Best time to visit Chennai

Month-by-month weather averages for Chennai.

Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India

°C

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Average daily high and low
Precipitation
Good month
Best month
Made good or best by an event

Average daily high and low temperature, average precipitation and each month's verdict
Month	Average daily high	Average daily low	Precipitation	Verdict
January	27.8 °C / 82 °F	23.2 °C / 74 °F	21 mm / 0.8 in	good month
February	29.1 °C / 84 °F	23.5 °C / 74 °F	6 mm / 0.2 in	good month
March	31 °C / 88 °F	25.5 °C / 78 °F	13 mm / 0.5 in	neither best nor good
April	32.8 °C / 91 °F	27.7 °C / 82 °F	10 mm / 0.4 in	neither best nor good
May	34.1 °C / 93 °F	28.8 °C / 84 °F	51 mm / 2 in	neither best nor good
June	34.2 °C / 94 °F	28.5 °C / 83 °F	65 mm / 2.6 in	neither best nor good
July	33.3 °C / 92 °F	27.8 °C / 82 °F	88 mm / 3.5 in	neither best nor good
August	32.4 °C / 90 °F	27.2 °C / 81 °F	115 mm / 4.5 in	neither best nor good
September	32 °C / 90 °F	27 °C / 81 °F	103 mm / 4 in	neither best nor good
October	30.6 °C / 87 °F	26.3 °C / 79 °F	188 mm / 7.4 in	neither best nor good
November	28.6 °C / 83 °F	25.1 °C / 77 °F	283 mm / 11.2 in	neither best nor good
December	27.8 °C / 82 °F	24.1 °C / 75 °F	134 mm / 5.3 in	good month

Good and best months depend on more than temperature, rain and events. How they are chosen

Each activity on this page has its own good and best months, rated on twenty years of daily weather records. Which measures count, and how much, depends on the activity: humidity for exploring outdoors, wind for the beach, hiking and skiing, snow for skiing alone. Between them, the activities are rated on:

Daytime highs
Night-time lows
How warm it feels
Humidity
How much of the day is sunny
Hours of daylight
Monthly rainfall
How many days it rains
Days of heavy rain
Wind
Snowfall and days with snow
Major events, such as festivals

The chart shows the good and best months for exploring outdoors.

The event icon marks a month that an event lifts to good or best, such as a festival or a natural spectacle. Choose “Weather only” in the toolbar to rate the months on weather alone.

Best months by activity

Exploring outdoors

Mild days and nights, mostly dry and bright. The default for 'when should I go'.

JJanuary: good
FFebruary: good
MMarch: neither
AApril: neither
MMay: neither
JJune: neither
JJuly: neither
AAugust: neither
SSeptember: neither
OOctober: neither
NNovember: neither
DDecember: good

Good: December–February

Chennai's short, drier winter (January-February) is the best window for exploring on foot, with milder highs, low rain and ample sun despite sticky humidity. Heat builds fast from March and peaks with the humid pre-monsoon in April-June, and the northeast monsoon buries September-November in heavy rain, leaving most of the year unsuitable for comfortable walking; December is workable again as showers ease.

Why these months

January · good
In its favour: precipitation 21 mm / 0.8 in, share of daylight that is sunny 92%, wet days 3.9 days, days with heavy rain 0.4 days, average daily high 27.8 °C / 82 °F.
Against: relative humidity 76%, feels like (high) 30.7 °C / 87 °F, average daily low 23.2 °C / 74 °F.
Also on: Chennai Book Fair, Margazhi music and dance season, Pongal.
February · good
In its favour: precipitation 6 mm / 0.2 in, share of daylight that is sunny 95%, wet days 1.1 days, days with heavy rain 0.1 days, average daily high 29.1 °C / 84 °F.
Against: relative humidity 76%, feels like (high) 32.8 °C / 91 °F, average daily low 23.5 °C / 74 °F.
Also on: Natyanjali dance and music festival.
December · good
In its favour: share of daylight that is sunny 83%, feels like (high) 30.5 °C / 87 °F, average daily high 27.8 °C / 82 °F.
Against: relative humidity 79%, wet days 10 days, days with heavy rain 3.3 days, precipitation 134 mm / 5.3 in, average daily low 24.1 °C / 75 °F.
Also on: Margazhi music and dance season, New Year's Eve parties.

An activity is listed only where it applies: skiing at ski destinations, beach and swimming at beach destinations. The nearest ski area is 1941 km away.

Weather averages

Monthly averages over twenty years, 2006–2025. Highs, lows and precipitation are in the chart at the top.

	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Feels like (high)	30.7 °C	32.8 °C	35.9 °C	38.8 °C	40.8 °C	39.7 °C	38 °C	37.9 °C	37.8 °C	36.2 °C	32.7 °C	30.5 °C
Days with heavy rain	0.4 days	0.1 days	0.3 days	0.2 days	1.1 days	1.4 days	2.2 days	3.4 days	3 days	6.2 days	8.1 days	3.3 days
Time rain usually falls	1 pm	1 pm	2 pm	2 pm	2 pm	9 pm	10 pm	10 pm	10 pm	3 pm	1 pm	11 am
Sunshine per day	10.5 h	11.2 h	11.4 h	11.6 h	11.2 h	9.6 h	8.2 h	8.6 h	9 h	9.2 h	8.5 h	9.4 h
Relative humidity	76%	76%	77%	77%	74%	69%	70%	75%	78%	81%	82%	79%
Wet days	3.9 days	1.1 days	1.9 days	2.4 days	4.7 days	11.9 days	15.3 days	17.2 days	16.6 days	18.6 days	17.4 days	10 days
Daylight per day	11.4 h	11.7 h	12.1 h	12.4 h	12.7 h	12.9 h	12.8 h	12.5 h	12.2 h	11.8 h	11.5 h	11.4 h
Days with snow	0 days	0 days	0 days	0 days	0 days	0 days	0 days	0 days	0 days	0 days	0 days	0 days
Snowfall	0 cm	0 cm	0 cm	0 cm	0 cm	0 cm	0 cm	0 cm	0 cm	0 cm	0 cm	0 cm
Wind (daily mean)	12 km/h	11 km/h	12 km/h	14 km/h	15 km/h	15 km/h	14 km/h	13 km/h	12 km/h	10 km/h	13 km/h	15 km/h
Wind gusts (daily max)	30 km/h	29 km/h	31 km/h	34 km/h	35 km/h	35 km/h	35 km/h	32 km/h	30 km/h	28 km/h	33 km/h	34 km/h

Air quality

Averaged over a shorter period (2022–2025) than the twenty-year averages above, and not counted towards good or best months.

	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Air pollution (PM2.5) 2022–2025	33.1 µg/m³	27.1 µg/m³	21.6 µg/m³	18.2 µg/m³	23.2 µg/m³	23.8 µg/m³	14.1 µg/m³	20 µg/m³	20.1 µg/m³	22.2 µg/m³	24.9 µg/m³	29.3 µg/m³
Air pollution (PM2.5, daily peak) 2022–2025	41.2 µg/m³	34.9 µg/m³	27 µg/m³	23.3 µg/m³	33.7 µg/m³	37.5 µg/m³	21.2 µg/m³	28.1 µg/m³	27.2 µg/m³	31 µg/m³	32.7 µg/m³	37.1 µg/m³

Good 15 µg/m³ or less
Fair 15 to 25 µg/m³
Moderate 25 to 37.5 µg/m³
Poor 37.5 to 50 µg/m³
Very poor 50 to 75 µg/m³
Extremely poor over 75 µg/m³

Each figure is compared with the World Health Organization's guideline for a day's air, 15 µg/m³ or less, and with its interim targets above that. The words are ours: the WHO does not name its steps. The figures are modelled monthly averages, so single days can be well above them. The daily peak is the average of each day's highest hour, shaded on the same scale.

Events and seasons

What the weather records cannot show. A major event can lift a month to good or best. The warnings are there to help you plan, and never count against a month.

Reasons to go

Margazhi music and dance season
January and December
Chennai Book Fair
January, dates vary from year to year
Pongal
January
Natyanjali dance and music festival
24 February–7 March
Tamil Varuda Pirappu (Tamil New Year)
14–15 April, dates vary from year to year
Chennai's founding-day celebration
22 August
Navaratri / Durga Puja / Dussehra
September and October, dates vary from year to year
Deepavali (Diwali)
October and November, dates vary from year to year
New Year's Eve parties
31 December

Other places in India

Compare places month by month on the travel calendar