Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan, sits high in a valley of the Hindu Kush mountains in the east of the country at around 1,800 metres above sea level, at approximately 34.56°N, 69.21°E. Its great altitude and landlocked, mountainous position give it a cold semi-arid continental climate (Köppen BSk) — hot, dry, sunny summers and cold, snowy winters — with a large temperature range and low humidity.

Summer, from June to September, is hot, very dry and sunny, with July the hottest month — average highs around 32–33°C, occasionally reaching 37°C — but the high altitude and low humidity make the heat dry and far more bearable than in the lowlands, and nights cool off sharply, sometimes to around 15°C. Rain is essentially absent for months, and clear skies dominate.

Winter, from December to February, is cold and snowy, with January the coldest month — average highs around 5°C but nights well below freezing, near -6 to -8°C, and cold spells that can drop temperatures to -15°C or lower. Snowfalls are frequent and sometimes heavy, blanketing the city and the surrounding mountains, and the altitude makes the cold biting. This is part of the main precipitation season.

Kabul is dry, receiving only around 300 mm of precipitation a year, concentrated in the winter and especially the spring — March and April are the wettest — while the summer is almost completely dry. A good share of the cold-season total falls as snow, which feeds the rivers as it melts in spring. Live rainfall, humidity, and pressure readings for the city are shown in the panels above.

Kabul's climate is defined by its Hindu Kush altitude, which gives it genuinely cold, snowy winters and dry, sunny summers with a wide day-to-night temperature swing — a true continental mountain climate. Spring is the wettest and most changeable season, when melting mountain snow can swell rivers, while the clear, dry air of autumn offers the most settled and pleasant weather of the year.

To follow any single measurement in Kabul more closely, use our live instruments: the online barometer for atmospheric pressure, the thermometer for temperature, the hygrometer for humidity, the anemometer for wind speed, the wind vane for wind direction, and the rain gauge for rainfall.