Home › Cities › Malaysia › Kota Kinabalu
Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia climate
Af Tropical rainforest
Kota Kinabalu has a remarkably steady tropical climate (Tropical rainforest, Köppen Af). The hottest month is May with an average daily high near 33°C, while the coldest is January averaging around 23°C at night. Precipitation totals about 2732 mm a year and is strongly seasonal — October alone averages 397 mm while February barely receives 85 mm.
Temperature & precipitation
Daily high–low temperature range with the monthly average, plus monthly precipitation · 1991–2020 normals · hover a month for the exact figuresHours of sunshine per day
Estimated sunny hours each month — daylight length × clear-sky fraction · 1991–2020 monthly cloud cover (NASA POWER)Kota Kinabalu climate normals (1991–2020)
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avg high (°C) | 31 | 31 | 32 | 33 | 33 | 33 | 32 | 32 | 32 | 32 | 32 | 32 |
| Avg temp (°C) | 27 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 29 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 |
| Avg low (°C) | 23 | 23 | 24 | 24 | 25 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 24 |
| Precipitation (mm) | 136 | 85 | 86 | 125 | 212 | 302 | 289 | 263 | 291 | 397 | 279 | 267 |
| Jan – Jun | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avg high (°C) | 31 | 31 | 32 | 33 | 33 | 33 |
| Avg temp (°C) | 27 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 29 | 28 |
| Avg low (°C) | 23 | 23 | 24 | 24 | 25 | 24 |
| Precipitation (mm) | 136 | 85 | 86 | 125 | 212 | 302 |
| Jul – Dec | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avg high (°C) | 32 | 32 | 32 | 32 | 32 | 32 |
| Avg temp (°C) | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 |
| Avg low (°C) | 24 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 24 |
| Precipitation (mm) | 289 | 263 | 291 | 397 | 279 | 267 |
Sky & atmosphere
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cloud cover (%) | 81 | 77 | 71 | 70 | 77 | 80 | 82 | 81 | 82 | 83 | 81 | 83 |
| Relative humidity (%) | 87 | 87 | 85 | 83 | 85 | 85 | 85 | 85 | 86 | 87 | 87 | 87 |
| Wind speed (m/s) | 1.7 | 1.7 | 1.5 | 1.3 | 1.3 | 1.4 | 1.5 | 1.6 | 1.5 | 1.6 | 1.5 | 1.6 |
| Jan – Jun | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cloud cover (%) | 81 | 77 | 71 | 70 | 77 | 80 |
| Relative humidity (%) | 87 | 87 | 85 | 83 | 85 | 85 |
| Wind speed (m/s) | 1.7 | 1.7 | 1.5 | 1.3 | 1.3 | 1.4 |
| Jul – Dec | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cloud cover (%) | 82 | 81 | 82 | 83 | 81 | 83 |
| Relative humidity (%) | 85 | 85 | 86 | 87 | 87 | 87 |
| Wind speed (m/s) | 1.5 | 1.6 | 1.5 | 1.6 | 1.5 | 1.6 |
Methodology & sources
Temperature & precipitation — 1991–2020 normals computed from 30 years of daily observations at Kota Kinabalu Intl, a weather station, about 5 km from the city centre. The underlying daily records come from NOAA's global station network.
Cloud, humidity, wind & sunshine — modelled estimates from NASA POWER, NASA's satellite-and-reanalysis climatology. This is the standard global source for atmospheric variables, which are not measured at most weather stations.