Cali (Santiago de Cali), Colombia's third-largest city, sits in the warm Cauca River valley of southwestern Colombia, at around 1,000 metres above sea level between two Andean ranges, at approximately 3.44°N, 76.52°W. Its moderate altitude and near-equatorial latitude give it a warm tropical savanna climate (Köppen Aw) — warm year-round with little temperature change — and a double-peaked rainfall pattern typical of the region.

There is no summer in the temperate sense: temperatures stay warm and steady all year, with daytime highs around 30–31°C and mild nights near 18–19°C, kept from becoming oppressive by the valley's modest elevation and by afternoon breezes descending from the mountains. The warmth is constant, and it is rainfall rather than temperature that marks the passing of the seasons.

There is no true winter, but two rainy seasons — around March to May and October to November — bring the wettest, most thundery weather, when heavy afternoon downpours build over the surrounding mountains. The drier spells, around June to September and December to February, bring brighter, more settled conditions, though warmth persists year-round in this near-equatorial valley.

Cali receives on the order of 900–1,000 mm of rain a year, falling in two wet seasons — March to May and October to November — separated by drier spells, with the rain typically arriving as heavy afternoon and evening thunderstorms; no month is truly rainless. Live rainfall, humidity, and pressure readings for the city are shown in the panels above.

Cali's warm, breezy valley climate — sometimes billed as a place of near-perpetual warmth — is shaped by its position between two branches of the Andes, which give it two rainy seasons a year and the refreshing afternoon breeze that descends from the western hills to temper the heat. The steady warmth and lively evening breeze are part of what makes it Colombia's capital of salsa.

To follow any single measurement in Cali 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.