Dunedin weather by month & the best time to visit
🇳🇿 New Zealand · seaside town · oceanic / maritime climate
The best time to visit Dunedin is February — its sunniest month (Sunshine Score 79/100), with January and March close behind. Dunedin averages about 2,093 hours of sunshine a year. Daytime highs around 20°C / 68°F and roughly 63 mm of rain in February.
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- Sun hours / year
- 2,093
- Sunniest month
- February
- Peak score
- 79/100
- Rain / year
- 709 mm
- Midday UV at peak
- 8 (very high)
- Sea at warmest
- 16°C / 61°F
- Population
- 133k
- Elevation
- Sea level
When is the best time to visit Dunedin?
For sunshine, the best time to visit Dunedin is February, then January and March. The dullest month is July (7/100, 49 mm of rain). The full month-by-month picture is in the table below.
How sunny is Dunedin?
Dunedin gets a moderate 2,093 hours of sunshine a year. 72 Sunshine Score points separate February (79) from July (7), so the month you pick matters. It ranks #24 of 26 destinations in New Zealand for annual sunshine, below the national median of 2,342 hours. The year's 709 mm of rain spreads fairly evenly across the months, with no pronounced dry season.
Sunshine Score by month
| Month | Score | Day high | Night low | Rain | UV | Sea |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 78 | 21° / 70°F | 11° / 52°F | 68 mm | 8 | 16° / 61°F |
| February | 79 | 20° / 68°F | 11° / 52°F | 63 mm | 7 | 16° / 61°F |
| March | 75 | 19° / 66°F | 9° / 48°F | 51 mm | 5 | 14° / 57°F |
| April | 53 | 16° / 61°F | 8° / 46°F | 61 mm | 3 | 13° / 55°F |
| May | 26 | 12° / 54°F | 6° / 43°F | 73 mm | 1 | 11° / 52°F |
| June | 13 | 10° / 50°F | 4° / 39°F | 55 mm | 1 | 10° / 50°F |
| July | 7 | 9° / 48°F | 4° / 39°F | 49 mm | 1 | 10° / 50°F |
| August | 21 | 11° / 52°F | 4° / 39°F | 45 mm | 1 | 10° / 50°F |
| September | 34 | 13° / 55°F | 5° / 41°F | 47 mm | 3 | 10° / 50°F |
| October | 46 | 15° / 59°F | 6° / 43°F | 64 mm | 4 | 11° / 52°F |
| November | 59 | 17° / 63°F | 8° / 46°F | 65 mm | 6 | 13° / 55°F |
| December | 72 | 19° / 66°F | 10° / 50°F | 68 mm | 8 | 14° / 57°F |
Sea temperature in Dunedin by month
The sea off Dunedin is warmest in January at around 16°C / 61°F, and coolest in June at 10°C / 50°F. It never reaches comfortable swimming temperatures (21°C+). Month-by-month sea-surface temperatures are in the Sea column of the table above.
See Dunedin on the interactive sunshine globe →
Nearby places for sunshine
- Invercargill New Zealand · 155 km · best in Feb · 1,949 h sun/yr
- Christchurch New Zealand · 328 km · best in Feb · 2,377 h sun/yr
- Blenheim New Zealand · 572 km · best in Feb · 2,486 h sun/yr
- Wellington New Zealand · 632 km · best in Feb · 2,510 h sun/yr
- Palmerston North New Zealand · 763 km · best in Jan · 2,196 h sun/yr
- New Plymouth New Zealand · 836 km · best in Jan · 2,321 h sun/yr
Nearest destinations
- Queenstown New Zealand · 152 km · 2,268 h sun/yr · best in Feb
- Wanaka New Zealand · 153 km · 2,430 h sun/yr · best in Feb
- Westport New Zealand · 479 km · 2,175 h sun/yr · best in Feb
- Nelson New Zealand · 569 km · 2,486 h sun/yr · best in Feb
Head-to-head
How Dunedin compares month by month: Dunedin vs Christchurch · Dunedin vs Invercargill · Dunedin vs Blenheim · all comparisons
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