Sunshine hours in Reykjavik: 1,370 hours a year, month by month

Reykjavik gets 1,370 hours of sunshine a year on average (3.8 a day). Sunniest month: May with 209 hours. Every month, measured 1991–2020.

• Reykjavik gets 1,370 hours of sunshine a year on average, 3.8 a day – 30% of the astronomically possible. The sunniest month is May with 209 hours (6.7 a day), the dullest December with 13 (0.4 a day).
• Weather station: Reykjavik – 1991–2020 average, Deutscher Wetterdienst.

Sunshine hours month by month

• January: 23 h · 0.7 h a day · 13 %
• February: 62 h · 2.2 h a day · 26 %
• March: 110 h · 3.5 h a day · 30 %
• April: 165 h · 5.5 h a day · 36 %
• May: 209 h · 6.7 h a day · 37 %
• June: 190 h · 6.3 h a day · 30 %
• July: 183 h · 5.9 h a day · 30 %
• August: 165 h · 5.3 h a day · 33 %
• September: 118 h · 3.9 h a day · 30 %
• October: 92 h · 3.0 h a day · 30 %
• November: 40 h · 1.3 h a day · 20 %
• December: 13 h · 0.4 h a day · 10 %

Questions about sunshine hours

• How many hours of sunshine does Reykjavik get a year? On average over 1991–2020 the sun shines in Reykjavik for 1,370 hours a year – 3.8 hours a day and 30% of the time the sun is above the horizon.
• What is the sunniest month in Reykjavik? May, with 209 hours of sunshine, 6.7 a day on average. The least sun comes in December: 13 hours, 0.4 a day.
• 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. Reykjavik uses the station Reykjavik.
• 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.