Cologne and London have similar daytime temperatures, Cologne gets 117 mm (4.6 in) more rain a year.
Cologne is at its warmest in August and coolest in January, while London peaks in July and bottoms out in February. Month for month, Cologne is the warmer of the two in 6 of 12 months.
Cologne is the wetter of the two, collecting 822 mm (32.4 in) of rain a year against 705 mm (27.8 in) in London. The most comfortable time to visit is June, July and August in Cologne and June, July and August in London.
| Cologne | Metric | London |
|---|---|---|
| 🌡️ Temperature | ||
| 14.2°C | 🌡️Average daytime high | 14.3°C |
| 5.6°C | 🌙Average nighttime low | 6.2°C |
| August | 🔥Hottest month | July |
| January | ❄️Coldest month | February |
| 🌧️ Rain | ||
| 822 mm | 🌧️Annual rainfall | 705 mm |
| December | ☔Wettest month | October |
| April | 🏜️Driest month | April |
| 💨 Climate | ||
| 82% | 💧Average humidity | 85% |
| 3 m/s | 💨Average wind speed | 3.4 m/s |
Overnight, Cologne typically falls to around 5.6°C (42.1°F) while London settles near 6.2°C (43.2°F).
Cologne is hottest in August and coldest in January, whereas London peaks in July and is coolest in February.
Cologne sees the most rain in December and the least in April; London is wettest in October and driest in April.
London feels the more humid of the two, averaging 85% relative humidity against 82%.
For London, 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 | Cologne | London | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Min | Avg | Max | Min | Avg | Max | |
| January | -1.3 | 1.4❄️ | 4.2 | 1.3 | 4❄️ | 6.7 |
| February | -1.1 | 2.3 | 5.7 | 1.2 | 4.4 | 7.5 |
| March | 1.2 | 5.6 | 9.9 | 2.5 | 6.5 | 10.4 |
| April | 3.7 | 8.8 | 13.9 | 4 | 8.7 | 13.3 |
| May | 7.8 | 13 | 18.2 | 7.1 | 11.9 | 16.7 |
| June | 11 | 16.2 | 21.3 | 10 | 14.9 | 19.9 |
| July | 13.3 | 18.6🔥 | 23.8 | 12.3 | 17.4🔥 | 22.4 |
| August | 13.2 | 18.6 | 24 | 12.3 | 17.3 | 22.4 |
| September | 10.1 | 15.2 | 20.2 | 10.1 | 14.8 | 19.5 |
| October | 6.6 | 10.8 | 15 | 7.5 | 11.3 | 15.1 |
| November | 2.6 | 5.7 | 8.8 | 4.3 | 7.2 | 10.2 |
| December | -0.1 | 2.4 | 4.9 | 2.4 | 4.9 | 7.3 |
| Annual Avg | 5.6 | 9.9 | 14.2 | 6.3 | 10.3 | 14.3 |
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 Cologne and London feel alike; where they separate, they are genuinely different places to be.
Hover or tap any point to read the exact figures. Cologne London
See how Cologne and London 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 Cologne and London — each drawn straight from the climate figures above.
Cologne and London are about equally warm. Daytime highs average 14.2°C (57.6°F) in Cologne and 14.3°C (57.7°F) in London, so neither is clearly the warmer choice over the year. Nights are milder in London, with average lows of 6.2°C (43.2°F) versus 5.6°C (42.1°F).
Cologne is hottest in August, averaging highs of about 24°C (75.2°F), while London peaks in July at around 22.4°C (72.4°F). That makes Cologne the hotter of the two at the height of summer.
Cologne gets colder. In its coldest month (January) overnight lows average about -1.3°C (29.6°F), compared with 1.2°C (34.2°F) at the low point of the year in London.
Cologne is the wetter city, collecting about 822 mm (32.4 in) of rain a year versus 705 mm (27.8 in) in London. Cologne is wettest in December and driest in April; London is wettest in October and driest in April.
London is the more humid of the two, averaging 85% relative humidity over the year against 82% in Cologne.
The most comfortable months in Cologne are June, July and August, when average temperatures are at their mildest.
London 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 12 months of the year. The gap is widest in January, about 2.6°C (4.7°F), and narrowest in April, about 0.1°C (0.2°F).
Cologne has the bigger seasonal swing, about 17.2°C (31°F) between its coldest and hottest months versus 13.4°C (24.1°F) in London — so London has the steadier, more even climate.
On climate alone, London 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 Cologne and London, not a single year's weather or a short-range forecast.
