Christchurch in Summer
In summer (December, January and February), Christchurch sees average daytime highs around 18°C and overnight lows near 13°C, with 142 mm of rain over about 24 wet days across the season. It is the warmest season of the year and the 3rd-wettest season.
Across summer, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 18°C. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 29% of the time across summer, and the air most often feels dry.
Summer is Christchurch's best season of the year to visit on our travel score. For the whole year in context, see Christchurch's year-round climate.
- Avg daytime high
- 18°C
- warmest season of the year
- Avg overnight low
- 13°C
- Rainfall
- 142 mm
- 24 wet days
- Avg wind
- 16 km/h
- Travel score
- 6.1
- best season of the year
- Months
- Dec · Jan · Feb
Temperature in Christchurch in Summer
Across summer, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 18°C.
A typical summer day in Christchurch reaches about 18°C and drops to 13°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is February, the coolest December.
Christchurch weather by month
How the three summer months (December, January and February) compare with the rest of the year — the season's months are highlighted.
| Month | High / Low (°C) | Rainfall (mm) | Wet days | Daylight (hours) | Travel score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 19° / 14° | 49 | 8.1 | 14.9 | 6.3 |
| Feb | 19° / 14° | 39 | 6.6 | 13.8 | 6.5 |
| Mar | 17° / 13° | 45 | 6.8 | 12.4 | 6.1 |
| Apr | 15° / 10° | 52 | 8.8 | 10.8 | 4.8 |
| May | 13° / 8° | 48 | 8.2 | 9.5 | 3.8 |
| Jun | 11° / 6° | 58 | 8.9 | 8.8 | 2.6 |
| Jul | 10° / 5° | 52 | 8.4 | 9.1 | 2.2 |
| Aug | 10° / 6° | 48 | 8.8 | 10.2 | 2.5 |
| Sep | 12° / 7° | 43 | 8.1 | 11.7 | 3.3 |
| Oct | 14° / 9° | 48 | 9.4 | 13.2 | 4.1 |
| Nov | 16° / 10° | 49 | 9 | 14.5 | 4.9 |
| Dec | 17° / 12° | 53 | 9.4 | 15.2 | 5.6 |
Cloud cover in Summer
The sky is clear or mostly clear about 29% of the time across summer.
Chance of precipitation in Summer
Christchurch gets around 142 mm of rain over 24 wet days across summer. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.
Humidity in Summer
Most of summer feels dry — the stacked bands show each day's mix of comfort levels, read off the dew point.
Wind in Summer
Winds average 16 km/h across summer.
Sunrise & sunset in Summer
Daylight runs from about 15 hours in early December to 13 h 12 min by late February. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.
Solar energy in Summer
Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day across summer, about 6.5 kWh/m².
Is summer a good time to visit Christchurch?
Our two travel scores rate summer for general sightseeing and for beach or pool weather — 0 (poor) to 10 (ideal), averaged across the three months.
summer is a reasonable time to visit Christchurch for sightseeing.
What to pack for Christchurch in Summer
From summer's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.
In summer, Christchurch sees daytime highs around 18°C and nights near 13°C. Pack sun protection. Worth having: rain gear. About 24 days see rain.
Sea temperature near Christchurch in Summer
The nearest coast averages about 16°C across summer — 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.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sea temperature (°C) | 17 | 17 | 16 | 14 | 13 | 11 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 12 | 14 | 15 |
| Comfort | Cool | Cool | Cool | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Cool |
| Sea temperature (°C) | Comfort | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 17 | Cool |
| Feb | 17 | Cool |
| Mar | 16 | Cool |
| Apr | 14 | Bracing |
| May | 13 | Bracing |
| Jun | 11 | Bracing |
| Jul | 10 | Bracing |
| Aug | 9 | Bracing |
| Sep | 10 | Bracing |
| Oct | 12 | Bracing |
| Nov | 14 | Bracing |
| Dec | 15 | Cool |
UV index in Christchurch in Summer
Clear-sky midday UV across summer averages around 10 (very high — sun protection essential). 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.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UV index (midday) | 11 | 10 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 8 | 10 |
| Level | Extreme | Very high | High | Moderate | Low | Low | Low | Moderate | Moderate | High | Very high | Very high |
| UV index (midday) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 11 | Extreme |
| Feb | 10 | Very high |
| Mar | 6 | High |
| Apr | 3 | Moderate |
| May | 2 | Low |
| Jun | 1 | Low |
| Jul | 2 | Low |
| Aug | 2 | Moderate |
| Sep | 4 | Moderate |
| Oct | 6 | High |
| Nov | 8 | Very high |
| Dec | 10 | Very high |
Air quality in Christchurch in Summer
Average fine-particle pollution (PM2.5) through the year — so you can see where summer 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.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | 10 | 17 | 14 | 8 | 7 | 7 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 10 | 10 | 10 |
| Level | Good | Moderate | Moderate | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good |
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 10 | Good |
| Feb | 17 | Moderate |
| Mar | 14 | Moderate |
| Apr | 8 | Good |
| May | 7 | Good |
| Jun | 7 | Good |
| Jul | 9 | Good |
| Aug | 10 | Good |
| Sep | 11 | Good |
| Oct | 10 | Good |
| Nov | 10 | Good |
| Dec | 10 | Good |
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.
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.
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
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.