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Bologna, the capital of Emilia-Romagna, sits on the southern edge of the flat Po Valley in northern Italy, where the plain meets the first slopes of the Apennines, at approximately 44.49°N, 11.34°E. Its inland, mountain-sheltered position gives it a humid subtropical climate with a continental edge (Köppen Cfa) — hot, muggy summers and surprisingly cold, foggy winters — with rain spread through the year.
Summer, from June to August, is hot and humid, with July and August the warmest — average highs around 30–31°C — and heatwaves that can exceed 35–38°C. Sheltered by mountains on three sides, the Po Valley traps warm, stagnant, humid air, so the heat feels sultry with little breeze. Thunderstorms are frequent and sometimes violent, especially in late summer.
Winter, from December to February, is cold and grey, with January the coldest month — average highs around 6°C and lows near 0°C — colder in midwinter than Paris or London despite the southern latitude. Dense fog frequently blankets the plain during still, high-pressure spells, and snow falls fairly regularly between December and early March.
Bologna receives around 800–830 mm of precipitation a year, well distributed through every month with spring and autumn maxima and no true dry season; the rising Apennines just to the south wring extra rain from incoming weather systems. Live rainfall, humidity, and pressure readings for the city are shown in the panels above.
Bologna's Po Valley setting gives it one of the most continental climates in Italy: hot, muggy, still summers and genuinely cold, fog-shrouded winters, sheltered from the sea's moderating influence by the Apennines. The valley's winter fog, which can persist for days, is a defining feature of northern Italy from November to March.
To follow any single measurement in Bologna 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.