Climate and average weather in Rotterdam

In Rotterdam, the summers are warm, showery, and partly cloudy and the winters are very cold, snowy, and partly cloudy.

Best: mid May to early October

Over the course of the year, the temperature in Rotterdam typically varies from 17°F to 80°F, and is rarely below -2°F or above 89°F. 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 Rotterdam for warm-weather activities is from mid May to early October.

Hottest
Jul
80°
Coldest
Jan
17°
Wettest
Jun
4.8 in
Driest
Feb
2.8 in
Rain / yr
46.9 in
132 wet days
Daylight
8.8–15.2 h
shortest–longest
Elevation
338 ft
42.8°N
Clearest
Sep
57% cloud

Rotterdam is census-designated place in Schenectady County, New York, United States.

Density
1,151/km²
people per km²

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

Rotterdam 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 mid May to early October.

Temperature through the year

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Daily average highs and lows in Rotterdam, from 1991–2020 of climate data. The shaded bands show the range most days fall in — 10th to 90th percentile.

The hot season lasts 4.2 months, from May 19 to September 24, with daily high temperatures above 68°F. The hottest month of the year in Rotterdam is July, with an average high of 80°F and low of 62°F.

The cool season lasts 3.2 months, from December 2 to March 9, with daily high temperatures below 41°F. The coldest month of the year in Rotterdam is January, with an average low of 17°F and high of 31°F.

Days typically run about 17°F warmer than nights, with the widest day–night swing (around 19°F) in May.

20°40°60°80°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Avg high (°F)Avg low (°F)
Jan3117
Feb3418
Mar4326
Apr5638
May6748
Jun7657
Jul8062
Aug7960
Sep7253
Oct5942
Nov4732
Dec3623

How hot and cold Rotterdam really feels

Feels-like highFeels-like lowactual air temp

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 6°F (around January 21), with roughly 166 freezing days a year (feels-like at or below 32°F) 78 of them bitterly cold — worst in January.

20°40°60°80°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Feels-like high (°F)Air high (°F)Feels-like low (°F)Air low (°F)
Jan3131717
Feb3434918
Mar43431926
Apr57563338
May67674648
Jun76765757
Jul81806262
Aug79796060
Sep72725253
Oct59593842
Nov47472632
Dec36361523

Average hourly temperature in Rotterdam

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 80°F, and coldest before dawn in January, near 17°F.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec12 AM2 AM4 AM6 AM8 AM10 AM12 PM2 PM4 PM6 PM8 PM10 PM12 AM

Rotterdam weather by month

Every month at a glance. Click a month for its detailed page.

MonthHigh / Low (°F)Rainfall (inches)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan31° / 17°3.09.87.19.20.0
Feb34° / 18°2.896.610.30.0
Mar43° / 26°3.811.25.311.60.6
Apr56° / 38°4.1121.713.13.7
May67° / 48°4.112.50.114.45.8
Jun76° / 57°4.812.8015.16.3
Jul80° / 62°4.412014.86.2
Aug79° / 60°4.211.5013.76.6
Sep72° / 53°4.29.6012.36.7
Oct59° / 42°4.510.80.410.84.5
Nov47° / 32°3.39.82.19.61.5
Dec36° / 23°3.810.86.28.90.0

Chance of rain

How likely it is to rain on a typical day, and how that shifts across the wetter and drier seasons.

Rotterdam gets about 46.9 in of precipitation a year. On a typical day the chance of rain is often wet, but that rises and falls sharply with the seasons.

The wetter season lasts 4.9 months, from around Mar 24 to Aug 18, peaking in May at about 43% chance on a given day. The drier stretch runs the rest of the year, bottoming out around Jan 29.

June is the wettest month by volume, with 4.8 in over about 13 wet days; February is the driest, with 2.8 in. Some of the cold-season precipitation falls as snow.

0%10%20%30%40%50%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecdrierwetterdriermostly drysome rainoften wetvery wetMay 30 · 43%Jan 29 · 27%
Rain on a day (%)Rain days
Jan3210
Feb329
Mar3611
Apr4012
May4013
Jun4213
Jul4012
Aug3612
Sep3210
Oct3511
Nov3310
Dec3511

Monthly rainfall

Over a full year, Rotterdam collects about 46.9 in of rain across 132 wet days — roughly 3.9 in in an average month.

It doesn’t fall evenly. June is the wettest month with 4.8 in, while February is the driest at just 2.8 in. The three wettest months alone bring about 29% of the year’s total, and some of the cold-season precipitation falls as snow.

0123456JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec3.02.83.84.14.14.84.44.24.24.53.33.8
Rainfall (in)Rain daysSnow days
Jan3.0107
Feb2.897
Mar3.8115
Apr4.1122
May4.1130
Jun4.8130
Jul4.4120
Aug4.2120
Sep4.2100
Oct4.5110
Nov3.3102
Dec3.8116

Snow in Rotterdam

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.

Rotterdam averages about 30 snowy days a year. Snow season runs roughly Oct 21 to Apr 28 — about 6.2 months.

January is snowiest, with roughly 7 days of snow and an estimated 17 in of snowfall. Over the year that adds up to an estimated 81 in of snow.

0246810JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecsnow seasonsnow seasonJan 12
Snow daysSnowfall (in)
Jan717
Feb718
Mar516
Apr24
May00
Jun00
Jul00
Aug00
Sep00
Oct00
Nov26
Dec619

Clouds and sunshine

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

How often the daytime sky is clear, partly cloudy or overcast.

In Rotterdam, the average share of the sky covered by clouds shows moderate seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The clearer part of the year begins around June 5 and lasts for 4.6 months, ending around October 22. The clearest month is August, when the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 54% of the time on average.

The cloudier part of the year begins around October 23 and lasts for 7.4 months, ending around June 4. The cloudiest month is December, when it is overcast or mostly cloudy 69% of the time.

0%100%10%90%20%80%30%70%40%60%50%50%60%40%70%30%80%20%90%10%100%0%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecAug 26 · 56%Dec 21 · 31%clearmostly clearpartly cloudymostly cloudyovercastcloudierclearercloudier
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
Jan3466
Feb3565
Mar3565
Apr3763
May3862
Jun4456
Jul5149
Aug5446
Sep5149
Oct4555
Nov3862
Dec3169

Daylight, sunrise and sunset

DaylightNight

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 20, brings about 15 h 12 min of light; the shortest, around December 20, only 8 h 48 min — a swing of roughly 6 h 24 min.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AMJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
Jan9.27:304:41
Feb10.37:035:18
Mar11.66:165:55
Apr13.15:216:31
May14.44:397:05
Jun15.14:227:30
Jul14.84:367:27
Aug13.75:076:53
Sep12.35:425:59
Oct10.86:175:05
Nov9.66:564:26
Dec8.97:264:18

Sunny days

How many genuinely sunny days each month brings — days the sky stays clear or mostly clear — banded into plain-language zones.

Rotterdam averages about 7 sunny days a month — counting the days the sky stays clear or mostly clear — with a clear seasonal swing between 5 and 11 days.

The sunnier stretch runs 4.9 months, from around Jun 20 to Nov 16. The sunniest month is September, with roughly 10 sunny days (mixed).

The greyest month is December, down near 5 sunny days — about 53% fewer than the September peak.

051015JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecgreyersunniergreyergloomymixedSep 111 daysDec 285 days
Sunny daysSky
Jan6Gloomy
Feb6Gloomy
Mar7Gloomy
Apr7Gloomy
May7Gloomy
Jun7Gloomy
Jul9Mixed
Aug9Mixed
Sep10Mixed
Oct9Mixed
Nov7Gloomy
Dec5Gloomy

Humidity comfort

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

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 Rotterdam, how humid it feels changes dramatically over the year.

The more humid part of the year lasts 3.9 months, from around May 29 to September 24. The muggiest month is July, when the air feels humid, muggy or worse about 60% of the time.

The most comfortable stretch runs from around September 25 to May 28, and April is the most comfortable month — the air is dry or comfortable 100% of the time.

0%10%20%30%40%50%60%70%80%90%100%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecApr 4 · 100%Jul 22 · 36%muggyhumiddrycomfortablecomfortablehumidcomfortable
Dry (%)Comfortable (%)Humid (%)Muggy (%)Oppressive (%)
Jan1000000
Feb1000000
Mar1000000
Apr982000
May8013520
Jun402621112
Jul162431245
Aug222726222
Sep55211680
Oct916210
Nov991000
Dec1000000

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 Rotterdam is typically calm, near 6 mph, and varies little with the seasons.

The windier part of the year lasts 6.8 months, from around Oct 16 to May 10. The windiest month is March, averaging about 7 mph (calm).

The calmer part of the year runs from around May 11 to Oct 15, with August the calmest month at about 5 mph.

0510JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecwindiercalmerwindiercalmlight breezeMar 7 · 7 mphAug 6 · 5 mph
Wind speed (mph)Feels
Jan7calm
Feb7calm
Mar7calm
Apr7calm
May6calm
Jun6calm
Jul5calm
Aug5calm
Sep5calm
Oct6calm
Nov7calm
Dec7calm

Best time to visit Rotterdam

TravelBeach/poolTemperatureCloudsPrecipitation

To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Rotterdam throughout the year, we compute two travel scores — one for general sightseeing, one for beach and pool weather.

Around late May, Rotterdam is still near the start of its best-weather window — great conditions with the peak-season crowds not yet at full swing.

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 64°F and 82°F. Based on this score, the best time of year to visit Rotterdam for general outdoor tourist activities is from mid May to early October, with a peak score in the first week of September.

0246810JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbest timetravel scoretemperaturecloudsprecipitationSep 3 · 7.1

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).

Travel score (0–10)Rating
Jan0.0poor
Feb0.0poor
Mar0.7poor
Apr3.7fair
May5.7good
Jun6.3good
Jul6.2good
Aug6.6good
Sep6.7good
Oct4.5fair
Nov1.5poor
Dec0.0poor

The beach/pool score favors clear, rainless days with daytime highs between 75°F and 93°F. Based on this score, the best time of year to visit Rotterdam for hot-weather activities is from mid June to mid September, with a peak score in the third week of July.

024681012JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbest timebeach/pool scoretemperaturecloudsprecipitationJul 19 · 6.3

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 Rotterdam, by month

EssentialRecommendedOptional

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 80°F), the essentials are light clothes, rain gear and sun protection. In the cold season around January (highs near 31°F), pack a warm layer, a heavy coat and rain gear.

Light clothing
Warm layer
Winter coat
Rain gear
Sun protection
Windbreaker

In July, Rotterdam sees daytime highs around 80°F and nights near 62°F. Worth packing: light clothes, rain gear and sun protection. About 12 days see rain.

UV index (midday) in Rotterdam by month

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

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 Rotterdam peaks around July 12 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 12UV 8Jan 1UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan1Low
Feb2Moderate
Mar4Moderate
Apr5High
May7Very high
Jun7Very high
Jul8Very high
Aug5Moderate
Sep6High
Oct3Moderate
Nov2Moderate
Dec1Low

Average hourly UV index in Rotterdam

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

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 8 hours a day reach index 3 (protection recommended), and 4.5 hours reach 6 or more. Mornings and late afternoons stay comparatively gentle year round.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec12 AM2 AM4 AM6 AM8 AM10 AM12 PM2 PM4 PM6 PM8 PM10 PM12 AM
UV ≥ 3 (h/day)UV ≥ 6 (h/day)
Jan00
Feb00
Mar3.50
Apr60
May7.53.5
Jun84
Jul84.5
Aug60
Sep5.50
Oct10
Nov00
Dec00
Almanac & agriculture

Growing season

Chance of a frost-free dayTypical season (≥50%)

The growing season in Rotterdam typically lasts about 230 days, from around March 30 to November 14 — the span where a frost-free day is more likely than not. It is reliably frost-free from April 24 to October 16.

0%25%50%75%100%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecgrowing seasonFeb 1310%Mar 3050%Apr 2490%Oct 1690%Nov 1450%Jan 2510%
Frost-free chance (%)Frost nights
Jan1131
Feb1228
Mar3031
Apr7821
May990
Jun1000
Jul1000
Aug1000
Sep990
Oct8915
Nov5130
Dec2031

Growing degree days

Degree days (base 50°F)Frost-free shaded

Growing degree days tally heat above 50°F: each day adds however many degrees its average temperature runs over that threshold, and cold days add nothing. Rotterdam banks about 2,439 degree days a year, and the running total — which growers use to time plantings and predict maturity — climbs fastest around July.

01,0002,0003,000JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Growing degree days (°F·days)
Jan0
Feb0
Mar0
Apr12
May245
Jun496
Jul656
Aug606
Sep367
Oct57
Nov0
Dec0

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.

Rotterdam receives about 3.8 kWh/m² a day of solar energy on average — moderate — with a clear seasonal swing between 1.4 and 6.1 kWh/m².

The brighter stretch of the year lasts 6.2 months, from around Mar 16 to Sep 21. The brightest month is July, averaging about 5.9 kWh/m² (bright).

The dimmest month is December, down near 1.5 kWh/m² — roughly 75% less than the July peak.

01234567JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecdimmerbrighterdimmerdimmoderatebrightintenseJul 26.1 kWhDec 161.4 kWh
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
Jan1.8Dim
Feb2.8Moderate
Mar3.8Moderate
Apr4.8Bright
May5.5Bright
Jun5.9Bright
Jul5.9Bright
Aug5.2Bright
Sep4.1Bright
Oct2.7Moderate
Nov1.9Dim
Dec1.4Dim

Where is Rotterdam?

Rotterdam sits at 42.8°N, 74.0°W, 338 ft above sea level, in United States. The nearest listed city is Schenectady, 2.5 mi away.

Topography around Rotterdam

How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 2, 10 and 50 miles of Rotterdam.

Within 2 miles, the terrain around Rotterdam has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 220 ft around an average of 328 ft above sea level; within 10 miles, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,440 ft; within 50 miles, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 4,058 ft.

The land around Rotterdam is covered by trees (47%) and artificial surfaces (35%) within 2 miles, trees (72%) within 10 miles, and trees (83%) within 50 miles.

2 miles
220 ft
10 miles
1,440 ft
50 miles
4,058 ft
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwaterwetland
Nearby: Schenectady 2.5 mi · Glenville 11 mi · Latham 11 mi · Clifton Park 12 mi · West Albany 12 mi · Cohoes 14 mi · Albany 14 mi · Troy 15 mi

United States travel facts

Power plugs
Type A / B
120 V · 60 Hz
Prices
≈ 100% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$90,027
2025
Happiness
6.8 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
98%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
5.8
per 100k, 2023
Road deaths
12.7
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
High
World Bank
Religion
Protestant 47%unaffiliated 23%Roman Catholic 21%Jewish 2%

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 Rotterdam (42.787°, -73.971°, elevation 338 ft), 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).