °F, lows 2678 to 27 °C80 °F, about 194 mm7.7 in of precipitation a month. Pack light summer clothes such as T-shirts, shorts or light dresses and an umbrella or light rain jacket.
How Sandakan compares
Compared with Kota Kinabalu, about 227 km to the west, Sandakan is on average 0.5 °C0.9 °F cooler and receives 6% more precipitation (2,886 mm114 in vs 2,716 mm107 in). The difference is largest in April (0.7 °C1.3 °F cooler).
Of the 32 places in Malaysia covered by World Climates, Sandakan is the 17th warmest by annual mean temperature and the 5th wettest by annual precipitation. See all of them on the Malaysia climate page.
Places in other countries with the most similar temperature and rainfall pattern (seasons shifted for the other hemisphere where needed): Tacloban (Philippines, Af), Sorong (Indonesia, Af) and Panalanoy (Philippines, Af).
Nearby places
- Lahad Datu 94 km · 27 °C80 °F · 2,620 mm103 in
- Tawau 179 km · 28 °C82 °F · 2,490 mm98 in
- Kota Kinabalu 227 km · 28 °C82 °F · 2,716 mm107 in
- Tarakan 287 km · 28 °C82 °F · 2,897 mm114 in
- Jolo 320 km · 28 °C82 °F · 1,566 mm62 in
- Bandar Seri Begawan 367 km · 27 °C81 °F · 2,989 mm118 in
- Puerto Princesa 439 km · 28 °C82 °F · 1,687 mm66 in
- Zamboanga 453 km · 28 °C82 °F · 1,637 mm64 in
Frequently asked questions
What is the warmest month in Sandakan?
May is the warmest month in Sandakan, with an average high of 29 °C (84 °F) and an average low of 27 °C (80 °F).
What is the coldest month in Sandakan?
February is the coldest month, with an average high of 27 °C (81 °F) and an average low of 25 °C (78 °F).
When does it rain the most in Sandakan?
January is the wettest month with about 380 mm (15.0 in) of precipitation; April is the driest with about 148 mm (5.8 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.