Brazil Weather and Climate

Geographical location

With over 205 million inhabitants, Brazil is a huge country that takes up almost half of the South American cotinent. The land area is more than 20 times the size of the Federal Republic of Germany.

According to COUNTRYAAH, the fifth largest country in the world is located on the southern Atlantic Ocean and borders almost all other South American countries, including Argentina, Paraguay, Colombia and Peru.

There is only no direct national border with Ecuador and Chile. The longest border between Brazil and the neighboring state of Bolivia runs for a total of 3400 kilometers.

Even if the 710 meter high Corcovado with the Jesus statue next to the Sugar Loaf Mountain in Rio de Janeiro are undoubtedly the most famous elevations in the country, the summit of Pico da Neblina at 2994 meters marks the highest mountain in Brazil.

The water-rich Amazon is still the lifeline of incomparable flora and fauna. With almost 60,000 plant species, more than 700 reptile and over 50 primate species, Brazil is the most species-rich country on earth.

The landscape is characterized by the mountainous plateaus in the south of the country and the extensive, evergreen rainforests in the lowlands of the Amazon basin. The largest cities in Brazil are all located near the coast.

In addition to Rio de Janeiro, the largest metropolitan areas are primarily São Paulo, Belo Horizonte, Porto Allegre, Recife and Fortaleza. Rio de Janeiro was the capital of Brazil for over 200 years, but lost its status to the new planned capital Brasilia in the central highlands.

The distance to Germany is around 8,000 kilometers, with metropolises such as Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo being over 10,000 kilometers away.

• Abbreviation Finder: Check to see national geography, brief history, society description, domestic politics, economy overview, and a list of widely used acronyms about Brazil.

Brazil’s climate

The weather in Brazil differs considerably from one another between the individual regions. Tropical areas around the Amazon are characterized by very heavy rainy seasons in the first half of the year and at the end of the year and a dry season with less rainfall in the summer months. These areas are close to the equator, so there are no distinct seasons and temperatures are high all year round. In Manaus, the average temperature only fluctuates between 26 ° C and 28 ° C.

Similar climatic conditions prevail in northern Brazil on the Atlantic coast (Belem); there, too, the average temperatures fluctuate only very slightly from one another and the rainy season is in the first half of the year. The water temperatures there are constant at 27 ° C all year round, so that pleasant bathing is possible there.

In the southern halves of the country, however, the seasons are somewhat more pronounced. Here, too, annual average temperatures of over 20 ° C are reached, but the temperature drops slightly in the winter months (June – August), so in June in Porto Allegre, south of the island, an average of only 14 ° C is reached.

The amounts of precipitation in the south are also lower than in the equatorial regions, and the seasonal differences are not so great. In the far south, in Porto Allegre, the Brazilian winter months (June – September) have the most precipitation, while in Rio this time is actually the dry season and the most precipitation falls at the beginning and at the end of the year.

In Brazil you can expect a lot of sunshine and beautiful weather all year round in many areas, but this does not apply to the areas on the Amazon during the rainy season, when there is an average of less than 4 hours of sunshine per day.

When to go to Brazil

Because of its enormous size, Brazil is home to different climates. A beach holiday in Rio, for example, is possible all year round, it is probably most pleasant during the Brazilian winter months (June – August), when the average temperatures are a pleasant 22 ° C, and it rains the least.

If you travel further south, however, you should note that in the Brazilian winter it is no longer as pleasantly warm and the remaining months may therefore be more suitable for vacation.

Areas close to the equator, on the other hand, should be avoided during the rainy season; a trip in the dry season in the Brazilian winter is recommended.

Optimal travel time for the regions

In the following overview you can see the best travel time depending on the region (Brazil).

Place	Best travel time
Rio de Janeiro	all except January, February, November and December
Porto Alegre	January, February, March, April, May, November and December
Manaus	June, July, August, September and October
Belém	June, July, August, September, October, November and December
Salvador	all except April, May, June and July
Recife	January, February, September, October, November and December
Foz do Iguaçu	all except January, October, November and December

Temperatures, precipitation, sunshine in Rio de Janeiro (Brazil)

	Jan	Feb	March	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Daytime temperature	29 ° C	30 ° C	29 ° C	28 ° C	26 ° C	25 ° C	25 ° C	26 ° C	25 ° C	26 ° C	27 ° C	29 ° C
Night temperature	23 ° C	24 ° C	23 ° C	22 ° C	20 ° C	19 ° C	18 ° C	19 ° C	19 ° C	20 ° C	21 ° C	22 ° C
Water temperature	25 ° C	25 ° C	26 ° C	25 ° C	24 ° C	23 ° C	22 ° C	22 ° C	22 ° C	22 ° C	23 ° C	24 ° C
Precipitation in mm	114	105	103	137	86	80	56	51	87	88	96	169
Rainy days	12	9	9	10	8	6	6	6	9	10	11	13
Hours of sunshine	7	7	7	6	6	6	6	7	5	5	6	6
Sunrise	6:20	6:40	5:55	6:05	6:20	6:30	6:35	6:20	5:50	5:20	6:00	6:00
Sunset	19:45	19:35	18:10	17:40	17:20	17:15	17:25	17:35	17:45	17:55	19:15	19:35

Temperatures

The average annual temperature in Rio de Janeiro is 24.1 ° C. For comparison: Munich reaches an average of 8.6 ° C, in Berlin it is 9.6 ° C. The warmest month is January (26.9 ° C), coldest month of July with averages of 21.9 ° C. The maximum water temperature in Rio de Janeiro is 26 ° C. Comfortable bathing is possible at these temperatures. All months have a water temperature of at least 21 ° C and are therefore suitable for a beach holiday.

Precipitation

The annual precipitation is 1172 mm on 109 days with precipitation. For comparison: In Munich, 967 mm, in Berlin 570 mm, precipitation is measured annually. There is no rainy season, i.e. months with more than 175 mm of precipitation. You cannot expect snow in any month in Rio de Janeiro.

Sunshine

As our climate table shows, January is the sunniest month with an average of 7 hours of sunshine per day. On average over the year the sun shines for 6.2 hours per day. For comparison: In Munich and Berlin, the sun shines an average of 4.7 hours per day throughout the year.

Cities nearby

The following larger towns are nearby and have a similar climate: Metropolitan Region Rio de Janeiro, São Gonçalo, Duque de Caxias, Nova Iguaçu, Niterói, Belford Roxo, São João de Meriti, Magé, Itaboraí, Mesquita, Nilópolis, Queimados, Vila Medeiros District and Maricá.

Highlights of the country

The symbol of Rio and all of Brazil, the Sugar Loaf, attracts numerous tourists. Rio de Janeiro in particular offers many other attractions, such as the large statue of Christ (Cristo Redentor) or the beach of the world-famous Copacabana. The annual carnival in the Brazilian metropolis is of course world-famous and a real crowd puller.

The other parts of the country also have a lot to offer, for example the Iguazu waterfalls, the Pantanal wetlands or the Amazon with its impressive flora and fauna. Other popular travel destinations in Brazil are the region around Recife and the Costa do Sol northeast of Rio, especially the former fishing village of Armação dos Búzios. If you want to see as much of Brazil as possible, you can also take a tour of the country.