Climate and average weather in Parakou
In Parakou, the summers are humid, sweltering, fairly dry, and partly cloudy and the winters are hot and mostly cloudy.
Over the course of the year, the temperature in Parakou typically varies from 20°C to 36°C, and is rarely below 17°C or above 38°C. March is the hottest month of the year, while August is the coldest.
Based on the travel score, the best times of year to visit Parakou for warm-weather activities are from early January to late January and mid October to late December.
- Hottest
- Mar
- 36°
- Coldest
- Aug
- 22°
- Wettest
- Aug
- 249 mm
- Driest
- Dec
- 2 mm
- Rain / yr
- 1150 mm
- 151 wet days
- Daylight
- 11.5–12.5 h
- shortest–longest
- Elevation
- 369 m
- 9.3°N
- Clearest
- Dec
- 29% cloud
Parakou is city in Benin.
- Density
- 579/km²
- people per km²
- Founded
- 1500
Air quality: WHO Ambient Air Quality Database. Density & description: Wikidata (CC0), GeoNames.
Parakou 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 October to late December.
Temperature through the year
Daily average highs and lows in Parakou, from 1991–2020 of climate data. The shaded bands show the range most days fall in — 10th to 90th percentile.
Temperatures in Parakou stay fairly even through the year, without a distinct hot or cool season. The warmest month is March, with an average high of 36°C and low of 24°C; the coolest is August, with an average low of 22°C and high of 29°C.
Days typically run about 10°C warmer than nights, with the widest day–night swing (around 14°C) in December.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avg high (°C) | 34 | 35 | 36 | 35 | 33 | 31 | 29 | 29 | 30 | 32 | 34 | 34 |
| Avg low (°C) | 20 | 22 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 23 | 22 | 22 | 22 | 22 | 21 | 20 |
| Avg high (°C) | Avg low (°C) | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 34 | 20 |
| Feb | 35 | 22 |
| Mar | 36 | 24 |
| Apr | 35 | 24 |
| May | 33 | 24 |
| Jun | 31 | 23 |
| Jul | 29 | 22 |
| Aug | 29 | 22 |
| Sep | 30 | 22 |
| Oct | 32 | 22 |
| Nov | 34 | 21 |
| Dec | 34 | 20 |
How hot and cold Parakou really feels
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 hottest afternoons, once humidity is folded in, Parakou feels like about 39°C (around April 6). About 327 days a year carry some heat stress, and 15 of them tip into dangerous heat (feels-like above 39°C), peaking in April.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feels-like high (°C) | 34 | 35 | 38 | 39 | 37 | 34 | 32 | 32 | 33 | 35 | 35 | 34 |
| Air high (°C) | 34 | 35 | 36 | 35 | 33 | 31 | 29 | 29 | 30 | 32 | 34 | 34 |
| Feels-like low (°C) | 20 | 22 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 23 | 22 | 22 | 22 | 22 | 21 | 20 |
| Air low (°C) | 20 | 22 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 23 | 22 | 22 | 22 | 22 | 21 | 20 |
| Feels-like high (°C) | Air high (°C) | Feels-like low (°C) | Air low (°C) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 34 | 34 | 20 | 20 |
| Feb | 35 | 35 | 22 | 22 |
| Mar | 38 | 36 | 24 | 24 |
| Apr | 39 | 35 | 24 | 24 |
| May | 37 | 33 | 24 | 24 |
| Jun | 34 | 31 | 23 | 23 |
| Jul | 32 | 29 | 22 | 22 |
| Aug | 32 | 29 | 22 | 22 |
| Sep | 33 | 30 | 22 | 22 |
| Oct | 35 | 32 | 22 | 22 |
| Nov | 35 | 34 | 21 | 21 |
| Dec | 34 | 34 | 20 | 20 |
Average hourly temperature in Parakou
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 March afternoons, near 36°C, and coldest before dawn in August, near 22°C.
Parakou weather by month
Every month at a glance. Click a month for its detailed page.
| Month | High / Low (°C) | Rainfall (mm) | Wet days | Daylight (hours) | Travel score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 34° / 20° | 2 | 0.2 | 11.5 | 4.2 |
| Feb | 35° / 22° | 6 | 1.3 | 11.7 | 2.9 |
| Mar | 36° / 24° | 25 | 4.5 | 11.9 | 2.2 |
| Apr | 35° / 24° | 70 | 12.3 | 12.2 | 2.4 |
| May | 33° / 24° | 127 | 19.1 | 12.4 | 2.8 |
| Jun | 31° / 23° | 136 | 19.5 | 12.5 | 3.5 |
| Jul | 29° / 22° | 207 | 25.4 | 12.5 | 3.4 |
| Aug | 29° / 22° | 249 | 26.7 | 12.3 | 3.4 |
| Sep | 30° / 22° | 222 | 24.3 | 12.1 | 3.2 |
| Oct | 32° / 22° | 98 | 15.3 | 11.8 | 3.6 |
| Nov | 34° / 21° | 6 | 1.6 | 11.6 | 3.8 |
| Dec | 34° / 20° | 2 | 0.3 | 11.5 | 4.2 |
Chance of rain
How likely it is to rain on a typical day, and how that shifts across the wetter and drier seasons.
Parakou gets about 1150 mm of precipitation a year. On a typical day the chance of rain is often wet, but that rises and falls sharply with the seasons.
The wetter season lasts 6.1 months, from around Apr 17 to Oct 19, peaking in August at about 86% chance on a given day. The drier stretch runs the rest of the year, bottoming out around Jan 1.
August is the wettest month by volume, with 249 mm over about 27 wet days; December is the driest, with 2 mm.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rain on a day (%) | 0 | 5 | 16 | 40 | 61 | 65 | 81 | 86 | 81 | 48 | 7 | 1 |
| Rain days | 0 | 1 | 5 | 12 | 19 | 20 | 25 | 27 | 24 | 15 | 2 | 0 |
| Rain on a day (%) | Rain days | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 0 | 0 |
| Feb | 5 | 1 |
| Mar | 16 | 5 |
| Apr | 40 | 12 |
| May | 61 | 19 |
| Jun | 65 | 20 |
| Jul | 81 | 25 |
| Aug | 86 | 27 |
| Sep | 81 | 24 |
| Oct | 48 | 15 |
| Nov | 7 | 2 |
| Dec | 1 | 0 |
Monthly rainfall
Over a full year, Parakou collects about 1150 mm of rain across 151 wet days — roughly 96 mm in an average month.
It doesn’t fall evenly. August is the wettest month with 249 mm, while December is the driest at just 2 mm. The three wettest months alone bring about 59% of the year’s total.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rainfall (mm) | 2 | 6 | 25 | 70 | 127 | 136 | 207 | 249 | 222 | 98 | 6 | 2 |
| Rain days | 0 | 1 | 5 | 12 | 19 | 20 | 25 | 27 | 24 | 15 | 2 | 0 |
| Rainfall (mm) | Rain days | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 2 | 0 |
| Feb | 6 | 1 |
| Mar | 25 | 5 |
| Apr | 70 | 12 |
| May | 127 | 19 |
| Jun | 136 | 20 |
| Jul | 207 | 25 |
| Aug | 249 | 27 |
| Sep | 222 | 24 |
| Oct | 98 | 15 |
| Nov | 6 | 2 |
| Dec | 2 | 0 |
Clouds and sunshine
How often the daytime sky is clear, partly cloudy or overcast.
In Parakou, 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 October 18 and lasts for 5.7 months, ending around April 7. The clearest month is December, when the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 83% of the time on average.
The cloudier part of the year begins around April 8 and lasts for 6.3 months, ending around October 17. The cloudiest month is August, when it is overcast or mostly cloudy 93% of the time.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clearer (%) | 75 | 67 | 48 | 37 | 28 | 21 | 11 | 7 | 15 | 39 | 72 | 83 |
| Cloudier (%) | 25 | 33 | 52 | 63 | 72 | 79 | 89 | 93 | 85 | 61 | 28 | 17 |
| Clearer (%) | Cloudier (%) | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 75 | 25 |
| Feb | 67 | 33 |
| Mar | 48 | 52 |
| Apr | 37 | 63 |
| May | 28 | 72 |
| Jun | 21 | 79 |
| Jul | 11 | 89 |
| Aug | 7 | 93 |
| Sep | 15 | 85 |
| Oct | 39 | 61 |
| Nov | 72 | 28 |
| Dec | 83 | 17 |
Daylight, sunrise and sunset
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 May 21, brings about 12 h 30 min of light; the shortest, around January 1, only 11 h 30 min — a swing of roughly 1 hour.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daylight (h) | 11.5 | 11.7 | 11.9 | 12.2 | 12.4 | 12.5 | 12.5 | 12.3 | 12.1 | 11.8 | 11.6 | 11.5 |
| Sunrise (AM) | 7:13 | 7:13 | 7:01 | 6:44 | 6:33 | 6:33 | 6:40 | 6:44 | 6:42 | 6:41 | 6:48 | 7:02 |
| Sunset (PM) | 6:44 | 6:55 | 6:57 | 6:56 | 6:59 | 7:06 | 7:10 | 7:03 | 6:45 | 6:28 | 6:22 | 6:29 |
| Daylight (h) | Sunrise (AM) | Sunset (PM) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 11.5 | 7:13 | 6:44 |
| Feb | 11.7 | 7:13 | 6:55 |
| Mar | 11.9 | 7:01 | 6:57 |
| Apr | 12.2 | 6:44 | 6:56 |
| May | 12.4 | 6:33 | 6:59 |
| Jun | 12.5 | 6:33 | 7:06 |
| Jul | 12.5 | 6:40 | 7:10 |
| Aug | 12.3 | 6:44 | 7:03 |
| Sep | 12.1 | 6:42 | 6:45 |
| Oct | 11.8 | 6:41 | 6:28 |
| Nov | 11.6 | 6:48 | 6:22 |
| Dec | 11.5 | 7:02 | 6:29 |
Sunny days
How many genuinely sunny days each month brings — days the sky stays clear or mostly clear — banded into plain-language zones.
Parakou averages about 8 sunny days a month — counting the days the sky stays clear or mostly clear — with a clear seasonal swing between 0 and 22 days.
The sunnier stretch runs 4.7 months, from around Oct 27 to Mar 18. The sunniest month is December, with roughly 21 sunny days (bright).
The greyest month is July, down near 0 sunny days — about 99% fewer than the December peak.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sunny days | 19 | 14 | 9 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 15 | 22 |
| Sky | Bright | Bright | Mixed | Gloomy | Gloomy | Gloomy | Gloomy | Gloomy | Gloomy | Gloomy | Bright | Bright |
| Sunny days | Sky | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 19 | Bright |
| Feb | 14 | Bright |
| Mar | 9 | Mixed |
| Apr | 5 | Gloomy |
| May | 2 | Gloomy |
| Jun | 1 | Gloomy |
| Jul | 0 | Gloomy |
| Aug | 0 | Gloomy |
| Sep | 0 | Gloomy |
| Oct | 4 | Gloomy |
| Nov | 15 | Bright |
| Dec | 22 | Bright |
Humidity comfort
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 Parakou, how humid it feels changes dramatically over the year.
The more humid part of the year lasts 8.1 months, from around March 12 to November 14. The muggiest month is April, when the air feels humid, muggy or worse about 99% of the time.
The most comfortable stretch runs from around November 15 to March 11, and December is the most comfortable month — the air is dry or comfortable 71% of the time.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dry (%) | 72 | 49 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 59 |
| Comfortable (%) | 9 | 10 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 11 |
| Humid (%) | 10 | 14 | 13 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 19 | 14 |
| Muggy (%) | 9 | 23 | 43 | 20 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 1 | 11 | 36 | 14 |
| Oppressive (%) | 0 | 5 | 26 | 76 | 95 | 97 | 97 | 95 | 99 | 86 | 22 | 1 |
| Miserable (%) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Dry (%) | Comfortable (%) | Humid (%) | Muggy (%) | Oppressive (%) | Miserable (%) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 72 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 0 | 0 |
| Feb | 49 | 10 | 14 | 23 | 5 | 0 |
| Mar | 12 | 5 | 13 | 43 | 26 | 0 |
| Apr | 0 | 1 | 2 | 20 | 76 | 1 |
| May | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 95 | 3 |
| Jun | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 97 | 1 |
| Jul | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 97 | 0 |
| Aug | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 95 | 0 |
| Sep | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 99 | 0 |
| Oct | 0 | 0 | 2 | 11 | 86 | 0 |
| Nov | 13 | 10 | 19 | 36 | 22 | 0 |
| Dec | 59 | 11 | 14 | 14 | 1 | 0 |
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 Parakou is steady company: average speeds sit near 7 km/h — calm — in every month of the year, with no meaningful windy or calm season.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wind speed (km/h) | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 7 |
| Feels | calm | calm | calm | calm | calm | calm | calm | calm | calm | calm | calm | calm |
| Wind speed (km/h) | Feels | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 8 | calm |
| Feb | 8 | calm |
| Mar | 8 | calm |
| Apr | 8 | calm |
| May | 8 | calm |
| Jun | 7 | calm |
| Jul | 7 | calm |
| Aug | 7 | calm |
| Sep | 6 | calm |
| Oct | 6 | calm |
| Nov | 7 | calm |
| Dec | 7 | calm |
Hazard calendar for Parakou
When the seasonal hazards worth planning around — the rainy season, tropical-cyclone risk and dust haze — are active through the year.
Parakou's monsoon runs May–September, when most of the year's rain falls.
Parakou sees seasonal dust haze (January–May), heaviest in February.
Best time to visit Parakou
To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Parakou throughout the year, we compute two travel scores — one for general sightseeing, one for beach and pool weather.
Around late October, Parakou 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 Parakou for general outdoor tourist activities is from mid October to late January, with a peak score in the first week of January.
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).
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Travel score (0–10) | 4.2 | 2.9 | 2.2 | 2.4 | 2.9 | 3.5 | 3.4 | 3.4 | 3.2 | 3.6 | 3.8 | 4.2 |
| Rating | fair | poor | poor | poor | poor | poor | poor | poor | poor | fair | fair | fair |
| Travel score (0–10) | Rating | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 4.2 | fair |
| Feb | 2.9 | poor |
| Mar | 2.2 | poor |
| Apr | 2.4 | poor |
| May | 2.9 | poor |
| Jun | 3.5 | poor |
| Jul | 3.4 | poor |
| Aug | 3.4 | poor |
| Sep | 3.2 | poor |
| Oct | 3.6 | fair |
| Nov | 3.8 | fair |
| Dec | 4.2 | fair |
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 Parakou for hot-weather activities is from late October to mid February, with a peak score in the last week of December.
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 Parakou, by month
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 March (highs near 36°C), the essentials are light clothes and sun protection. In the cold season around August (highs near 29°C), pack light clothes and rain gear.
In March, Parakou sees daytime highs around 36°C and nights near 24°C. Pack light clothes and sun protection. About 5 days see rain.
UV index (midday) in Parakou by month
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 Parakou peaks around March 22 at about 13 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 17 at about 8 (very high).
The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — every month of the year.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UV index (midday) | 9 | 10 | 13 | 13 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 12 | 12 | 11 | 9 | 8 |
| Level | Very high | Very high | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Very high | Very high |
| UV index (midday) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 9 | Very high |
| Feb | 10 | Very high |
| Mar | 13 | Extreme |
| Apr | 13 | Extreme |
| May | 11 | Extreme |
| Jun | 11 | Extreme |
| Jul | 11 | Extreme |
| Aug | 12 | Extreme |
| Sep | 12 | Extreme |
| Oct | 11 | Extreme |
| Nov | 9 | Very high |
| Dec | 8 | Very high |
Average hourly UV index in Parakou
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 March the burn window is concentrated in the middle of the day: about 8 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.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UV ≥ 3 (h/day) | 7 | 7.5 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 7.5 | 7 | 6.5 |
| UV ≥ 6 (h/day) | 4.5 | 5 | 6.5 | 6 | 6 | 5.5 | 5.5 | 5.5 | 6 | 5.5 | 4.5 | 3.5 |
| UV ≥ 3 (h/day) | UV ≥ 6 (h/day) | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 7 | 4.5 |
| Feb | 7.5 | 5 |
| Mar | 8 | 6.5 |
| Apr | 8 | 6 |
| May | 8 | 6 |
| Jun | 8 | 5.5 |
| Jul | 8 | 5.5 |
| Aug | 8 | 5.5 |
| Sep | 8 | 6 |
| Oct | 7.5 | 5.5 |
| Nov | 7 | 4.5 |
| Dec | 6.5 | 3.5 |
Air quality in Parakou by month
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 Parakou is worst in February — around 85 µg/m³ PM2.5 (unhealthy), about 5.0× the cleanest month (August, 17 µg/m³).
Modeled monthly averages (CAMS reanalysis, 2015–2024).
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | 75 | 85 | 49 | 41 | 25 | 20 | 17 | 17 | 20 | 34 | 40 | 63 |
| Level | Unhealthy | Unhealthy | Poor | Poor | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Poor | Unhealthy |
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 75 | Unhealthy |
| Feb | 85 | Unhealthy |
| Mar | 49 | Poor |
| Apr | 41 | Poor |
| May | 25 | Moderate |
| Jun | 20 | Moderate |
| Jul | 17 | Moderate |
| Aug | 17 | Moderate |
| Sep | 20 | Moderate |
| Oct | 34 | Moderate |
| Nov | 40 | Poor |
| Dec | 63 | Unhealthy |
Growing season
Parakou is frost-free year round — even the coldest nights rarely reach freezing, so there is no start or end to the growing season.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Frost-free chance (%) | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 |
| Frost nights | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Frost-free chance (%) | Frost nights | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 100 | 0 |
| Feb | 100 | 0 |
| Mar | 100 | 0 |
| Apr | 100 | 0 |
| May | 100 | 0 |
| Jun | 100 | 0 |
| Jul | 100 | 0 |
| Aug | 100 | 0 |
| Sep | 100 | 0 |
| Oct | 100 | 0 |
| Nov | 100 | 0 |
| Dec | 100 | 0 |
Growing degree days
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. Parakou banks about 6,307 degree days a year, and the running total — which growers use to time plantings and predict maturity — climbs fastest around March.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Growing degree days (°C·days) | 521 | 527 | 624 | 584 | 559 | 498 | 482 | 472 | 475 | 522 | 525 | 518 |
| Growing degree days (°C·days) | |
|---|---|
| Jan | 521 |
| Feb | 527 |
| Mar | 624 |
| Apr | 584 |
| May | 559 |
| Jun | 498 |
| Jul | 482 |
| Aug | 472 |
| Sep | 475 |
| Oct | 522 |
| Nov | 525 |
| Dec | 518 |
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.
Parakou receives about 5.3 kWh/m² a day of solar energy on average — bright — with a clear seasonal swing between 4.0 and 6.3 kWh/m².
The brighter stretch of the year lasts 7.0 months, from around Oct 23 to May 22. The brightest month is February, averaging about 6.2 kWh/m² (intense).
The dimmest month is August, down near 4.0 kWh/m² — roughly 36% less than the February peak.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Solar energy (kWh/m²) | 6.0 | 6.3 | 6.3 | 6.0 | 5.4 | 4.6 | 4.2 | 4.0 | 4.4 | 5.1 | 5.8 | 5.8 |
| Level | Bright | Intense | Intense | Bright | Bright | Bright | Bright | Bright | Bright | Bright | Bright | Bright |
| Solar energy (kWh/m²) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 6.0 | Bright |
| Feb | 6.3 | Intense |
| Mar | 6.3 | Intense |
| Apr | 6.0 | Bright |
| May | 5.4 | Bright |
| Jun | 4.6 | Bright |
| Jul | 4.2 | Bright |
| Aug | 4.0 | Bright |
| Sep | 4.4 | Bright |
| Oct | 5.1 | Bright |
| Nov | 5.8 | Bright |
| Dec | 5.8 | Bright |
Where is Parakou?
Parakou sits at 9.3°N, 2.6°E, 369 m above sea level, in Benin. The nearest listed city is Tchaourou, 50 km away.
Topography around Parakou
How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Parakou.
Within 3 km, the terrain around Parakou has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 80 m around an average of 364 m above sea level; within 16 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 108 m; within 80 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 406 m.
The land around Parakou is covered by artificial surfaces (71%) within 3 km, cropland (31%), shrubs (30%) and trees (26%) within 16 km, and shrubs (42%), trees (28%) and cropland (25%) within 80 km.
Benin travel facts
- Travel advisory
- Level 2
- Exercise Increased Caution
- Power plugs
- Type C / E
- 220 V · 50 Hz
- Prices
- ≈ 34% of US
- price level, 2025
- GDP per capita
- $1,658
- 2025
- Happiness
- 4.4 / 10
- World Happiness, 2025
- Safe drinking water
- 18%
- of population, 2024
- Homicide rate
- 1.1
- per 100k, 2017
- Road deaths
- 26.8
- per 100k/yr, 2019
- Income group
- Lower middle
- World Bank
- English
- Very low
- EF EPI 406
- Religion
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 Parakou (9.3372°, 2.6303°, elevation 369 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).