Basel weather in March

In March, Basel sees average daytime highs of 10°C and overnight lows near 2°C, with 83 mm of precipitation across 13.5 wet days and about 11.6 hours of daylight. It is the 8th-warmest and 10th-wettest month of the year here.

Highs climb over the month, from about 8°C in the first days to 12°C by the end. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 24% of the time in March, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 10 h 42 min at the start of March to 12 h 30 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, March is Basel's 6th-clearest and 2nd-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Basel's year-round climate.

Daytime high
10°
8th warmest
Overnight low
4th coldest
Precipitation
83 mm
13.5 wet days
Daylight
11 h 36 min
6:52 AM – 6:27 PM
Cloud cover
64%
6th clearest
Wind
9 km/h
2nd windiest
Solar energy
3.28 kWh/m²
Travel score
2.2
out of 10
Air quality
Moderate
PM2.5 10.2 µg/m³ · 2020

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

Temperature in March

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Highs climb over the month, from about 8°C in the first days to 12°C by the end.

A typical March day in Basel reaches about 10°C in the afternoon and slips back to 2°C overnight — a 9°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 4°C and 17°C. Set against its neighbours, March runs about 5°C warmer than February and about 4°C cooler than April.

-10°10°20°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
180
280
380
481
591
691
791
891
991
10101
11101
12102
13102
14102
15112
16112
17112
18112
19112
20112
21112
22112
23113
24123
25123
26123
27123
28123
29123
30123
31123

How March really feels in Basel

Once humidity and wind are folded in, March averages 0 days that feel above 32°C and 22 that feel at or below 0°C — the comfort signal a plain temperature reading hides.

Days feeling ≥ 32°C
0
heat index over the day's high
Days feeling ≤ C
22
wind chill below the day's low

The story in March is cold — wind chill drags the overnight "feels like" below the raw low.

Basel weather by month

How March compares with the rest of the year at a glance. March is the 8th-warmest and 10th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan / -1°8013.568.70.0
Feb / -1°7211.55.59.90.4
Mar10° / 8313.53.911.62.2
Apr14° / 9014.11.613.33.8
May18° / 12916.80.114.94.9
Jun22° / 12°11815.8015.75.7
Jul24° / 14°12115.4015.46.2
Aug24° / 14°12515.2014.16.2
Sep19° / 10°9512.6012.45.7
Oct14° / 9713.20.310.63.8
Nov / 94132.89.11.3
Dec / -0°10114.15.58.30.0

Cloud cover in March

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 24% of the time in March.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 13% of March, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 63%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
13169
23169
33268
43367
53367
63466
73565
83664
93763
103961
113961
124060
134060
144159
154159
164159
174159
184060
193961
203961
214060
223961
233862
243862
253763
263763
273763
283763
293763
303763
313763

Chance of precipitation in March

Any precipitationSnow

Basel gets around 83 mm of rain and snow over 13.5 wet days in March. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Day to day, the chance of measurable precipitation averages around 43% and peaks near 48% on the wettest days, and about 4 days bring snow.

0%20%40%60%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
14317
24317
34316
44316
54216
64215
74115
84114
94014
103913
113912
123912
133911
143911
153910
164010
174010
184110
194210
204310
214410
224510
234611
244611
254711
264811
274811
284811
294811
304810
314810

Humidity in March

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

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

By dew point, March 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 March

Winds average 9 km/h in March.

Across March, daily wind ranges from about 8 km/h on the calmest days to 9 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

051015151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
19calm
29calm
39calm
49calm
59calm
69calm
79calm
89calm
99calm
109calm
119calm
129calm
139calm
149calm
159calm
169calm
179calm
189calm
199calm
209calm
219calm
229calm
239calm
249calm
259calm
269calm
279calm
288calm
298calm
308calm
318calm

Sunrise & sunset in March

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 10 h 42 min at the start of March to 12 h 30 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 108 minutes over March. Sunrise moves from 7:22 AM to 6:21 AM, and sunset from 6:04 PM to 6:48 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
110.77:226:04
210.87:206:06
310.87:186:07
410.97:166:09
510.97:146:10
611.07:126:12
711.07:106:13
811.17:086:15
911.27:066:16
1011.27:046:18
1111.37:026:19
1211.37:006:21
1311.46:586:22
1411.56:566:24
1511.56:546:25
1611.66:526:27
1711.66:506:28
1811.76:486:30
1911.86:466:31
2011.86:446:32
2111.96:426:34
2211.96:406:35
2312.06:386:37
2412.06:366:38
2512.16:346:40
2612.26:316:41
2712.26:296:43
2812.36:276:44
2912.36:256:45
3012.46:236:47
3112.56:216:48

Solar energy in March

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in March, about 3.28 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 0.98 kWh/m² to a high of 5.59 kWh/m² in June across the year — March's 3.28 kWh/m² falls in the middle.

01234151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
12.6Moderate
22.7Moderate
32.7Moderate
42.8Moderate
52.8Moderate
62.9Moderate
72.9Moderate
83.0Moderate
93.0Moderate
103.0Moderate
113.1Moderate
123.1Moderate
133.2Moderate
143.2Moderate
153.3Moderate
163.3Moderate
173.4Moderate
183.4Moderate
193.4Moderate
203.5Moderate
213.5Moderate
223.6Moderate
233.6Moderate
243.6Moderate
253.7Moderate
263.7Moderate
273.8Moderate
283.8Moderate
293.9Moderate
303.9Moderate
314.0Moderate
Planning a trip in March

Is March a good time to visit Basel?

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

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

March is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Basel.

What to pack for Basel in March

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

In March, Basel sees daytime highs around 10°C and nights near 2°C. Pack a warm layer. Worth having: rain gear. About 14 days see rain.

a warm layerrain gear

UV index in Basel in March

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in March peaks around 4 — enough to warrant sun protection. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Basel peaks around July 14 at about 8 (very high) — sunscreen and a hat are worth it in the middle of the day. It bottoms out near January 1 at about 1 (low).

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

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLowModerateHighVery highHighModerateLowJul 14UV 8Jan 1UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan1Low
Feb2Low
Mar4Moderate
Apr5Moderate
May7High
Jun7Very high
Jul8Very high
Aug6High
Sep4Moderate
Oct3Moderate
Nov2Low
Dec1Low
Location & terrain

Where is Basel?

Basel sits at 47.6°N, 7.6°E, 279 m above sea level, in Switzerland. The nearest listed city is Allschwil, 3.0 km away.

Topography around Basel

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Basel has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 123 m around an average of 279 m above sea level; within 16 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 661 m; within 80 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,761 m.

The land around Basel is covered by artificial surfaces (54%) and trees (30%) within 3 km, trees (44%) and cropland (23%) within 16 km, and trees (53%) and grassland (23%) within 80 km.

3 km
123 m
16 km
661 m
80 km
1,761 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater
March weather nearby: Allschwil 3.0 km · Saint-Louis 4.0 km · Weil am Rhein 5.0 km · Riehen 6.0 km · Muttenz 7.0 km · Reinach 7.0 km · Lörrach 9.0 km · Rheinfelden 16 km

Switzerland travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 1
Exercise Normal Precautions
Power plugs
Type C / J
230 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 112% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$114,769
2025
Happiness
7.0 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
97%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
0.6
per 100k, 2023
Road deaths
2.2
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
High
World Bank
English
High
EF EPI 564
Religion
Roman Catholic 34%none 29%Protestant 23%other Christian 6%

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 Basel (47.5584°, 7.5733°, elevation 279 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. 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).