Mexico climate map

The zones

The Tropic of Cancer crosses Mexico at about 23.5° N, near Mazatlán, southern Durango and Ciudad Victoria, and it separates two very different halves. North of the line lie the Chihuahuan and Sonoran deserts, dry all year, with the biggest daily temperature swings in the country. South of it the climate is tropical at sea level and temperate on the plateau. Roughly half of Mexico's land area is classified as arid or semi-arid, about a fifth as temperate and about a quarter as warm and humid.

Altitude does more than latitude

Mexicans divide the country vertically, and the terms are still the most useful climate map there is. Tierra caliente, below about 1,000 m, is the tropical coastal plain and the deep river valleys: hot and humid year-round, no winter. Tierra templada, roughly 1,000–2,000 m, includes Xalapa, Cuernavaca and Guadalajara and holds daytime temperatures in the low 20s almost every month. Tierra fría, above 2,000 m, covers the central plateau — Mexico City, Toluca, Puebla — where nights are cold from December to February and frost is normal on the highest basins. Above about 4,000 m on Pico de Orizaba, Popocatépetl and Iztaccíhuatl there is permanent snow and the remnants of Mexico's last glaciers, which have lost most of their area since 1970. See the volcanoes map and the physical map for the relief behind this.

Average temperatures and rainfall

The rainy season

Almost all of Mexico's rain falls between May and October, and in most of the country it falls in the late afternoon. Mexico City records about 700 mm a year, of which more than 80 per cent arrives from June to September; the same months are dry in the north-west, where the Sonoran summer monsoon is the only reliable rain. The wettest corner is the windward Sierra of northern Chiapas and southern Veracruz, where the trade winds meet the mountains and stations above Teapa and Tenosique record more than 3,000 mm. The driest is the lower Colorado delta in Baja California, under 100 mm. The gap between them is the largest rainfall range in North America. Water supply follows: CONAGUA's reservoirs in the Lerma and Cutzamala systems feed the central cities and are drawn down badly in dry years, as they were in 2021 and 2024.

Hurricanes and cold fronts

Mexico is exposed on both coasts. Atlantic and Caribbean storms run from 1 June to 30 November and usually approach the Yucatán Peninsula from the east; Gilbert in 1988 and Wilma in 2005 both made landfall in Quintana Roo. Eastern Pacific storms run from 15 May to 30 November and track north-west, parallel to the coast, sometimes turning inland: Patricia, the strongest hurricane recorded in the eastern Pacific, came ashore in Jalisco in October 2015, and Otis intensified from tropical storm to Category 5 in about twelve hours before hitting Acapulco in October 2023. In winter the pattern reverses: nortes, cold fronts driven down the Gulf of Mexico, bring wind, cloud and a 10°C drop to Veracruz and the Gulf coast between October and March. Snow falls most winters in the mountains of Chihuahua and Durango.

When to travel

The dry season from November to April suits nearly everywhere, which is why prices peak then on both coasts. December and January are the coldest months on the plateau, so the colonial cities of the Bajío want a jacket after dark. March and April are the hottest months in the Yucatán Peninsula, where Mérida regularly passes 38°C before the rains break. The Copper Canyon in Chihuahua and the Sierra Madre are best in autumn, after the summer rain and before the winter cold. The shoulder months of May and November are the cheapest and are usually dry enough.

Questions about Mexico's climate

What is the rainy season in Mexico?

Roughly May or June to October over most of the country, with the heaviest falls in July, August and September. It rains in convective afternoon storms rather than all day, so it rarely stops travel. November to April is the dry season and the main tourist season.

Is Mexico hot all year?

Only at low altitude. Coastal Acapulco and Mérida stay above 28°C every month, but Mexico City at 2,240 m averages a high of about 22°C in January with overnight lows near 6°C, and highland towns such as San Cristóbal de las Casas are colder still.

When is hurricane season in Mexico?

1 June to 30 November on the Atlantic, Gulf and Caribbean side, and 15 May to 30 November on the Pacific side. Activity peaks from mid-August to early October. Hurricane Otis struck Acapulco as a Category 5 storm in October 2023, and Wilma hit Cancún in October 2005.

Where is the driest part of Mexico?

The north-west desert. The lower Colorado delta around Mexicali in Baja California receives under 100 mm of rain a year and summer highs above 45°C are routine. The wettest parts are northern Chiapas and Tabasco, where some stations exceed 3,000 mm.