Quito, the capital of Ecuador, sits high in the Andes on a narrow plateau at around 2,850 metres above sea level — the second-highest capital in the world — almost exactly on the equator at approximately 0.18°S, 78.47°W. Its combination of equatorial latitude and great altitude gives it a cool, spring-like highland climate with almost no seasonal temperature change; instead, the year is divided into a wetter and a drier season, and the biggest swings are between day and night.

There is no summer in the temperate sense: temperatures barely vary from month to month. Daytime highs sit around 19–21°C year-round, and the equatorial sun is fierce at this altitude, so it can feel hot in direct sunlight and the ultraviolet index is extreme. The drier, sunnier season from June to September — sometimes called 'summer' locally — brings the clearest skies and is the most reliably pleasant time, though July and August are the only months where it rarely rains.

Nor is there a true winter, but the altitude makes nights consistently cool throughout the year, with lows around 8–10°C, and clear nights can feel genuinely cold. Because the city sits so high, temperatures can swing sharply within a single day — warm and sunny at midday, chilly and damp within the hour if clouds roll in — giving rise to the local saying that Quito can offer 'all four seasons in one day'. Frost is possible on the coldest, clearest nights.

Quito receives substantial rainfall, around 1,100 mm a year, concentrated in the wet season from October to May, when afternoon showers and thunderstorms are frequent; February to April is the wettest stretch. The dry season of June to September, especially July and August, sees far less. Even so, the city is often cloudy, and passing showers can arrive at almost any time. Live rainfall, humidity, and pressure readings for the city are shown in the panels above.

Quito's weather is governed by altitude and the equator rather than by season: sitting nearly on the line at almost 2,900 metres, it enjoys near-constant twelve-hour days and spring-like temperatures all year, but the thin air brings intense solar radiation, rapid cooling when the sun goes in, and dramatic day-to-night contrasts. Its equatorial position also makes it prone to sudden, changeable mountain weather, with sunshine and cold rain often trading places within minutes.

To follow any single measurement in Quito 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.