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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 91°F, while the coldest is January averaging around 74°F at night. Precipitation totals about 108 inches a year and is strongly seasonal — October alone averages 15.6 inches while February barely receives 3.36 inches.
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 (°F) | 88 | 88 | 90 | 91 | 91 | 91 | 90 | 90 | 90 | 89 | 89 | 89 |
| Avg temp (°F) | 81 | 81 | 82 | 84 | 84 | 83 | 83 | 83 | 82 | 82 | 82 | 82 |
| Avg low (°F) | 74 | 74 | 75 | 76 | 76 | 75 | 75 | 75 | 75 | 75 | 75 | 75 |
| Precipitation (in) | 5.3 | 3.4 | 3.4 | 4.9 | 8.4 | 11.9 | 11.4 | 10.3 | 11.4 | 15.6 | 11.0 | 10.5 |
| Jan – Jun | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avg high (°F) | 88 | 88 | 90 | 91 | 91 | 91 |
| Avg temp (°F) | 81 | 81 | 82 | 84 | 84 | 83 |
| Avg low (°F) | 74 | 74 | 75 | 76 | 76 | 75 |
| Precipitation (in) | 5.3 | 3.4 | 3.4 | 4.9 | 8.4 | 11.9 |
| Jul – Dec | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avg high (°F) | 90 | 90 | 90 | 89 | 89 | 89 |
| Avg temp (°F) | 83 | 83 | 82 | 82 | 82 | 82 |
| Avg low (°F) | 75 | 75 | 75 | 75 | 75 | 75 |
| Precipitation (in) | 11.4 | 10.3 | 11.4 | 15.6 | 11.0 | 10.5 |
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 (mph) | 3.9 | 3.8 | 3.4 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.1 | 3.3 | 3.5 | 3.4 | 3.6 | 3.3 | 3.6 |
| 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 (mph) | 3.9 | 3.8 | 3.4 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.1 |
| 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 (mph) | 3.3 | 3.5 | 3.4 | 3.6 | 3.3 | 3.6 |
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.