Gold Coast is 3.6°C (6.5°F) warmer by day, Sydney has 1.4°C (2.5°F) warmer nights, Gold Coast gets 264 mm (10.4 in) more rain a year.
Gold Coast is at its warmest in December and coolest in July, while Sydney peaks in January and bottoms out in July. Month for month, Gold Coast is the warmer of the two in 11 of 12 months.
Gold Coast is the wetter of the two, collecting 1,227 mm (48.3 in) of rain a year against 963 mm (37.9 in) in Sydney. The most comfortable time to visit is April, September and October in Gold Coast and April, October and November in Sydney.
| Gold Coast | Metric | Sydney |
|---|---|---|
| 🌡️ Temperature | ||
| 30.1°C | 🌡️Average daytime high | 26.5°C |
| 11.6°C | 🌙Average nighttime low | 13°C |
| December | 🔥Hottest month | January |
| July | ❄️Coldest month | July |
| 🌧️ Rain | ||
| 1,227 mm | 🌧️Annual rainfall | 963 mm |
| February | ☔Wettest month | February |
| September | 🏜️Driest month | September |
| 💨 Climate | ||
| 72% | 💧Average humidity | 73% |
| 3.1 m/s | 💨Average wind speed | 3.2 m/s |
Overnight, Gold Coast typically falls to around 11.6°C (52.9°F) while Sydney settles near 13°C (55.4°F).
Gold Coast is hottest in December and coldest in July, whereas Sydney peaks in January and is coolest in July.
Gold Coast sees the most rain in February and the least in September; Sydney is wettest in February and driest in September.
Sydney feels the more humid of the two, averaging 73% relative humidity against 72%.
For Sydney, the pick of the year is April, October and November.
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 | Gold Coast | Sydney | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Min | Avg | Max | Min | Avg | Max | |
| January | 18.1 | 26.7🔥 | 35.2 | 17.8 | 25.4🔥 | 32.9 |
| February | 18.1 | 26 | 33.9 | 18 | 24.8 | 31.6 |
| March | 16 | 24.2 | 32.4 | 16.6 | 22.9 | 29.3 |
| April | 12.5 | 20.7 | 28.9 | 14 | 20.1 | 26.2 |
| May | 8.6 | 17.4 | 26.1 | 11.4 | 17.2 | 23 |
| June | 5.4 | 14.3 | 23.2 | 9 | 14.4 | 19.8 |
| July | 5.1 | 14.2❄️ | 23.3 | 8.4 | 14❄️ | 19.6 |
| August | 5.9 | 15.8 | 25.7 | 8.8 | 15 | 21.2 |
| September | 8.4 | 19.1 | 29.8 | 10.3 | 17.6 | 24.9 |
| October | 11.2 | 22.1 | 32.9 | 12.1 | 20.1 | 28.1 |
| November | 13.9 | 24.1 | 34.2 | 13.5 | 21.6 | 29.8 |
| December | 15.9 | 25.7 | 35.5 | 15.7 | 23.7 | 31.8 |
| Annual Avg | 11.6 | 20.9 | 30.1 | 13 | 19.7 | 26.5 |
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 Gold Coast and Sydney feel alike; where they separate, they are genuinely different places to be.
Hover or tap any point to read the exact figures. Gold Coast Sydney
See how Gold Coast and Sydney 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 Gold Coast and Sydney — each drawn straight from the climate figures above.
Gold Coast is the warmer of the two. It averages daytime highs of 30.1°C (86.2°F) against 26.5°C (79.7°F) in Sydney — roughly 3.6°C (6.5°F) warmer by day. Nights are milder in Sydney, with average lows of 13°C (55.4°F) versus 11.6°C (52.9°F).
Gold Coast is hottest in December, averaging highs of about 35.5°C (95.8°F), while Sydney peaks in January at around 32.9°C (91.2°F). That makes Gold Coast the hotter of the two at the height of summer.
Gold Coast gets colder. In its coldest month (July) overnight lows average about 5.1°C (41.1°F), compared with 8.4°C (47.1°F) at the low point of the year in Sydney.
Gold Coast is the wetter city, collecting about 1,227 mm (48.3 in) of rain a year versus 963 mm (37.9 in) in Sydney. Gold Coast is wettest in February and driest in September; Sydney is wettest in February and driest in September.
Humidity is similar in both, averaging around 72% in Gold Coast and 73% in Sydney across the year.
The most comfortable months in Gold Coast are April, September and October, when average temperatures are at their mildest.
Sydney is at its most pleasant around April, October and November, based on the mildest average temperatures of the year.
Gold Coast is the warmer city in 11 of the 12 months of the year. The gap is widest in November, about 2.5°C (4.5°F), and narrowest in June, about 0.1°C (0.2°F).
Gold Coast has the bigger seasonal swing, about 12.5°C (22.5°F) between its coldest and hottest months versus 11.4°C (20.5°F) in Sydney — so Sydney has the steadier, more even climate.
It depends what matters most to you: choose Gold Coast for warmer weather and pick Sydney if you prefer drier conditions. There is no single "better" climate — it comes down to whether you value warmth, dryness or comfort most.
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 Gold Coast and Sydney, not a single year's weather or a short-range forecast.
