Climate and average weather in Cēsis

In Cēsis, the summers are mild, showery, and partly cloudy and the winters are very cold, snowy, and mostly cloudy.

Best: late May to early September

Over the course of the year, the temperature in Cēsis typically varies from -7°C to 22°C, and is rarely below -19°C or above 27°C. July is the hottest month of the year, while January is the coldest.

Based on the travel score, the best time of year to visit Cēsis for warm-weather activities is from late May to early September.

Hottest
Jul
22°
Coldest
Jan
-6°
Wettest
Jun
90 mm
Driest
Mar
44 mm
Rain / yr
759 mm
144 wet days
Daylight
6.3–17.7 h
shortest–longest
Elevation
102 m
57.3°N
Clearest
May
60% cloud

Cēsis is city and capital of Cēsis Municipality, Latvia.

Density
780/km²
people per km²
Founded
1206

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

Cēsis 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 late May to early September.

Temperature through the year

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Daily average highs and lows in Cēsis, 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 17 to September 12, with daily high temperatures above 16°C. The hottest month of the year in Cēsis is July, with an average high of 22°C and low of 13°C.

The cool season lasts 3.7 months, from November 20 to March 13, with daily high temperatures below 2°C. The coldest month of the year in Cēsis is January, with an average low of -6°C and high of -2°C.

Days typically run about 7°C warmer than nights, with the widest day–night swing (around 10°C) in May.

-20°-10°10°20°30°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
Jan-2-6
Feb-2-7
Mar3-4
Apr101
May166
Jun1910
Jul2213
Aug2112
Sep168
Oct93
Nov30
Dec0-4

How hot and cold Cēsis really feels

Feels-like highFeels-like lowactual air temp

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 coldest nights, wind chill pulls the feels-like down to about -14°C (around February 1), with roughly 194 freezing days a year (feels-like at or below 0°C) 79 of them bitterly cold — worst in February.

-10°10°20°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Feels-like high (°C)Air high (°C)Feels-like low (°C)Air low (°C)
Jan-2-2-12-6
Feb-2-2-13-7
Mar33-9-4
Apr1010-21
May161646
Jun19191010
Jul22221313
Aug21211212
Sep161668
Oct9903
Nov33-50
Dec00-10-4

Average hourly temperature in Cēsis

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 22°C, and coldest before dawn in January, near -6°C.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec12 AM2 AM4 AM6 AM8 AM10 AM12 PM2 PM4 PM6 PM8 PM10 PM12 AM

Cēsis weather by month

Every month at a glance. Click a month for its detailed page.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan-2° / -6°5411.910.17.10.0
Feb-2° / -7°45109.190.0
Mar / -4°4410.77.411.40.0
Apr10° / 4710.42.513.92.3
May16° / 6211.60.216.24.9
Jun19° / 10°9013017.55.6
Jul22° / 13°8513.80176.1
Aug21° / 12°8813.30155.9
Sep16° / 6411.9012.54.5
Oct / 73131.3101.6
Nov / -1°5712.14.97.70.0
Dec-0° / -4°5212.29.26.50.0

Chance of rain

How likely it is to rain on a typical day, and how that shifts across the wetter and drier seasons.

Cēsis gets about 759 mm of precipitation a year. On a typical day the chance of rain is often wet, but that rises and falls sharply with the seasons.

The wetter season lasts 3.3 months, from around Jun 8 to Sep 15, peaking in June at about 49% chance on a given day. The drier stretch runs the rest of the year, bottoming out around Apr 23.

June is the wettest month by volume, with 90 mm over about 13 wet days; March is the driest, with 44 mm. Some of the cold-season precipitation falls as snow.

0%10%20%30%40%50%60%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecdrierwetterdriermostly drysome rainoften wetvery wetJun 22 · 49%Apr 23 · 32%
Rain on a day (%)Rain days
Jan3812
Feb3610
Mar3511
Apr3410
May3712
Jun4413
Jul4314
Aug4313
Sep4012
Oct4213
Nov4112
Dec3912

Monthly rainfall

Over a full year, Cēsis collects about 759 mm of rain across 144 wet days — roughly 63 mm in an average month.

It doesn’t fall evenly. June is the wettest month with 90 mm, while March is the driest at just 44 mm. The three wettest months alone bring about 34% of the year’s total, and some of the cold-season precipitation falls as snow.

0255075100125JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec544544476290858864735752
Rainfall (mm)Rain daysSnow days
Jan541210
Feb45109
Mar44117
Apr47103
May62120
Jun90130
Jul85140
Aug88130
Sep64120
Oct73131
Nov57125
Dec52129

Snow in Cēsis

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.

Cēsis averages about 45 snowy days a year. Snow season runs roughly Oct 7 to May 5 — about 6.9 months.

January is snowiest, with roughly 10 days of snow and an estimated 35 cm of snowfall. Over the year that adds up to an estimated 164 cm of snow.

051015JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecsnow seasonsnow seasonJan 4
Snow daysSnowfall (cm)
Jan1035
Feb937
Mar723
Apr310
May00
Jun00
Jul00
Aug00
Sep00
Oct16
Nov519
Dec934

Clouds and sunshine

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

How often the daytime sky is clear, partly cloudy or overcast.

In Cēsis, 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 March 16 and lasts for 6.4 months, ending around September 27. The clearest month is May, when the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 45% of the time on average.

The cloudier part of the year begins around September 28 and lasts for 5.6 months, ending around March 15. The cloudiest month is December, when it is overcast or mostly cloudy 87% of the time.

0%100%10%90%20%80%30%70%40%60%50%50%60%40%70%30%80%20%90%10%100%0%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecJun 1 · 47%Nov 21 · 11%clearmostly clearpartly cloudymostly cloudyovercastcloudierclearercloudier
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
Jan1387
Feb1882
Mar2971
Apr3763
May4555
Jun4258
Jul4357
Aug4060
Sep3268
Oct2278
Nov1486
Dec1387

Daylight, sunrise and sunset

DaylightNight

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 19, brings about 17 h 42 min of light; the shortest, around December 19, only 6 h 18 min — a swing of roughly 11 h 24 min.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AMJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
Jan7.18:583:59
Feb9.08:035:04
Mar11.46:476:10
Apr13.95:207:18
May16.24:088:23
Jun17.53:319:08
Jul17.03:538:56
Aug15.04:537:53
Sep12.55:596:28
Oct10.07:045:03
Nov7.78:153:54
Dec6.59:043:26

Sunny days

How many genuinely sunny days each month brings — days the sky stays clear or mostly clear — banded into plain-language zones.

Cēsis averages about 5 sunny days a month — counting the days the sky stays clear or mostly clear — with a clear seasonal swing between 1 and 9 days.

The sunnier stretch runs 5.8 months, from around Mar 7 to Aug 30. The sunniest month is June, with roughly 7 sunny days (gloomy).

The greyest month is November, down near 2 sunny days — about 74% fewer than the June peak.

051015JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecgreyersunniergreyergloomymixedJun 19 daysNov 191 days
Sunny daysSky
Jan2Gloomy
Feb3Gloomy
Mar6Gloomy
Apr7Gloomy
May9Mixed
Jun7Gloomy
Jul7Gloomy
Aug6Gloomy
Sep5Gloomy
Oct4Gloomy
Nov2Gloomy
Dec2Gloomy

Humidity comfort

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

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 Cēsis, how humid it feels changes noticeably over the year.

The more humid part of the year lasts 2.9 months, from around June 4 to August 29. The muggiest month is July, when the air feels humid, muggy or worse about 15% of the time.

The most comfortable stretch runs from around August 30 to June 3, and May is the most comfortable month — the air is dry or comfortable 99% of the time.

0%10%20%30%40%50%60%70%80%90%100%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecMay 8 · 100%Jul 26 · 81%humidcomfortabledrycomfortablehumidcomfortable
Dry (%)Comfortable (%)Humid (%)Muggy (%)
Jan100000
Feb100000
Mar100000
Apr100000
May96410
Jun791650
Jul5333131
Aug593281
Sep90910
Oct100000
Nov100000
Dec100000

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.

Across the year, average wind speed in Cēsis is typically light breeze, near 14 km/h, and varies little with the seasons.

The windier part of the year lasts 6.3 months, from around Sep 21 to Apr 1. The windiest month is January, averaging about 15 km/h (light breeze).

The calmer part of the year runs from around Apr 2 to Sep 20, with July the calmest month at about 11 km/h.

05101520JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecwindiercalmerwindiercalmlight breezeJan 2 · 16 km/hJul 28 · 11 km/h
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
Jan15light breeze
Feb15light breeze
Mar14light breeze
Apr13light breeze
May12light breeze
Jun12light breeze
Jul11calm
Aug12calm
Sep13light breeze
Oct14light breeze
Nov15light breeze
Dec16light breeze

Best time to visit Cēsis

TravelBeach/poolTemperatureCloudsPrecipitation

To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Cēsis throughout the year, we compute two travel scores — one for general sightseeing, one for beach and pool weather.

Around late May, Cēsis is still near the start of its best-weather window — great conditions with the peak-season crowds not yet at full swing.

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 time of year to visit Cēsis for general outdoor tourist activities is from late May to early September, with a peak score in the last week of July.

0246810JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbest timetravel scoretemperaturecloudsprecipitationJul 31 · 6.3

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).

Travel score (0–10)Rating
Jan0.0poor
Feb0.0poor
Mar0.1poor
Apr2.3poor
May4.9fair
Jun5.6good
Jul6.0good
Aug5.9good
Sep4.4fair
Oct1.6poor
Nov0.0poor
Dec0.0poor

The beach/pool score favors clear, rainless days with daytime highs between 24°C and 34°C. Based on this score, the best time of year to visit Cēsis for hot-weather activities is from early July to mid August, with a peak score in the last week of July.

024681012JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbest timebeach/pool scoretemperaturecloudsprecipitationJul 29 · 4.5

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 Cēsis, by month

EssentialRecommendedOptional

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 22°C), the essentials are rain gear and sun protection. In the cold season around January (highs near -2°C), pack a warm layer, a heavy coat and rain gear.

Light clothing
Warm layer
Winter coat
Rain gear
Sun protection
Windbreaker

In July, Cēsis sees daytime highs around 22°C and nights near 13°C. Worth packing: rain gear and sun protection. About 14 days see rain.

Sea temperature near Cēsis

Average ocean temperature at the nearest coast, month by month, banded into swim-comfort zones — the other half of the beach question.

The sea at the nearest coast (about 54 km away) is warmest in August at about 19°C and coldest in February near 1°C.

The water stays below 20°C all year — cool enough that most swimmers want a wetsuit.

0°10°20°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbracingcoolrefreshing
Sea temperature (°C)Comfort
Jan2Bracing
Feb1Bracing
Mar1Bracing
Apr3Bracing
May8Bracing
Jun14Bracing
Jul18Cool
Aug19Cool
Sep16Cool
Oct11Bracing
Nov8Bracing
Dec5Bracing

UV index (midday) in Cēsis by month

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

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 Cēsis peaks around June 20 at about 6 (high) — a little sun protection helps at midday. It bottoms out near December 19 at about 0 (low).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 6 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLowModerateHighModerateLowJun 20UV 6Dec 19UV 0
UV index (midday)Level
Jan0Low
Feb1Low
Mar2Low
Apr3Moderate
May4Moderate
Jun6High
Jul5High
Aug5High
Sep3Moderate
Oct1Low
Nov1Low
Dec0Low

Average hourly UV index in Cēsis

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

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 June the burn window is concentrated in the middle of the day: about 7.5 hours a day reach index 3 (protection recommended). Mornings and late afternoons stay comparatively gentle year round.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec12 AM2 AM4 AM6 AM8 AM10 AM12 PM2 PM4 PM6 PM8 PM10 PM12 AM
UV ≥ 3 (h/day)UV ≥ 6 (h/day)
Jan00
Feb00
Mar00
Apr20
May60
Jun7.50
Jul70
Aug60
Sep1.50
Oct00
Nov00
Dec00
Almanac & agriculture

Growing season

Chance of a frost-free dayTypical season (≥50%)

The growing season in Cēsis typically lasts about 219 days, from around April 8 to November 12 — the span where a frost-free day is more likely than not. It is reliably frost-free from May 10 to October 5.

0%25%50%75%100%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecgrowing seasonApr 850%May 1090%Oct 590%Nov 1250%
Frost-free chance (%)Frost nights
Jan1731
Feb1628
Mar2331
Apr6330
May938
Jun1000
Jul1000
Aug1000
Sep980
Oct7727
Nov4730
Dec2431

Growing degree days

Degree days (base 10°C)Frost-free shaded

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. Cēsis banks about 653 degree days a year, and the running total — which growers use to time plantings and predict maturity — climbs fastest around July.

0200400600800JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Growing degree days (°C·days)
Jan0
Feb0
Mar0
Apr0
May39
Jun143
Jul223
Aug193
Sep54
Oct0
Nov0
Dec0

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.

Cēsis receives about 2.7 kWh/m² a day of solar energy on average — moderate — with a clear seasonal swing between 0.3 and 5.7 kWh/m².

The brighter stretch of the year lasts 5.7 months, from around Mar 22 to Sep 12. The brightest month is June, averaging about 5.5 kWh/m² (bright).

The dimmest month is December, down near 0.3 kWh/m² — roughly 95% less than the June peak.

01234567JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecdimmerbrighterdimmerdimmoderatebrightintenseJun 45.7 kWhDec 170.3 kWh
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
Jan0.4Dim
Feb1.1Dim
Mar2.4Moderate
Apr4.0Bright
May5.3Bright
Jun5.5Bright
Jul5.3Bright
Aug4.2Bright
Sep2.6Moderate
Oct1.3Dim
Nov0.5Dim
Dec0.3Dim

Where is Cēsis?

Cēsis sits at 57.3°N, 25.3°E, 102 m above sea level, in Latvia. The nearest listed city is Valmiera, 27 km away.

ValmieraSiguldaOgreValgaSalaspilsMadonaDārzciemsRiga

Topography around Cēsis

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Cēsis has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 131 m around an average of 99 m above sea level; within 16 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 214 m; within 80 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 317 m.

The land around Cēsis is covered by trees (49%) and grassland (26%) within 3 km, trees (64%) within 16 km, and trees (63%) within 80 km.

3 km
131 m
16 km
214 m
80 km
317 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaceswaterwetland
Nearby: Valmiera 27 km · Sigulda 31 km · Ogre 68 km · Valga 69 km · Salaspils 74 km · Madona 76 km · Dārzciems 78 km · Riga 81 km

Latvia travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 1
Exercise Normal Precautions
Power plugs
Type C / F
230 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 57% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$26,312
2025
Happiness
6.4 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
97%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
2.5
per 100k, 2023
Road deaths
8.1
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
High
World Bank
English
High
EF EPI 599
Religion
Lutheran 36%unspecified/none 24%Roman Catholic 20%Orthodox 19%

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 Cēsis (57.3119°, 25.2746°, elevation 102 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).