Apia in Summer

In summer (December, January and February), Apia sees average daytime highs around 28°C and overnight lows near 26°C, with 1033 mm of rain over about 80 wet days across the season. It is the 2nd-warmest season and the wettest season of the year.

Across summer, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 28°C. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 12% of the time across summer, and the air most often feels oppressive.

Summer is Apia's weakest season of the year to visit on our travel score. Apia has little temperature swing across the year, so its calendar seasons blur — the season framing matters less here than for a place with four distinct seasons. For the whole year in context, see Apia's year-round climate.

Avg daytime high
28°C
2nd-warmest season
Avg overnight low
26°C
Rainfall
1033 mm
80 wet days
Avg wind
15 km/h
Travel score
3.8
weakest season of the year
Months
Dec · Jan · Feb

Temperature in Apia in Summer

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Across summer, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 28°C.

A typical summer day in Apia reaches about 28°C and drops to 26°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is February, the coolest December.

20°23°25°28°30°DecJanFeb

Apia 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.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan28° / 26°36027.612.73.7
Feb28° / 26°32724.712.53.8
Mar28° / 26°27127.312.13.8
Apr28° / 26°21825.611.74.0
May28° / 26°20724.611.44.4
Jun27° / 26°14321.611.24.8
Jul27° / 25°1382111.35.1
Aug27° / 25°12121.111.55.1
Sep27° / 25°1592211.94.8
Oct27° / 25°22724.912.34.4
Nov27° / 25°27125.712.64.0
Dec28° / 26°34627.212.83.9

Cloud cover in Summer

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 12% of the time across summer.

0%25%50%75%100%DecJanFeb

Chance of precipitation in Summer

Any precipitation

Apia gets around 1033 mm of rain over 80 wet days across summer. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

0%20%40%60%80%100%DecJanFeb

Humidity in Summer

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

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

0%25%50%75%100%DecJanFeb

Wind in Summer

Winds average 15 km/h across summer.

05101520DecJanFeb

Sunrise & sunset in Summer

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 12 h 48 min in early December to 12 h 18 min by late February. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AMDecJanFeb

Solar energy in Summer

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day across summer, about 5.7 kWh/m².

0246DecJanFeb
Planning a trip in summer

Is summer a good time to visit Apia?

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.

3.8
Sightseeing
4th-best month of the year
4.0
Beach & pool
4th-best month of the year

summer is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Apia.

What to pack for Apia in Summer

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

In summer, Apia sees daytime highs around 28°C and nights near 26°C. Pack light clothes and rain gear. Worth having: sun protection. About 80 days see rain.

light clothesrain gearsun protection

Sea temperature near Apia in Summer

The nearest coast averages about 29°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 13 km away) is warmest in March at about 29°C and coldest in August near 28°C.

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

26°28°30°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecwarmtropicalcomfortable to swim
Sea temperature (°C)Comfort
Jan29Tropical
Feb29Tropical
Mar29Tropical
Apr29Tropical
May29Tropical
Jun29Tropical
Jul28Tropical
Aug28Warm
Sep28Warm
Oct28Tropical
Nov29Tropical
Dec29Tropical

UV index in Apia in Summer

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV across summer averages around 16 (very high — sun protection essential). The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Apia peaks around February 14 at about 17 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near June 19 at about 9 (very high).

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

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecExtremeVery highExtremeFeb 14UV 17Jun 19UV 9
UV index (midday)Level
Jan16Extreme
Feb18Extreme
Mar15Extreme
Apr13Extreme
May10Very high
Jun8Very high
Jul9Very high
Aug11Extreme
Sep14Extreme
Oct14Extreme
Nov14Extreme
Dec13Extreme
Location & terrain

Where is Apia?

Apia sits at 13.8°S, 171.8°W, 9 m above sea level, in Samoa. The nearest listed city is Pago Pago, 125 km away.

Topography around Apia

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Apia has significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 451 m around an average of 27 m above sea level; within 16 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,148 m; within 80 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,824 m.

The land around Apia is covered by water (41%) and trees (33%) within 3 km, water (49%) and trees (45%) within 16 km, and water (83%) within 80 km.

3 km
451 m
16 km
1,148 m
80 km
1,824 m
treesgrasslandartificial surfaceswatermangroves
Summer weather nearby: Pago Pago 125 km · Mata-Utu 480 km · Alofi 613 km · Nuku‘alofa 890 km · Labasa 995 km · Levuka 1,063 km · Nasinu 1,141 km · Funafuti 1,149 km

Samoa travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 1
Exercise Normal Precautions
Power plugs
Type I
230 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 63% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$5,873
2025
Safe drinking water
63%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
6.3
per 100k, 2018
Road deaths
13
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
Upper middle
World Bank
Religion
Protestant 55%Roman Catholic 19%Church of Jesus Christ 17%other Christian 4%

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 Apia (-13.8333°, -171.7667°, 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.