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Bilbao, the largest city of the Basque Country, sits in northern Spain in a valley of the Nervión River, a few kilometres inland from the Bay of Biscay and ringed by green hills, at approximately 43.26°N, 2.93°W. Its Atlantic-facing position gives it a temperate oceanic climate (Köppen Cfb) — mild, cloudy and remarkably wet — quite unlike Mediterranean Spain, with rain in every month.
Summer, from June to August, is mild and pleasant rather than hot, with August the warmest month — average highs around 26–27°C — kept comfortable by the Atlantic and by sea breezes, though occasional hot spells occur when southerly winds descend from the mountains. It is the driest, sunniest season, but even so showers are frequent, and the surrounding hills stay green all year.
Winter, from December to February, is mild and very wet, with January the coolest month — average highs around 13°C and mild nights near 6–7°C, with frost uncommon and snow rare in the city thanks to the ocean. Atlantic depressions sweep in one after another, bringing frequent rain, grey skies and strong winds; the season is damp rather than cold.
Bilbao is one of the wettest cities in Spain, receiving on the order of 1,100–1,200 mm of rain a year, spread through every month with an autumn and winter maximum and no dry season; the surrounding hills wring extra rain from the moist Atlantic air. Live rainfall, humidity, and pressure readings for the city are shown in the panels above.
Bilbao belongs to 'green Spain', the lush Atlantic north, whose oceanic climate — mild, cloudy and drenched with over a metre of rain a year — could hardly be more different from the sun-baked Mediterranean south. Its valley setting on the Nervión has left it prone to flooding after prolonged heavy rain, most catastrophically in the great flood of August 1983.
To follow any single measurement in Bilbao 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.