Few mainland French towns get more frosts than Besse
On a normal July day the thermometer tops out near 22.2°C. None of its 6 nearest neighbors has cooler July afternoons. Seasons differ by 27°C, from the coldest nights to the warmest afternoons. An umbrella earns its place on about 103 days a year with 1 mm of rain or more.
Figures from Météo-France’s Besse station, 0.3 km south-west.
A year in Besse at a glance
Each month’s typical high and low in °C, at the Besse station.
What a year in Besse feels like
Typical highs and lows by season and by month, from Météo-France’s 1991–2020 normals at Besse.
About 932 mm of rain a year
December is the wettest month and April the driest. About 32 days a year bring 10 mm or more. 67th wettest of 110 towns of 2,500+ in Isère.
Rain by month
Millimeters
Sunshine by month
Hours of sunshine at Villar-Saint-Pancrace
A frosty town: 134 frosts and 24 days of 25°C a year
On about 134 nights a year the air drops to 0°C or below, and on about 22 days it stays below freezing all day. About 24 days a year reach 25°C, and 1 reach 30°C.
Day counts are Météo-France’s 1991–2020 normals at Besse: 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 Besse
Besse is 0.3 km south-west of Besse. Every figure on this page is the station’s, not a measurement in Besse itself.
| Station (Météo-France number) | Besse (38040001) |
| Distance from the town | 0.3 km south-west |
| Station altitude | 1,520 m |
| Town altitude (its center) | 1,609 m |
| Period | 1991–2020 |
| Sunshine measured at | Villar-Saint-Pancrace, 43 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 Besse 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 Isère.
Nearby towns’ climate
The nearest towns of 2,500+ within 29 km, each with its own matched station.
| Town | Station | July high | January low | Rain a year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Besse | Besse | 22.2°C | −4.1°C | 932 mm |
| Le Bourg-d'Oisans 11 km | Saint-Michel Maur | 27.4°C 5.2°C warmer | −2.8°C 1.3°C milder | 754 mm |
| Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne 26 km | Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne | 27.4°C 5.2°C warmer | −1.9°C 2.2°C milder | 911 mm |
| Saint-Martin-d'Uriage 27 km | Monestier | 25.0°C 2.8°C warmer | −2.1°C 2°C milder | 1,063 mm |
| Vaulnaveys-le-Haut 28 km | Saint-Pierre-de-Soucy | 27.7°C 5.5°C warmer | −1.8°C 2.3°C milder | 1,122 mm |
| Le Versoud 29 km | Pont-de-Beauvoisin | 28.5°C 6.3°C warmer | −1.2°C 2.9°C milder | 1,166 mm |
| Villard-Bonnot 29 km | Pont-de-Beauvoisin | 28.5°C 6.3°C warmer | −1.2°C 2.9°C milder | 1,166 mm |
Besse weather by month
Average daily high and low, mean temperature and rain, 1991–2020, at the Besse station; sunshine at Villar-Saint-Pancrace.
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Rain | Sun (hours) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 3.9°C | −4.1°C | −0.1°C | 85 mm | 126 |
| February | 4.5°C | −4.6°C | −0.1°C | 64 mm | 131 |
| March | 8.4°C | −1.6°C | 3.4°C | 69 mm | 165 |
| April | 11.6°C | 1.1°C | 6.4°C | 61 mm | 193 |
| May | 15.7°C | 4.9°C | 10.3°C | 76 mm | 217 |
| June | 19.8°C | 8.6°C | 14.2°C | 75 mm | 245 |
| July | 22.2°C | 10.4°C | 16.3°C | 69 mm | 270 |
| August | 22.2°C | 10.6°C | 16.4°C | 70 mm | 250 |
| September | 17.9°C | 7.2°C | 12.5°C | 73 mm | 179 |
| October | 13.7°C | 4.2°C | 9.0°C | 90 mm | 139 |
| November | 7.5°C | −0.4°C | 3.5°C | 98 mm | 112 |
| December | 4.5°C | −3.2°C | 0.7°C | 103 mm | 109 |
| Year | 12.7°C | 2.8°C | 7.7°C | 932 mm | 2,135 |
Where Besse’s numbers come from
Averages over 30 years, not a forecast.
- Temperature, rain and day counts: Météo-France’s fiche climatologique for Besse, 0.3 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, Villar-Saint-Pancrace, 43 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 Isère.
Météo-France fiches climatologiques · IGN RGE ALTI®. Licence Ouverte 2.0.
Questions about Besse’s climate
How warm does Besse get in summer?
July is the warmest month, with average highs of 22.2°C. About 24 days a year reach 25°C, fewer than 93% of mainland French towns, and about 1 reach 30°C.
How cold does Besse get in winter?
February nights average −4.6°C. The air drops to 0°C or below on about 134 nights a year, and about 22 days a year stay below freezing all day.
How much rain does Besse get?
About 932 mm a year, more than 82% of mainland French towns. December is the wettest month (103 mm) and April the driest (61 mm).
How sunny is it?
The nearest Météo-France station that records sunshine, Villar-Saint-Pancrace (43 km away), averages 2,135 hours of sunshine a year.
Are these figures for Besse itself?
No: they are the normals of the Météo-France station matched to Besse, Besse, 0.3 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 BESSE, edited 15/10/2026); altitude: IGN, RGE ALTI®. Licence Ouverte 2.0. Today’s forecast for Besse →
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.