Christchurch weather in July

In July, Christchurch sees average daytime highs of 10°C and overnight lows near 5°C, with 52 mm of precipitation across 8.4 wet days and about 9.1 hours of daylight. It is the 12th-warmest and 3rd-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 10°C through the month. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 35% of the time in July, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 8 h 48 min at the start of July to 9 h 30 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, July is Christchurch's 4th-clearest and 12th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Christchurch's year-round climate.

Daytime high
10°
12th warmest
Overnight low
1st coldest
Precipitation
52 mm
8.4 wet days
Daylight
9 h 06 min
9:03 AM – 6:07 PM
Cloud cover
56%
4th clearest
Wind
14 km/h
12th windiest
Solar energy
1.67 kWh/m²
Travel score
2.2
out of 10

Christchurch is largest city in the South Island of New Zealand.

Air quality
Moderate
PM2.5 10.2 µg/m³ · 2012
Density
1,420/km²
people per km²
Founded
1848

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

Temperature in July

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 10°C through the month.

A typical July day in Christchurch reaches about 10°C in the afternoon and slips back to 5°C overnight — a 5°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 8°C and 12°C. Set against its neighbours, July runs about 1°C cooler than June and on par with August.

10°15°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
1105
2105
3105
4105
5105
6105
7105
895
995
1095
1195
12105
13105
14105
15105
16105
17105
18105
19105
20105
21105
22105
23105
24105
25105
26105
27105
28105
29105
30105
31105

Christchurch weather by month

How July compares with the rest of the year at a glance. July is the 12th-warmest and 3rd-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan19° / 14°498.114.96.3
Feb19° / 14°396.613.86.5
Mar17° / 13°456.812.46.1
Apr15° / 10°528.810.84.8
May13° / 488.29.53.8
Jun11° / 588.98.82.6
Jul10° / 528.49.12.2
Aug10° / 488.810.22.5
Sep12° / 438.111.73.3
Oct14° / 489.413.24.1
Nov16° / 10°49914.54.9
Dec17° / 12°539.415.25.6

Cloud cover in July

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 35% of the time in July.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 16% of July, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 49%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
15347
25347
35347
45248
55347
65347
75248
85248
95248
105149
115149
125050
134951
144951
154951
165050
175050
184951
194951
204951
214951
225050
235050
244951
255050
265149
275149
285248
295248
305149
315149

Chance of precipitation in July

Any precipitation

Christchurch gets around 52 mm of rain and snow over 8.4 wet days in July. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Day to day, the chance of measurable precipitation averages around 28% and peaks near 30% on the wettest days, and about 0 day brings snow.

0%10%20%30%40%151015202531
Rain chance (%)
127
227
326
426
526
626
726
826
927
1027
1128
1228
1329
1429
1530
1630
1730
1830
1930
2030
2130
2230
2329
2429
2528
2628
2728
2827
2927
3027
3127

Humidity in July

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

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

By dew point, July 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%151015202531
Dry (%)
1100
2100
3100
4100
5100
6100
7100
8100
9100
10100
11100
12100
13100
14100
15100
16100
17100
18100
19100
20100
21100
22100
23100
24100
25100
26100
27100
28100
29100
30100
31100

Wind in July

Winds average 14 km/h in July, the calmest month.

Across July, daily wind ranges from about 13 km/h on the calmest days to 14 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

05101520151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
114light breeze
214light breeze
314light breeze
414light breeze
514light breeze
614light breeze
714light breeze
814light breeze
914light breeze
1014light breeze
1113light breeze
1213light breeze
1313light breeze
1413light breeze
1513light breeze
1613light breeze
1713light breeze
1813light breeze
1913light breeze
2013light breeze
2114light breeze
2214light breeze
2314light breeze
2414light breeze
2514light breeze
2614light breeze
2714light breeze
2814light breeze
2914light breeze
3014light breeze
3114light breeze

Sunrise & sunset in July

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 8 h 48 min at the start of July to 9 h 30 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 42 minutes over July. Sunrise moves from 9:09 AM to 8:50 AM, and sunset from 5:57 PM to 6:22 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
18.89:095:57
28.89:095:57
38.89:095:58
48.89:085:58
58.89:085:59
68.99:086:00
78.99:086:00
88.99:076:01
98.99:076:01
108.99:066:02
118.99:066:03
129.09:066:04
139.09:056:04
149.09:046:05
159.09:046:06
169.19:036:07
179.19:036:08
189.19:026:09
199.19:016:10
209.29:006:11
219.29:006:11
229.28:596:12
239.38:586:13
249.38:576:14
259.38:566:15
269.48:556:16
279.48:546:17
289.48:536:18
299.58:526:19
309.58:516:20
319.58:506:22

Solar energy in July

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in July, about 1.67 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 1.44 kWh/m² to a high of 6.97 kWh/m² in January across the year — July's 1.67 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

00.511.522.5151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
11.5Dim
21.5Dim
31.5Dim
41.5Dim
51.5Dim
61.5Dim
71.5Dim
81.6Dim
91.6Dim
101.6Dim
111.6Dim
121.6Dim
131.6Dim
141.6Dim
151.6Dim
161.6Dim
171.7Dim
181.7Dim
191.7Dim
201.7Dim
211.7Dim
221.8Dim
231.8Dim
241.8Dim
251.8Dim
261.9Dim
271.9Dim
281.9Dim
291.9Dim
302.0Dim
312.0Dim
Planning a trip in July

Is July a good time to visit Christchurch?

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

2.2
Sightseeing
12th-best month of the year
0.0
Beach & pool
8th-best month of the year

July is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Christchurch.

What to pack for Christchurch in July

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

In July, Christchurch sees daytime highs around 10°C and nights near 5°C. Pack a warm layer. Worth having: rain gear. About 8 days see rain.

a warm layerrain gear

Sea temperature near Christchurch in July

The nearest coast averages about 10°C in July — the other half of the beach question. The full-year curve and swim-comfort zones are below.

The sea at the nearest coast (about 22 km away) is warmest in February at about 17°C and coldest in August near 9°C.

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

10°15°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbracingcool
Sea temperature (°C)Comfort
Jan17Cool
Feb17Cool
Mar16Cool
Apr14Bracing
May13Bracing
Jun11Bracing
Jul10Bracing
Aug9Bracing
Sep10Bracing
Oct12Bracing
Nov14Bracing
Dec15Cool

UV index in Christchurch in July

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in July peaks around 2. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Christchurch peaks around January 15 at about 11 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near June 17 at about 1 (low).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 8 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecExtremeVery highModerateLowModerateHighVery highJan 15UV 11Jun 17UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan11Extreme
Feb10Very high
Mar6High
Apr3Moderate
May2Low
Jun1Low
Jul2Low
Aug2Moderate
Sep4Moderate
Oct6High
Nov8Very high
Dec10Very high

Air quality in Christchurch in July

GoodModeratePoorUnhealthyVery unhealthy

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

Air quality in Christchurch is worst in February — around 17 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 2.5× the cleanest month (May, 7 µg/m³).

Seasonal pattern from CAMS reanalysis, scaled to Christchurch's WHO annual average of 10.2 µg/m³.

01020JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecGoodModerateGoodFeb 1816 µg/m³May 197 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan10Good
Feb17Moderate
Mar14Moderate
Apr8Good
May7Good
Jun7Good
Jul9Good
Aug10Good
Sep11Good
Oct10Good
Nov10Good
Dec10Good
Location & terrain

Where is Christchurch?

Christchurch sits at 43.5°S, 172.6°E, 14 m above sea level, in New Zealand. The nearest listed city is Rolleston, 21 km away.

TimaruKaikouraTekapoFranz JosefRichmond

Topography around Christchurch

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Christchurch has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 26 m around an average of 10 m above sea level; within 16 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 547 m; within 80 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,955 m.

The land around Christchurch is covered by artificial surfaces (74%) within 3 km, grassland (33%) and water (22%) within 16 km, and water (43%) and grassland (34%) within 80 km.

3 km
26 m
16 km
547 m
80 km
1,955 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater
July weather nearby: Rolleston 21 km · Rangiora 26 km · Ashburton 83 km · Timaru 146 km · Kaikoura 151 km · Tekapo 181 km · Franz Josef 198 km · Richmond 249 km

New Zealand travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 1
Exercise Normal Precautions
Power plugs
Type I
230 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 86% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$49,591
2025
Happiness
7.0 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
100%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
1.5
per 100k, 2022
Road deaths
9.6
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
High
World Bank
Religion
no religion 49%Christian 37%objected to answering 7%Hindu 3%

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 Christchurch (-43.5333°, 172.6333°, elevation 14 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. 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).