Hardly any mainland French towns collect more rain than Châtel-de-Joux: 1,869 mm a year
The warmest part of a July day comes in at 26.9°C on average. About 99 nights a year bring a frost, more than in almost every mainland French town. Temperatures cover 29°C across the year, low to high. Homes need heating from November to April, the months averaging under 10°C.
Figures from Météo-France’s Saint-Claude station, 11 km south-east.
A year in Châtel-de-Joux at a glance
Each month’s typical high and low in °C, at the Saint-Claude station.
What a year in Châtel-de-Joux feels like
Typical highs and lows by season and by month, from Météo-France’s 1991–2020 normals at Saint-Claude.
About 1,869 mm of rain a year
December is the wettest month and July the driest. About 68 days a year bring 10 mm or more. The wettest of 11 towns of 2,500+ in Jura.
Rain by month
Millimeters
Sunshine by month
Hours of sunshine at Tavaux Sa
A frosty town: 99 frosts and 77 days of 25°C a year
On about 99 nights a year the air drops to 0°C or below, and on about 8 days it stays below freezing all day. About 77 days a year reach 25°C, and 27 reach 30°C.
Day counts are Météo-France’s 1991–2020 normals at Saint-Claude: 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 Saint-Claude
Saint-Claude is 11 km south-east of Châtel-de-Joux. Every figure on this page is the station’s, not a measurement in Châtel-de-Joux itself.
| Station (Météo-France number) | Saint-Claude (39478004) |
| Distance from the town | 11 km south-east |
| Station altitude | 580 m |
| Town altitude (its center) | 778 m |
| Period | 1991–2020 |
| Nearest station of any kind | 6.7 km |
| Sunshine measured at | Tavaux Sa, 64 km away |
Châtel-de-Joux sits 198 m higher than the station. Air usually cools by about 0.65°C every 100 m, so expect Châtel-de-Joux to run about 1.3°C cooler than these figures.
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 Châtel-de-Joux 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 Jura.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Châtel-de-Joux | Saint-Claude | 26.9°C | −2.3°C | 1,869 mm |
| Saint-Claude 16 km | same station | 26.9°C about the same | −2.3°C about the same | 1,869 mm |
| Hauts de Bienne 17 km | same station | 26.9°C about the same | −2.3°C about the same | 1,869 mm |
| Les Rousses 21 km | La Pesse | 20.0°C 6.9°C cooler | −4.2°C 1.9°C colder | 1,660 mm |
| Lons-le-Saunier 25 km | Lons le Saunier | 25.9°C 1°C cooler | 0.6°C 2.9°C milder | 1,147 mm |
| Champagnole 26 km | Champagnole | 24.8°C 2.1°C cooler | −3.1°C 0.8°C colder | 1,573 mm |
| Montmorot 27 km | Lons le Saunier | 25.9°C 1°C cooler | 0.6°C 2.9°C milder | 1,147 mm |
Châtel-de-Joux weather by month
Average daily high and low, mean temperature and rain, 1991–2020, at the Saint-Claude station; sunshine at Tavaux Sa.
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Rain | Sun (hours) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 5.6°C | −2.3°C | 1.6°C | 168 mm | 57 |
| February | 7.6°C | −2.5°C | 2.6°C | 141 mm | 100 |
| March | 12.6°C | 0.4°C | 6.5°C | 140 mm | 186 |
| April | 16.3°C | 3.0°C | 9.7°C | 142 mm | 215 |
| May | 20.4°C | 6.9°C | 13.6°C | 162 mm | 221 |
| June | 24.6°C | 10.1°C | 17.4°C | 140 mm | 252 |
| July | 26.9°C | 11.9°C | 19.4°C | 136 mm | 276 |
| August | 26.4°C | 11.7°C | 19.1°C | 142 mm | 251 |
| September | 21.8°C | 8.2°C | 15.0°C | 145 mm | 205 |
| October | 16.9°C | 5.3°C | 11.1°C | 165 mm | 128 |
| November | 10.0°C | 1.1°C | 5.6°C | 184 mm | 67 |
| December | 5.6°C | −1.7°C | 2.0°C | 205 mm | 54 |
| Year | 16.2°C | 4.3°C | 10.3°C | 1,869 mm | 2,012 |
Where Châtel-de-Joux’s numbers come from
Averages over 30 years, not a forecast.
- Temperature, rain and day counts: Météo-France’s fiche climatologique for Saint-Claude, 11 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, Tavaux Sa, 64 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 Jura.
Météo-France fiches climatologiques · IGN RGE ALTI®. Licence Ouverte 2.0.
Questions about Châtel-de-Joux’s climate
How warm does Châtel-de-Joux get in summer?
July is the warmest month, with average highs of 26.9°C. About 77 days a year reach 25°C, more than 69% of mainland French towns, and about 27 reach 30°C.
How cold does Châtel-de-Joux get in winter?
February nights average −2.5°C. The air drops to 0°C or below on about 99 nights a year, and about 8 days a year stay below freezing all day.
How much rain does Châtel-de-Joux get?
About 1,869 mm a year, more than almost every mainland French town. December is the wettest month (205 mm) and July the driest (136 mm).
How sunny is it?
The nearest Météo-France station that records sunshine, Tavaux Sa (64 km away), averages 2,012 hours of sunshine a year.
Are these figures for Châtel-de-Joux itself?
No: they are the normals of the Météo-France station matched to Châtel-de-Joux, Saint-Claude, 11 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 ST CLAUDE, edited 15/10/2026); altitude: IGN, RGE ALTI®. Licence Ouverte 2.0. Today’s forecast for Châtel-de-Joux →
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.