Stockholm, the capital of Sweden, sits on the country's east coast where Lake Mälaren meets the Baltic Sea, spread across a cluster of islands and peninsulas at approximately 59.33°N, 18.07°E. Despite its far-northern latitude, it has a relatively mild humid continental climate (Köppen Dfb), moderated by the Baltic and by Atlantic air, with cold, snowy winters, mild summers and dramatic swings in daylight through the year.

Summer, from June to August, is mild and pleasant, among the most agreeable in Europe, with July the warmest month — average highs around 22–23°C and cool nights. Genuine heat is uncommon, though warm spells can reach the high 20s or low 30s. The magic of the season is the light: around midsummer the far-northern latitude brings near-endless days, with only a few hours of twilight, drawing the city outdoors to its waterfront and archipelago.

Winter, from December to February, is cold, dark and snowy but milder than the latitude suggests, with January and February the coldest — average highs around freezing or just below and lows near -5°C, with cold snaps that can drop well below -15°C. Snow blankets the city for much of the season, parts of the Baltic can freeze, and midwinter days are strikingly short, with only around six hours of daylight and the sun low on the horizon.

Stockholm is relatively dry, receiving only around 530–550 mm of precipitation a year, spread through every month with a late-summer maximum around July and August and a drier late winter and spring; it lies partly in the rain shadow of the Norwegian mountains to the west. A good share of the winter total falls as snow, which lies for months. Live rainfall, humidity, and pressure readings for the city are shown in the panels above.

Like the other Nordic capitals, Stockholm's most striking feature is the seasonal swing in daylight — from the luminous near-midnight-sun evenings of June to the dark, six-hour days of December. Its island setting amid the Baltic and its vast archipelago shapes the city's character, the surrounding waters moderating its temperatures and occasionally freezing over in the coldest winters.

To follow any single measurement in Stockholm 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.