Sunshine hours in Helsinki: 1,824 hours a year, month by month

Helsinki gets 1,824 hours of sunshine a year on average (5.0 a day). Sunniest month: July with 292 hours. Every month, measured 1991–2020.

• Helsinki gets 1,824 hours of sunshine a year on average, 5.0 a day – 40% of the astronomically possible. The sunniest month is July with 292 hours (9.4 a day), the dullest December with 24 (0.8 a day).
• The sunniest of 8 large cities in Finland.
• Nearest weather station: Helsinki, 18 km away – 1991–2020 average, Deutscher Wetterdienst.

Sunshine hours month by month

• January: 37 h · 1.2 h a day · 18 %
• February: 68 h · 2.4 h a day · 27 %
• March: 143 h · 4.6 h a day · 39 %
• April: 196 h · 6.5 h a day · 45 %
• May: 285 h · 9.2 h a day · 53 %
• June: 273 h · 9.1 h a day · 48 %
• July: 292 h · 9.4 h a day · 52 %
• August: 238 h · 7.7 h a day · 49 %
• September: 150 h · 5.0 h a day · 39 %
• October: 84 h · 2.7 h a day · 27 %
• November: 34 h · 1.1 h a day · 15 %
• December: 24 h · 0.8 h a day · 13 %

Questions about sunshine hours

• How many hours of sunshine does Helsinki get a year? On average over 1991–2020 the sun shines in Helsinki for 1,824 hours a year – 5.0 hours a day and 40% of the time the sun is above the horizon.
• What is the sunniest month in Helsinki? July, with 292 hours of sunshine, 9.4 a day on average. The least sun comes in December: 24 hours, 0.8 a day.
• Is Helsinki a sunny city? Among the 8 large cities in Finland with measurements, Helsinki ranks number 1.
• Where do the figures come from? From the 1991–2020 climate normals of Deutscher Wetterdienst: Germany from its own station network, the rest of the world from the CLIMAT reports of the national weather services. Helsinki uses the station Helsinki.
• What counts as an hour of sunshine? By the World Meteorological Organization's definition the sun is shining once its direct radiation exceeds 120 watts per square metre. Just after sunrise and before sunset it is often too weak – which is why even deserts never reach 100%.

The sunniest large cities: United Kingdom

• 1. Southend-on-Sea: 1,846 h a year
• 2. Southampton: 1,780 h a year
• 3. Norwich: 1,719 h a year
• 4. London: 1,675 h a year
• 5. Plymouth: 1,673 h a year
• 6. Bristol: 1,654 h a year
• 7. Swansea: 1,644 h a year
• 8. Sheffield: 1,631 h a year
• 9. Edinburgh: 1,575 h a year
• 10. Birmingham: 1,490 h a year

The cloudiest large cities: United Kingdom

• 1. Glasgow: 1,153 h a year
• 2. Belfast: 1,372 h a year
• 3. Aberdeen: 1,448 h a year
• 4. Leeds: 1,488 h a year

The sunniest large cities in the world

• 1. Dubai: 3,610 h a year
• 2. Victoria de Durango: 3,573 h a year
• 3. Abu Dhabi: 3,522 h a year
• 4. Hermosillo: 3,479 h a year
• 5. Kassala: 3,451 h a year
• 6. Iranshahr: 3,410 h a year
• 7. Dammam: 3,391 h a year
• 8. Gaborone: 3,388 h a year
• 9. Zahedan: 3,386 h a year
• 10. Yazd: 3,381 h a year

The cloudiest large cities in the world

• 1. Chengdu: 962 h a year
• 2. Chongqing: 985 h a year
• 3. Sukabumi: 1,082 h a year
• 4. Glasgow: 1,153 h a year
• 5. Tanjung Pinang: 1,172 h a year
• 6. Medan: 1,201 h a year
• 7. Samarinda: 1,275 h a year
• 8. Sungai Penuh: 1,311 h a year
• 9. Limerick: 1,339 h a year
• 10. Huaihua: 1,352 h a year

• Data: Deutscher Wetterdienst (DWD), sunshine duration climate normals 1991–2020, CC BY 4.0. Possible hours: time between sunrise and sunset.