Climate and average weather in Chengdu
In Chengdu, the summers are muggy, hot, wet, and mostly cloudy and the winters are cool and partly cloudy.
Over the course of the year, the temperature in Chengdu typically varies from 4°C to 30°C, and is rarely below 0°C or above 35°C. July is the hottest month of the year, while January is the coldest.
Based on the travel score, the best times of year to visit Chengdu for warm-weather activities are from mid March to early June and early September to mid November.
- Hottest
- Jul
- 30°
- Coldest
- Jan
- 4°
- Wettest
- Jul
- 292 mm
- Driest
- Jan
- 3 mm
- Rain / yr
- 1042 mm
- 104 wet days
- Daylight
- 10.0–14.0 h
- shortest–longest
- Elevation
- 499 m
- 30.7°N
- Clearest
- Dec
- 57% cloud
Chengdu is capital of Sichuan Province, China.
- Air quality
- Very high
- PM2.5 49.3 µg/m³ · 2018
- Density
- 944/km²
- people per km²
- Founded
- ~310 BCE
Air quality: WHO Ambient Air Quality Database. Density & description: Wikidata (CC0), GeoNames.
Chengdu 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 March to early June.
Temperature through the year
Daily average highs and lows in Chengdu, from 1991–2020 of climate data. The shaded bands show the range most days fall in — 10th to 90th percentile.
The hot season lasts 4.7 months, from April 26 to September 15, with daily high temperatures above 25°C. The hottest month of the year in Chengdu is July, with an average high of 30°C and low of 23°C.
The cool season lasts 2.9 months, from November 27 to February 23, with daily high temperatures below 14°C. The coldest month of the year in Chengdu is January, with an average low of 4°C and high of 10°C.
Days typically run about 7°C warmer than nights, with the widest day–night swing (around 9°C) in May.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avg high (°C) | 10 | 12 | 17 | 23 | 27 | 29 | 30 | 30 | 26 | 21 | 16 | 11 |
| Avg low (°C) | 4 | 6 | 10 | 15 | 18 | 21 | 23 | 23 | 19 | 15 | 10 | 5 |
| Avg high (°C) | Avg low (°C) | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 10 | 4 |
| Feb | 12 | 6 |
| Mar | 17 | 10 |
| Apr | 23 | 15 |
| May | 27 | 18 |
| Jun | 29 | 21 |
| Jul | 30 | 23 |
| Aug | 30 | 23 |
| Sep | 26 | 19 |
| Oct | 21 | 15 |
| Nov | 16 | 10 |
| Dec | 11 | 5 |
How hot and cold Chengdu 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, Chengdu feels like about 35°C (around July 31). About 47 days a year carry some heat stress, peaking in July.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feels-like high (°C) | 10 | 12 | 17 | 23 | 27 | 30 | 33 | 33 | 26 | 21 | 16 | 11 |
| Air high (°C) | 10 | 12 | 17 | 23 | 27 | 29 | 30 | 30 | 26 | 21 | 16 | 11 |
| Feels-like low (°C) | 2 | 4 | 9 | 15 | 18 | 21 | 23 | 22 | 19 | 15 | 10 | 4 |
| Air low (°C) | 4 | 6 | 10 | 15 | 18 | 21 | 23 | 23 | 19 | 15 | 10 | 5 |
| Feels-like high (°C) | Air high (°C) | Feels-like low (°C) | Air low (°C) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 10 | 10 | 2 | 4 |
| Feb | 12 | 12 | 4 | 6 |
| Mar | 17 | 17 | 9 | 10 |
| Apr | 23 | 23 | 15 | 15 |
| May | 27 | 27 | 18 | 18 |
| Jun | 30 | 29 | 21 | 21 |
| Jul | 33 | 30 | 23 | 23 |
| Aug | 33 | 30 | 22 | 23 |
| Sep | 26 | 26 | 19 | 19 |
| Oct | 21 | 21 | 15 | 15 |
| Nov | 16 | 16 | 10 | 10 |
| Dec | 11 | 11 | 4 | 5 |
Average hourly temperature in Chengdu
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 30°C, and coldest before dawn in January, near 4°C.
Chengdu 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 | 10° / 4° | 3 | 1 | 10.2 | 2.5 |
| Feb | 12° / 6° | 7 | 2 | 10.9 | 3.8 |
| Mar | 17° / 10° | 19 | 5.5 | 11.8 | 5.8 |
| Apr | 23° / 15° | 43 | 7.9 | 12.7 | 6.7 |
| May | 27° / 18° | 66 | 9.7 | 13.5 | 6.1 |
| Jun | 29° / 21° | 128 | 11.7 | 13.9 | 5.0 |
| Jul | 30° / 23° | 292 | 19.8 | 13.8 | 3.6 |
| Aug | 30° / 23° | 290 | 19.8 | 13.1 | 3.9 |
| Sep | 26° / 19° | 134 | 12.8 | 12.2 | 5.9 |
| Oct | 21° / 15° | 40 | 8.5 | 11.2 | 6.3 |
| Nov | 16° / 10° | 16 | 4.3 | 10.4 | 5.5 |
| Dec | 11° / 5° | 4 | 1.3 | 10.1 | 3.2 |
Chance of rain
How likely it is to rain on a typical day, and how that shifts across the wetter and drier seasons.
Chengdu gets about 1042 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 5.6 months, from around Apr 26 to Oct 12, peaking in July at about 73% chance on a given day. The drier stretch runs the rest of the year, bottoming out around Jan 1.
July is the wettest month by volume, with 292 mm over about 20 wet days; January is the driest, with 3 mm.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rain on a day (%) | 3 | 8 | 18 | 27 | 31 | 39 | 63 | 64 | 43 | 27 | 15 | 5 |
| Rain days | 1 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 10 | 12 | 20 | 20 | 13 | 9 | 4 | 1 |
| Rain on a day (%) | Rain days | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 3 | 1 |
| Feb | 8 | 2 |
| Mar | 18 | 6 |
| Apr | 27 | 8 |
| May | 31 | 10 |
| Jun | 39 | 12 |
| Jul | 63 | 20 |
| Aug | 64 | 20 |
| Sep | 43 | 13 |
| Oct | 27 | 9 |
| Nov | 15 | 4 |
| Dec | 5 | 1 |
Monthly rainfall
Over a full year, Chengdu collects about 1042 mm of rain across 104 wet days — roughly 87 mm in an average month.
It doesn’t fall evenly. July is the wettest month with 292 mm, while January is the driest at just 3 mm. The three wettest months alone bring about 69% of the year’s total.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rainfall (mm) | 3 | 7 | 19 | 43 | 66 | 128 | 292 | 290 | 134 | 40 | 16 | 4 |
| Rain days | 1 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 10 | 12 | 20 | 20 | 13 | 9 | 4 | 1 |
| Rainfall (mm) | Rain days | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 3 | 1 |
| Feb | 7 | 2 |
| Mar | 19 | 6 |
| Apr | 43 | 8 |
| May | 66 | 10 |
| Jun | 128 | 12 |
| Jul | 292 | 20 |
| Aug | 290 | 20 |
| Sep | 134 | 13 |
| Oct | 40 | 9 |
| Nov | 16 | 4 |
| Dec | 4 | 1 |
Clouds and sunshine
How often the daytime sky is clear, partly cloudy or overcast.
In Chengdu, 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 28 and lasts for 4.4 months, ending around March 11. The clearest month is December, when the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 49% of the time on average.
The cloudier part of the year begins around March 12 and lasts for 4.3 months, ending around July 20. The cloudiest month is June, when it is overcast or mostly cloudy 80% of the time.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clearer (%) | 44 | 37 | 29 | 26 | 24 | 20 | 28 | 34 | 25 | 26 | 41 | 49 |
| Cloudier (%) | 56 | 63 | 71 | 74 | 76 | 80 | 72 | 66 | 75 | 74 | 59 | 51 |
| Clearer (%) | Cloudier (%) | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 44 | 56 |
| Feb | 37 | 63 |
| Mar | 29 | 71 |
| Apr | 26 | 74 |
| May | 24 | 76 |
| Jun | 20 | 80 |
| Jul | 28 | 72 |
| Aug | 34 | 66 |
| Sep | 25 | 75 |
| Oct | 26 | 74 |
| Nov | 41 | 59 |
| Dec | 49 | 51 |
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 June 13, brings about 14 hours of light; the shortest, around January 1, only 10 hours — a swing of roughly 4 hours.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daylight (h) | 10.2 | 10.9 | 11.8 | 12.7 | 13.5 | 13.9 | 13.8 | 13.1 | 12.2 | 11.2 | 10.4 | 10.1 |
| Sunrise (AM) | 8:06 | 7:52 | 7:20 | 6:42 | 6:14 | 6:05 | 6:15 | 6:34 | 6:53 | 7:12 | 7:36 | 7:59 |
| Sunset (PM) | 6:20 | 6:45 | 7:06 | 7:26 | 7:46 | 8:03 | 8:04 | 7:41 | 7:04 | 6:26 | 6:02 | 6:01 |
| Daylight (h) | Sunrise (AM) | Sunset (PM) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 10.2 | 8:06 | 6:20 |
| Feb | 10.9 | 7:52 | 6:45 |
| Mar | 11.8 | 7:20 | 7:06 |
| Apr | 12.7 | 6:42 | 7:26 |
| May | 13.5 | 6:14 | 7:46 |
| Jun | 13.9 | 6:05 | 8:03 |
| Jul | 13.8 | 6:15 | 8:04 |
| Aug | 13.1 | 6:34 | 7:41 |
| Sep | 12.2 | 6:53 | 7:04 |
| Oct | 11.2 | 7:12 | 6:26 |
| Nov | 10.4 | 7:36 | 6:02 |
| Dec | 10.1 | 7:59 | 6:01 |
Sunny days
How many genuinely sunny days each month brings — days the sky stays clear or mostly clear — banded into plain-language zones.
Chengdu averages about 5 sunny days a month — counting the days the sky stays clear or mostly clear — with a clear seasonal swing between 2 and 9 days.
The sunnier stretch runs 3.7 months, from around Oct 30 to Feb 19. The sunniest month is December, with roughly 9 sunny days (mixed).
The greyest month is October, down near 3 sunny days — about 67% fewer than the December peak.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sunny days | 8 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 9 |
| Sky | Gloomy | Gloomy | Gloomy | Gloomy | Gloomy | Gloomy | Gloomy | Gloomy | Gloomy | Gloomy | Gloomy | Mixed |
| Sunny days | Sky | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 8 | Gloomy |
| Feb | 5 | Gloomy |
| Mar | 4 | Gloomy |
| Apr | 3 | Gloomy |
| May | 3 | Gloomy |
| Jun | 3 | Gloomy |
| Jul | 4 | Gloomy |
| Aug | 5 | Gloomy |
| Sep | 3 | Gloomy |
| Oct | 3 | Gloomy |
| Nov | 6 | Gloomy |
| Dec | 9 | Mixed |
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 Chengdu, how humid it feels changes dramatically over the year.
The more humid part of the year lasts 4.6 months, from around May 23 to October 8. The muggiest month is July, when the air feels humid, muggy or worse about 99% of the time.
The most comfortable stretch runs from around October 9 to May 22, and March is the most comfortable month — the air is dry or comfortable 100% of the time.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dry (%) | 100 | 100 | 96 | 70 | 30 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 35 | 87 | 100 |
| Comfortable (%) | 0 | 0 | 4 | 23 | 38 | 12 | 1 | 0 | 14 | 41 | 12 | 0 |
| Humid (%) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 24 | 30 | 5 | 6 | 39 | 21 | 0 | 0 |
| Muggy (%) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 40 | 30 | 38 | 34 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| Oppressive (%) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 54 | 47 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Miserable (%) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 11 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Dry (%) | Comfortable (%) | Humid (%) | Muggy (%) | Oppressive (%) | Miserable (%) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 100 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Feb | 100 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Mar | 96 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Apr | 70 | 23 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| May | 30 | 38 | 24 | 8 | 0 | 0 |
| Jun | 4 | 12 | 30 | 40 | 13 | 1 |
| Jul | 0 | 1 | 5 | 30 | 54 | 11 |
| Aug | 0 | 0 | 6 | 38 | 47 | 9 |
| Sep | 3 | 14 | 39 | 34 | 9 | 1 |
| Oct | 35 | 41 | 21 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| Nov | 87 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Dec | 100 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 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 Chengdu is steady company: average speeds sit near 6 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) | 6 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 |
| Feels | calm | calm | calm | calm | calm | calm | calm | calm | calm | calm | calm | calm |
| Wind speed (km/h) | Feels | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 6 | calm |
| Feb | 7 | calm |
| Mar | 7 | calm |
| Apr | 7 | calm |
| May | 7 | calm |
| Jun | 6 | calm |
| Jul | 6 | calm |
| Aug | 6 | calm |
| Sep | 6 | calm |
| Oct | 6 | calm |
| Nov | 6 | calm |
| Dec | 6 | calm |
Hazard calendar for Chengdu
When the seasonal hazards worth planning around — the rainy season, tropical-cyclone risk and dust haze — are active through the year.
Chengdu's rainy season runs July–September, when most of the year's rain falls.
Best time to visit Chengdu
To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Chengdu throughout the year, we compute two travel scores — one for general sightseeing, one for beach and pool weather.
Around late May, Chengdu is still near the tail of its best-weather window — great conditions with the peak-season crowds already thinning.
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 times of year to visit Chengdu for general outdoor tourist activities run from mid March to early June and again from early September to mid November, with a peak score in the third week of April.
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) | 2.5 | 3.8 | 5.8 | 6.6 | 6.2 | 5.0 | 3.7 | 3.9 | 5.9 | 6.3 | 5.4 | 3.2 |
| Rating | poor | fair | good | good | good | fair | fair | fair | good | good | fair | poor |
| Travel score (0–10) | Rating | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 2.5 | poor |
| Feb | 3.8 | fair |
| Mar | 5.8 | good |
| Apr | 6.6 | good |
| May | 6.2 | good |
| Jun | 5.0 | fair |
| Jul | 3.7 | fair |
| Aug | 3.9 | fair |
| Sep | 5.9 | good |
| Oct | 6.3 | good |
| Nov | 5.4 | fair |
| Dec | 3.2 | poor |
The beach/pool score favors clear, rainless days with daytime highs between 24°C and 34°C. Based on this score, the best times of year to visit Chengdu for hot-weather activities run from mid April to mid July and again from late August to late September, with a peak score in the last week of May.
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 Chengdu, 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 July (highs near 30°C), the essentials are light clothes, rain gear and sun protection. In the cold season around January (highs near 10°C), pack a warm layer.
In July, Chengdu sees daytime highs around 30°C and nights near 23°C. Pack light clothes and rain gear. Worth having: sun protection. About 20 days see rain.
UV index (midday) in Chengdu 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 Chengdu peaks around July 16 at about 10 (very high) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near January 11 at about 2 (moderate).
The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 10 months of the year.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UV index (midday) | 2 | 5 | 7 | 7 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 8 | 5 | 4 | 3 |
| Level | Moderate | Moderate | High | High | Very high | Very high | Very high | Very high | Very high | High | Moderate | Moderate |
| UV index (midday) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 2 | Moderate |
| Feb | 5 | Moderate |
| Mar | 7 | High |
| Apr | 7 | High |
| May | 9 | Very high |
| Jun | 9 | Very high |
| Jul | 10 | Very high |
| Aug | 9 | Very high |
| Sep | 8 | Very high |
| Oct | 5 | High |
| Nov | 4 | Moderate |
| Dec | 3 | Moderate |
Average hourly UV index in Chengdu
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 July the burn window is concentrated in the middle of the day: about 8 hours a day reach index 3 (protection recommended), and 5.5 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) | 0 | 4.5 | 6 | 6.5 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 7.5 | 7 | 5 | 3.5 | 0 |
| UV ≥ 6 (h/day) | 0 | 0 | 2.5 | 2.5 | 5 | 5.5 | 5.5 | 4.5 | 3.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| UV ≥ 3 (h/day) | UV ≥ 6 (h/day) | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 0 | 0 |
| Feb | 4.5 | 0 |
| Mar | 6 | 2.5 |
| Apr | 6.5 | 2.5 |
| May | 8 | 5 |
| Jun | 8 | 5.5 |
| Jul | 8 | 5.5 |
| Aug | 7.5 | 4.5 |
| Sep | 7 | 3.5 |
| Oct | 5 | 0 |
| Nov | 3.5 | 0 |
| Dec | 0 | 0 |
Air quality in Chengdu 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 Chengdu is worst in January — around 60 µg/m³ PM2.5 (unhealthy), and holds fairly steady the rest of the year.
Seasonal pattern from CAMS reanalysis, scaled to Chengdu's WHO annual average of 49.3 µg/m³.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | 60 | 58 | 57 | 50 | 47 | 39 | 38 | 38 | 44 | 49 | 54 | 57 |
| Level | Unhealthy | Unhealthy | Unhealthy | Poor | Poor | Poor | Poor | Poor | Poor | Poor | Poor | Unhealthy |
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 60 | Unhealthy |
| Feb | 58 | Unhealthy |
| Mar | 57 | Unhealthy |
| Apr | 50 | Poor |
| May | 47 | Poor |
| Jun | 39 | Poor |
| Jul | 38 | Poor |
| Aug | 38 | Poor |
| Sep | 44 | Poor |
| Oct | 49 | Poor |
| Nov | 54 | Poor |
| Dec | 57 | Unhealthy |
Growing season
Chengdu is mild enough that a frost-free day stays more likely than not even in midwinter.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Frost-free chance (%) | 95 | 98 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 97 |
| Frost nights | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Frost-free chance (%) | Frost nights | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 95 | 0 |
| Feb | 98 | 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 | 97 | 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. Chengdu banks about 2,955 degree days a year, and the running total — which growers use to time plantings and predict maturity — climbs fastest around July.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Growing degree days (°C·days) | 0 | 3 | 108 | 267 | 397 | 455 | 515 | 500 | 373 | 246 | 91 | 0 |
| Growing degree days (°C·days) | |
|---|---|
| Jan | 0 |
| Feb | 3 |
| Mar | 108 |
| Apr | 267 |
| May | 397 |
| Jun | 455 |
| Jul | 515 |
| Aug | 500 |
| Sep | 373 |
| Oct | 246 |
| Nov | 91 |
| Dec | 0 |
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.
Chengdu receives about 3.3 kWh/m² a day of solar energy on average — moderate — with a clear seasonal swing between 1.9 and 4.7 kWh/m².
The brighter stretch of the year lasts 5.9 months, from around Mar 14 to Sep 8. The brightest month is July, averaging about 4.6 kWh/m² (bright).
The dimmest month is December, down near 2.0 kWh/m² — roughly 57% less than the July peak.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Solar energy (kWh/m²) | 2.2 | 2.6 | 3.4 | 4.3 | 4.6 | 4.4 | 4.6 | 4.3 | 3.0 | 2.2 | 2.0 | 2.0 |
| Level | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Bright | Bright | Bright | Bright | Bright | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Dim |
| Solar energy (kWh/m²) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 2.2 | Moderate |
| Feb | 2.6 | Moderate |
| Mar | 3.4 | Moderate |
| Apr | 4.3 | Bright |
| May | 4.6 | Bright |
| Jun | 4.4 | Bright |
| Jul | 4.6 | Bright |
| Aug | 4.3 | Bright |
| Sep | 3.0 | Moderate |
| Oct | 2.2 | Moderate |
| Nov | 2.0 | Moderate |
| Dec | 2.0 | Dim |
Where is Chengdu?
Chengdu sits at 30.7°N, 104.1°E, 499 m above sea level, in China. The nearest listed city is Leshan, 126 km away.
What Chengdu looks like
Topography around Chengdu
How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Chengdu.
Within 3 km, the terrain around Chengdu has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 42 m around an average of 501 m above sea level; within 16 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 124 m; within 80 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 3,717 m.
The land around Chengdu is covered by artificial surfaces (88%) within 3 km, artificial surfaces (55%) within 16 km, and trees (53%) and cropland (33%) within 80 km.
China travel facts
- Travel advisory
- Level 2
- Exercise Increased Caution
- Power plugs
- Type A / I
- 220 V · 50 Hz
- Prices
- ≈ 47% of US
- price level, 2025
- GDP per capita
- $13,862
- 2025
- Happiness
- 6.1 / 10
- World Happiness, 2025
- Homicide rate
- 0.5
- per 100k, 2020
- Road deaths
- 17.4
- per 100k/yr, 2019
- Income group
- Upper middle
- World Bank
- English
- Low
- EF EPI 464
- 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 Chengdu (30.6667°, 104.0667°, elevation 499 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).