Zurich weather in August

In August, Zurich sees average daytime highs of 23°C and overnight lows near 15°C, with 147 mm of rain across 14.4 wet days and about 14.1 hours of daylight. It is the 2nd-warmest and 1st-wettest month of the year here.

Highs ease over the month, from about 24°C in the first days to 22°C by the end. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 32% of the time in August, and the air most often feels comfortable.

Daylight stretches from about 14 h 48 min at the start of August to 13 h 18 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, August is Zurich's 2nd-clearest and 12th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Zurich's year-round climate.

Daytime high
23°
2nd warmest
Overnight low
15°
12th coldest
Rainfall
147 mm
14.4 wet days
Daylight
14 h 06 min
5:28 AM – 7:32 PM
Cloud cover
55%
2nd clearest
Wind
5 km/h
12th windiest
Solar energy
4.86 kWh/m²
Travel score
6.3
out of 10
Air quality
Good
PM2.5 9.8 µg/m³ · 2020

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

Temperature in August

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Highs ease over the month, from about 24°C in the first days to 22°C by the end.

A typical August day in Zurich reaches about 23°C in the afternoon and slips back to 15°C overnight — a 8°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 17°C and 29°C. Set against its neighbours, August runs on par with July and about 4°C warmer than September.

10°15°20°25°30°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
12415
22415
32415
42415
52415
62415
72415
82415
92415
102415
112415
122415
132315
142315
152315
162315
172315
182315
192315
202315
212315
222314
232314
242214
252214
262214
272214
282214
292214
302113
312113

How August really feels in Zurich

Once humidity and wind are folded in, August averages 0 days that feel above 32°C and 0 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
0
wind chill below the day's low

August sits comfortably in between — no days that feel dangerously hot or drop to a hard freeze once humidity and wind are folded in.

Zurich weather by month

How August compares with the rest of the year at a glance. August is the 2nd-warmest and 1st-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan / -1°9212.97.68.70.0
Feb / -1°8511.77.49.90.3
Mar10° / 9914.25.811.62.2
Apr14° / 10613.92.713.33.7
May18° / 144160.314.95.0
Jun22° / 13°14315.5015.75.7
Jul24° / 15°14615.4015.36.2
Aug23° / 15°14714.4014.16.3
Sep19° / 11°12312.4012.45.6
Oct14° / 10312.70.610.63.8
Nov / 106133.99.11.3
Dec / 106147.18.30.0

Cloud cover in August

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 32% of the time in August.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 21% of August, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 47%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
15743
25644
35644
45545
55545
65545
75347
85347
95347
105347
115347
125347
135347
145446
155545
165545
175545
185545
195545
205545
215446
225446
235347
245347
255248
265149
275050
285050
294951
304951
314852

Chance of precipitation in August

Any precipitation

Zurich gets around 147 mm of rain over 14.4 wet days in August, the wettest month. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Day to day, the chance of measurable rain averages around 46% and peaks near 48% on the wettest days.

0%20%40%60%151015202531
Rain chance (%)
147
247
347
447
547
648
748
848
948
1048
1147
1247
1347
1447
1546
1646
1746
1845
1945
2045
2145
2245
2345
2445
2545
2645
2745
2845
2944
3044
3144

Humidity in August

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

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

By dew point, August lands in the comfortable band about 40% of days. It rarely turns muggy — the humid and sticky bands barely register.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Dry (%)Comfortable (%)Humid (%)Muggy (%)
12445301
22445301
32544301
42544301
52643301
62742301
72841301
82941291
93040291
103140291
113240281
123240281
133340271
143340260
153440260
163440260
173440250
183540250
193540250
203540240
213640240
223740240
233839230
243939220
254138210
264237210
274436200
284635180
294835170
305034160
315233150

Wind in August

Winds average 5 km/h in August, the calmest month.

Across August, daily wind ranges from about 5 km/h on the calmest days to 5 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

0246810151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
15calm
25calm
35calm
45calm
55calm
65calm
75calm
85calm
95calm
105calm
115calm
125calm
135calm
145calm
155calm
165calm
175calm
185calm
195calm
205calm
215calm
225calm
235calm
245calm
255calm
265calm
275calm
285calm
295calm
305calm
315calm

Sunrise & sunset in August

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 14 h 48 min at the start of August to 13 h 18 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days shrink by about 90 minutes over August. Sunrise moves from 5:08 AM to 5:48 AM, and sunset from 7:56 PM to 7:04 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
114.85:087:56
214.85:097:54
314.75:117:53
414.75:127:51
514.65:137:50
614.65:147:49
714.55:167:47
814.55:177:45
914.45:187:44
1014.45:207:42
1114.35:217:41
1214.35:227:39
1314.25:247:37
1414.25:257:36
1514.15:267:34
1614.15:287:32
1714.05:297:30
1814.05:307:29
1913.95:327:27
2013.95:337:25
2113.85:347:23
2213.85:367:21
2313.75:377:19
2413.65:397:17
2513.65:407:15
2613.55:417:13
2713.55:437:11
2813.45:447:10
2913.45:457:08
3013.35:477:06
3113.35:487:04

Solar energy in August

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in August, about 4.86 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 1.05 kWh/m² to a high of 5.63 kWh/m² in June across the year — August's 4.86 kWh/m² falls in the middle.

0246151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
15.3Bright
25.3Bright
35.3Bright
45.2Bright
55.2Bright
65.2Bright
75.1Bright
85.1Bright
95.1Bright
105.0Bright
115.0Bright
125.0Bright
135.0Bright
145.0Bright
154.9Bright
164.9Bright
174.9Bright
184.9Bright
194.8Bright
204.8Bright
214.8Bright
224.7Bright
234.7Bright
244.6Bright
254.6Bright
264.5Bright
274.5Bright
284.4Bright
294.4Bright
304.3Bright
314.3Bright
Planning a trip in August

Is August a good time to visit Zurich?

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

6.3
Sightseeing
1st-best month of the year
4.8
Beach & pool
2nd-best month of the year

August is a reasonable time to visit Zurich for sightseeing.

What to pack for Zurich in August

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

In August, Zurich sees daytime highs around 23°C and nights near 15°C. Pack rain gear. Worth having: light clothes and sun protection. About 14 days see rain.

rain gearlight clothessun protection

UV index in Zurich in August

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in August peaks around 7 — enough to warrant sun protection. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Zurich peaks around July 15 at about 8 (very high) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. 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 15UV 8Jan 1UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan1Low
Feb2Moderate
Mar4Moderate
Apr5Moderate
May7High
Jun7Very high
Jul8Very high
Aug7High
Sep4Moderate
Oct3Moderate
Nov2Low
Dec1Low
Location & terrain

Where is Zurich?

Zurich sits at 47.4°N, 8.6°E, 429 m above sea level, in Switzerland. The nearest listed city is Zürich (Kreis 8), 2.0 km away.

Topography around Zurich

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Zurich has significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 321 m around an average of 478 m above sea level; within 16 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 559 m; within 80 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 3,318 m.

The land around Zurich is covered by trees (41%) and artificial surfaces (41%) within 3 km, trees (42%) within 16 km, and trees (45%) and grassland (33%) within 80 km.

3 km
321 m
16 km
559 m
80 km
3,318 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainsnow and icewater
August weather nearby: Zürich (Kreis 8) 2.0 km · Zürich (Kreis 7) 2.0 km · Zürich (Kreis 4) / Aussersihl 2.0 km · Zürich (Kreis 6) 3.0 km · Zürich (Kreis 3) / Sihlfeld 3.0 km · Zürich (Kreis 2) / Wollishofen 3.0 km · Zürich (Kreis 6) / Unterstrass 3.0 km · Zürich (Kreis 10) / Wipkingen 4.0 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 Zurich (47.3667°, 8.55°, elevation 429 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).