Colombo in Winter
In winter (December, January and February), Colombo sees average daytime highs around 30°C and overnight lows near 25°C, with 271 mm of rain over about 32 wet days across the season. It is the 2nd-warmest season and the driest season of the year.
Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 30°C. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 32% of the time across winter, and the air most often feels oppressive.
Winter is Colombo's best season of the year to visit on our travel score. Colombo 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 Colombo's year-round climate.
- Avg daytime high
- 30°C
- 2nd-warmest season
- Avg overnight low
- 25°C
- Rainfall
- 271 mm
- 32 wet days
- Avg wind
- 14 km/h
- Travel score
- 5.0
- best season of the year
- Months
- Dec · Jan · Feb
Temperature in Colombo in Winter
Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 30°C.
A typical winter day in Colombo reaches about 30°C and drops to 25°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is February, the coolest January.
How winter really feels in Colombo
Once humidity and wind are folded in, winter brings about 90 days that feel above 32°C and 0 that feel at or below 0°C.
The story in winter is heat — humidity pushes the afternoon "feels like" well above the raw temperature.
Colombo weather by month
How the three winter 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 | 30° / 24° | 53 | 7.9 | 11.6 | 5.3 |
| Feb | 30° / 25° | 54 | 7.8 | 11.8 | 5.1 |
| Mar | 30° / 26° | 75 | 14.9 | 12 | 4.3 |
| Apr | 30° / 26° | 166 | 24.8 | 12.1 | 3.2 |
| May | 30° / 27° | 279 | 28.9 | 12.3 | 2.9 |
| Jun | 29° / 26° | 243 | 26.8 | 12.4 | 3.2 |
| Jul | 28° / 26° | 183 | 24.4 | 12.4 | 3.7 |
| Aug | 28° / 26° | 168 | 23.7 | 12.2 | 3.9 |
| Sep | 28° / 26° | 223 | 24.5 | 12 | 3.7 |
| Oct | 29° / 25° | 326 | 26 | 11.8 | 3.5 |
| Nov | 29° / 25° | 307 | 23.7 | 11.7 | 3.6 |
| Dec | 29° / 25° | 164 | 15.9 | 11.6 | 4.6 |
Cloud cover in Winter
The sky is clear or mostly clear about 32% of the time across winter.
Chance of precipitation in Winter
Colombo gets around 271 mm of rain over 32 wet days across winter. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.
Humidity in Winter
Most of winter feels oppressive — the stacked bands show each day's mix of comfort levels, read off the dew point.
Wind in Winter
Winds average 14 km/h across winter.
Sunrise & sunset in Winter
Daylight runs from about 11 h 36 min in early December to 11 h 54 min by late February. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.
Solar energy in Winter
Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day across winter, about 5.5 kWh/m².
Hazard calendar for Colombo
In winter, Colombo overlaps its cyclone season. The full year is below, with each hazard's peak months called out.
Colombo sits in the North Indian Ocean cyclone zone; the season peaks May and October–November.
Is winter a good time to visit Colombo?
Our two travel scores rate winter for general sightseeing and for beach or pool weather — 0 (poor) to 10 (ideal), averaged across the three months.
winter is a reasonable time to visit Colombo for sightseeing. The water and warmth also suit a beach or pool day.
What to pack for Colombo in Winter
From winter's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.
In winter, Colombo sees daytime highs around 30°C and nights near 25°C. Pack light clothes, rain gear and sun protection. About 32 days see rain.
Sea temperature near Colombo in Winter
The nearest coast averages about 28°C across winter — the other half of the beach question. The full-year curve and swim-comfort zones are below.
The sea offshore is warmest in April at about 30°C and coldest in August near 27°C.
The water stays above 20°C all year — warm enough for a swim any month.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sea temperature (°C) | 28 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 29 | 28 | 28 | 27 | 28 | 28 | 29 | 28 |
| Comfort | Warm | Tropical | Tropical | Tropical | Tropical | Tropical | Warm | Warm | Warm | Tropical | Tropical | Tropical |
| Sea temperature (°C) | Comfort | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 28 | Warm |
| Feb | 28 | Tropical |
| Mar | 29 | Tropical |
| Apr | 30 | Tropical |
| May | 29 | Tropical |
| Jun | 28 | Tropical |
| Jul | 28 | Warm |
| Aug | 27 | Warm |
| Sep | 28 | Warm |
| Oct | 28 | Tropical |
| Nov | 29 | Tropical |
| Dec | 28 | Tropical |
UV index in Colombo in Winter
Clear-sky midday UV across winter averages around 11 (very high — sun protection essential). The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.
Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Colombo peaks around September 10 at about 13 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 15 at about 10 (very high).
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) | 10 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 11 | 11 | 13 | 13 | 12 | 10 | 10 |
| Level | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Very high |
| UV index (midday) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 10 | Extreme |
| Feb | 12 | Extreme |
| Mar | 12 | Extreme |
| Apr | 12 | Extreme |
| May | 12 | Extreme |
| Jun | 11 | Extreme |
| Jul | 11 | Extreme |
| Aug | 13 | Extreme |
| Sep | 13 | Extreme |
| Oct | 12 | Extreme |
| Nov | 10 | Extreme |
| Dec | 10 | Very high |
Air quality in Colombo in Winter
Average fine-particle pollution (PM2.5) through the year — so you can see where winter falls, not just the annual average.
Air quality in Colombo is worst in February — around 33 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 2.1× the cleanest month (September, 16 µg/m³).
Seasonal pattern from CAMS reanalysis, scaled to Colombo's WHO annual average of 23.6 µg/m³.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | 32 | 33 | 32 | 25 | 21 | 17 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 18 | 27 | 30 |
| Level | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate |
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 32 | Moderate |
| Feb | 33 | Moderate |
| Mar | 32 | Moderate |
| Apr | 25 | Moderate |
| May | 21 | Moderate |
| Jun | 17 | Moderate |
| Jul | 16 | Moderate |
| Aug | 16 | Moderate |
| Sep | 16 | Moderate |
| Oct | 18 | Moderate |
| Nov | 27 | Moderate |
| Dec | 30 | Moderate |
Where is Colombo?
Colombo sits at 6.9°N, 79.8°E, 7 m above sea level, in Sri Lanka. The nearest listed city is Kolonnawa, 4.0 km away.
Topography around Colombo
How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Colombo.
Within 3 km, the terrain around Colombo has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 32 m around an average of 5 m above sea level; within 16 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 71 m; within 80 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,145 m.
The land around Colombo is covered by artificial surfaces (45%) and water (38%) within 3 km, water (55%), artificial surfaces (22%) and trees (20%) within 16 km, and trees (59%) and water (37%) within 80 km.
Sri Lanka travel facts
- Travel advisory
- Level 2
- Exercise Increased Caution
- Power plugs
- Type D / G / M
- 230 V · 50 Hz
- Prices
- ≈ 27% of US
- price level, 2025
- GDP per capita
- $5,002
- 2025
- Happiness
- 4.0 / 10
- World Happiness, 2025
- Safe drinking water
- 47%
- of population, 2024
- Homicide rate
- 3.3
- per 100k, 2019
- Road deaths
- 19.7
- per 100k/yr, 2019
- Income group
- Upper middle
- World Bank
- English
- Low
- EF EPI 486
- 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 Colombo (6.9355°, 79.8487°, elevation 7 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.