Shimla in Spring

In spring (March, April and May), Shimla sees average daytime highs around 23°C and overnight lows near 11°C, with 286 mm of precipitation over about 39 wet days across the season. It is the 2nd-warmest season and the 2nd-wettest season.

Over the season highs climb from about 16°C in early March to 27°C by late May. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 48% of the time across spring, and the air most often feels dry.

Spring is Shimla's 2nd-best season to visit on our travel score. For the whole year in context, see Shimla's year-round climate.

Avg daytime high
23°C
2nd-warmest season
Avg overnight low
11°C
Precipitation
286 mm
39 wet days
Avg wind
7 km/h
Travel score
6.3
2nd-best season
Months
Mar · Apr · May

Temperature in Shimla in Spring

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Over the season highs climb from about 16°C in early March to 27°C by late May.

A typical spring day in Shimla reaches about 23°C and drops to 11°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is May, the coolest March.

10°20°30°MarAprMay

How spring really feels in Shimla

Once humidity and wind are folded in, spring brings about 0 days that feel above 32°C and 0 that feel at or below 0°C.

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

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

Shimla weather by month

How the three spring months (March, April and May) compare with the rest of the year — the season's months are highlighted.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan12° / 858.64.110.23.3
Feb14° / 10910.73.810.94.1
Mar18° / 11213.60.811.85.6
Apr23° / 11°9812.8012.76.6
May26° / 15°7612.7013.66.6
Jun26° / 17°160170145.7
Jul25° / 19°37728.2013.84.0
Aug25° / 19°35227.8013.14.1
Sep24° / 16°19318.7012.25.8
Oct22° / 11°336.1011.27.9
Nov18° / 223.70.110.47.4
Dec14° / 304.41.1105.3

Cloud cover in Spring

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 48% of the time across spring.

0%25%50%75%100%MarAprMay

Chance of precipitation in Spring

Any precipitationSnow

Shimla gets around 286 mm of rain and snow over 39 wet days across spring. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

0%20%40%60%MarAprMay

Humidity in Spring

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

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

0%25%50%75%100%MarAprMay

Wind in Spring

Winds average 7 km/h across spring.

0246810MarAprMay

Sunrise & sunset in Spring

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 11 h 18 min in early March to 13 h 54 min by late May. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AMMarAprMay

Solar energy in Spring

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day across spring, about 6.3 kWh/m².

02468MarAprMay
Planning a trip in spring

Hazard calendar for Shimla

In seasonPeak

None of Shimla's seasonal hazards peak in spring. The full-year calendar below shows when the rainy season, cyclone risk and dust haze do.

Shimla's rainy season runs July–September, when most of the year's rain falls.

Shimla sees seasonal dust haze (June), heaviest in June.

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

Is spring a good time to visit Shimla?

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

6.3
Sightseeing
2nd-best month of the year
4.5
Beach & pool
1st-best month of the year

spring is a reasonable time to visit Shimla for sightseeing.

What to pack for Shimla in Spring

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

In spring, Shimla sees daytime highs around 23°C and nights near 11°C. Pack sun protection. Worth having: light clothes, a warm layer and rain gear. About 39 days see rain.

sun protectionlight clothesa warm layerrain gear

UV index in Shimla in Spring

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV across spring 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 Shimla peaks around June 16 at about 11 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near January 1 at about 4 (moderate).

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

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModerateVery highExtremeExtremeVery highModerateJun 16UV 11Jan 1UV 4
UV index (midday)Level
Jan4Moderate
Feb5High
Mar9Very high
Apr9Very high
May9Very high
Jun12Extreme
Jul9Very high
Aug11Extreme
Sep9Very high
Oct7Very high
Nov4Moderate
Dec4Moderate

Air quality in Shimla in Spring

GoodModeratePoorUnhealthyVery unhealthy

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

Air quality in Shimla is worst in December — around 37 µg/m³ PM2.5 (poor), about 2.1× the cleanest month (August, 17 µg/m³).

Seasonal pattern from CAMS reanalysis, scaled to Shimla's WHO annual average of 26 µg/m³.

010203040JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModeratePoorDec 2037 µg/m³Aug 1318 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan36Poor
Feb30Moderate
Mar25Moderate
Apr21Moderate
May21Moderate
Jun22Moderate
Jul18Moderate
Aug17Moderate
Sep20Moderate
Oct28Moderate
Nov35Moderate
Dec37Poor
Location & terrain

Where is Shimla?

Shimla sits at 31.1°N, 77.2°E, 2,073 m above sea level, in India. The nearest listed city is Rishikesh, 155 km away.

AmritsarLahoreDelhiSialkotNankana SahibLehDārchulā

Topography around Shimla

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Shimla has large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 979 m around an average of 1,939 m above sea level; within 16 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,222 m; within 80 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 4,838 m.

The land around Shimla is covered by trees (79%) within 3 km, trees (78%) and grassland (20%) within 16 km, and trees (65%) within 80 km.

3 km
979 m
16 km
2,222 m
80 km
4,838 m
treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater
Spring weather nearby: Rishikesh 155 km · Amritsar 225 km · Lahore 272 km · Delhi 273 km · Sialkot 293 km · Nankana Sahib 331 km · Leh 343 km · Dārchulā 354 km

India travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 2
Exercise Increased Caution
Power plugs
Type C / D / M
230 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 23% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$2,702
2025
Happiness
4.5 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
76%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
2.8
per 100k, 2022
Road deaths
15.6
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
Lower middle
World Bank
English
Low
EF EPI 484
Religion
Hindu 80%Muslim 14%Christian 2%other and unspecified 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 Shimla (31.1044°, 77.1666°, elevation 2,073 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.