More rain falls on Benest than on 87% of mainland French towns: 1,007 mm a year
About 1,007 mm of rain falls in a typical year; July afternoons reach 26.4°C and January nights drop to 1.6°C. About 54 nights a year bring a frost, more than in 74% of mainland French towns. Summer afternoons here are warmer than in 59% of mainland French towns. Figures from Météo-France’s Le Vieux-Cérier station, 7.7 km south.
A year in Benest at a glance
Each month’s typical high and low in °C, at the Le Vieux-Cérier station.
What a year in Benest feels like
Typical highs and lows by season and by month, from Météo-France’s 1991–2020 normals at Le Vieux-Cérier.
About 1,007 mm of rain a year
December is the wettest month and July the driest. About 35 days a year bring 10 mm or more. The wettest of 26 towns of 2,500+ in Charente.
Rain by month
Millimeters
Sunshine by month
Hours of sunshine at Montembœuf
A frosty town: 54 frosts and 66 days of 25°C a year
On about 54 nights a year the air drops to 0°C or below, and on about 3 days it stays below freezing all day. About 66 days a year reach 25°C, and 18 reach 30°C.
Day counts are Météo-France’s 1991–2020 normals at Le Vieux-Cérier: a frost is a night of 0°C or below, a summer day (jour d’été) 25°C or more, a hot day (forte chaleur) 30°C or more.
The Météo-France station at Le Vieux-Cérier
Le Vieux-Cérier is 7.7 km south of Benest. Every figure on this page is the station’s, not a measurement in Benest itself.
| Station (Météo-France number) | Le Vieux-Cérier (16403001) |
| Distance from the town | 7.7 km south |
| Station altitude | 162 m |
| Town altitude (its center) | 157 m |
| Period | 1991–2020 |
| Sunshine measured at | Montembœuf, 29 km away |
TownRatings matches each commune to one station with at least 24 years of temperature and rain records: the nearest, counting every 100 m of height difference as 10 km, never across the sea.
How Benest compares
Against the 4,385 towns of 2,500 or more in mainland France, each read from its own matched station. The dots are the other towns of 2,500+ in Charente.
Nearby towns’ climate
The nearest towns of 2,500+ within 29 km. Where a neighbor uses the same station its figures are the same: the differences you’d feel over a few kilometers aren’t in the normals.
| Town | Station | July high | January low | Rain a year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Benest | Le Vieux-Cérier | 26.4°C | 1.6°C | 1,007 mm |
| Confolens 17 km | Saulgond | 26.0°C about the same | 2.3°C 0.7°C milder | 889 mm |
| Civray 17 km | Civray | 26.3°C about the same | 2.8°C 1.2°C milder | 841 mm |
| Ruffec 20 km | Tusson | 27.3°C 0.9°C warmer | 2.0°C about the same | 822 mm |
| Terres-de-Haute-Charente 20 km | Montembœuf | 25.5°C 0.9°C cooler | 3.0°C 1.4°C milder | 972 mm |
| Chasseneuil-sur-Bonnieure 24 km | same station | 26.4°C about the same | 1.6°C about the same | 1,007 mm |
Benest weather by month
Average daily high and low, mean temperature and rain, 1991–2020, at the Le Vieux-Cérier station; sunshine at Montembœuf.
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Rain | Sun (hours) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 8.3°C | 1.6°C | 5.0°C | 97 mm | 78 |
| February | 9.7°C | 1.0°C | 5.4°C | 73 mm | 117 |
| March | 13.5°C | 3.1°C | 8.3°C | 71 mm | 162 |
| April | 16.4°C | 4.9°C | 10.6°C | 77 mm | 192 |
| May | 20.3°C | 8.3°C | 14.3°C | 81 mm | 216 |
| June | 24.0°C | 11.6°C | 17.8°C | 75 mm | 241 |
| July | 26.4°C | 13.0°C | 19.7°C | 56 mm | 258 |
| August | 26.6°C | 12.9°C | 19.8°C | 71 mm | 230 |
| September | 22.5°C | 10.1°C | 16.3°C | 76 mm | 209 |
| October | 17.6°C | 8.2°C | 12.9°C | 101 mm | 142 |
| November | 12.0°C | 4.3°C | 8.1°C | 113 mm | 96 |
| December | 8.9°C | 2.0°C | 5.5°C | 116 mm | 87 |
| Year | 17.2°C | 6.8°C | 12.0°C | 1,007 mm | 2,026 |
Where Benest’s numbers come from
Averages over 30 years, not a forecast.
- Temperature, rain and day counts: Météo-France’s fiche climatologique for Le Vieux-Cérier, 7.7 km away: statistics for 1991–2020.
- Which station: among stations with at least 24 of the 30 years of temperature and rain, the nearest to the commune’s population-weighted center, counting each 100 m of height difference as 10 km; mainland towns use mainland stations and each overseas département its own.
- Altitudes: the town’s from IGN’s RGE ALTI® at its population-weighted center; the station’s from Météo-France.
- Sunshine: the nearest station with at least 10 years of sunshine records, Montembœuf, 29 km away.
- Comparisons: every town of 2,500 or more in mainland France, read the same way; the dots are the towns of 2,500+ in Charente.
Météo-France fiches climatologiques · IGN RGE ALTI®. Licence Ouverte 2.0.
Questions about Benest’s climate
How warm does Benest get in summer?
August is the warmest month, with average highs of 26.6°C. About 66 days a year reach 25°C, more than 56% of mainland French towns, and about 18 reach 30°C.
How cold does Benest get in winter?
February nights average 1.0°C. The air drops to 0°C or below on about 54 nights a year, and about 3 days a year stay below freezing all day.
How much rain does Benest get?
About 1,007 mm a year, more than 87% of mainland French towns. December is the wettest month (116 mm) and July the driest (56 mm).
How sunny is it?
The nearest Météo-France station that records sunshine, Montembœuf (29 km away), averages 2,026 hours of sunshine a year.
Are these figures for Benest itself?
No: they are the normals of the Météo-France station matched to Benest, Le Vieux-Cérier, 7.7 km away. France publishes its climate normals by station, not by commune; a valley, a hill or the sea can make a difference over a few kilometers.
Where do these figures come from?
Météo-France’s fiches climatologiques: 30-year averages (1991–2020) for each of its long-running stations, published as open data since 2024. They are normals, not a forecast.
Source: Météo-France, fiches climatologiques, 1991–2020 statistics (station LE VIEUX CERIER_SAPC, edited 15/10/2026); altitude: IGN, RGE ALTI®. Licence Ouverte 2.0. Today’s forecast for Benest →
Contains public sector information under the Licence Ouverte / Open Licence 2.0 (Etalab): INSEE, DGFiP, the Interior Ministry’s statistics service (SSMSI), the Ministry of Education (DEPP), the Health Ministry’s statistics service (DREES) and the Housing Ministry (Carte des loyers). Commune boundaries: IGN Admin Express.