Climate and average weather in Fayzabad

In Fayzabad, the summers are warm, dry, and clear and the winters are very cold, snowy, and partly cloudy.

Best: mid June to early October

Over the course of the year, the temperature in Fayzabad typically varies from -11°C to 26°C, and is rarely below -20°C or above 30°C. July is the hottest month of the year, while January is the coldest.

Based on the travel score, the best time of year to visit Fayzabad for warm-weather activities is from mid June to early October.

Hottest
Jul
26°
Coldest
Jan
-11°
Wettest
Apr
106 mm
Driest
Aug
3 mm
Rain / yr
571 mm
94 wet days
Daylight
9.4–14.6 h
shortest–longest
Elevation
1,210 m
37.1°N
Clearest
Aug
15% cloud

Fayzabad is capital of Badakhshan, Afghanistan.

Density
6,346/km²
people per km²

Air quality: WHO Ambient Air Quality Database. Density & description: Wikidata (CC0), GeoNames.

Fayzabad weather by month, at a glance

The whole year in one picture — sky, rain, humidity, temperature and travel score. Click any band to jump to its full chart.

Each stripe is one measure across the whole year, stacked so a single day reads top to bottom. The sky band runs overcast grey on top down to clear blue at the base — more blue means sunnier — followed by the rainfall curve, the humidity band, a temperature strip that tints each stretch of the year by how warm its average high is, and the travel-score line at the foot. Scan straight down any date to read that day across every measure at once; the score climbs highest around mid June to early October.

Temperature through the year

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Daily average highs and lows in Fayzabad, from 1991–2020 of climate data. The shaded bands show the range most days fall in — 10th to 90th percentile.

The hot season lasts 4.6 months, from May 15 to September 30, with daily high temperatures above 19°C. The hottest month of the year in Fayzabad is July, with an average high of 26°C and low of 13°C.

The cool season lasts 2.9 months, from December 3 to March 1, with daily high temperatures below 3°C. The coldest month of the year in Fayzabad is January, with an average low of -11°C and high of -2°C.

Days typically run about 12°C warmer than nights, with the widest day–night swing (around 14°C) in September.

-20°-10°10°20°30°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
Jan-2-11
Feb1-9
Mar7-3
Apr142
May197
Jun2310
Jul2613
Aug2512
Sep228
Oct163
Nov8-4
Dec1-9

How hot and cold Fayzabad really feels

Feels-like highFeels-like lowactual air temp

The felt-temperature range through the year — heat index on the day's high (summer humidity), wind chill on the night's low (winter wind). The dashed lines are the plain thermometer; the gap is how much hotter or colder it really feels.

On the coldest nights, wind chill pulls the feels-like down to about -16°C (around January 14), with roughly 176 freezing days a year (feels-like at or below 0°C) 91 of them bitterly cold — worst in January.

-20°-10°10°20°30°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Feels-like high (°C)Air high (°C)Feels-like low (°C)Air low (°C)
Jan-2-2-16-11
Feb01-12-9
Mar77-6-3
Apr141402
May191967
Jun23231010
Jul26261313
Aug25251212
Sep222278
Oct161613
Nov88-7-4
Dec11-13-9

Average hourly temperature in Fayzabad

A compact picture of the whole year, hour by hour: each column is a day, each row an hour, and the color is the modeled average temperature. Darker overlays mark night, lighter ones the civil-twilight hours around sunrise and sunset.

Read left to right for the day of the year and top to bottom for the hour of the day; the color is the modeled temperature, cool blues through to hot reds on the same scale as the other charts. A vertical slice is a single day's swing — coolest just before dawn, warmest in the mid-afternoon — while a horizontal slice follows one hour across the seasons. The darker overlay marks night and the lighter one the twilight around sunrise and sunset. Colors run warmest on July afternoons, near 26°C, and coldest before dawn in January, near -11°C.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec12 AM2 AM4 AM6 AM8 AM10 AM12 PM2 PM4 PM6 PM8 PM10 PM12 AM

Fayzabad weather by month

Every month at a glance. Click a month for its detailed page.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan-2° / -11°539.29.59.70.0
Feb / -9°6210.29.710.60.0
Mar / -3°8412.89.811.70.8
Apr14° / 10614.44.612.93.6
May19° / 10515.50.5145.5
Jun23° / 10°297014.57.8
Jul26° / 13°82.1014.38.7
Aug25° / 12°30.9013.49.1
Sep22° / 510.212.38.9
Oct16° / 285.81.2115.7
Nov / -4°457.85.7101.5
Dec / -9°427.57.59.50.0

Chance of rain

How likely it is to rain on a typical day, and how that shifts across the wetter and drier seasons.

Fayzabad gets about 571 mm of precipitation a year. On a typical day the chance of rain is some rain, but that rises and falls sharply with the seasons.

The wetter season lasts 5.3 months, from around Jan 2 to Jun 12, peaking in May at about 53% chance on a given day. The drier stretch runs the rest of the year, bottoming out around Aug 31.

April is the wettest month by volume, with 106 mm over about 14 wet days; August is the driest, with 3 mm. Some of the cold-season precipitation falls as snow.

0%10%20%30%40%50%60%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecwetterdriermostly drysome rainoften wetvery wetMay 5 · 53%Aug 31 · 2%
Rain on a day (%)Rain days
Jan299
Feb3610
Mar4113
Apr4814
May4916
Jun247
Jul72
Aug31
Sep41
Oct196
Nov258
Dec248

Monthly rainfall

Over a full year, Fayzabad collects about 571 mm of rain across 94 wet days — roughly 48 mm in an average month.

It doesn’t fall evenly. April is the wettest month with 106 mm, while August is the driest at just 3 mm. The three wettest months alone bring about 52% of the year’s total, and some of the cold-season precipitation falls as snow.

0255075100125JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec53628410610529835284542
Rainfall (mm)Rain daysSnow days
Jan53910
Feb621010
Mar841310
Apr106145
May105161
Jun2970
Jul820
Aug310
Sep510
Oct2861
Nov4586
Dec4288

Snow in Fayzabad

Average snowy days through the year, the snow-season span, and estimated snowfall — for ski trips and the perennial 'will there be snow at Christmas?' question.

Fayzabad averages about 49 snowy days a year. Snow season runs roughly Sep 29 to May 13 — about 7.5 months.

February is snowiest, with roughly 11 days of snow and an estimated 64 cm of snowfall. Over the year that adds up to an estimated 262 cm of snow.

051015JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecsnow seasonsnow seasonFeb 13
Snow daysSnowfall (cm)
Jan1052
Feb1064
Mar1055
Apr521
May11
Jun00
Jul00
Aug00
Sep00
Oct17
Nov627
Dec835

Clouds and sunshine

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

How often the daytime sky is clear, partly cloudy or overcast.

In Fayzabad, the average share of the sky covered by clouds shows significant seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The clearer part of the year begins around May 24 and lasts for 5.4 months, ending around November 2. The clearest month is August, when the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 97% of the time on average.

The cloudier part of the year begins around November 3 and lasts for 6.6 months, ending around May 23. The cloudiest month is February, when it is overcast or mostly cloudy 62% of the time.

0%100%10%90%20%80%30%70%40%60%50%50%60%40%70%30%80%20%90%10%100%0%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecAug 22 · 98%Mar 12 · 37%clearmostly clearpartly cloudymostly cloudyovercastcloudierclearercloudier
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
Jan4159
Feb3862
Mar3862
Apr4456
May5842
Jun8614
Jul955
Aug973
Sep946
Oct7624
Nov5743
Dec4753

Daylight, sunrise and sunset

DaylightNight

Hours of daylight through the year, with sunrise and sunset times.

The gold band is daylight — sunrise runs along its lower edge, sunset along the upper — so it widens toward summer and pinches toward winter, with night the dark area above and below. The longest day, around June 20, brings about 14 h 36 min of light; the shortest, around December 20, only 9 h 24 min — a swing of roughly 5 h 12 min.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AMJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
Jan9.77:064:48
Feb10.66:455:20
Mar11.76:065:48
Apr12.95:196:16
May14.04:446:43
Jun14.54:327:04
Jul14.34:447:03
Aug13.45:096:35
Sep12.35:355:49
Oct11.06:025:04
Nov10.06:344:32
Dec9.57:004:28

Sunny days

How many genuinely sunny days each month brings — days the sky stays clear or mostly clear — banded into plain-language zones.

Fayzabad averages about 16 sunny days a month — counting the days the sky stays clear or mostly clear — with a clear seasonal swing between 8 and 27 days.

The sunnier stretch runs 5.0 months, from around Jun 3 to Oct 31. The sunniest month is September, with roughly 27 sunny days (brilliant).

The greyest month is March, down near 8 sunny days — about 70% fewer than the September peak.

051015202530JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecgreyersunniergreyergloomymixedbrightbrilliantSep 427 daysMar 208 days
Sunny daysSky
Jan10Mixed
Feb8Mixed
Mar8Gloomy
Apr9Mixed
May12Mixed
Jun20Bright
Jul26Brilliant
Aug27Brilliant
Sep26Brilliant
Oct20Bright
Nov13Mixed
Dec11Mixed

Humidity comfort

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

Share of days at each humidity comfort level, based on the dew point — the measure that tracks how muggy it actually feels.

Humidity comfort is graded by the dew point — the temperature at which the air would be fully saturated — because it tracks how muggy it actually feels far better than relative humidity does. A low dew point feels dry and crisp; a high one feels sticky and oppressive no matter the reading on a humidity gauge.

In Fayzabad, the air stays dry or comfortable essentially all year. Even in June, the muggiest month, it feels humid or worse only about 0% of the time — humidity is not something you need to plan around here.

0%10%20%30%40%50%60%70%80%90%100%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecdry
Dry (%)Comfortable (%)
Jan1000
Feb1000
Mar1000
Apr1000
May1000
Jun1000
Jul991
Aug991
Sep1000
Oct1000
Nov1000
Dec1000

Wind

Average wind speed through the year, banded into plain-language speed zones so a number reads as 'breezy' or 'calm' without knowing the scale.

This is the average sustained wind speed at the standard 10 metres above open ground — the steady flow a weather station reports, not the sharper gusts that come and go, which can run half again as fast. It's the number that says whether a place is generally breezy or calm.

Wind in Fayzabad is steady company: average speeds sit near 6 km/hcalm — in every month of the year, with no meaningful windy or calm season.

051015JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDeccalmlight breezeDec 25 · 8 km/hOct 7 · 5 km/h
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
Jan7calm
Feb7calm
Mar6calm
Apr6calm
May6calm
Jun6calm
Jul6calm
Aug6calm
Sep6calm
Oct6calm
Nov6calm
Dec7calm

Hazard calendar for Fayzabad

In seasonPeak

When the seasonal hazards worth planning around — the rainy season, tropical-cyclone risk and dust haze — are active through the year.

Fayzabad's rainy season runs January–May, when most of the year's rain falls.

Rainy season
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec

Best time to visit Fayzabad

TravelBeach/poolTemperatureCloudsPrecipitation

To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Fayzabad throughout the year, we compute two travel scores — one for general sightseeing, one for beach and pool weather.

Around late June, Fayzabad is still near the start of its best-weather window — great conditions with the peak-season crowds not yet at full swing.

Inferred from the travel-score curve; month-by-month visitor numbers are a planned addition.

The travel score favors clear, rainless days with daytime highs between 18°C and 28°C. Based on this score, the best time of year to visit Fayzabad for general outdoor tourist activities is from mid June to early October, with a peak score in the first week of September.

0246810JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbest timetravel scoretemperaturecloudsprecipitationSep 1 · 9.4

The travel score (filled area), and its constituents: the temperature score (red line), the cloud cover score (blue line), and the precipitation score (green line).

Travel score (0–10)Rating
Jan0.0poor
Feb0.0poor
Mar0.8poor
Apr3.6fair
May5.5good
Jun7.8ideal
Jul8.7ideal
Aug9.1ideal
Sep8.9ideal
Oct5.7good
Nov1.6poor
Dec0.0poor

The beach/pool score favors clear, rainless days with daytime highs between 24°C and 34°C. Based on this score, the best time of year to visit Fayzabad for hot-weather activities is from late June to mid September, with a peak score in the first week of August.

024681012JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbest timebeach/pool scoretemperaturecloudsprecipitationAug 2 · 8.5

The beach/pool score (filled area), and its constituents: the temperature score (red line), the cloud cover score (blue line), and the precipitation score (green line).

What to pack for Fayzabad, by month

EssentialRecommendedOptional

Month by month, what's worth putting in the bag — from the temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind. Tap a month for a quick packing note.

For a warm-season trip around July (highs near 26°C), the essentials are light clothes and sun protection. In the cold season around January (highs near -2°C), pack a warm layer, a heavy coat and rain gear.

Light clothing
Warm layer
Winter coat
Rain gear
Sun protection
Windbreaker

In July, Fayzabad sees daytime highs around 26°C and nights near 13°C. Pack sun protection. Worth having: light clothes.

UV index (midday) in Fayzabad by month

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV index through the year, shaded by the WHO exposure levels — how much sun protection each month calls for.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Fayzabad peaks around May 23 at about 11 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near January 10 at about 2 (moderate).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 10 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModerateHighVery highExtremeVery highModerateMay 23UV 11Jan 10UV 2
UV index (midday)Level
Jan2Moderate
Feb5High
Mar7Very high
Apr8Very high
May11Extreme
Jun11Extreme
Jul10Extreme
Aug11Extreme
Sep9Very high
Oct5High
Nov4Moderate
Dec3Moderate

Average hourly UV index in Fayzabad

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Modeled clear-sky UV for every hour of every day — when in the day sun protection actually matters.

The whole year hour by hour: each column is a day, each row an hour, and the color is the modeled clear-sky UV index — the midday peak scaled down as the sun sits lower in the sky. Darker overlays mark night, lighter ones the civil-twilight hours around sunrise and sunset.

UV falls off far faster than brightness as the sun drops, so even in May the burn window is concentrated in the middle of the day: about 8.5 hours a day reach index 3 (protection recommended), and 6.5 hours reach 6 or more. Mornings and late afternoons stay comparatively gentle year round.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec12 AM2 AM4 AM6 AM8 AM10 AM12 PM2 PM4 PM6 PM8 PM10 PM12 AM
UV ≥ 3 (h/day)UV ≥ 6 (h/day)
Jan00
Feb50
Mar6.53
Apr7.54.5
May8.56.5
Jun96.5
Jul8.56
Aug85.5
Sep74.5
Oct50
Nov2.50
Dec00

Air quality in Fayzabad by month

GoodModeratePoorUnhealthyVery unhealthy

Average fine-particle pollution (PM2.5) through the year — so you can see which months the air is worst, not just the yearly average.

Air quality in Fayzabad is worst in July — around 26 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 3.7× the cleanest month (December, 7 µg/m³).

Modeled monthly averages (CAMS reanalysis, 2015–2024).

0102030JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecGoodModerateGoodJul 1725 µg/m³Dec 187 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan7Good
Feb8Good
Mar12Good
Apr15Moderate
May19Moderate
Jun22Moderate
Jul26Moderate
Aug23Moderate
Sep17Moderate
Oct13Moderate
Nov8Good
Dec7Good
Almanac & agriculture

Growing season

Chance of a frost-free dayTypical season (≥50%)

The growing season in Fayzabad typically lasts about 211 days, from around April 2 to October 29 — the span where a frost-free day is more likely than not. It is reliably frost-free from April 27 to October 9.

0%25%50%75%100%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecgrowing seasonMar 110%Apr 250%Apr 2790%Oct 990%Oct 2950%Nov 3010%
Frost-free chance (%)Frost nights
Jan331
Feb728
Mar2731
Apr7226
May990
Jun1000
Jul1000
Aug1000
Sep1000
Oct7623
Nov2330
Dec531

Growing degree days

Degree days (base 10°C)Frost-free shaded

Growing degree days tally heat above 10°C: each day adds however many degrees its average temperature runs over that threshold, and cold days add nothing. Fayzabad banks about 1,021 degree days a year, and the running total — which growers use to time plantings and predict maturity — climbs fastest around July.

02505007501,000JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Growing degree days (°C·days)
Jan0
Feb0
Mar0
Apr2
May91
Jun198
Jul292
Aug275
Sep151
Oct12
Nov0
Dec0

Solar energy

Average daily shortwave solar energy reaching the ground, banded into brightness zones so the number means something at a glance.

Solar energy is how much sunlight actually reaches the ground each day, measured in kilowatt-hours per square metre (kWh/m²) — the combined effect of how long the sun is up, how high it climbs, and how much cloud gets in the way. It's the raw fuel a solar panel has to work with: for scale, 1 kWh/m² a day is dim and wintry, while 7+ is desert-bright.

Fayzabad receives about 5.2 kWh/m² a day of solar energy on average — bright — with a clear seasonal swing between 2.7 and 7.5 kWh/m².

The brighter stretch of the year lasts 6.3 months, from around Mar 21 to Sep 29. The brightest month is July, averaging about 7.4 kWh/m² (intense).

The dimmest month is December, down near 2.7 kWh/m² — roughly 63% less than the July peak.

0123456789JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecdimmerbrighterdimmerdimmoderatebrightintenseJul 37.5 kWhDec 192.7 kWh
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
Jan3.0Moderate
Feb4.0Moderate
Mar5.1Bright
Apr6.0Intense
May6.6Intense
Jun7.4Intense
Jul7.4Intense
Aug6.9Intense
Sep5.9Bright
Oct4.3Bright
Nov3.1Moderate
Dec2.7Moderate

Where is Fayzabad?

Fayzabad sits at 37.1°N, 70.6°E, 1,210 m above sea level, in Afghanistan. The nearest listed city is Bahārak, 32 km away.

ChubekKhorughĀrt KhwājahIshqoshimTaloqan

Topography around Fayzabad

How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Fayzabad.

Within 3 km, the terrain around Fayzabad has large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 778 m around an average of 1,410 m above sea level; within 16 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,186 m; within 80 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 4,797 m.

The land around Fayzabad is covered by grassland (51%) within 3 km, grassland (63%) and bare terrain (20%) within 16 km, and grassland (70%) and bare terrain (20%) within 80 km.

3 km
778 m
16 km
2,186 m
80 km
4,797 m
treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainsnow and icewatermoss and lichen
Nearby: Bahārak 32 km · Jurm 36 km · Rustāq 66 km · Chubek 95 km · Khorugh 96 km · Ārt Khwājah 98 km · Ishqoshim 102 km · Taloqan 102 km

Afghanistan travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 4
Do Not Travel
Power plugs
Type C / F
220 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 17% of US
price level, 2024
GDP per capita
$417
2024
Happiness
1.4 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
31%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
4
per 100k, 2021
Road deaths
15.9
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
Low
World Bank
English
Very low
EF EPI 446
Religion
Muslim 100%

Sources: World Bank, US State Department, World Happiness Report, WHO/UNICEF, EF EPI, CIA World Factbook.

Data sources

Temperature, precipitation, cloud, humidity, wind and solar figures are a 1991–2020 climatology for Fayzabad (37.1166°, 70.58°, elevation 1,210 m), computed from hourly ERA5 reanalysis — contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information. Sun figures are astronomical calculations, not observations. City data © GeoNames, CC BY 4.0. Map outlines from Natural Earth (public domain); interactive map © Google. UV index is derived from CAMS (Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service) clear-sky UV data — contains modified Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service information. Monthly air-quality (PM2.5) seasonality is from the CAMS EAC4 reanalysis (Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service), scaled to the WHO annual mean where available. Topography is sampled from the Copernicus DEM GLO-90 elevation model (© ESA/Airbus) and ESA WorldCover 2021 land cover (CC BY 4.0).