Climate and average weather in Fort William
In Fort William, the summers are mild, wet, and mostly cloudy and the winters are cold, snowy, and mostly cloudy.
Over the course of the year, the temperature in Fort William typically varies from 0°C to 16°C, and is rarely below -6°C or above 21°C. July is the hottest month of the year, while January is the coldest.
Based on the travel score, the best time of year to visit Fort William for warm-weather activities is from late May to mid September.
- Hottest
- Jul
- 16°
- Coldest
- Jan
- 0°
- Wettest
- Jan
- 224 mm
- Driest
- Apr
- 113 mm
- Rain / yr
- 1914 mm
- 218 wet days
- Daylight
- 6.5–17.5 h
- shortest–longest
- Elevation
- 24 m
- 56.8°N
- Clearest
- May
- 77% cloud
Fort William is town in Highland, Scotland, UK.
Air quality: WHO Ambient Air Quality Database. Density & description: Wikidata (CC0), GeoNames.
Fort William 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 May to mid September.
Temperature through the year
Daily average highs and lows in Fort William, from 1991–2020 of climate data. The shaded bands show the range most days fall in — 10th to 90th percentile.
The hot season lasts 3.9 months, from May 25 to September 19, with daily high temperatures above 13°C. The hottest month of the year in Fort William is July, with an average high of 16°C and low of 10°C.
The cool season lasts 3.8 months, from November 20 to March 15, with daily high temperatures below 7°C. The coldest month of the year in Fort William is January, with an average low of 0°C and high of 4°C.
Days typically run about 6°C warmer than nights, with the widest day–night swing (around 7°C) in May.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avg high (°C) | 4 | 5 | 7 | 10 | 13 | 15 | 16 | 16 | 14 | 10 | 7 | 5 |
| Avg low (°C) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 8 | 10 | 10 | 8 | 5 | 3 | 1 |
| Avg high (°C) | Avg low (°C) | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 4 | 0 |
| Feb | 5 | 0 |
| Mar | 7 | 1 |
| Apr | 10 | 3 |
| May | 13 | 5 |
| Jun | 15 | 8 |
| Jul | 16 | 10 |
| Aug | 16 | 10 |
| Sep | 14 | 8 |
| Oct | 10 | 5 |
| Nov | 7 | 3 |
| Dec | 5 | 1 |
How hot and cold Fort William 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 coldest nights, wind chill pulls the feels-like down to about -4°C (around December 28), with roughly 163 freezing days a year (feels-like at or below 0°C), worst in December.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feels-like high (°C) | 4 | 5 | 7 | 9 | 13 | 15 | 16 | 16 | 14 | 10 | 7 | 5 |
| Air high (°C) | 4 | 5 | 7 | 10 | 13 | 15 | 16 | 16 | 14 | 10 | 7 | 5 |
| Feels-like low (°C) | -4 | -4 | -3 | 0 | 3 | 6 | 9 | 8 | 6 | 3 | -1 | -3 |
| Air low (°C) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 8 | 10 | 10 | 8 | 5 | 3 | 1 |
| Feels-like high (°C) | Air high (°C) | Feels-like low (°C) | Air low (°C) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 4 | 4 | -4 | 0 |
| Feb | 5 | 5 | -4 | 0 |
| Mar | 7 | 7 | -3 | 1 |
| Apr | 9 | 10 | 0 | 3 |
| May | 13 | 13 | 3 | 5 |
| Jun | 15 | 15 | 6 | 8 |
| Jul | 16 | 16 | 9 | 10 |
| Aug | 16 | 16 | 8 | 10 |
| Sep | 14 | 14 | 6 | 8 |
| Oct | 10 | 10 | 3 | 5 |
| Nov | 7 | 7 | -1 | 3 |
| Dec | 5 | 5 | -3 | 1 |
Average hourly temperature in Fort William
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 July afternoons, near 16°C, and coldest before dawn in January, near 0°C.
Fort William weather by month
Every month at a glance. Click a month for its detailed page.
| Month | High / Low (°C) | Rainfall (mm) | Wet days | Snow days | Daylight (hours) | Travel score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 4° / 0° | 224 | 19.5 | 10.8 | 7.2 | 0.0 |
| Feb | 5° / 0° | 181 | 17.5 | 9.8 | 9.1 | 0.0 |
| Mar | 7° / 1° | 166 | 17.9 | 7.6 | 11.4 | 0.6 |
| Apr | 10° / 3° | 113 | 16.4 | 2.8 | 13.9 | 1.7 |
| May | 13° / 5° | 122 | 16.9 | 0.4 | 16.1 | 2.8 |
| Jun | 15° / 8° | 118 | 17.4 | 0 | 17.4 | 3.4 |
| Jul | 16° / 10° | 129 | 19.4 | 0 | 16.9 | 3.7 |
| Aug | 16° / 10° | 145 | 19.5 | 0 | 14.9 | 3.7 |
| Sep | 14° / 8° | 151 | 17 | 0 | 12.5 | 3.1 |
| Oct | 10° / 5° | 186 | 18.9 | 0.5 | 10 | 1.8 |
| Nov | 7° / 3° | 175 | 18.7 | 3.2 | 7.8 | 0.7 |
| Dec | 5° / 1° | 205 | 18.4 | 8 | 6.6 | 0.0 |
Chance of rain
How likely it is to rain on a typical day, and how that shifts across the wetter and drier seasons.
Fort William gets about 1914 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 2.0 months, from around Jun 28 to Aug 26, peaking in August at about 66% chance on a given day. The drier stretch runs the rest of the year, bottoming out around Apr 16.
January is the wettest month by volume, with 224 mm over about 20 wet days; April is the driest, with 113 mm. Some of the cold-season precipitation falls as snow.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rain on a day (%) | 63 | 61 | 59 | 54 | 55 | 58 | 63 | 63 | 57 | 60 | 63 | 60 |
| Rain days | 20 | 18 | 18 | 16 | 17 | 17 | 19 | 20 | 17 | 19 | 19 | 18 |
| Rain on a day (%) | Rain days | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 63 | 20 |
| Feb | 61 | 18 |
| Mar | 59 | 18 |
| Apr | 54 | 16 |
| May | 55 | 17 |
| Jun | 58 | 17 |
| Jul | 63 | 19 |
| Aug | 63 | 20 |
| Sep | 57 | 17 |
| Oct | 60 | 19 |
| Nov | 63 | 19 |
| Dec | 60 | 18 |
Monthly rainfall
Over a full year, Fort William collects about 1914 mm of rain across 218 wet days — roughly 159 mm in an average month.
It doesn’t fall evenly. January is the wettest month with 224 mm, while April is the driest at just 113 mm. The three wettest months alone bring about 32% of the year’s total, and some of the cold-season precipitation falls as snow.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rainfall (mm) | 224 | 181 | 166 | 113 | 122 | 118 | 129 | 145 | 151 | 186 | 175 | 205 |
| Rain days | 20 | 18 | 18 | 16 | 17 | 17 | 19 | 20 | 17 | 19 | 19 | 18 |
| Snow days | 11 | 10 | 8 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 8 |
| Rainfall (mm) | Rain days | Snow days | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 224 | 20 | 11 |
| Feb | 181 | 18 | 10 |
| Mar | 166 | 18 | 8 |
| Apr | 113 | 16 | 3 |
| May | 122 | 17 | 0 |
| Jun | 118 | 17 | 0 |
| Jul | 129 | 19 | 0 |
| Aug | 145 | 20 | 0 |
| Sep | 151 | 17 | 0 |
| Oct | 186 | 19 | 1 |
| Nov | 175 | 19 | 3 |
| Dec | 205 | 18 | 8 |
Snow in Fort William
Average snowy days through the year, the snow-season span, and estimated snowfall — for ski trips and the perennial 'will there be snow at Christmas?' question.
Fort William averages about 43 snowy days a year. Snow season runs roughly Oct 15 to May 14 — about 7 months.
January is snowiest, with roughly 11 days of snow and an estimated 68 cm of snowfall. Over the year that adds up to an estimated 234 cm of snow.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Snow days | 11 | 10 | 8 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 8 |
| Snowfall (cm) | 68 | 59 | 39 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 13 | 42 |
| Snow days | Snowfall (cm) | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 11 | 68 |
| Feb | 10 | 59 |
| Mar | 8 | 39 |
| Apr | 3 | 8 |
| May | 0 | 2 |
| Jun | 0 | 0 |
| Jul | 0 | 0 |
| Aug | 0 | 0 |
| Sep | 0 | 0 |
| Oct | 1 | 2 |
| Nov | 3 | 13 |
| Dec | 8 | 42 |
Clouds and sunshine
How often the daytime sky is clear, partly cloudy or overcast.
In Fort William, the average share of the sky covered by clouds shows mild seasonal variation over the course of the year.
The clearer part of the year begins around February 11 and lasts for 3.9 months, ending around June 8. The clearest month is May, when the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 19% of the time on average.
The cloudier part of the year begins around October 31 and lasts for 3.4 months, ending around February 10. The cloudiest month is January, when it is overcast or mostly cloudy 92% of the time.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clearer (%) | 8 | 13 | 14 | 17 | 19 | 11 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 13 | 11 | 10 |
| Cloudier (%) | 92 | 87 | 86 | 83 | 81 | 89 | 89 | 88 | 87 | 87 | 89 | 90 |
| Clearer (%) | Cloudier (%) | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 8 | 92 |
| Feb | 13 | 87 |
| Mar | 14 | 86 |
| Apr | 17 | 83 |
| May | 19 | 81 |
| Jun | 11 | 89 |
| Jul | 11 | 89 |
| Aug | 12 | 88 |
| Sep | 13 | 87 |
| Oct | 13 | 87 |
| Nov | 11 | 89 |
| Dec | 10 | 90 |
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 June 14, brings about 17 h 30 min of light; the shortest, around December 14, only 6 h 30 min — a swing of roughly 11 hours.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daylight (h) | 7.2 | 9.1 | 11.4 | 13.9 | 16.1 | 17.4 | 16.9 | 14.9 | 12.5 | 10.0 | 7.8 | 6.6 |
| Sunrise (AM) | 8:56 | 8:03 | 6:48 | 5:23 | 4:12 | 3:36 | 3:57 | 4:56 | 6:01 | 7:05 | 8:13 | 9:02 |
| Sunset (PM) | 4:03 | 5:08 | 6:12 | 7:19 | 8:22 | 9:05 | 8:55 | 7:53 | 6:29 | 5:06 | 3:58 | 3:32 |
| Daylight (h) | Sunrise (AM) | Sunset (PM) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 7.2 | 8:56 | 4:03 |
| Feb | 9.1 | 8:03 | 5:08 |
| Mar | 11.4 | 6:48 | 6:12 |
| Apr | 13.9 | 5:23 | 7:19 |
| May | 16.1 | 4:12 | 8:22 |
| Jun | 17.4 | 3:36 | 9:05 |
| Jul | 16.9 | 3:57 | 8:55 |
| Aug | 14.9 | 4:56 | 7:53 |
| Sep | 12.5 | 6:01 | 6:29 |
| Oct | 10.0 | 7:05 | 5:06 |
| Nov | 7.8 | 8:13 | 3:58 |
| Dec | 6.6 | 9:02 | 3:32 |
Sunny days
How many genuinely sunny days each month brings — days the sky stays clear or mostly clear — banded into plain-language zones.
Fort William gets about 2 sunny days a month — gloomy — and it barely shifts through the year, holding between 1 and 4 days every month. Clear skies here are a flat line, not a season.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sunny days | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Sky | Gloomy | Gloomy | Gloomy | Gloomy | Gloomy | Gloomy | Gloomy | Gloomy | Gloomy | Gloomy | Gloomy | Gloomy |
| Sunny days | Sky | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 1 | Gloomy |
| Feb | 2 | Gloomy |
| Mar | 2 | Gloomy |
| Apr | 2 | Gloomy |
| May | 3 | Gloomy |
| Jun | 2 | Gloomy |
| Jul | 1 | Gloomy |
| Aug | 1 | Gloomy |
| Sep | 2 | Gloomy |
| Oct | 1 | Gloomy |
| Nov | 1 | Gloomy |
| Dec | 1 | 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.
In Fort William, the air stays dry or comfortable essentially all year. Even in August, the muggiest month, it feels humid or worse only about 1% of the time — humidity is not something you need to plan around here.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dry (%) | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 97 | 88 | 88 | 97 | 100 | 100 | 100 |
| Comfortable (%) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 12 | 11 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Humid (%) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Dry (%) | Comfortable (%) | Humid (%) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 100 | 0 | 0 |
| Feb | 100 | 0 | 0 |
| Mar | 100 | 0 | 0 |
| Apr | 100 | 0 | 0 |
| May | 100 | 0 | 0 |
| Jun | 97 | 3 | 0 |
| Jul | 88 | 12 | 0 |
| Aug | 88 | 11 | 1 |
| Sep | 97 | 3 | 0 |
| Oct | 100 | 0 | 0 |
| Nov | 100 | 0 | 0 |
| Dec | 100 | 0 | 0 |
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.
Wind in Fort William is steady company: average speeds sit near 11 km/h — calm — in every month of the year, with no meaningful windy or calm season.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wind speed (km/h) | 12 | 12 | 12 | 11 | 11 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 11 |
| Feels | light breeze | light breeze | light breeze | calm | calm | calm | calm | calm | calm | calm | calm | calm |
| Wind speed (km/h) | Feels | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 12 | light breeze |
| Feb | 12 | light breeze |
| Mar | 12 | light breeze |
| Apr | 11 | calm |
| May | 11 | calm |
| Jun | 10 | calm |
| Jul | 10 | calm |
| Aug | 10 | calm |
| Sep | 11 | calm |
| Oct | 11 | calm |
| Nov | 11 | calm |
| Dec | 11 | calm |
Best time to visit Fort William
To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Fort William throughout the year, we compute two travel scores — one for general sightseeing, one for beach and pool weather.
Around mid September, Fort William 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 Fort William for general outdoor tourist activities is from late May to mid September, 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) | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.6 | 1.7 | 2.8 | 3.4 | 3.7 | 3.7 | 3.1 | 1.8 | 0.7 | 0.0 |
| Rating | poor | poor | poor | poor | poor | poor | fair | fair | poor | poor | poor | poor |
| Travel score (0–10) | Rating | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 0.0 | poor |
| Feb | 0.0 | poor |
| Mar | 0.6 | poor |
| Apr | 1.7 | poor |
| May | 2.8 | poor |
| Jun | 3.4 | poor |
| Jul | 3.7 | fair |
| Aug | 3.7 | fair |
| Sep | 3.1 | poor |
| Oct | 1.8 | poor |
| Nov | 0.7 | poor |
| Dec | 0.0 | poor |
The beach/pool score favors clear, rainless days with daytime highs between 24°C and 34°C. Fort William rarely gets warm enough to lift this score — no time of year really suits hot-weather activities here.
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 Fort William, 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.
For a warm-season trip around July (highs near 16°C), the essentials are a warm layer and rain gear. In the cold season around January (highs near 4°C), pack a warm layer, a heavy coat and rain gear.
In July, Fort William sees daytime highs around 16°C and nights near 10°C. Pack rain gear. Worth having: a warm layer. About 19 days see rain.
Sea temperature near Fort William
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 47 km away) is warmest in August at about 14°C and coldest in February near 8°C.
The water stays below 20°C all year — cool enough that most swimmers want a wetsuit.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sea temperature (°C) | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 10 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 14 | 13 | 11 | 10 |
| Comfort | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing |
| Sea temperature (°C) | Comfort | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 8 | Bracing |
| Feb | 8 | Bracing |
| Mar | 8 | Bracing |
| Apr | 8 | Bracing |
| May | 10 | Bracing |
| Jun | 12 | Bracing |
| Jul | 13 | Bracing |
| Aug | 14 | Bracing |
| Sep | 14 | Bracing |
| Oct | 13 | Bracing |
| Nov | 11 | Bracing |
| Dec | 10 | Bracing |
UV index (midday) in Fort William 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 Fort William peaks around July 11 at about 5 (high) — a little sun protection helps at midday. It bottoms out near December 19 at about 0 (low).
The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 4 months of the year.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UV index (midday) | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Level | Low | Low | Low | Moderate | Moderate | High | High | Moderate | Moderate | Low | Low | Low |
| UV index (midday) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 0 | Low |
| Feb | 1 | Low |
| Mar | 2 | Low |
| Apr | 3 | Moderate |
| May | 5 | Moderate |
| Jun | 5 | High |
| Jul | 5 | High |
| Aug | 4 | Moderate |
| Sep | 3 | Moderate |
| Oct | 1 | Low |
| Nov | 1 | Low |
| Dec | 0 | Low |
Average hourly UV index in Fort William
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 July the burn window is concentrated in the middle of the day: about 6.5 hours a day reach index 3 (protection recommended). 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) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 6.5 | 6.5 | 4.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| UV ≥ 6 (h/day) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| UV ≥ 3 (h/day) | UV ≥ 6 (h/day) | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 0 | 0 |
| Feb | 0 | 0 |
| Mar | 0 | 0 |
| Apr | 0 | 0 |
| May | 6 | 0 |
| Jun | 6.5 | 0 |
| Jul | 6.5 | 0 |
| Aug | 4.5 | 0 |
| Sep | 0 | 0 |
| Oct | 0 | 0 |
| Nov | 0 | 0 |
| Dec | 0 | 0 |
Growing season
The growing season in Fort William typically lasts about 354 days, from around January 3 to December 22 — the span where a frost-free day is more likely than not. It is reliably frost-free from May 1 to October 23.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Frost-free chance (%) | 53 | 51 | 63 | 83 | 95 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 94 | 77 | 55 |
| Frost nights | 31 | 28 | 31 | 30 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 30 | 31 |
| Frost-free chance (%) | Frost nights | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 53 | 31 |
| Feb | 51 | 28 |
| Mar | 63 | 31 |
| Apr | 83 | 30 |
| May | 95 | 0 |
| Jun | 100 | 0 |
| Jul | 100 | 0 |
| Aug | 100 | 0 |
| Sep | 100 | 0 |
| Oct | 94 | 12 |
| Nov | 77 | 30 |
| Dec | 55 | 31 |
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. Fort William banks about 233 degree days a year, and the running total — which growers use to time plantings and predict maturity — climbs fastest around July.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Growing degree days (°C·days) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 38 | 88 | 83 | 23 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Growing degree days (°C·days) | |
|---|---|
| Jan | 0 |
| Feb | 0 |
| Mar | 0 |
| Apr | 0 |
| May | 1 |
| Jun | 38 |
| Jul | 88 |
| Aug | 83 |
| Sep | 23 |
| Oct | 0 |
| Nov | 0 |
| Dec | 0 |
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.
Fort William receives about 2.3 kWh/m² a day of solar energy on average — moderate — with a clear seasonal swing between 0.3 and 4.5 kWh/m².
The brighter stretch of the year lasts 5.8 months, from around Mar 22 to Sep 13. The brightest month is May, averaging about 4.4 kWh/m² (bright).
The dimmest month is December, down near 0.3 kWh/m² — roughly 93% less than the May peak.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Solar energy (kWh/m²) | 0.4 | 1.0 | 2.0 | 3.4 | 4.4 | 4.3 | 3.9 | 3.2 | 2.2 | 1.2 | 0.5 | 0.3 |
| Level | Dim | Dim | Moderate | Moderate | Bright | Bright | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Dim | Dim | Dim |
| Solar energy (kWh/m²) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 0.4 | Dim |
| Feb | 1.0 | Dim |
| Mar | 2.0 | Moderate |
| Apr | 3.4 | Moderate |
| May | 4.4 | Bright |
| Jun | 4.3 | Bright |
| Jul | 3.9 | Moderate |
| Aug | 3.2 | Moderate |
| Sep | 2.2 | Moderate |
| Oct | 1.2 | Dim |
| Nov | 0.5 | Dim |
| Dec | 0.3 | Dim |
Where is Fort William?
Fort William sits at 56.8°N, 5.1°W, 24 m above sea level, in United Kingdom. The nearest listed city is Inverness, 91 km away.
Topography around Fort William
How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Fort William.
Within 3 km, the terrain around Fort William has significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 521 m around an average of 97 m above sea level; within 16 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,341 m; within 80 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,339 m.
The land around Fort William is covered by grassland (48%), trees (23%) and water (21%) within 3 km, grassland (69%) and trees (22%) within 16 km, and grassland (68%) within 80 km.
United Kingdom travel facts
- Travel advisory
- Level 2
- Exercise Increased Caution
- Power plugs
- Type D / G / M
- 230 V · 50 Hz
- Prices
- ≈ 89% of US
- price level, 2025
- GDP per capita
- $57,602
- 2025
- Happiness
- 6.7 / 10
- World Happiness, 2025
- Safe drinking water
- 100%
- of population, 2024
- Homicide rate
- 1.1
- per 100k, 2021
- Road deaths
- 3.2
- per 100k/yr, 2019
- Income group
- High
- 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 Fort William (56.8165°, -5.1121°, elevation 24 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. 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).