Climate and average weather in Sanandaj
In Sanandaj, the summers are sweltering, dry, and clear and the winters are very cold, snowy, and partly cloudy.
Over the course of the year, the temperature in Sanandaj typically varies from -8°C to 34°C, and is rarely below -19°C or above 38°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 Sanandaj for warm-weather activities are from mid May to mid June and mid September to late October.
- Hottest
- Jul
- 34°
- Coldest
- Jan
- -8°
- Wettest
- Mar
- 76 mm
- Driest
- Aug
- 0 mm
- Rain / yr
- 437 mm
- 71 wet days
- Daylight
- 9.6–14.4 h
- shortest–longest
- Elevation
- 1,494 m
- 35.3°N
- Clearest
- Sep
- 9% cloud
Sanandaj is city in Kurdistan Province, Iran.
- Air quality
- High
- PM10 99.6 µg/m³ · 2010
- Density
- 115/km²
- people per km²
Air quality: WHO Ambient Air Quality Database. Density & description: Wikidata (CC0), GeoNames.
Sanandaj 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 September to late October.
Temperature through the year
Daily average highs and lows in Sanandaj, from 1991–2020 of climate data. The shaded bands show the range most days fall in — 10th to 90th percentile.
The hot season lasts 3.9 months, from May 31 to September 27, with daily high temperatures above 27°C. The hottest month of the year in Sanandaj is July, with an average high of 34°C and low of 17°C.
The cool season lasts 2.9 months, from December 5 to March 3, with daily high temperatures below 8°C. The coldest month of the year in Sanandaj is January, with an average low of -8°C and high of 2°C.
Days typically run about 13°C warmer than nights, with the widest day–night swing (around 18°C) in August.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avg high (°C) | 2 | 4 | 10 | 16 | 23 | 30 | 34 | 34 | 29 | 22 | 13 | 6 |
| Avg low (°C) | -8 | -6 | -1 | 5 | 9 | 14 | 17 | 16 | 12 | 7 | 1 | -4 |
| Avg high (°C) | Avg low (°C) | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 2 | -8 |
| Feb | 4 | -6 |
| Mar | 10 | -1 |
| Apr | 16 | 5 |
| May | 23 | 9 |
| Jun | 30 | 14 |
| Jul | 34 | 17 |
| Aug | 34 | 16 |
| Sep | 29 | 12 |
| Oct | 22 | 7 |
| Nov | 13 | 1 |
| Dec | 6 | -4 |
How hot and cold Sanandaj 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, Sanandaj feels like about 35°C (around July 28). About 71 days a year carry some heat stress, peaking in July.
On the coldest nights, wind chill pulls the feels-like down to about -11°C (around January 19), with roughly 141 freezing days a year (feels-like at or below 0°C) — 31 of them bitterly cold — worst in January.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feels-like high (°C) | 2 | 4 | 10 | 16 | 23 | 30 | 34 | 34 | 29 | 22 | 13 | 6 |
| Air high (°C) | 2 | 4 | 10 | 16 | 23 | 30 | 34 | 34 | 29 | 22 | 13 | 6 |
| Feels-like low (°C) | -11 | -9 | -3 | 3 | 8 | 14 | 17 | 16 | 11 | 5 | -1 | -6 |
| Air low (°C) | -8 | -6 | -1 | 5 | 9 | 14 | 17 | 16 | 12 | 7 | 1 | -4 |
| Feels-like high (°C) | Air high (°C) | Feels-like low (°C) | Air low (°C) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 2 | 2 | -11 | -8 |
| Feb | 4 | 4 | -9 | -6 |
| Mar | 10 | 10 | -3 | -1 |
| Apr | 16 | 16 | 3 | 5 |
| May | 23 | 23 | 8 | 9 |
| Jun | 30 | 30 | 14 | 14 |
| Jul | 34 | 34 | 17 | 17 |
| Aug | 34 | 34 | 16 | 16 |
| Sep | 29 | 29 | 11 | 12 |
| Oct | 22 | 22 | 5 | 7 |
| Nov | 13 | 13 | -1 | 1 |
| Dec | 6 | 6 | -6 | -4 |
Average hourly temperature in Sanandaj
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 34°C, and coldest before dawn in January, near -8°C.
Sanandaj weather by month
Every month at a glance. Click a month for its detailed page.
| Month | High / Low (°C) | Rainfall (mm) | Wet days | Snow days | Daylight (hours) | Travel score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 2° / -8° | 64 | 9.8 | 9.2 | 9.9 | 0.0 |
| Feb | 4° / -6° | 67 | 9.6 | 8 | 10.7 | 0.1 |
| Mar | 10° / -1° | 76 | 11.2 | 5.2 | 11.7 | 2.4 |
| Apr | 16° / 5° | 62 | 10.7 | 0.7 | 12.9 | 5.2 |
| May | 23° / 9° | 29 | 6.8 | 0 | 13.8 | 7.5 |
| Jun | 30° / 14° | 2 | 0.5 | 0 | 14.3 | 6.7 |
| Jul | 34° / 17° | 1 | 0.2 | 0 | 14.1 | 3.8 |
| Aug | 34° / 16° | 0 | 0.2 | 0 | 13.3 | 3.9 |
| Sep | 29° / 12° | 1 | 0.5 | 0 | 12.2 | 7.3 |
| Oct | 22° / 7° | 26 | 5 | 0 | 11.1 | 7.9 |
| Nov | 13° / 1° | 52 | 7.7 | 1.4 | 10.1 | 3.7 |
| Dec | 6° / -4° | 57 | 8.3 | 5.9 | 9.7 | 0.5 |
Chance of rain
How likely it is to rain on a typical day, and how that shifts across the wetter and drier seasons.
Sanandaj gets about 437 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 6.9 months, from around Oct 22 to May 19, peaking in March at about 39% chance on a given day. The drier stretch runs the rest of the year, bottoming out around Jul 1.
March is the wettest month by volume, with 76 mm over about 11 wet days; August is the driest, with 0 mm. Some of the cold-season precipitation falls as snow.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rain on a day (%) | 31 | 34 | 36 | 35 | 22 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 16 | 26 | 27 |
| Rain days | 10 | 10 | 11 | 11 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 8 | 8 |
| Rain on a day (%) | Rain days | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 31 | 10 |
| Feb | 34 | 10 |
| Mar | 36 | 11 |
| Apr | 35 | 11 |
| May | 22 | 7 |
| Jun | 2 | 1 |
| Jul | 1 | 0 |
| Aug | 1 | 0 |
| Sep | 2 | 1 |
| Oct | 16 | 5 |
| Nov | 26 | 8 |
| Dec | 27 | 8 |
Monthly rainfall
Over a full year, Sanandaj collects about 437 mm of rain across 71 wet days — roughly 36 mm in an average month.
It doesn’t fall evenly. March is the wettest month with 76 mm, while August is the driest at just 0 mm. The three wettest months alone bring about 47% of the year’s total, and some of the cold-season precipitation falls as snow.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rainfall (mm) | 64 | 67 | 76 | 62 | 29 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 26 | 52 | 57 |
| Rain days | 10 | 10 | 11 | 11 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 8 | 8 |
| Snow days | 9 | 8 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 |
| Rainfall (mm) | Rain days | Snow days | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 64 | 10 | 9 |
| Feb | 67 | 10 | 8 |
| Mar | 76 | 11 | 5 |
| Apr | 62 | 11 | 1 |
| May | 29 | 7 | 0 |
| Jun | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| Jul | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Aug | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sep | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Oct | 26 | 5 | 0 |
| Nov | 52 | 8 | 1 |
| Dec | 57 | 8 | 6 |
Snow in Sanandaj
Average snowy days through the year, the snow-season span, and estimated snowfall — for ski trips and the perennial 'will there be snow at Christmas?' question.
Sanandaj averages about 30 snowy days a year. Snow season runs roughly Nov 6 to Apr 18 — about 5.4 months.
January is snowiest, with roughly 9 days of snow and an estimated 51 cm of snowfall. Over the year that adds up to an estimated 173 cm of snow.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Snow days | 9 | 8 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 |
| Snowfall (cm) | 51 | 51 | 28 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 36 |
| Snow days | Snowfall (cm) | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 9 | 51 |
| Feb | 8 | 51 |
| Mar | 5 | 28 |
| Apr | 1 | 2 |
| May | 0 | 0 |
| Jun | 0 | 0 |
| Jul | 0 | 0 |
| Aug | 0 | 0 |
| Sep | 0 | 0 |
| Oct | 0 | 0 |
| Nov | 1 | 7 |
| Dec | 6 | 36 |
Clouds and sunshine
How often the daytime sky is clear, partly cloudy or overcast.
In Sanandaj, 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 May 12 and lasts for 5.4 months, ending around October 22. The clearest month is August, when the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 99% of the time on average.
The cloudier part of the year begins around October 23 and lasts for 6.6 months, ending around May 11. The cloudiest month is January, when it is overcast or mostly cloudy 52% of the time.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clearer (%) | 48 | 50 | 56 | 62 | 78 | 97 | 99 | 99 | 98 | 80 | 61 | 51 |
| Cloudier (%) | 52 | 50 | 44 | 38 | 22 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 20 | 39 | 49 |
| Clearer (%) | Cloudier (%) | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 48 | 52 |
| Feb | 50 | 50 |
| Mar | 56 | 44 |
| Apr | 62 | 38 |
| May | 78 | 22 |
| Jun | 97 | 3 |
| Jul | 99 | 1 |
| Aug | 99 | 1 |
| Sep | 98 | 2 |
| Oct | 80 | 20 |
| Nov | 61 | 39 |
| Dec | 51 | 49 |
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 14, brings about 14 h 24 min of light; the shortest, around December 13, only 9 h 36 min — a swing of roughly 4 h 48 min.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daylight (h) | 9.9 | 10.7 | 11.7 | 12.9 | 13.8 | 14.3 | 14.1 | 13.3 | 12.2 | 11.1 | 10.1 | 9.7 |
| Sunrise (AM) | 7:35 | 7:16 | 6:40 | 5:56 | 5:23 | 5:11 | 5:23 | 5:46 | 6:10 | 6:34 | 7:04 | 7:29 |
| Sunset (PM) | 5:27 | 5:57 | 6:23 | 6:49 | 7:14 | 7:33 | 7:33 | 7:06 | 6:23 | 5:40 | 5:11 | 5:07 |
| Daylight (h) | Sunrise (AM) | Sunset (PM) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 9.9 | 7:35 | 5:27 |
| Feb | 10.7 | 7:16 | 5:57 |
| Mar | 11.7 | 6:40 | 6:23 |
| Apr | 12.9 | 5:56 | 6:49 |
| May | 13.8 | 5:23 | 7:14 |
| Jun | 14.3 | 5:11 | 7:33 |
| Jul | 14.1 | 5:23 | 7:33 |
| Aug | 13.3 | 5:46 | 7:06 |
| Sep | 12.2 | 6:10 | 6:23 |
| Oct | 11.1 | 6:34 | 5:40 |
| Nov | 10.1 | 7:04 | 5:11 |
| Dec | 9.7 | 7:29 | 5:07 |
Sunny days
How many genuinely sunny days each month brings — days the sky stays clear or mostly clear — banded into plain-language zones.
Sanandaj averages about 18 sunny days a month — counting the days the sky stays clear or mostly clear — with a clear seasonal swing between 8 and 29 days.
The sunnier stretch runs 5.3 months, from around May 17 to Oct 23. The sunniest month is September, with roughly 28 sunny days (brilliant).
The greyest month is January, down near 8 sunny days — about 71% fewer than the September peak.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sunny days | 8 | 8 | 11 | 12 | 18 | 27 | 27 | 27 | 28 | 21 | 13 | 11 |
| Sky | Mixed | Mixed | Mixed | Mixed | Bright | Brilliant | Brilliant | Brilliant | Brilliant | Bright | Mixed | Mixed |
| Sunny days | Sky | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 8 | Mixed |
| Feb | 8 | Mixed |
| Mar | 11 | Mixed |
| Apr | 12 | Mixed |
| May | 18 | Bright |
| Jun | 27 | Brilliant |
| Jul | 27 | Brilliant |
| Aug | 27 | Brilliant |
| Sep | 28 | Brilliant |
| Oct | 21 | Bright |
| Nov | 13 | Mixed |
| Dec | 11 | 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 Sanandaj, the air stays dry or comfortable essentially all year. Even in January, the muggiest month, it feels humid or worse only about 0% of the time — humidity is not something you need to plan around here.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dry (%) | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 |
| Dry (%) | |
|---|---|
| Jan | 100 |
| Feb | 100 |
| Mar | 100 |
| Apr | 100 |
| May | 100 |
| Jun | 100 |
| Jul | 100 |
| Aug | 100 |
| Sep | 100 |
| Oct | 100 |
| Nov | 100 |
| Dec | 100 |
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 Sanandaj is steady company: average speeds sit near 7 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 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 6 |
| Feels | calm | calm | calm | calm | calm | calm | calm | calm | calm | calm | calm | calm |
| Wind speed (km/h) | Feels | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 6 | calm |
| Feb | 6 | calm |
| Mar | 7 | calm |
| Apr | 8 | calm |
| May | 8 | calm |
| Jun | 8 | calm |
| Jul | 8 | calm |
| Aug | 8 | calm |
| Sep | 8 | calm |
| Oct | 7 | calm |
| Nov | 6 | calm |
| Dec | 6 | calm |
Best time to visit Sanandaj
To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Sanandaj throughout the year, we compute two travel scores — one for general sightseeing, one for beach and pool weather.
Around mid October, Sanandaj 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 Sanandaj for general outdoor tourist activities run from mid May to mid June and again from mid September to late October, with a peak score in the first week of October.
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) | 0.0 | 0.2 | 2.4 | 5.2 | 7.5 | 6.7 | 3.9 | 4.0 | 7.2 | 7.8 | 3.7 | 0.6 |
| Rating | poor | poor | poor | fair | ideal | good | fair | fair | good | ideal | fair | poor |
| Travel score (0–10) | Rating | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 0.0 | poor |
| Feb | 0.2 | poor |
| Mar | 2.4 | poor |
| Apr | 5.2 | fair |
| May | 7.5 | ideal |
| Jun | 6.7 | good |
| Jul | 3.9 | fair |
| Aug | 4.0 | fair |
| Sep | 7.2 | good |
| Oct | 7.8 | ideal |
| Nov | 3.7 | fair |
| Dec | 0.6 | 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 Sanandaj for hot-weather activities run from late May to late July and again from mid August to early October, with a peak score in the third week of September.
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 Sanandaj, 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 34°C), the essentials are light clothes and sun protection. In the cold season around January (highs near 2°C), pack a warm layer, a heavy coat and rain gear.
In July, Sanandaj sees daytime highs around 34°C and nights near 17°C. Pack light clothes and sun protection.
UV index (midday) in Sanandaj 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 Sanandaj peaks around July 14 at about 11 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 20 at about 3 (moderate).
The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — every month of the year.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UV index (midday) | 4 | 5 | 5 | 7 | 10 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 9 | 6 | 4 | 3 |
| Level | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Very high | Very high | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Very high | High | Moderate | Moderate |
| UV index (midday) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 4 | Moderate |
| Feb | 5 | Moderate |
| Mar | 5 | Moderate |
| Apr | 7 | Very high |
| May | 10 | Very high |
| Jun | 11 | Extreme |
| Jul | 11 | Extreme |
| Aug | 11 | Extreme |
| Sep | 9 | Very high |
| Oct | 6 | High |
| Nov | 4 | Moderate |
| Dec | 3 | Moderate |
Average hourly UV index in Sanandaj
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 9 hours a day reach index 3 (protection recommended), and 6.5 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) | 3 | 4.5 | 5 | 7 | 8 | 8.5 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 5.5 | 3 | 2.5 |
| UV ≥ 6 (h/day) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3.5 | 5.5 | 6 | 6.5 | 6 | 4.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| UV ≥ 3 (h/day) | UV ≥ 6 (h/day) | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 3 | 0 |
| Feb | 4.5 | 0 |
| Mar | 5 | 0 |
| Apr | 7 | 3.5 |
| May | 8 | 5.5 |
| Jun | 8.5 | 6 |
| Jul | 9 | 6.5 |
| Aug | 8 | 6 |
| Sep | 7 | 4.5 |
| Oct | 5.5 | 0 |
| Nov | 3 | 0 |
| Dec | 2.5 | 0 |
Air quality in Sanandaj 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 Sanandaj is worst in May — around 35 µg/m³ PM2.5 (poor), and holds fairly steady the rest of the year.
Modeled monthly averages (CAMS reanalysis, 2015–2024).
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | 23 | 26 | 32 | 35 | 35 | 28 | 27 | 24 | 27 | 27 | 24 | 23 |
| Level | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Poor | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate |
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 23 | Moderate |
| Feb | 26 | Moderate |
| Mar | 32 | Moderate |
| Apr | 35 | Moderate |
| May | 35 | Poor |
| Jun | 28 | Moderate |
| Jul | 27 | Moderate |
| Aug | 24 | Moderate |
| Sep | 27 | Moderate |
| Oct | 27 | Moderate |
| Nov | 24 | Moderate |
| Dec | 23 | Moderate |
Growing season
The growing season in Sanandaj typically lasts about 246 days, from around March 21 to November 21 — the span where a frost-free day is more likely than not. It is reliably frost-free from April 11 to October 31.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Frost-free chance (%) | 13 | 17 | 45 | 91 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 97 | 63 | 22 |
| Frost nights | 31 | 28 | 31 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 30 | 31 |
| Frost-free chance (%) | Frost nights | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 13 | 31 |
| Feb | 17 | 28 |
| Mar | 45 | 31 |
| Apr | 91 | 10 |
| May | 100 | 0 |
| Jun | 100 | 0 |
| Jul | 100 | 0 |
| Aug | 100 | 0 |
| Sep | 100 | 0 |
| Oct | 97 | 0 |
| Nov | 63 | 30 |
| Dec | 22 | 31 |
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. Sanandaj banks about 1,970 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 | 0 | 0 | 28 | 185 | 359 | 487 | 469 | 312 | 130 | 1 | 0 |
| Growing degree days (°C·days) | |
|---|---|
| Jan | 0 |
| Feb | 0 |
| Mar | 0 |
| Apr | 28 |
| May | 185 |
| Jun | 359 |
| Jul | 487 |
| Aug | 469 |
| Sep | 312 |
| Oct | 130 |
| Nov | 1 |
| 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.
Sanandaj receives about 5.5 kWh/m² a day of solar energy on average — bright — with a clear seasonal swing between 2.7 and 8.1 kWh/m².
The brighter stretch of the year lasts 6.3 months, from around Mar 24 to Sep 30. The brightest month is June, averaging about 8.0 kWh/m² (intense).
The dimmest month is December, down near 2.8 kWh/m² — roughly 65% less than the June peak.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Solar energy (kWh/m²) | 3.2 | 4.2 | 5.3 | 6.3 | 7.3 | 8.1 | 7.8 | 7.3 | 6.3 | 4.6 | 3.2 | 2.7 |
| Level | Moderate | Bright | Bright | Intense | Intense | Intense | Intense | Intense | Intense | Bright | Moderate | Moderate |
| Solar energy (kWh/m²) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 3.2 | Moderate |
| Feb | 4.2 | Bright |
| Mar | 5.3 | Bright |
| Apr | 6.3 | Intense |
| May | 7.3 | Intense |
| Jun | 8.1 | Intense |
| Jul | 7.8 | Intense |
| Aug | 7.3 | Intense |
| Sep | 6.3 | Intense |
| Oct | 4.6 | Bright |
| Nov | 3.2 | Moderate |
| Dec | 2.7 | Moderate |
Where is Sanandaj?
Sanandaj sits at 35.3°N, 47.0°E, 1,494 m above sea level, in Iran. The nearest listed city is Kāmyārān, 58 km away.
Topography around Sanandaj
How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Sanandaj.
Within 3 km, the terrain around Sanandaj has significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 541 m around an average of 1,555 m above sea level; within 16 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,335 m; within 80 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,736 m.
The land around Sanandaj is covered by artificial surfaces (55%) and grassland (30%) within 3 km, grassland (75%) within 16 km, and grassland (59%) and cropland (37%) within 80 km.
Iran travel facts
- Travel advisory
- Level 4
- Do Not Travel
- Power plugs
- Type C / F
- 220 V · 50 Hz
- Prices
- ≈ 352% of US
- price level, 2025
- GDP per capita
- $3,924
- 2025
- Happiness
- 5.2 / 10
- World Happiness, 2025
- Safe drinking water
- 94%
- of population, 2024
- Homicide rate
- 2.4
- per 100k, 2014
- Road deaths
- 21.5
- per 100k/yr, 2019
- Income group
- Upper middle
- World Bank
- English
- Low
- EF EPI 492
- 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 Sanandaj (35.315°, 46.9988°, elevation 1,494 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).