Palu weather in October

In October, Palu sees average daytime highs of 28°C and overnight lows near 21°C, with 342 mm of rain across 29.1 wet days and about 12 hours of daylight. It is the 4th-warmest and 1st-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 28°C through the month. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 1% of the time in October, and the air most often feels oppressive.

Daylight stretches from about 12 hours at the start of October to 12 hours by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, October is Palu's 6th-clearest and 5th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Palu's year-round climate.

Daytime high
28°
4th warmest
Overnight low
21°
9th coldest
Rainfall
342 mm
29.1 wet days
Daylight
12 hours
5:45 AM – 5:46 PM
Cloud cover
86%
6th clearest
Wind
3 km/h
5th windiest
Solar energy
5.11 kWh/m²
Travel score
3.4
out of 10

Palu is administrative city in Donggala Regency, Indonesia.

Founded
1978

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

Temperature in October

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 28°C through the month.

A typical October day in Palu reaches about 28°C in the afternoon and slips back to 21°C overnight — a 7°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 26°C and 29°C. Set against its neighbours, October runs on par with September and on par with November.

20°23°25°28°30°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
12821
22821
32821
42821
52821
62821
72821
82821
92821
102821
112821
122821
132821
142821
152821
162821
172821
182821
192821
202821
212821
222821
232821
242821
252821
262821
272821
282821
292821
302821
312821

Palu weather by month

How October compares with the rest of the year at a glance. October is the 4th-warmest and 1st-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan28° / 21°25927.9123.5
Feb28° / 21°24425123.6
Mar28° / 21°28928.3123.5
Apr28° / 21°31327.8123.4
May28° / 21°34028.8123.4
Jun27° / 21°33228.311.93.5
Jul27° / 21°33128.4123.6
Aug28° / 21°31428.1123.7
Sep28° / 21°33528.2123.5
Oct28° / 21°34229.1123.4
Nov28° / 21°32128.6123.3
Dec28° / 21°26427.512.13.5

Cloud cover in October

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 1% of the time in October.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 8% of October, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 91%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
11387
21387
31288
41288
51288
61189
71189
81189
9991
10991
11991
12991
13991
14991
15991
16991
17991
18991
19991
20892
21892
22793
23793
24793
25793
26694
27694
28595
29595
30595
31496

Chance of precipitation in October

Any precipitation

Palu gets around 342 mm of rain over 29.1 wet days in October, the wettest month. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Day to day, the chance of measurable rain averages around 94% and peaks near 96% on the wettest days.

0%20%40%60%80%100%151015202531
Rain chance (%)
193
293
393
493
593
693
794
894
994
1094
1194
1294
1394
1493
1593
1693
1793
1893
1993
2093
2193
2294
2394
2494
2595
2695
2795
2895
2996
3096
3196

Humidity in October

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

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

By dew point, October lands in the oppressive band about 92% of days. Sticky, muggy-or-worse air turns up on roughly 100% of them.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Muggy (%)Oppressive (%)
1892
2892
3892
4892
5892
6892
7892
8892
9892
10892
11892
12892
13892
14892
15892
16991
17991
18991
19991
20991
21991
22991
23892
24892
25892
26793
27793
28793
29694
30694
31694

Wind in October

Winds average 3 km/h in October.

Across October, daily wind ranges from about 3 km/h on the calmest days to 3 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

0246810151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
13calm
23calm
33calm
43calm
53calm
63calm
73calm
83calm
93calm
103calm
113calm
123calm
133calm
143calm
153calm
163calm
173calm
183calm
193calm
203calm
213calm
223calm
233calm
243calm
253calm
263calm
273calm
283calm
293calm
303calm
313calm

Sunrise & sunset in October

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 12 hours at the start of October to 12 hours by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 0 minutes over October. Sunrise moves from 5:49 AM to 5:43 AM, and sunset from 5:50 PM to 5:45 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
112.05:495:50
212.05:495:49
312.05:495:49
412.05:485:49
512.05:485:49
612.05:485:48
712.05:475:48
812.05:475:48
912.05:475:48
1012.05:465:47
1112.05:465:47
1212.05:465:47
1312.05:465:47
1412.05:455:47
1512.05:455:46
1612.05:455:46
1712.05:455:46
1812.05:455:46
1912.05:445:46
2012.05:445:46
2112.05:445:45
2212.05:445:45
2312.05:445:45
2412.05:445:45
2512.05:435:45
2612.05:435:45
2712.05:435:45
2812.05:435:45
2912.05:435:45
3012.05:435:45
3112.05:435:45

Solar energy in October

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in October, about 5.11 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 4.25 kWh/m² to a high of 5.26 kWh/m² in September across the year — October's 5.11 kWh/m² sits near the top of that range.

0246151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
15.2Bright
25.2Bright
35.2Bright
45.2Bright
55.2Bright
65.2Bright
75.2Bright
85.2Bright
95.2Bright
105.2Bright
115.2Bright
125.2Bright
135.2Bright
145.2Bright
155.2Bright
165.2Bright
175.1Bright
185.1Bright
195.1Bright
205.1Bright
215.1Bright
225.1Bright
235.1Bright
245.0Bright
255.0Bright
265.0Bright
275.0Bright
285.0Bright
295.0Bright
304.9Bright
314.9Bright
Planning a trip in October

Is October a good time to visit Palu?

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

3.4
Sightseeing
9th-best month of the year
3.7
Beach & pool
11th-best month of the year

October is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Palu.

What to pack for Palu in October

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

In October, Palu sees daytime highs around 28°C and nights near 21°C. Pack light clothes and rain gear. Worth having: sun protection. About 29 days see rain.

light clothesrain gearsun protection

Sea temperature near Palu in October

The nearest coast averages about 29°C in October — the other half of the beach question. The full-year curve and swim-comfort zones are below.

The sea at the nearest coast (about 42 km away) is warmest in May at about 30°C and coldest in February near 29°C.

The water stays above 20°C all year — warm enough for a swim any month.

28°30°32°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecwarmtropicalcomfortable to swim
Sea temperature (°C)Comfort
Jan29Tropical
Feb29Tropical
Mar29Tropical
Apr29Tropical
May30Tropical
Jun30Tropical
Jul29Tropical
Aug29Tropical
Sep29Tropical
Oct29Tropical
Nov29Tropical
Dec29Tropical

UV index in Palu in October

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in October peaks around 13 (very high — sun protection essential). The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Palu peaks around February 20 at about 16 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near June 18 at about 11 (extreme).

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

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecExtremeFeb 20UV 16Jun 18UV 11
UV index (midday)Level
Jan14Extreme
Feb16Extreme
Mar16Extreme
Apr14Extreme
May12Extreme
Jun11Extreme
Jul12Extreme
Aug13Extreme
Sep13Extreme
Oct13Extreme
Nov13Extreme
Dec12Extreme
Location & terrain

Where is Palu?

Palu sits at 0.9°S, 119.9°E, 9 m above sea level, in Indonesia. The nearest listed city is Poso, 112 km away.

PolewaliBontangBungkuSamarinda

Topography around Palu

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Palu has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 96 m around an average of 29 m above sea level; within 16 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,194 m; within 80 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,505 m.

The land around Palu is covered by artificial surfaces (78%) within 3 km, trees (56%) and grassland (23%) within 16 km, and trees (56%) and water (40%) within 80 km.

3 km
96 m
16 km
2,194 m
80 km
2,505 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater
October weather nearby: Poso 112 km · Masamba 190 km · Rantepao 229 km · Palopo 235 km · Polewali 287 km · Bontang 289 km · Bungku 296 km · Samarinda 307 km

Indonesia travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 2
Exercise Increased Caution
Power plugs
Type C / F
230 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 29% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$5,060
2025
Happiness
5.6 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
30%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
0.3
per 100k, 2022
Road deaths
11.3
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
Upper middle
World Bank
English
Low
EF EPI 471
Religion
Muslim 87%Protestant 8%Roman Catholic 3%Hindu 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 Palu (-0.9083°, 119.8708°, elevation 9 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. Sea temperatures are the NOAA OISST v2.1 1991–2020 monthly climatology (public domain), sampled at the nearest ocean point. 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).