Beijing lies on the northern edge of the North China Plain, about 140 km inland from the Bohai Sea, at approximately 39.90°N, 116.41°E. It has a warm-temperate continental monsoon climate with four sharply distinct seasons: cold, dry, sunny winters and hot, humid, rainy summers, with short transitional springs and autumns. The monsoon dominates — cold, dry air pours down from the northwest in winter, and warm, moist tropical air pushes up in summer.

Summer, from June to August, is hot and muggy, with July the hottest month — average highs around 31°C, and hot spells that can top 35°C, feeling above 40°C once the monsoon humidity is factored in. This is by far the rainy season: July and August alone deliver well over half the year's precipitation, often as sudden, heavy afternoon rainstorms. Between downpours, the heat and humidity can be oppressive.

Winter, from late November to March, is long, cold, dry and often sunny, with January the coldest month — average highs only a few degrees above freezing and lows around -8 to -9°C, with cold snaps far lower. Snow is relatively infrequent and light because the winter air is so dry, and skies are frequently clear, though the cold, stagnant air also traps some of the city's worst pollution. Days are short and the wind bites.

Beijing is fairly dry overall, receiving roughly 500–650 mm of precipitation a year, and it is extraordinarily concentrated — around 80% falls in the three summer monsoon months of June, July and August. The rest of the year is notably dry, with spring and autumn seeing little rain. The monsoon is irregular, so summer totals swing widely from year to year. Live rainfall, humidity, and pressure readings for the city are shown in the panels above.

Spring in Beijing is short, warm and notoriously windy, and is the season of sandstorms — dust-laden winds sweeping in from the Mongolian and Inner Mongolian deserts can cut visibility and coat the city in grit. Autumn, by contrast, is the celebrated 'golden season': clear blue skies, crisp cool air and the best air quality of the year, making September and October the finest time in the capital.

To follow any single measurement in Beijing 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.