Climate - Bern (Switzerland)

The climate of Bern is moderately continental, with cold winters and warm summers.
The city, the federal capital of Switzerland, is located in the Mittelland, the Swiss plateau, at an altitude of 540 meters (1,750 feet).
The winter is cold and gray. There may be relatively mild periods, when Atlantic currents prevail, and other colder periods, when the temperature drops below freezing.
Sometimes, there can be cold spells, in which temperatures can drop as low as -15 °C (5 °F) or even below. The temperature dropped to -24 °C (-11 °F) in January 1985, to -21 °C (-6 °F) in January 1987, to -19 °C (-2 °F) in February 1991, and to -21 °C (-6 °F) in February 2012.
In summer, the temperatures are generally pleasant and lend themselves to outdoor activities, although sometimes there can be rains and thunderstorms.
At times, hot periods can occur, generally of short duration, which in recent years are becoming more frequent due to global warming, and in which the temperature can exceed 32 °C (90 °F). The temperature reached 37 °C (98.5 °F) in July 2015 and in late June 2019, 36 °C (97 °F) in August 2015, and 35 °C (95 °F) in August 2003, in August 2009, in August 2012 and in July 2013.
The average temperature of the coldest month (January) is of -0.5 °C (31 °F), that of the warmest month (July) is of 18.5 °C (65 °F). Here are the average temperatures.

Precipitation amounts to 1,060 millimeters (41.7 inches) per year. It ranges from 55 mm (2.2 in) in the driest month (February) to 120 mm (4.7 in) in the wettest (May). In late spring and in summer, the rains are more abundant because they often occur in the form of thunderstorm. On average, 53 cm (21 in) of snow fall per year. Here is the average precipitation.

On average, there are around 1,680 sunshine hours per year. Here are the average sunshine hours per day.

Best Time

The best time to visit Bern is from mid-May to mid-September, since it is the warmest and sunniest of the year. However, we cannot exclude some rain, or a bit of cool weather, or even cold, especially in May and early June.