Kampala in Winter
In winter (December, January and February), Kampala sees average daytime highs around 25°C and overnight lows near 20°C, with 344 mm of rain over about 62 wet days across the season. It is the warmest season of the year and the 3rd-wettest season.
Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 25°C. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 19% of the time across winter, and the air most often feels muggy.
Winter is Kampala's 2nd-best season to visit on our travel score. Kampala 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 Kampala's year-round climate.
- Avg daytime high
- 25°C
- warmest season of the year
- Avg overnight low
- 20°C
- Rainfall
- 344 mm
- 62 wet days
- Avg wind
- 7 km/h
- Travel score
- 5.0
- 2nd-best season
- Months
- Dec · Jan · Feb
Temperature in Kampala in Winter
Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 25°C.
A typical winter day in Kampala reaches about 25°C and drops to 20°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is February, the coolest December.
Kampala 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 | 25° / 20° | 108 | 19.6 | 12 | 5.2 |
| Feb | 26° / 21° | 103 | 18.4 | 12 | 5.1 |
| Mar | 25° / 21° | 165 | 25.2 | 12 | 4.4 |
| Apr | 24° / 20° | 220 | 27.7 | 12 | 3.8 |
| May | 24° / 20° | 188 | 27.8 | 12 | 4.1 |
| Jun | 24° / 20° | 115 | 22.5 | 12 | 4.9 |
| Jul | 24° / 19° | 83 | 17.9 | 12 | 5.6 |
| Aug | 24° / 19° | 109 | 22.7 | 12 | 5.0 |
| Sep | 25° / 19° | 121 | 25 | 12 | 4.4 |
| Oct | 25° / 20° | 154 | 27.7 | 12 | 4.0 |
| Nov | 24° / 20° | 179 | 26.9 | 12 | 4.0 |
| Dec | 25° / 20° | 133 | 23.9 | 12 | 4.7 |
Cloud cover in Winter
The sky is clear or mostly clear about 19% of the time across winter.
Chance of precipitation in Winter
Kampala gets around 344 mm of rain over 62 wet days across winter. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.
Humidity in Winter
Most of winter feels muggy — the stacked bands show each day's mix of comfort levels, read off the dew point.
Wind in Winter
Winds average 7 km/h across winter.
Sunrise & sunset in Winter
Daylight runs from about 12 hours in early December to 12 hours 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.
Is winter a good time to visit Kampala?
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 Kampala for sightseeing.
What to pack for Kampala in Winter
From winter's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.
In winter, Kampala sees daytime highs around 25°C and nights near 20°C. Pack rain gear. Worth having: light clothes and sun protection. About 62 days see rain.
UV index in Kampala in Winter
Clear-sky midday UV across winter averages around 12 (very high — sun protection essential). The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.
Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Kampala peaks around March 17 at about 15 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near June 17 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) | 12 | 14 | 15 | 14 | 11 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 13 | 12 | 11 |
| Level | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Very high | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme |
| UV index (midday) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 12 | Extreme |
| Feb | 14 | Extreme |
| Mar | 15 | Extreme |
| Apr | 14 | Extreme |
| May | 11 | Extreme |
| Jun | 10 | Very high |
| Jul | 11 | Extreme |
| Aug | 12 | Extreme |
| Sep | 13 | Extreme |
| Oct | 13 | Extreme |
| Nov | 12 | Extreme |
| Dec | 11 | Extreme |
Air quality in Kampala 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 Kampala is worst in January — around 80 µg/m³ PM2.5 (unhealthy), about 1.8× the cleanest month (May, 44 µg/m³).
Seasonal pattern from CAMS reanalysis, scaled to Kampala's WHO annual average of 60.1 µg/m³.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | 80 | 67 | 53 | 45 | 44 | 57 | 60 | 63 | 62 | 60 | 61 | 68 |
| Level | Unhealthy | Unhealthy | Poor | Poor | Poor | Unhealthy | Unhealthy | Unhealthy | Unhealthy | Unhealthy | Unhealthy | Unhealthy |
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 80 | Unhealthy |
| Feb | 67 | Unhealthy |
| Mar | 53 | Poor |
| Apr | 45 | Poor |
| May | 44 | Poor |
| Jun | 57 | Unhealthy |
| Jul | 60 | Unhealthy |
| Aug | 63 | Unhealthy |
| Sep | 62 | Unhealthy |
| Oct | 60 | Unhealthy |
| Nov | 61 | Unhealthy |
| Dec | 68 | Unhealthy |
Where is Kampala?
Kampala sits at 0.3°N, 32.6°E, 1,223 m above sea level, in Uganda. The nearest listed city is Bunamwaya, 8.0 km away.
Topography around Kampala
How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Kampala.
Within 3 km, the terrain around Kampala has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 165 m around an average of 1,192 m above sea level; within 16 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 211 m; within 80 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 440 m.
The land around Kampala is covered by artificial surfaces (73%) within 3 km, artificial surfaces (40%) and trees (25%) within 16 km, and trees (34%), water (31%) and shrubs (22%) within 80 km.
Uganda travel facts
- Travel advisory
- Level 4
- Do Not Travel
- Power plugs
- Type G
- 240 V · 50 Hz
- Prices
- ≈ 35% of US
- price level, 2025
- GDP per capita
- $1,206
- 2025
- Happiness
- 4.5 / 10
- World Happiness, 2025
- Safe drinking water
- 18%
- of population, 2024
- Homicide rate
- 9
- per 100k, 2023
- Road deaths
- 29.4
- per 100k/yr, 2019
- Income group
- Low
- World Bank
- English
- Moderate
- EF EPI 518
- 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 Kampala (0.3163°, 32.5822°, elevation 1,223 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.