Theclimate of Spain is highly diverse and varies considerably across the country's various regions. In fact, Spain is sometimes described as the most climatically diverse country inEurope^[1] and has 13 differentKöppen climates.^[2][3][4]

The four most dominant climates in the country include: Thehot-summer Mediterranean climate (Csa), thewarm-summer Mediterranean climate (Csb), thesemi-arid climate (BSk) and theoceanic climate (Cfb).^[5]

The average annual temperature in the mainland varies from less than 2.5 °C (36.5 °F) in the north of thePyrenees, close to the border with France, to more than 20 °C (68 °F). on small regions of Mediterranean coast on Almeria, Granada and Malaga provinces, reaching as high as 20.6 °C (69.1 °F) inRincón de la Victoria.^[6][7][8] The annual average precipitation ranges from more than 2,600 millimetres (100 in) on the northwest of Galicia and in the Pyrenees nearSan Sebastian to less than 156 millimetres (6.1 in) in southeastern Spain inCabo de Gata-Níjar Natural Park.^[9]

In theCanary Islands, annual average temperature varies from less than 10 °C (50 °F) in the highest altitude area ofSanta Cruz de Tenerife to more than 21.5 °C (70.7 °F) on lower areas of Santa Cruz de Tenerife, while the average annual precipitation ranges from more than 1,000 millimetres (39 in) on the highest altitudes ofLa Palma to less than 100 millimetres (3.9 in) in parts ofLanzarote andFuerteventura.^[9]

Spain, like other countries of theMediterranean Basin, isvulnerable to climate change, with greater risk of heatwaves and dry weather.^[10]

Four main climatic zones can be distinguished, according to the country's Köppen-Geiger climate classification andorographic conditions:^[11][12][13]

• Thehot-summer Mediterranean climate (Csa) which is also characterized by dry and warm/hot summers and cool to mild and wet winters. According to theKöppen climate classification, this climate is dominant on theIberian Peninsula, particularly the variety with summer droughts, covering all but the far northern part of the country where the Oceanic climate predominates. The hot-summer Mediterranean climate covers coastal areas (excluding the northern Atlantic coast and southeast Mediterranean coast), the Guadalquivir river basin and the lower reaches of theTagus and Guadiana basins to the west of the country. It also extends to parts of the interior of theValencian Community,Castilla-La-Mancha andCatalonia.^[5]
• Thewarm-summer Mediterranean climate (Csb) which predominates in parts of northwestern Spain and mostly inland in central-northern Spain at altitudes above 900-1000masl.
• Thesemi-arid climate (BSh andBSk) is predominant in the south eastern part of the country (Almeria province in Eastern Andalusia, Murcia region and Alicante province in Southern Valencia) and in the middle reaches of theEbro valley to the north east (Zaragoza province), reaching as far west as southern Navarre. It is also present in large areas of the central table lands (primarily in Madrid and in the La Mancha region which includes parts of Cuenca, Guadalajara, and Toledo provinces) and some of the driest areas of Extremadura. In contrast to the Mediterranean climate, the sunny season continues beyond the end of summer and the vegetation is less dense.
• Theoceanic climate (Cfb) is located in the northern part of the country, especially in the regions ofGalicia,Basque Country,Asturias,Cantabria, andNavarre. This region has regular snowfall in the winter months.

Apart from the four main climate zones, other noticeable sub-zones can be found, such as thehumid subtropical climate in large areas in the northern half of Catalonia going down to Barcelona, the province of Huesca and northern Navarre. Thewarm-summer humid continental climate (Dfb) which can be found in many areas in north-eastern Spain, in areas starting with altitudes above 1000-1100masl. It can be found also in some areas in theCantabrian Mountains and the highest areas of theSistema Ibérico mountain range in central-eastern Spain. The drycontinental climates all across Spain in the highest areas (notably in theSierra Nevada and the highest areas in central-northern Spain), thealpine climate and theSubarctic climate in the higher areas of northern Spain's various mountain ranges (notably theCantabrian Mountains and thePyrenees) and ahot desert climate in the southeastern coastline, onAlmeria andMurcia provinces. Hot desert climates and hot semi-desert climates can also be found in the Canary Islands, most notably on the islands of Lanzarote and Fuerteventura, but also in the coastal areas ofGran Canaria and in the south of Santa Cruz de Tenerife. On the remaining islands, this climate is also present, but in a much smaller portion. In the coastal areas of the Canary Islands, there are some regions that are influenced by atropical climate, as the average temperature in the coldest month is above 18 °C (64 °F).^[9]

Thehot-summer Mediterranean climate (Csa) is found in many parts of Spain's Mediterranean coast, from the border withPortugal to the middle of the province ofGranada. Then it starts inCalpe, and goes to the border withFrance (with some exceptions such as the city ofValencia). It also extends inland in Andalusia and Extremadura. It is characterized by hot, dry summers and mild winters with infrequent frosts.^[14] The summers are hot, the winters are mild and most of precipitation falls in the autumn. Examples of cities with Csa climate areMálaga,Barcelona,Palma orSeville.

TheCsbwarm-summer Mediterranean climate is found in parts ofGalicia and the western areas ofCastilla y Leon. Coastal Mediterranean region is marked by Leveche winds: hot, dry, easterly or southeasterly air currents that originate over North Africa. Periods of these winds, which sometimes carry fineSaharan dust, are more common in spring and are associated with a sudden, usually short-lived, increase in temperature. A cooler easterly wind, the Levante, funnels between theSistema Penibético and theAtlas Mountains ofNorth Africa. These easterly winds are the ones which most influence the Mediterranean climate.^{[citation needed]} The most populous city with Csb climate in Spain isVigo. Other cities with this climate areÁvila,León andSalamanca.

It is characterised by year-round mild temperatures with drier summer months, often resulting in moderate drought conditions with at least one month per year usually recording less than 40 mm (1.6 in). This is a characteristic which distinguishes Galicia from a typical Cfb climate. Annual rainfall is higher than in the eastern and southern regions, usually ranging from 800 to 2,000 mm (31.5 to 78.7 in).^[21] Not all Galicia has a Csb climate, most of the north and central mountains have a typical oceanic Cfb. Some valleys in the south are classified as Hot-summer Mediterranean (Csa), like thecomarca ofO Condado, the city ofOurense orO Ribeiro.^[22]

In North-WestCastile, the climate is classified also as Csb because the temperatures of summer are cooler due to the altitude.

Anoceanic climate prevails from the Pyrenees to Galicia, area which is sometimes called "Green Spain", characterized by relatively mild winters and warm summers. The climate and landscape are determined by theAtlantic Ocean winds whose moisture gets trapped by the mountains circumventing the Spanish Atlantic coast. Because of theFoehn effect, the southern slopes fall inside therain shadow zone and so Green Spain contrasts starkly with the rest of Spain. The rainfall is generally abundant, exceeding 1,000 mm (39.4 in) and is fairly evenly spread out over the year, with the driest month above 30 mm (1.2 in), which is the minimum criteria for an oceanic climate according to Köppen. Although Köppen officially limits the oceanic domain to the Asturias and the Basque Country region, certain authors such as Trewartha prefer to extend this climatic zone to the north-west part of the peninsula toGalicia, due to the moderate summer temperatures.

Temperatures vary only slightly, both on a diurnal and a seasonal basis, and averages range from 9 °C (48.2 °F) in January to 21 °C (69.8 °F) in July. The moderating effects of the sea are less prominent further inland, where temperatures are more extreme than those on the coast. Distance from the Atlantic Ocean also has an effect on precipitation levels, so there is less rainfall in the east than in the west. Autumn (October to December) is the wettest season, while July is the driest month. The high humidity and the prevailing off-shore winds make fog and mist common along the north west coast; this phenomenon is less frequent a short distance inland because the mountains form a barrier to the maritime moisture.

Thehumid subtropical climate exists in large areas of north-eastern Spain, mostly in the northern half of Catalonia and the province of Huesca. This climate is also found across northern Navarra and the northern areas of the province of Guadalajara. The climate usually occurs in the transition zone between the oceanic climates further north and the mediterranean climates further south. The largest city with this climate in Spain isGirona.

This type of humid subtropical climate is atypical for normal humid subtropical climates, with there not being the characteristic inflow of warm, moist air during summer causing convective thunderstorms but is nonetheless classified as humid subtropical by Köppen.

Thesemi-arid climate (BSh and BSk in theKöppen climate classification) is predominant in south-eastern Spain (covering most ofAlicante,Murcia andAlmería provinces), and in certain parts of the Ebro Valley. It is also present in parts of the centre (Madrid,Toledo,Ciudad Real andAlbacete provinces), south and west of the country which borders between a Mediterranean and semi-arid climate. It is very hot during the summer (temperatures can exceed 40 °C (104 °F)) and the drought usually extends into the autumn. Rainfall in these areas are usually between 200 mm and 500 mm.^[30]

Thedesert climate exists in a few heavily rain-shadowed zones of the south-eastern coast of Spain and in many parts of theCanary Islands. Within mainland Spain, it appears predominantly inAlmería, with the city of Almería bordering ahot desert climate categorization (Köppen:BWh) as the average temperature is 19.1 °C (66.4 °F) and the average precipitation is approximately 200mm.^[33] This area extends to theAndarax andAlmanzora river valleys and theCabo de Gata-Níjar Natural Park, which are also known for having also a hot desert climate (Köppen:BWh), with a precipitation amount of 156 mm (6.1 in) per year^[34] which is reportedly the driest place inEurope.^[35] In fact,Almeria,Murcia andAlicante provinces are the only areas in Europe within the hot desert climatic zone.^[30] The desert climate exists in other areas of the southeast, such as theTabernas Desert. It also exists in areas ofMurcia and specific points inland of the province ofAlicante.^[36]

Besides the above three major climate zones, there are four other climate types in Spain:

• The mountainous climate is present in the Picos de Europa, Sistema Central, Sistema Ibérico, Pyrenees andSierra Nevada, qualified as anAlpine climate, Spain's major mountain systems.
• The low-lying areas of the Canary Islands have influences oftropical climate in terms of temperature, this being mild and stable (18 to 26 °C or 64 to 79 °F) throughout the year. Most of the islands havehot desert climates orhot semi-desert climates, and a low altitude areas havetropicalsteppe climates, like the cities ofSanta Cruz de Tenerife,Las Palmas de Gran Canaria orLa Palma.^[41] In terms of precipitation, the eastern islands are arid while the westernmost ones are semi-arid and receive more rainfall, with some very wet areas in the mountains ofLa Gomera,La Palma andTenerife, home to thecloud forest known aslaurisilva. The easternmost islands are arid with Saharan climate moderated by the Atlantic Ocean.

The southernmost coast of Spain (Málaga and Granada's coastal strip) has the warmest winters acrossEurope, with very sunny and mostly warm days with total absence of winter frosts allowing for the prolific cultivation of tropical fruits such asmango,papaya,cherimoya,pitaya and thecarambola, amongst others.^[42] The benign winter, with minimum night temperatures in January rarely falling below 5 °C (46 °F) is due to the microclimate created by the Sierra Nevada mountains to the north of this coastal strip, preventing cooler north winds from reaching the area.

According to AEMET, the climate in Spain is extremely diverse, due to its very diverseorography. In total, there are 13 Köppen climate types in Spain, with the polar tundra type (ET) becoming extinct from the period 1981-2010. These are the climates that are found in majority of Spain:

• Mediterranean climate (Cs): Predominates the country and occupies around 60.2% of the territory. It is characterized by dry (warm or hot) summers and mild, rainy winters. The hot summer (Csa) is more extensive compared to the warm summer (Csb).
• Semi-arid climate (Bs): It is present in a significant part, occupying around 21.3% of the country. It is predominant in the southeast, but also in a significant portion of the country's interior, such as the Meseta Central. The cold semi-arid (BSk) is much more extensive than the hot semi-arid (BSh). However, the hot semi-arid still occupies more than 1% of the territory, which is significant compared to continental climates that occupy a smaller percentage. Spain has the largest semi-arid areas on the European continent.
• Temperate climate without dry season (Cf): Theoceanic climate (Cfb) and thehumid subtropical (Cfa) also occupy a significant portion, although in a smaller percentage. Around 17.4% has the Cf climate, with the oceanic climate accounting for around 13% and the humid subtropical climate accounting for around 4.4%. It is predominant in the north of Spain, with mild winters and warm summers (or hot in the case of Cfa) and it is rainy throughout the year.

In addition to these, thecontinental climates with dry summerDsa,Dsb,Dsc and no dry seasonDfb andDfc are also present. Thehot desert climate (BWh) and thecold desert climate (BWk) occupy around 0.3% of the territory and are only present in the southeast of the country.^[43]

In theCanary Islands, arid and semi-arid climates predominate, but there is also a significant portion with a Mediterranean climate:

• Desert climate (BW): It occupies around 48.1% of the territory, with the hot arid (BWh) being significantly more extensive than the cold arid (BWk).
• Semi-arid climate (BS): It occupies around 21.4%, with the hot semi-arid (BSh) being more extensive than the cold semi-arid (BSk).
• Mediterranean climate (Cs): Occupies around 30.5%, with the warm summer Mediterranean (Csb) being more extensive than the hot summer Mediterranean (Csa).

Also present are extremely small areas that have a dry summer continental climate (Ds).^[43]

A very limited area, located right at the eastern coastline of La Palma can be described as closely bordering on wet and dry tropical climate with dry season experienced during high sun months (As), given the mean temperature of the coldest month of the year is generally at or slightly above 18 °C at sea level, and the average yearly amount of precipitation results in a borderline non-arid climate by Köppen's definition.

Nationwide, the official lowest temperature ever reported in Spain is −32.0 °C (−25.6 °F) in Estany Gento,Province of Lleida on 2 February 1956;^[55] although in recent years lower temperatures have been recorded by stations not belonging toAEMET, the lowest being −35.8 °C (−32.4 °F) at Vega de Liordes, in thePicos de Europa.^[56]
Conversely, the highest, officially, is 47.6 °C (117.7 °F) atLa Rambla,Cordoba on 14 August 2021.^[57]

• Climate of Barcelona
• Climate of Valencia
• Climate of Madrid
• Climate of Bilbao
• Climate of Gibraltar
• Wave height
• Western Mediterranean oscillation

• Climate of Spain
• Climate by country

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