At the KoelnBonn weather station, which we use for Cologne, the warmest month is July (average high 24.9 °C) and the coldest January (average low 0.0 °C), averaged over 1991–2020. The wettest month is July (87 mm of rain). Across Germany, the quietest month for visitors in 2025 was January.
Cologne weather by month
Averages for 1991–2020 at the KoelnBonn weather station (90.9 m above sea level), from the WMO climate normals, next to each month's share of Germany's tourist nights (Eurostat, 2025) in 2025. The shares are for the whole of Germany, not Cologne alone. These are long-term averages, not a forecast. A rainy day is one with at least 1 mm of rain.
| Month | Average high | Average low | Rain | Rainy days | Daylight on the 15th | Share of 2025 (Germany) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 5.9 °C | 0.0 °C | 62 mm | 12.2 days | 8 h 25 min | 4.8% |
| February | 7.2 °C | 0.1 °C | 54 mm | 11.1 days | 10 h 5 min | 5.1% |
| March | 11.4 °C | 2.0 °C | 55 mm | 10.5 days | 11 h 50 min | 6.3% |
| April | 16.1 °C | 4.5 °C | 48 mm | 8.7 days | 13 h 50 min | 8.2% |
| May | 19.7 °C | 8.1 °C | 62 mm | 9.6 days | 15 h 30 min | 9.6% |
| June | 22.7 °C | 11.2 °C | 86 mm | 10.6 days | 16 h 30 min | 10.3% |
| July | 24.9 °C | 13.3 °C | 87 mm | 11.4 days | 16 h 5 min | 11.7% |
| August | 24.5 °C | 12.8 °C | 83 mm | 11.0 days | 14 h 35 min | 12.4% |
| September | 20.4 °C | 9.7 °C | 67 mm | 10.2 days | 12 h 40 min | 9.9% |
| October | 15.2 °C | 6.8 °C | 65 mm | 11.0 days | 10 h 45 min | 9.2% |
| November | 9.8 °C | 3.5 °C | 64 mm | 11.4 days | 8 h 55 min | 6.2% |
| December | 6.5 °C | 1.0 °C | 69 mm | 13.0 days | 8 h | 6.3% |
Golden hour
Evening golden hour is our calculation for the 15th of each month of 2026: the time the sun takes to go from 6° above to 4° below the horizon (there is no official definition).
The quietest and busiest months
In 2025, January was Germany's quietest month (4.8% of the year's tourist nights): at Cologne's station that month averages a high of 5.9 °C, a low of 0.0 °C and 62 mm of rain. August was the busiest (12.4%): average high 24.5 °C, average low 12.8 °C, 83 mm of rain. The visitor figures are for the whole country, and they do not show that the weather makes a month busier or quieter, so we do not say it does.
What these figures are
One weather station stands for Cologne; places nearby can differ, especially by height or distance from the sea. For the rest of Germany, including regions and holidays, see our Germany page; for other places, the weather by city list and golden hour by place.
Key takeaways
- Warmest month: July (average high 24.9 °C); coldest: January (average low 0.0 °C).
- Wettest month: July (87 mm); driest: April (48 mm).
- In 2025, January was Germany's quietest month for visitors and August the busiest.
Sources
Weather normals from the WMO 1991–2020 dataset; daylight and golden hour are our calculations; tourism shares are the country's, from Eurostat. See how we research.
- Weather: WMO Member Nations (2023). WMO Climatological Standard Normals for 1991-2020 (NCEI Accession 0253808), version 6.6, station KoelnBonn (station ID 00010513), mean daily maximum and minimum temperature, precipitation and number of days with at least 1 mm of precipitation, normals computed from at least 24 years. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. Dataset. doi:10.25921/800j-vn07. Accessed 24 September 2026. Released by NOAA under CC0.
- Daylight: our calculation of the time from sunrise to sunset on the 15th of each month of 2026 at the weather station's location, by the method of the NOAA Solar Calculator (NOAA Global Monitoring Laboratory, “Solar Calculation Details”, based on Jean Meeus, Astronomical Algorithms, allowing 0.833° for refraction and the size of the sun). Read it. Checked 22 September 2026. NOAA notes that calculated times can differ from what is observed.
- Source: Eurostat, Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments – monthly data, doi:10.2908/TOUR_OCC_NIM, accessed 25 September 2026. Dataset last updated by Eurostat on 22 September 2026. Extract: number of nights, NACE codes I55.1–I55.3, all guests and split by guests resident in the country and abroad, January–December 2025.
Modified data: the rounding, the arrangement, the daylight, golden-hour and sea columns and the quietest/busiest comparison are ours, from the cited figures.