Kunming in Fall

In fall (September, October and November), Kunming sees average daytime highs around 20°C and overnight lows near 12°C, with 312 mm of rain over about 43 wet days across the season. It is the 3rd-warmest season and the 2nd-wettest season.

Over the season highs ease from about 23°C in early September to 16°C by late November. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 22% of the time across fall, and the air most often feels dry.

Fall is Kunming's 3rd-best season to visit on our travel score. For the whole year in context, see Kunming's year-round climate.

Avg daytime high
20°C
3rd-warmest season
Avg overnight low
12°C
Rainfall
312 mm
43 wet days
Avg wind
9 km/h
Travel score
5.5
3rd-best season
Months
Sep · Oct · Nov

Temperature in Kunming in Fall

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Over the season highs ease from about 23°C in early September to 16°C by late November.

A typical fall day in Kunming reaches about 20°C and drops to 12°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is September, the coolest November.

10°20°30°SepOctNov

Kunming weather by month

How the three fall months (September, October and November) compare with the rest of the year — the season's months are highlighted.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan15° / 355.4110.65.1
Feb17° / 305.30.511.16.5
Mar21° / 10°426.70.311.87.3
Apr24° / 13°699.4012.67.2
May24° / 16°13915.1013.26.2
Jun24° / 17°27823.8013.54.4
Jul24° / 18°27426.6013.44.1
Aug24° / 17°23824.9012.94.4
Sep22° / 16°16520.3012.24.8
Oct20° / 13°11316.2011.45.4
Nov17° / 346.30.110.86.2
Dec15° / 244.50.710.55.0

Cloud cover in Fall

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 22% of the time across fall.

0%25%50%75%100%SepOctNov

Chance of precipitation in Fall

Any precipitation

Kunming gets around 312 mm of rain over 43 wet days across fall. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

0%20%40%60%80%SepOctNov

Humidity in Fall

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

Most of fall feels dry — the stacked bands show each day's mix of comfort levels, read off the dew point.

0%25%50%75%100%SepOctNov

Wind in Fall

Winds average 9 km/h across fall.

051015SepOctNov

Sunrise & sunset in Fall

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 12 h 30 min in early September to 10 h 36 min by late November. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AMSepOctNov

Solar energy in Fall

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day across fall, about 3.7 kWh/m².

024SepOctNov
Planning a trip in fall

Hazard calendar for Kunming

In seasonPeak

In fall, Kunming overlaps its pacific typhoon and monsoon season. The full year is below, with each hazard's peak months called out.

Kunming sits in the Pacific typhoon belt; the season peaks July–October.

Kunming's monsoon runs May–September, when most of the year's rain falls.

Pacific typhoon
Monsoon
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec

Is fall a good time to visit Kunming?

Our two travel scores rate fall for general sightseeing and for beach or pool weather — 0 (poor) to 10 (ideal), averaged across the three months.

5.5
Sightseeing
3rd-best month of the year
2.6
Beach & pool
3rd-best month of the year

fall is a reasonable time to visit Kunming for sightseeing.

What to pack for Kunming in Fall

From fall's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.

In fall, Kunming sees daytime highs around 20°C and nights near 12°C. Pack rain gear. Worth having: light clothes. About 43 days see rain.

rain gearlight clothes

UV index in Kunming in Fall

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV across fall averages around 9 (very high — sun protection essential). The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Kunming peaks around July 12 at about 13 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 21 at about 6 (high).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — every month of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecHighVery highExtremeVery highHighJul 12UV 13Dec 21UV 6
UV index (midday)Level
Jan6High
Feb8Very high
Mar11Extreme
Apr11Extreme
May12Extreme
Jun13Extreme
Jul13Extreme
Aug12Extreme
Sep10Extreme
Oct9Very high
Nov8Very high
Dec6High

Air quality in Kunming in Fall

GoodModeratePoorUnhealthyVery unhealthy

Average fine-particle pollution (PM2.5) through the year — so you can see where fall falls, not just the annual average.

Air quality in Kunming is worst in March — around 35 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), and holds fairly steady the rest of the year.

Seasonal pattern from CAMS reanalysis, scaled to Kunming's WHO annual average of 29.9 µg/m³.

010203040JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModerateMar 2235 µg/m³Jun 1824 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan29Moderate
Feb30Moderate
Mar35Moderate
Apr34Moderate
May28Moderate
Jun24Moderate
Jul26Moderate
Aug29Moderate
Sep31Moderate
Oct31Moderate
Nov32Moderate
Dec30Moderate
Location & terrain

Where is Kunming?

Kunming sits at 25.0°N, 102.7°E, 1,895 m above sea level, in China. The nearest listed city is Dali, 259 km away.

SapaHà GiangThị Trấn Phố LuMường Lay

Topography around Kunming

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Kunming has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 56 m around an average of 1,899 m above sea level; within 16 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 665 m; within 80 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,814 m.

The land around Kunming is covered by artificial surfaces (88%) within 3 km, trees (42%) and artificial surfaces (34%) within 16 km, and trees (59%) and cropland (21%) within 80 km.

3 km
56 m
16 km
665 m
80 km
1,814 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater
Fall weather nearby: Dali 259 km · Lai Châu 303 km · Lào Cai 311 km · Sapa 321 km · Lijiang 322 km · Hà Giang 337 km · Thị Trấn Phố Lu 337 km · Mường Lay 341 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
unaffiliated 52%folk religion 22%Buddhist 18%Christian 5%

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 Kunming (25.0389°, 102.7183°, elevation 1,895 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.