Climate and average weather in Funafuti
In Funafuti, the weather is oppressive, hot, wet, and mostly cloudy and remarkably steady, with daytime highs holding near hot levels all year. The wettest stretch peaks around February.
Over the course of the year, the temperature in Funafuti typically varies from 26°C to 28°C, and is rarely below 25°C or above 29°C. January is the hottest month of the year, while July is the coldest.
Based on the travel score, the best times of year to visit Funafuti for warm-weather activities are from early January to early April and late April to late December.
- Hottest
- Jan
- 28°
- Coldest
- Jul
- 26°
- Wettest
- Feb
- 359 mm
- Driest
- Sep
- 178 mm
- Rain / yr
- 3015 mm
- 287 wet days
- Daylight
- 11.5–12.5 h
- shortest–longest
- Elevation
- 7 m
- 8.5°S
- Clearest
- Sep
- 54% cloud
Funafuti is capital of Tuvalu.
- Density
- 2,633/km²
- people per km²
Air quality: WHO Ambient Air Quality Database. Density & description: Wikidata (CC0), GeoNames.
Funafuti weather by month, at a glance
The whole year in one picture — sky, rain, humidity, temperature and travel score. Click any band to jump to its full chart.
Each stripe is one measure across the whole year, stacked so a single day reads top to bottom. The sky band runs overcast grey on top down to clear blue at the base — more blue means sunnier — followed by the rainfall curve, the humidity band, a temperature strip that tints each stretch of the year by how warm its average high is, and the travel-score line at the foot. Scan straight down any date to read that day across every measure at once; the score climbs highest around late April to late December.
Temperature through the year
Daily average highs and lows in Funafuti, from 1991–2020 of climate data. The shaded bands show the range most days fall in — 10th to 90th percentile.
Temperatures in Funafuti stay fairly even through the year, without a distinct hot or cool season. The warmest month is January, with an average high of 28°C and low of 27°C; the coolest is July, with an average low of 26°C and high of 28°C.
Days typically run about 2°C warmer than nights year-round.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avg high (°C) | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 |
| Avg low (°C) | 27 | 26 | 26 | 27 | 27 | 26 | 26 | 26 | 26 | 26 | 26 | 27 |
| Avg high (°C) | Avg low (°C) | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 28 | 27 |
| Feb | 28 | 26 |
| Mar | 28 | 26 |
| Apr | 28 | 27 |
| May | 28 | 27 |
| Jun | 28 | 26 |
| Jul | 28 | 26 |
| Aug | 28 | 26 |
| Sep | 28 | 26 |
| Oct | 28 | 26 |
| Nov | 28 | 26 |
| Dec | 28 | 27 |
How hot and cold Funafuti really feels
The felt-temperature range through the year — heat index on the day's high (summer humidity), wind chill on the night's low (winter wind). The dashed lines are the plain thermometer; the gap is how much hotter or colder it really feels.
On the hottest afternoons, once humidity is folded in, Funafuti feels like about 34°C (around April 30). About 320 days a year carry some heat stress, peaking in April.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feels-like high (°C) | 33 | 33 | 33 | 33 | 33 | 33 | 32 | 32 | 32 | 32 | 32 | 33 |
| Air high (°C) | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 |
| Feels-like low (°C) | 27 | 26 | 26 | 26 | 27 | 26 | 26 | 26 | 26 | 26 | 26 | 26 |
| Air low (°C) | 27 | 26 | 26 | 27 | 27 | 26 | 26 | 26 | 26 | 26 | 26 | 27 |
| Feels-like high (°C) | Air high (°C) | Feels-like low (°C) | Air low (°C) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 33 | 28 | 27 | 27 |
| Feb | 33 | 28 | 26 | 26 |
| Mar | 33 | 28 | 26 | 26 |
| Apr | 33 | 28 | 26 | 27 |
| May | 33 | 28 | 27 | 27 |
| Jun | 33 | 28 | 26 | 26 |
| Jul | 32 | 28 | 26 | 26 |
| Aug | 32 | 28 | 26 | 26 |
| Sep | 32 | 28 | 26 | 26 |
| Oct | 32 | 28 | 26 | 26 |
| Nov | 32 | 28 | 26 | 26 |
| Dec | 33 | 28 | 26 | 27 |
Average hourly temperature in Funafuti
A compact picture of the whole year, hour by hour: each column is a day, each row an hour, and the color is the modeled average temperature. Darker overlays mark night, lighter ones the civil-twilight hours around sunrise and sunset.
Read left to right for the day of the year and top to bottom for the hour of the day; the color is the modeled temperature, cool blues through to hot reds on the same scale as the other charts. A vertical slice is a single day's swing — coolest just before dawn, warmest in the mid-afternoon — while a horizontal slice follows one hour across the seasons. The darker overlay marks night and the lighter one the twilight around sunrise and sunset. Colors run warmest on January afternoons, near 28°C, and coldest before dawn in July, near 26°C.
Funafuti weather by month
Every month at a glance. Click a month for its detailed page.
| Month | High / Low (°C) | Rainfall (mm) | Wet days | Daylight (hours) | Travel score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 28° / 27° | 357 | 25 | 12.4 | 3.7 |
| Feb | 28° / 26° | 359 | 22.9 | 12.3 | 3.7 |
| Mar | 28° / 26° | 301 | 25.1 | 12.1 | 3.8 |
| Apr | 28° / 27° | 250 | 25.6 | 11.8 | 3.7 |
| May | 28° / 27° | 237 | 25.6 | 11.6 | 3.8 |
| Jun | 28° / 26° | 205 | 24.3 | 11.5 | 4.0 |
| Jul | 28° / 26° | 204 | 23.3 | 11.6 | 4.5 |
| Aug | 28° / 26° | 215 | 23.7 | 11.7 | 4.6 |
| Sep | 28° / 26° | 178 | 22.1 | 12 | 4.5 |
| Oct | 28° / 26° | 203 | 22.5 | 12.2 | 4.3 |
| Nov | 28° / 26° | 213 | 22.5 | 12.4 | 4.1 |
| Dec | 28° / 27° | 293 | 24.8 | 12.5 | 3.8 |
Chance of rain
How likely it is to rain on a typical day, and how that shifts across the wetter and drier seasons.
Funafuti gets about 3015 mm of precipitation a year. On a typical day the chance of rain is very wet, but that rises and falls sharply with the seasons.
The wetter season lasts 6.7 months, from around Dec 11 to Jul 3, peaking in April at about 87% chance on a given day. The drier stretch runs the rest of the year, bottoming out around Sep 30.
February is the wettest month by volume, with 359 mm over about 23 wet days; September is the driest, with 178 mm.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rain on a day (%) | 81 | 82 | 82 | 85 | 83 | 81 | 75 | 75 | 75 | 73 | 75 | 80 |
| Rain days | 25 | 23 | 25 | 26 | 26 | 24 | 23 | 24 | 22 | 23 | 23 | 25 |
| Rain on a day (%) | Rain days | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 81 | 25 |
| Feb | 82 | 23 |
| Mar | 82 | 25 |
| Apr | 85 | 26 |
| May | 83 | 26 |
| Jun | 81 | 24 |
| Jul | 75 | 23 |
| Aug | 75 | 24 |
| Sep | 75 | 22 |
| Oct | 73 | 23 |
| Nov | 75 | 23 |
| Dec | 80 | 25 |
Monthly rainfall
Over a full year, Funafuti collects about 3015 mm of rain across 287 wet days — roughly 251 mm in an average month.
It doesn’t fall evenly. February is the wettest month with 359 mm, while September is the driest at just 178 mm. The three wettest months alone bring about 34% of the year’s total.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rainfall (mm) | 357 | 359 | 301 | 250 | 237 | 205 | 204 | 215 | 178 | 203 | 213 | 293 |
| Rain days | 25 | 23 | 25 | 26 | 26 | 24 | 23 | 24 | 22 | 23 | 23 | 25 |
| Rainfall (mm) | Rain days | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 357 | 25 |
| Feb | 359 | 23 |
| Mar | 301 | 25 |
| Apr | 250 | 26 |
| May | 237 | 26 |
| Jun | 205 | 24 |
| Jul | 204 | 23 |
| Aug | 215 | 24 |
| Sep | 178 | 22 |
| Oct | 203 | 23 |
| Nov | 213 | 23 |
| Dec | 293 | 25 |
Clouds and sunshine
How often the daytime sky is clear, partly cloudy or overcast.
In Funafuti, the average share of the sky covered by clouds shows significant seasonal variation over the course of the year.
The clearer part of the year begins around April 24 and lasts for 6.4 months, ending around November 4. The clearest month is August, when the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 59% of the time on average.
The cloudier part of the year begins around November 5 and lasts for 5.6 months, ending around April 23. The cloudiest month is February, when it is overcast or mostly cloudy 76% of the time.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clearer (%) | 25 | 24 | 31 | 39 | 46 | 53 | 54 | 59 | 57 | 49 | 39 | 30 |
| Cloudier (%) | 75 | 76 | 69 | 61 | 54 | 47 | 46 | 41 | 43 | 51 | 61 | 70 |
| Clearer (%) | Cloudier (%) | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 25 | 75 |
| Feb | 24 | 76 |
| Mar | 31 | 69 |
| Apr | 39 | 61 |
| May | 46 | 54 |
| Jun | 53 | 47 |
| Jul | 54 | 46 |
| Aug | 59 | 41 |
| Sep | 57 | 43 |
| Oct | 49 | 51 |
| Nov | 39 | 61 |
| Dec | 30 | 70 |
Daylight, sunrise and sunset
Hours of daylight through the year, with sunrise and sunset times.
The gold band is daylight — sunrise runs along its lower edge, sunset along the upper — so it widens toward summer and pinches toward winter, with night the dark area above and below. The longest day, around January 1, brings about 12 h 30 min of light; the shortest, around May 30, only 11 h 30 min — a swing of roughly 1 hour.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daylight (h) | 12.4 | 12.3 | 12.1 | 11.8 | 11.6 | 11.5 | 11.6 | 11.7 | 12.0 | 12.2 | 12.4 | 12.5 |
| Sunrise (AM) | 5:59 | 6:09 | 6:11 | 6:09 | 6:11 | 6:18 | 6:22 | 6:16 | 5:59 | 5:43 | 5:37 | 5:45 |
| Sunset (PM) | 6:26 | 6:26 | 6:15 | 5:58 | 5:48 | 5:49 | 5:55 | 5:59 | 5:56 | 5:54 | 6:00 | 6:14 |
| Daylight (h) | Sunrise (AM) | Sunset (PM) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 12.4 | 5:59 | 6:26 |
| Feb | 12.3 | 6:09 | 6:26 |
| Mar | 12.1 | 6:11 | 6:15 |
| Apr | 11.8 | 6:09 | 5:58 |
| May | 11.6 | 6:11 | 5:48 |
| Jun | 11.5 | 6:18 | 5:49 |
| Jul | 11.6 | 6:22 | 5:55 |
| Aug | 11.7 | 6:16 | 5:59 |
| Sep | 12.0 | 5:59 | 5:56 |
| Oct | 12.2 | 5:43 | 5:54 |
| Nov | 12.4 | 5:37 | 6:00 |
| Dec | 12.5 | 5:45 | 6:14 |
Sunny days
How many genuinely sunny days each month brings — days the sky stays clear or mostly clear — banded into plain-language zones.
Funafuti averages about 8 sunny days a month — counting the days the sky stays clear or mostly clear — with a clear seasonal swing between 3 and 13 days.
The sunnier stretch runs 6.3 months, from around Apr 26 to Nov 4. The sunniest month is August, with roughly 13 sunny days (mixed).
The greyest month is February, down near 3 sunny days — about 75% fewer than the August peak.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sunny days | 4 | 3 | 5 | 7 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 13 | 12 | 10 | 7 | 4 |
| Sky | Gloomy | Gloomy | Gloomy | Gloomy | Mixed | Mixed | Mixed | Mixed | Mixed | Mixed | Gloomy | Gloomy |
| Sunny days | Sky | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 4 | Gloomy |
| Feb | 3 | Gloomy |
| Mar | 5 | Gloomy |
| Apr | 7 | Gloomy |
| May | 9 | Mixed |
| Jun | 10 | Mixed |
| Jul | 11 | Mixed |
| Aug | 13 | Mixed |
| Sep | 12 | Mixed |
| Oct | 10 | Mixed |
| Nov | 7 | Gloomy |
| Dec | 4 | Gloomy |
Humidity comfort
Share of days at each humidity comfort level, based on the dew point — the measure that tracks how muggy it actually feels.
Humidity comfort is graded by the dew point — the temperature at which the air would be fully saturated — because it tracks how muggy it actually feels far better than relative humidity does. A low dew point feels dry and crisp; a high one feels sticky and oppressive no matter the reading on a humidity gauge.
Funafuti is humid all year round — on a typical day the air feels at least humid, and there is no real dry season to wait for.
The stickiest month is January, when it feels muggy, oppressive or miserable about 100% of the time. Even in January, the mildest month, the air is dry or comfortable only 0% of the time.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Muggy (%) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Oppressive (%) | 40 | 41 | 39 | 31 | 27 | 28 | 43 | 55 | 54 | 59 | 53 | 41 |
| Miserable (%) | 60 | 59 | 61 | 69 | 73 | 72 | 57 | 45 | 46 | 41 | 46 | 59 |
| Muggy (%) | Oppressive (%) | Miserable (%) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 0 | 40 | 60 |
| Feb | 0 | 41 | 59 |
| Mar | 0 | 39 | 61 |
| Apr | 0 | 31 | 69 |
| May | 0 | 27 | 73 |
| Jun | 0 | 28 | 72 |
| Jul | 0 | 43 | 57 |
| Aug | 0 | 55 | 45 |
| Sep | 0 | 54 | 46 |
| Oct | 0 | 59 | 41 |
| Nov | 1 | 53 | 46 |
| Dec | 0 | 41 | 59 |
Wind
Average wind speed through the year, banded into plain-language speed zones so a number reads as 'breezy' or 'calm' without knowing the scale.
This is the average sustained wind speed at the standard 10 metres above open ground — the steady flow a weather station reports, not the sharper gusts that come and go, which can run half again as fast. It's the number that says whether a place is generally breezy or calm.
Across the year, average wind speed in Funafuti is typically light breeze, near 18 km/h, and varies moderately with the seasons.
The windier part of the year lasts 4.2 months, from around Jun 1 to Oct 6. The windiest month is July, averaging about 22 km/h (breezy).
The calmer part of the year runs from around Oct 7 to Dec 28, with November the calmest month at about 16 km/h.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wind speed (km/h) | 19 | 19 | 17 | 16 | 16 | 20 | 22 | 21 | 20 | 17 | 16 | 17 |
| Feels | light breeze | light breeze | light breeze | light breeze | light breeze | breezy | breezy | breezy | breezy | light breeze | light breeze | light breeze |
| Wind speed (km/h) | Feels | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 19 | light breeze |
| Feb | 19 | light breeze |
| Mar | 17 | light breeze |
| Apr | 16 | light breeze |
| May | 16 | light breeze |
| Jun | 20 | breezy |
| Jul | 22 | breezy |
| Aug | 21 | breezy |
| Sep | 20 | breezy |
| Oct | 17 | light breeze |
| Nov | 16 | light breeze |
| Dec | 17 | light breeze |
Hazard calendar for Funafuti
When the seasonal hazards worth planning around — the rainy season, tropical-cyclone risk and dust haze — are active through the year.
Funafuti sits in the South Indian Ocean cyclone belt; the season peaks January–March.
Best time to visit Funafuti
To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Funafuti throughout the year, we compute two travel scores — one for general sightseeing, one for beach and pool weather.
Around late December, Funafuti is still near the tail of its best-weather window — great conditions with the peak-season crowds already thinning.
Inferred from the travel-score curve; month-by-month visitor numbers are a planned addition.
The travel score favors clear, rainless days with daytime highs between 18°C and 28°C. Based on this score, the best time of year to visit Funafuti for general outdoor tourist activities is from late April to early April, with a peak score in the last week of July.
The travel score (filled area), and its constituents: the temperature score (red line), the cloud cover score (blue line), and the precipitation score (green line).
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Travel score (0–10) | 3.7 | 3.7 | 3.8 | 3.7 | 3.8 | 4.0 | 4.5 | 4.6 | 4.5 | 4.3 | 4.1 | 3.8 |
| Rating | fair | fair | fair | fair | fair | fair | fair | fair | fair | fair | fair | fair |
| Travel score (0–10) | Rating | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 3.7 | fair |
| Feb | 3.7 | fair |
| Mar | 3.8 | fair |
| Apr | 3.7 | fair |
| May | 3.8 | fair |
| Jun | 4.0 | fair |
| Jul | 4.5 | fair |
| Aug | 4.6 | fair |
| Sep | 4.5 | fair |
| Oct | 4.3 | fair |
| Nov | 4.1 | fair |
| Dec | 3.8 | fair |
The beach/pool score favors clear, rainless days with daytime highs between 24°C and 34°C. In Funafuti it holds close to 5.0 all year, so any month is about as good as another for hot-weather activities.
The beach/pool score (filled area), and its constituents: the temperature score (red line), the cloud cover score (blue line), and the precipitation score (green line).
What to pack for Funafuti, by month
Month by month, what's worth putting in the bag — from the temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind. Tap a month for a quick packing note.
Funafuti packs about the same all year — highs hold near 28°C. Across the year the things worth having are light clothes, rain gear, sun protection and a windbreaker.
In January, Funafuti sees daytime highs around 28°C and nights near 27°C. Pack light clothes and rain gear. Worth having: sun protection. About 25 days see rain.
Sea temperature near Funafuti
Average ocean temperature at the nearest coast, month by month, banded into swim-comfort zones — the other half of the beach question.
The sea at the nearest coast (about 14 km away) is warmest in November at about 30°C and coldest in August near 29°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) | 30 | 30 | 30 | 30 | 30 | 29 | 29 | 29 | 29 | 30 | 30 | 30 |
| Comfort | Tropical | Tropical | Tropical | Tropical | Tropical | Tropical | Tropical | Tropical | Tropical | Tropical | Tropical | Tropical |
| Sea temperature (°C) | Comfort | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 30 | Tropical |
| Feb | 30 | Tropical |
| Mar | 30 | Tropical |
| Apr | 30 | Tropical |
| May | 30 | Tropical |
| Jun | 29 | Tropical |
| Jul | 29 | Tropical |
| Aug | 29 | Tropical |
| Sep | 29 | Tropical |
| Oct | 30 | Tropical |
| Nov | 30 | Tropical |
| Dec | 30 | Tropical |
UV index (midday) in Funafuti by month
Clear-sky midday UV index through the year, shaded by the WHO exposure levels — how much sun protection each month calls for.
Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Funafuti peaks around February 15 at about 17 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near June 20 at about 10 (extreme).
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) | 16 | 17 | 16 | 14 | 12 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 13 |
| Level | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Very high | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme |
| UV index (midday) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 16 | Extreme |
| Feb | 17 | Extreme |
| Mar | 16 | Extreme |
| Apr | 14 | Extreme |
| May | 12 | Extreme |
| Jun | 10 | Very high |
| Jul | 11 | Extreme |
| Aug | 12 | Extreme |
| Sep | 14 | Extreme |
| Oct | 14 | Extreme |
| Nov | 14 | Extreme |
| Dec | 13 | Extreme |
Average hourly UV index in Funafuti
Modeled clear-sky UV for every hour of every day — when in the day sun protection actually matters.
The whole year hour by hour: each column is a day, each row an hour, and the color is the modeled clear-sky UV index — the midday peak scaled down as the sun sits lower in the sky. Darker overlays mark night, lighter ones the civil-twilight hours around sunrise and sunset.
UV falls off far faster than brightness as the sun drops, so even in February the burn window is concentrated in the middle of the day: about 8.5 hours a day reach index 3 (protection recommended), and 7 hours reach 6 or more. Mornings and late afternoons stay comparatively gentle year round.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UV ≥ 3 (h/day) | 9 | 8.5 | 8.5 | 8 | 7.5 | 7 | 7 | 7.5 | 8 | 8.5 | 8.5 | 8.5 |
| UV ≥ 6 (h/day) | 7 | 7 | 7 | 6.5 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 5.5 | 6.5 | 6.5 | 6.5 | 6.5 |
| UV ≥ 3 (h/day) | UV ≥ 6 (h/day) | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 9 | 7 |
| Feb | 8.5 | 7 |
| Mar | 8.5 | 7 |
| Apr | 8 | 6.5 |
| May | 7.5 | 6 |
| Jun | 7 | 5 |
| Jul | 7 | 5 |
| Aug | 7.5 | 5.5 |
| Sep | 8 | 6.5 |
| Oct | 8.5 | 6.5 |
| Nov | 8.5 | 6.5 |
| Dec | 8.5 | 6.5 |
Growing season
Funafuti is frost-free year round — even the coldest nights rarely reach freezing, so there is no start or end to the growing season.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Frost-free chance (%) | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 |
| Frost nights | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Frost-free chance (%) | Frost nights | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 100 | 0 |
| Feb | 100 | 0 |
| Mar | 100 | 0 |
| Apr | 100 | 0 |
| May | 100 | 0 |
| Jun | 100 | 0 |
| Jul | 100 | 0 |
| Aug | 100 | 0 |
| Sep | 100 | 0 |
| Oct | 100 | 0 |
| Nov | 100 | 0 |
| Dec | 100 | 0 |
Growing degree days
Growing degree days tally heat above 10°C: each day adds however many degrees its average temperature runs over that threshold, and cold days add nothing. Funafuti banks about 6,307 degree days a year, and the running total — which growers use to time plantings and predict maturity — climbs fastest around January.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Growing degree days (°C·days) | 540 | 485 | 536 | 521 | 539 | 519 | 531 | 528 | 513 | 534 | 521 | 540 |
| Growing degree days (°C·days) | |
|---|---|
| Jan | 540 |
| Feb | 485 |
| Mar | 536 |
| Apr | 521 |
| May | 539 |
| Jun | 519 |
| Jul | 531 |
| Aug | 528 |
| Sep | 513 |
| Oct | 534 |
| Nov | 521 |
| Dec | 540 |
Solar energy
Average daily shortwave solar energy reaching the ground, banded into brightness zones so the number means something at a glance.
Solar energy is how much sunlight actually reaches the ground each day, measured in kilowatt-hours per square metre (kWh/m²) — the combined effect of how long the sun is up, how high it climbs, and how much cloud gets in the way. It's the raw fuel a solar panel has to work with: for scale, 1 kWh/m² a day is dim and wintry, while 7+ is desert-bright.
Funafuti receives about 5.5 kWh/m² a day of solar energy on average — bright — with a clear seasonal swing between 4.7 and 6.2 kWh/m².
The brighter stretch of the year lasts 4.9 months, from around Aug 24 to Jan 20. The brightest month is October, averaging about 6.1 kWh/m² (intense).
The dimmest month is June, down near 4.7 kWh/m² — roughly 24% less than the October peak.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Solar energy (kWh/m²) | 5.6 | 5.4 | 5.6 | 5.3 | 4.9 | 4.7 | 4.8 | 5.3 | 5.9 | 6.2 | 6.1 | 5.7 |
| Level | Bright | Bright | Bright | Bright | Bright | Bright | Bright | Bright | Bright | Intense | Intense | Bright |
| Solar energy (kWh/m²) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 5.6 | Bright |
| Feb | 5.4 | Bright |
| Mar | 5.6 | Bright |
| Apr | 5.3 | Bright |
| May | 4.9 | Bright |
| Jun | 4.7 | Bright |
| Jul | 4.8 | Bright |
| Aug | 5.3 | Bright |
| Sep | 5.9 | Bright |
| Oct | 6.2 | Intense |
| Nov | 6.1 | Intense |
| Dec | 5.7 | Bright |
Where is Funafuti?
Funafuti sits at 8.5°S, 179.2°E, 7 m above sea level, in Tuvalu. The nearest listed city is Mata-Utu, 732 km away.
Topography around Funafuti
How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Funafuti.
Within 3 km, the terrain around Funafuti has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 5 m around an average of 0 m above sea level; within 16 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 15 m; within 80 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 12 m.
The land around Funafuti is covered by water (96%) within 3 km, water (100%) within 16 km, and water (100%) within 80 km.
Tuvalu travel facts
- Travel advisory
- Level 1
- Exercise Normal Precautions
- Power plugs
- Type I
- 230 V · 50 Hz
- Prices
- ≈ 89% of US
- price level, 2025
- GDP per capita
- $6,041
- 2025
- Safe drinking water
- 9%
- of population, 2024
- Homicide rate
- 18.3
- per 100k, 2012
- Income group
- Upper middle
- 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 Funafuti (-8.5243°, 179.1942°, 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. Tropical-cyclone seasons are the published climatological basin seasons (NOAA National Hurricane Center / regional warning centres). Sea temperatures are the NOAA OISST v2.1 1991–2020 monthly climatology (public domain), sampled at the nearest ocean point. 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).