Berlin and Cologne have similar daytime temperatures, Cologne gets 220 mm (8.7 in) more rain a year.
Berlin is at its warmest in August and coolest in January, while Cologne peaks in August and bottoms out in January. Month for month, Cologne is the warmer of the two in 6 of 11 months.
Cologne is the wetter of the two, collecting 822 mm (32.4 in) of rain a year against 602 mm (23.7 in) in Berlin. The most comfortable time to visit is June, July and August in Berlin and June, July and August in Cologne.
| Berlin | Metric | Cologne |
|---|---|---|
| 🌡️ Temperature | ||
| 21.1°C | 🌡️Average daytime high | 21.1°C |
| -0.7°C | 🌙Average nighttime low | 0°C |
| August | 🔥Hottest month | August |
| January | ❄️Coldest month | January |
| 🌧️ Rain | ||
| 602 mm | 🌧️Annual rainfall | 822 mm |
| July | ☔Wettest month | December |
| April | 🏜️Driest month | April |
| 💨 Climate | ||
| 80% | 💧Average humidity | 82% |
| 3.1 m/s | 💨Average wind speed | 3 m/s |
Overnight, Berlin typically falls to around -0.7°C (30.7°F) while Cologne settles near 0°C (32°F).
Berlin is hottest in August and coldest in January, whereas Cologne peaks in August and is coolest in January.
Berlin sees the most rain in July and the least in April; Cologne is wettest in December and driest in April.
Cologne feels the more humid of the two, averaging 82% relative humidity against 80%.
For Cologne, the pick of the year is June, July and August.
Month by month, here is the coldest night, the average day and the hottest afternoon each city can expect. Switch Compare to read rainfall, humidity, wind or solar instead, and Period to move between the long-term 45-year average and any single year — the shading is a quick warm-to-cool guide.
| Month | Berlin | Cologne | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Min | Avg | Max | Min | Avg | Max | |
| January | -11.2 | -1.4❄️ | 8.5 | -8.2 | 1.1❄️ | 10.5 |
| February | -9.1 | 0.6 | 10.3 | -7.4 | 2.2 | 11.9 |
| March | -5.6 | 5.3 | 16.2 | -4 | 6.5 | 16.9 |
| April | -2.6 | 9.6 | 21.9 | -2.2 | 9.6 | 21.4 |
| May | 2.4 | 14.6 | 26.7 | 2.1 | 13.7 | 25.2 |
| June | 7 | 19 | 30.9 | 6.1 | 17.7 | 29.2 |
| July | 9.9 | 21.4🔥 | 32.9 | 8.9 | 20.2🔥 | 31.6 |
| August | 9.2 | 21.1 | 33 | 8.6 | 20.1 | 31.7 |
| September | 5.4 | 16.5 | 27.6 | 5.4 | 16.2 | 27 |
| October | -0.3 | 10.8 | 21.9 | 0.6 | 11.2 | 21.7 |
| November | -4.4 | 4.8 | 14 | -3.2 | 6.1 | 15.3 |
| December | -8.8 | 0.3 | 9.4 | -6.8 | 2.2 | 11.2 |
| Annual Avg | -0.7 | 10.2 | 21.1 | 0 | 10.6 | 21.1 |
Min / mean / max temperature (°C). 🔥 marks each city's hottest month, ❄️ its coldest; shading runs cool blue to warm red.
The same figures plotted out, so the shape of a typical year is easier to see than in a grid. Where the two lines run close together Berlin and Cologne feel alike; where they separate, they are genuinely different places to be.
Hover or tap any point to read the exact figures. Berlin Cologne
See how Berlin and Cologne stack up against other cities. Swipe for more.
Choose which city to keep, then search for any other city in our database — we'll build the comparison for you.
Quick answers to the questions people ask most when comparing Berlin and Cologne — each drawn straight from the climate figures above.
Berlin and Cologne are about equally warm. Daytime highs average 21.1°C (70°F) in Berlin and 21.1°C (70°F) in Cologne, so neither is clearly the warmer choice over the year. Nights are milder in Cologne, with average lows of 0°C (32°F) versus -0.7°C (30.7°F).
Berlin is hottest in August, averaging highs of about 33°C (91.3°F), while Cologne peaks in August at around 31.7°C (89°F). That makes Berlin the hotter of the two at the height of summer.
Berlin gets colder. In its coldest month (January) overnight lows average about -11.2°C (11.8°F), compared with -8.2°C (17.2°F) at the low point of the year in Cologne.
Cologne is the wetter city, collecting about 822 mm (32.4 in) of rain a year versus 602 mm (23.7 in) in Berlin. Berlin is wettest in July and driest in April; Cologne is wettest in December and driest in April.
Cologne is the more humid of the two, averaging 82% relative humidity over the year against 80% in Berlin.
The most comfortable months in Berlin are June, July and August, when average temperatures are at their mildest.
Cologne is at its most pleasant around June, July and August, based on the mildest average temperatures of the year.
Cologne is the warmer city in 6 of the 11 months of the year. The gap is widest in January, about 2.5°C (4.5°F), and narrowest in April, about 0°C (0°F).
Berlin has the bigger seasonal swing, about 22.8°C (41°F) between its coldest and hottest months versus 19.1°C (34.4°F) in Cologne — so Cologne has the steadier, more even climate.
On climate alone, Berlin comes out ahead — it offers less rain than Cologne. Cologne is the better fit only if you'd actually prefer more rainfall.
Every figure on this page is calculated from NASA POWER satellite climate data spanning 1981–2025 (45 years). The averages describe the long-term climate of Berlin and Cologne, not a single year's weather or a short-range forecast.
