Essertines-en-Châtelneuf is among the frostiest of mainland French towns
High summer brings afternoon highs near 26.0°C. It is the wettest of its 6 nearest neighbors. Seasons differ by 28°C, from the coldest nights to the warmest afternoons. An umbrella earns its place on about 119 days a year with 1 mm of rain or more.
Figures from Météo-France’s Ambert station, 24 km south-west.
A year in Essertines-en-Châtelneuf at a glance
Each month’s typical high and low in °C, at the Ambert station.
What a year in Essertines-en-Châtelneuf feels like
Typical highs and lows by season and by month, from Météo-France’s 1991–2020 normals at Ambert.
About 860 mm of rain a year
May is the wettest month and March the driest. About 24 days a year bring 10 mm or more. 3rd wettest of 53 towns of 2,500+ in Loire.
Rain by month
Millimeters
Sunshine by month
Hours of sunshine at Saint-Étienne-Bouthéon
A frosty town: 99 frosts and 60 days of 25°C a year
On about 99 nights a year the air drops to 0°C or below, and on about 9 days it stays below freezing all day. About 60 days a year reach 25°C, and 20 reach 30°C.
Day counts are Météo-France’s 1991–2020 normals at Ambert: 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 Ambert
Ambert is 24 km south-west of Essertines-en-Châtelneuf. Every figure on this page is the station’s, not a measurement in Essertines-en-Châtelneuf itself.
| Station (Météo-France number) | Ambert (63003004) |
| Distance from the town | 24 km south-west |
| Station altitude | 555 m |
| Town altitude (its center) | 615 m |
| Period | 1993–2020 (the station’s own record) |
| Nearest station of any kind | 5.4 km |
| Sunshine measured at | Saint-Étienne-Bouthéon, 24 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 Essertines-en-Châtelneuf 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 Loire.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Essertines-en-Châtelneuf | Ambert | 26.0°C | −1.9°C | 860 mm |
| Montbrison 4.6 km | Savigneux | 26.5°C 0.5°C warmer | −1.0°C 0.9°C milder | 665 mm |
| Savigneux 6 km | Savigneux | 26.5°C 0.5°C warmer | −1.0°C 0.9°C milder | 665 mm |
| Saint-Romain-le-Puy 12 km | Savigneux | 26.5°C 0.5°C warmer | −1.0°C 0.9°C milder | 665 mm |
| Boën-sur-Lignon 14 km | Boën-sur-Lignon | 27.4°C 1.4°C warmer | −0.3°C 1.6°C milder | 630 mm |
| Sury-le-Comtal 16 km | Saint-Étienne-Bouthéon | 26.9°C 0.9°C warmer | 0.3°C 2.2°C milder | 728 mm |
| Montrond-les-Bains 18 km | Feurs | 27.3°C 1.3°C warmer | 0.2°C 2.1°C milder | 650 mm |
Essertines-en-Châtelneuf weather by month
Average daily high and low, mean temperature and rain, 1991–2020, at the Ambert station; sunshine at Saint-Étienne-Bouthéon.
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Rain | Sun (hours) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 6.5°C | −1.9°C | 2.3°C | 59 mm | 81 |
| February | 8.1°C | −1.9°C | 3.1°C | 48 mm | 109 |
| March | 12.3°C | −0.1°C | 6.1°C | 47 mm | 162 |
| April | 15.4°C | 2.5°C | 8.9°C | 65 mm | 186 |
| May | 19.4°C | 6.3°C | 12.8°C | 90 mm | 214 |
| June | 23.7°C | 9.6°C | 16.6°C | 79 mm | 241 |
| July | 26.0°C | 11.2°C | 18.6°C | 90 mm | 275 |
| August | 25.8°C | 10.7°C | 18.2°C | 87 mm | 259 |
| September | 21.2°C | 7.4°C | 14.3°C | 81 mm | 193 |
| October | 16.8°C | 5.3°C | 11.1°C | 77 mm | 135 |
| November | 10.5°C | 1.4°C | 6.0°C | 81 mm | 88 |
| December | 7.1°C | −1.2°C | 3.0°C | 58 mm | 76 |
| Year | 16.1°C | 4.1°C | 10.1°C | 860 mm | 2,018 |
Where Essertines-en-Châtelneuf’s numbers come from
Averages over 30 years, not a forecast.
- Temperature, rain and day counts: Météo-France’s fiche climatologique for Ambert, 24 km away: statistics for 1991–2020 (the station’s own years, 1993–2020, where its record is shorter).
- 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, Saint-Étienne-Bouthéon, 24 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 Loire.
Météo-France fiches climatologiques · IGN RGE ALTI®. Licence Ouverte 2.0.
Questions about Essertines-en-Châtelneuf’s climate
How warm does Essertines-en-Châtelneuf get in summer?
July is the warmest month, with average highs of 26.0°C. About 60 days a year reach 25°C, fewer than 50% of mainland French towns, and about 20 reach 30°C.
How cold does Essertines-en-Châtelneuf get in winter?
January nights average −1.9°C. The air drops to 0°C or below on about 99 nights a year, and about 9 days a year stay below freezing all day.
How much rain does Essertines-en-Châtelneuf get?
About 860 mm a year, more than 72% of mainland French towns. May is the wettest month (90 mm) and March the driest (47 mm).
How sunny is it?
The nearest Météo-France station that records sunshine, Saint-Étienne-Bouthéon (24 km away), averages 2,018 hours of sunshine a year.
Are these figures for Essertines-en-Châtelneuf itself?
No: they are the normals of the Météo-France station matched to Essertines-en-Châtelneuf, Ambert, 24 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 AMBERT, edited 15/10/2026); altitude: IGN, RGE ALTI®. Licence Ouverte 2.0. Today’s forecast for Essertines-en-Châtelneuf →
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.