Today's weather for Stockholm, Sweden24th Jul 2008 11:20

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Weather Overview for Stockholm

Stockholm’s weather is often thought of as being cold and dark. While it does indeed endure long cold winters, the summer months can see fantastic weather and the city can look stunning under a blanket of snow in winter.

While you can expect to get some rain at any time of year in Stockholm, Sweden is in fact one of Europe’s driest countries. Only Spain and Russia see less rainfall. This is due in the main to the shelter the country receives from the mountains of Norway to the west.

Stockholm experiences a wide range of weather over the year, from snow and biting cold, to hot sunny days worthy of sunbathing on the beach. There is a very marked difference between the seasons - average temperature ranges from 18ºC in July to -3ºC in January.

Summer is a great time to visit Stockholm. The city is alive with people enjoying the many outdoor cafes and bars. The days are long and the nights stay warm. 

July is the warmest month, with daily highs averaging 22ºC and lows remaining above 13 ºC. Temperatures can frequently get hotter during a sunny spell, and Stockholm can see the mercury rise into the 30s on occasions in mid-summer.

July and August are, however, the wettest months of the year so expect to get some rain of you visit then. While they have the most rain in terms of volume, the number of days it rains on average during the month is less than in winter. So the summer rainfall is normally briefer but heavier. 

Perhaps the best thing about summer in Stockholm is the amount of daylight. It only really gets dark for a couple of hours a night. With these long, light and warm evenings it is a great place to soak up the nightlife.

Winter is a very different story and suffers from the very short days. The shortest day of the year is just 6 hours, compared with nearly 19 in mid summer. The lack of daylight can make things gloomy in winter especially in a period of grey weather. 

Lows below zero occur in the city from November until March, and snowfall is common during these months too. In December, January and February it rarely climbs above freezing at any time of day so be sure to take you warm clothes.

Rainfall isn’t particularly high in winter, but there are quite a lot of grey drizzly days. However, despite the dark and the gloom that can encompass Stockholm in winter, the city blanketed under a sheet of snow is a stunning sight. This is common between December and March and can in fact make it a magical time to visit for those that don’t mind braving the cold.
 

Spring and Autumn are times of great change in Stockholm as the dramatic shift between summer and winter happens fast. Early spring still sees frequent snowfalls, but by May warm sunny weather can be common. Late spring is often blessed with fine, dry weather so it can be a great time to visit and is the driest time of year.

Autumn is indeed wetter but the very cold temperatures don’t arrive until November. At this time the first snows of the season can arrive – an exciting time for the many winter sports enthusiasts in the city.

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