Prague, the capital of the Czech Republic, sits on the Vltava River in the central-western part of the country at around 200–250 metres elevation, on a landscape of nine hills, at approximately 50.09°N, 14.42°E. It has a moderately continental climate (Köppen Dfb/Cfb) with four distinct seasons — cold winters and mild to pleasantly warm summers — and, being inland and partly sheltered by surrounding mountains, it is notably drier than western European capitals like Paris or London.

Summer, from June to August, is mild to warm and the wettest season, with July and August the warmest months — average highs around 24–26°C and comfortable nights. Prolonged heat is uncommon, though hot spells can push past 30°C on around 18 days a year, and the record has reached 37°C. Rain in summer tends to come as afternoon thunderstorms or with passing Atlantic fronts, and the long days bring seven to eight hours of sunshine.

Winter, from December to February, is cold, grey and often gloomy, with temperatures hovering around or just below freezing. Stagnant cold air produces many dull, overcast days, and snow is frequent but usually light rather than heavy. Outbreaks of Siberian air can bring sharp frosts below -20°C, and with only one and a half to two and a half hours of sunshine a day, midwinter is dark as well as cold, though a snow-covered Prague and a frozen Vltava can be strikingly beautiful.

Prague is relatively dry for a central European city, receiving only around 500 mm of precipitation a year — partly a rain-shadow effect of nearby mountains — though it is well distributed, with a clear late-spring and summer maximum around May to August and a winter minimum that falls largely as snow. Serious flooding is rare but possible, as in the destructive Vltava floods of 2002 and 2013. Live rainfall, humidity, and pressure readings for the city are shown in the panels above.

Spring and autumn are attractive but changeable transitional seasons: spring can swing from t-shirt warmth to late snow showers within days, while autumn, especially October, brings vivid foliage across the city's many parks before the grey winter closes in. The hilly terrain also funnels winter winds through the streets, sharpening the wind chill on the coldest days.

To follow any single measurement in Prague 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.