Besançon weather in April

In April, Besançon sees average daytime highs of 16°C and overnight lows near 6°C, with 88 mm of precipitation across 12.8 wet days and about 13.3 hours of daylight. It is the 7th-warmest and 9th-wettest month of the year here.

Highs climb over the month, from about 14°C in the first days to 17°C by the end. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 26% of the time in April, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 12 h 30 min at the start of April to 14 h 06 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, April is Besançon's 5th-clearest and 6th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Besançon's year-round climate.

Daytime high
16°
7th warmest
Overnight low
6th coldest
Precipitation
88 mm
12.8 wet days
Daylight
13 h 24 min
5:55 AM – 7:17 PM
Cloud cover
62%
5th clearest
Wind
10 km/h
6th windiest
Solar energy
4.7 kWh/m²
Travel score
4.4
out of 10

Besançon is commune in Doubs, France.

Air quality
Good
PM2.5 9.2 µg/m³ · 2019
Density
1,974/km²
people per km²

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

Temperature in April

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Highs climb over the month, from about 14°C in the first days to 17°C by the end.

A typical April day in Besançon reaches about 16°C in the afternoon and slips back to 6°C overnight — a 9°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 9°C and 22°C. Set against its neighbours, April runs about 4°C warmer than March and about 4°C cooler than May.

10°15°20°25°151015202530
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
1145
2145
3145
4145
5145
6145
7145
8145
9155
10155
11155
12156
13156
14156
15156
16166
17166
18166
19166
20167
21167
22177
23177
24177
25177
26178
27178
28178
29178
30178

How April really feels in Besançon

Once humidity and wind are folded in, April averages 0 days that feel above 32°C and 0 that feel at or below 0°C — the comfort signal a plain temperature reading hides.

Days feeling ≥ 32°C
0
heat index over the day's high
Days feeling ≤ C
0
wind chill below the day's low

April sits comfortably in between — no days that feel dangerously hot or drop to a hard freeze once humidity and wind are folded in.

Besançon weather by month

How April compares with the rest of the year at a glance. April is the 7th-warmest and 9th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan / 10813.63.98.70.3
Feb / 9512.44.29.90.9
Mar12° / 9512.9211.62.9
Apr16° / 8812.80.513.34.4
May19° / 10°11014.2014.85.5
Jun23° / 13°8512.6015.66.4
Jul26° / 15°7611.9015.36.6
Aug25° / 15°7910.60146.8
Sep21° / 12°9311.2012.46.2
Oct16° / 10512.40.110.64.5
Nov10° / 11513.71.89.11.9
Dec / 12415.23.88.30.5

Cloud cover in April

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 26% of the time in April.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 15% of April, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 59%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202530
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
13862
23862
33961
44060
54060
64060
74159
84258
94258
104258
114357
124456
134456
144456
154555
164555
174555
184555
194555
204456
214258
224258
234060
244060
253961
263862
273763
283664
293565
303466

Chance of precipitation in April

Any precipitationSnow

Besançon gets around 88 mm of rain and snow over 12.8 wet days in April. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Day to day, the chance of measurable precipitation averages around 42% and peaks near 49% on the wettest days, and about 1 day brings snow.

0%20%40%60%151015202530
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
1434
2433
3423
4423
5423
6413
7413
8413
9402
10402
11402
12402
13392
14392
15392
16392
17391
18391
19401
20411
21421
22431
23441
24451
25460
26470
27470
28480
29490
30490

Humidity in April

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

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

By dew point, April lands in the dry band about 100% of days. It rarely turns muggy — the humid and sticky bands barely register.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202530
Dry (%)Comfortable (%)
11000
21000
31000
41000
51000
61000
71000
81000
91000
101000
111000
121000
131000
141000
151000
161000
171000
181000
191000
201000
211000
221000
231000
241000
25991
26991
27991
28991
29982
30982

Wind in April

Winds average 10 km/h in April.

Across April, daily wind ranges from about 10 km/h on the calmest days to 11 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

051015151015202530
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
111calm
211calm
311calm
411calm
511calm
611calm
711calm
811calm
911calm
1011calm
1111calm
1211calm
1311calm
1411calm
1511calm
1611calm
1710calm
1810calm
1910calm
2010calm
2110calm
2210calm
2310calm
2410calm
2510calm
2610calm
2710calm
2810calm
2910calm
3010calm

Sunrise & sunset in April

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 12 h 30 min at the start of April to 14 h 06 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 96 minutes over April. Sunrise moves from 6:25 AM to 5:30 AM, and sunset from 6:56 PM to 7:37 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202530
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
112.56:256:56
212.66:236:57
312.66:216:59
412.76:197:00
512.76:177:01
612.86:157:03
712.96:137:04
812.96:117:06
913.06:097:07
1013.06:077:09
1113.16:057:10
1213.16:037:11
1313.26:017:13
1413.35:597:14
1513.35:577:16
1613.45:557:17
1713.45:537:18
1813.55:517:20
1913.55:507:21
2013.65:487:23
2113.65:467:24
2213.75:447:26
2313.75:427:27
2413.85:407:28
2513.95:387:30
2613.95:377:31
2714.05:357:33
2814.05:337:34
2914.15:327:35
3014.15:307:37

Solar energy in April

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in April, about 4.7 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 0.96 kWh/m² to a high of 5.88 kWh/m² in June across the year — April's 4.7 kWh/m² falls in the middle.

024151015202530
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
14.1Bright
24.2Bright
34.2Bright
44.3Bright
54.3Bright
64.4Bright
74.4Bright
84.5Bright
94.5Bright
104.6Bright
114.6Bright
124.7Bright
134.7Bright
144.8Bright
154.8Bright
164.8Bright
174.8Bright
184.8Bright
194.9Bright
204.9Bright
214.9Bright
224.9Bright
234.9Bright
244.9Bright
254.9Bright
264.9Bright
274.9Bright
284.8Bright
294.8Bright
304.8Bright
Planning a trip in April

Is April a good time to visit Besançon?

Our two travel scores rate April for general sightseeing and for beach or pool weather — 0 (poor) to 10 (ideal).

4.4
Sightseeing
7th-best month of the year
0.5
Beach & pool
7th-best month of the year

April is a reasonable time to visit Besançon for sightseeing.

What to pack for Besançon in April

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

In April, Besançon sees daytime highs around 16°C and nights near 6°C. Worth packing: a warm layer, rain gear and sun protection. About 13 days see rain.

a warm layerrain gearsun protection

UV index in Besançon in April

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in April peaks around 5 — enough to warrant sun protection. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Besançon peaks around July 14 at about 8 (very high) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near January 1 at about 1 (low).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 7 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLowModerateHighVery highHighModerateLowJul 14UV 8Jan 1UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan1Low
Feb2Low
Mar4Moderate
Apr5High
May6High
Jun7Very high
Jul8Very high
Aug6High
Sep4Moderate
Oct3Moderate
Nov2Low
Dec1Low
Location & terrain

Where is Besançon?

Besançon sits at 47.2°N, 6.0°E, 300 m above sea level, in France. The nearest listed city is Vesoul, 43 km away.

Topography around Besançon

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Besançon has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 222 m around an average of 310 m above sea level; within 16 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 477 m; within 80 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,488 m.

The land around Besançon is covered by trees (46%) and artificial surfaces (42%) within 3 km, trees (57%) and grassland (23%) within 16 km, and trees (49%), grassland (28%) and cropland (20%) within 80 km.

3 km
222 m
16 km
477 m
80 km
1,488 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaceswater
April weather nearby: Vesoul 43 km · Dole 44 km · Pontarlier 46 km · La Chaux-de-Fonds 63 km · Montbéliard 65 km · Audincourt 68 km · Yverdon-les-Bains 70 km · Lons-le-Saunier 73 km

France travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 2
Exercise Increased Caution
Power plugs
Type C / E
230 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 77% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$48,986
2025
Happiness
6.6 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
100%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
1.3
per 100k, 2023
Road deaths
5.1
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
High
World Bank
English
Moderate
EF EPI 539
Religion
Roman Catholic 47%none 33%Muslim 4%Protestant 2%

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 Besançon (47.2488°, 6.0182°, elevation 300 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. Topography is sampled from the Copernicus DEM GLO-90 elevation model (© ESA/Airbus) and ESA WorldCover 2021 land cover (CC BY 4.0).