Jamaica Climate, Weather By Month, Average Temperature (Jamaica) (2024)

The climate in Jamaica is hot, oppressive, windy, and partly cloudy. Over the course of the year, the temperature typically varies from 73°F to 89°F and is rarely below 71°F or above 91°F.

Based on the beach/pool score, the best time of year to visit Jamaica for hot-weather activities is from mid December to mid April.

The temperature in Jamaica varies so little throughout the year that it is not entirely meaningful to discuss hot and cold seasons.

In Jamaica, the average percentage of the sky covered by clouds experiences extreme seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The clearer part of the year in Jamaica begins around November 18 and lasts for 5.7 months, ending around May 9.

The clearest month of the year in Jamaica is February, during which on average the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 80% of the time.

The cloudier part of the year begins around May 9 and lasts for 6.3 months, ending around November 18.

The cloudiest month of the year in Jamaica is June, during which on average the sky is overcast or mostly cloudy 78% of the time.

A wet day is one with at least 0.04 inches of liquid or liquid-equivalent precipitation. The chance of wet days in Jamaica varies significantly throughout the year.

The wetter season lasts 6.1 months, from May 12 to November 15, with a greater than 33% chance of a given day being a wet day. The month with the most wet days in Jamaica is September, with an average of 15.5 days with at least 0.04 inches of precipitation.

The drier season lasts 5.9 months, from November 15 to May 12. The month with the fewest wet days in Jamaica is January, with an average of 4.0 days with at least 0.04 inches of precipitation.

Among wet days, we distinguish between those that experience rain alone, snow alone, or a mixture of the two. The month with the most days of rain alone in Jamaica is September, with an average of 15.5 days. Based on this categorization, the most common form of precipitation throughout the year is rain alone, with a peak probability of 55% on September 27.

Rainfall

To show variation within the months and not just the monthly totals, we show the rainfall accumulated over a sliding 31-day period centered around each day of the year. Jamaica experiences extreme seasonal variation in monthly rainfall.

Rain falls throughout the year in Jamaica. The month with the most rain in Jamaica is September, with an average rainfall of 5.2 inches.

The month with the least rain in Jamaica is January, with an average rainfall of 0.8 inches.

The length of the day in Jamaica varies over the course of the year. In 2024, the shortest day is December 21, with 11 hours, 3 minutes of daylight; the longest day is June 20, with 13 hours, 13 minutes of daylight.

The earliest sunrise is at 5:32 AM on June 4, and the latest sunrise is 1 hour, 11 minutes later at 6:43 AM on January 19. The earliest sunset is at 5:31 PM on November 24, and the latest sunset is 1 hour, 18 minutes later at 6:49 PM on July 4.

Daylight saving time (DST) is not observed in Jamaica during 2024.

The figure below presents a compact representation of key lunar data for 2024. The horizontal axis is the day, the vertical axis is the hour of the day, and the colored areas indicate when the moon is above the horizon. The vertical gray bars (new Moons) and blue bars (full Moons) indicate key Moon phases.

We base the humidity comfort level on the dew point, as it determines whether perspiration will evaporate from the skin, thereby cooling the body. Lower dew points feel drier and higher dew points feel more humid. Unlike temperature, which typically varies significantly between night and day, dew point tends to change more slowly, so while the temperature may drop at night, a muggy day is typically followed by a muggy night.

The perceived humidity level in Jamaica, as measured by the percentage of time in which the humidity comfort level is muggy, oppressive, or miserable, does not vary significantly over the course of the year, staying within 5% of 95% throughout.

This section discusses the wide-area hourly average wind vector (speed and direction) at 10 meters above the ground. The wind experienced at any given location is highly dependent on local topography and other factors, and instantaneous wind speed and direction vary more widely than hourly averages.

The average hourly wind speed in Jamaica experiences significant seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The windier part of the year lasts for 4.8 months, from November 2 to March 26, with average wind speeds of more than 11.5 miles per hour. The windiest month of the year in Jamaica is December, with an average hourly wind speed of 13.3 miles per hour.

The calmer time of year lasts for 7.2 months, from March 26 to November 2. The calmest month of the year in Jamaica is September, with an average hourly wind speed of 9.7 miles per hour.

The predominant average hourly wind direction in Jamaica is from the east throughout the year.

Jamaica is located near a large body of water (e.g., ocean, sea, or large lake). This section reports on the wide-area average surface temperature of that water.

The average water temperature experiences some seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The time of year with warmer water lasts for 3.1 months, from July 24 to October 28, with an average temperature above 84°F. The month of the year in Jamaica with the warmest water is September, with an average temperature of 85°F.

The time of year with cooler water lasts for 3.2 months, from January 3 to April 10, with an average temperature below 81°F. The month of the year in Jamaica with the coolest water is February, with an average temperature of 80°F.

To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Jamaica throughout the year, we compute two travel scores.

The tourism score favors clear, rainless days with perceived temperatures between 65°F and 80°F. Based on this score, the best time of year to visit Jamaica for general outdoor tourist activities is from late December to mid March, with a peak score in the last week of January.

The beach/pool score favors clear, rainless days with perceived temperatures between 75°F and 90°F. Based on this score, the best time of year to visit Jamaica for hot-weather activities is from mid December to mid April, with a peak score in the last week of January.

Methodology

For each hour between 8:00 AM and 9:00 PM of each day in the analysis period (1980 to 2016), independent scores are computed for perceived temperature, cloud cover, and total precipitation. Those scores are combined into a single hourly composite score, which is then aggregated into days, averaged over all the years in the analysis period, and smoothed.

Our cloud cover score is 10 for fully clear skies, falling linearly to 9 for mostly clear skies, and to 1 for fully overcast skies.

Our precipitation score, which is based on the three-hour precipitation centered on the hour in question, is 10 for no precipitation, falling linearly to 9 for trace precipitation, and to 0 for 0.04 inches of precipitation or more.

Our tourism temperature score is 0 for perceived temperatures below 50°F, rising linearly to 9 for 65°F, to 10 for 75°F, falling linearly to 9 for 80°F, and to 1 for 90°F or hotter.

Our beach/pool temperature score is 0 for perceived temperatures below 65°F, rising linearly to 9 for 75°F, to 10 for 82°F, falling linearly to 9 for 90°F, and to 1 for 100°F or hotter.

Definitions of the growing season vary throughout the world, but for the purposes of this report, we define it as the longest continuous period of non-freezing temperatures (≥ 32°F) in the year (the calendar year in the Northern Hemisphere, or from July 1 until June 30 in the Southern Hemisphere).

Temperatures in Jamaica are sufficiently warm year round that it is not entirely meaningful to discuss the growing season in these terms. We nevertheless include the chart below as an illustration of the distribution of temperatures experienced throughout the year.

Growing degree days are a measure of yearly heat accumulation used to predict plant and animal development, and defined as the integral of warmth above a base temperature, discarding any excess above a maximum temperature. In this report, we use a base of 50°F and a cap of 86°F.

This section discusses the total daily incident shortwave solar energy reaching the surface of the ground over a wide area, taking full account of seasonal variations in the length of the day, the elevation of the Sun above the horizon, and absorption by clouds and other atmospheric constituents. Shortwave radiation includes visible light and ultraviolet radiation.

The average daily incident shortwave solar energy experiences some seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The brighter period of the year lasts for 2.0 months, from March 7 to May 8, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter above 6.5 kWh. The brightest month of the year in Jamaica is April, with an average of 7.1 kWh.

The darker period of the year lasts for 6.1 months, from June 30 to January 3, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter below 4.8 kWh. The darkest month of the year in Jamaica is September, with an average of 4.3 kWh.

For the purposes of this report, the geographical coordinates of Jamaica are 18.167 deg latitude, -77.250 deg longitude, and 0 ft elevation.

The topography within 2 miles of Jamaica is essentially flat, with a maximum elevation change of 0 feet and an average elevation above sea level of 0 feet. Within 10 miles is also essentially flat (0 feet). Within 50 miles is also essentially flat (0 feet).

The area within 2 miles of Jamaica is covered by trees (44%), cropland (32%), grassland (14%), and shrubs (10%), within 10 miles by trees (52%) and cropland (31%), and within 50 miles by water (58%) and trees (21%).

This report illustrates the typical weather in Jamaica, based on a statistical analysis of historical hourly weather reports and model reconstructions from January 1, 1980 to December 31, 2016.

The details of the data sources used for this report can be found on the Sangster International Airport page.

Disclaimer

The information on this site is provided as is, without any assurances as to its accuracy or suitability for any purpose. Weather data is prone to errors, outages, and other defects. We assume no responsibility for any decisions made on the basis of the content presented on this site.

We draw particular cautious attention to our reliance on the MERRA-2 model-based reconstructions for a number of important data series. While having the tremendous advantages of temporal and spatial completeness, these reconstructions: (1) are based on computer models that may have model-based errors, (2) are coarsely sampled on a 50 km grid and are therefore unable to reconstruct the local variations of many microclimates, and (3) have particular difficulty with the weather in some coastal areas, especially small islands.

We further caution that our travel scores are only as good as the data that underpin them, that weather conditions at any given location and time are unpredictable and variable, and that the definition of the scores reflects a particular set of preferences that may not agree with those of any particular reader.

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