Cherbourg-en-Cotentin sits near the bottom of mainland French towns for warm days
The coldest hours of a January night bottom out at 5.4°C on average. By frosts alone, it ranks gentler than 98% of mainland French towns. Temperatures cover 16°C across the year, low to high. Gritters and ice scrapers earn their keep on roughly 5 nights a year below 0°C.
These are the figures of Météo-France’s Cherbourg-Homet station, 2.4 km north.
A year in Cherbourg-en-Cotentin at a glance
Each month’s typical high and low in °C, at the Cherbourg-Homet station.
What a year in Cherbourg-en-Cotentin feels like
Typical highs and lows by season and by month, from Météo-France’s 1991–2020 normals at Cherbourg-Homet.
About 964 mm of rain a year
December is the wettest month and July the driest. About 31 days a year bring 10 mm or more. 13th wettest of 39 towns of 2,500+ in Manche.
Rain by month
Millimeters
Sunshine by month
Hours of sunshine at Caen-Carpiquet
5 frosts and 5 days of 25°C a year
On about 5 nights a year the air drops to 0°C or below; days that stay below freezing are rare. About 5 days a year reach 25°C, and under 1 reach 30°C.
Day counts are Météo-France’s 1991–2020 normals at Cherbourg-Homet: 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 Cherbourg-Homet
Cherbourg-Homet is 2.4 km north of Cherbourg-en-Cotentin. Every figure on this page is the station’s, not a measurement in Cherbourg-en-Cotentin itself.
| Station (Météo-France number) | Cherbourg-Homet (50129001) |
| Distance from the town | 2.4 km north |
| Station altitude | 19 m |
| Town altitude (its center) | 9 m |
| Period | 1991–2014 (the station’s own record) |
| Sunshine measured at | Caen-Carpiquet, 99 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 Cherbourg-en-Cotentin 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 Manche.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cherbourg-en-Cotentin | Cherbourg-Homet | 20.2°C | 5.4°C | 964 mm |
| La Hague 12 km | same station | 20.2°C about the same | 5.4°C about the same | 964 mm |
| Valognes 18 km | same station | 20.2°C about the same | 5.4°C about the same | 964 mm |
| Bricquebec-en-Cotentin 19 km | same station | 20.2°C about the same | 5.4°C about the same | 964 mm |
| Les Pieux 19 km | same station | 20.2°C about the same | 5.4°C about the same | 964 mm |
Cherbourg-en-Cotentin weather by month
Average daily high and low, mean temperature and rain, 1991–2020, at the Cherbourg-Homet station; sunshine at Caen-Carpiquet.
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Rain | Sun (hours) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 9.4°C | 5.4°C | 7.4°C | 105 mm | 71 |
| February | 9.4°C | 5.1°C | 7.3°C | 81 mm | 90 |
| March | 11.1°C | 6.3°C | 8.7°C | 66 mm | 130 |
| April | 12.9°C | 7.5°C | 10.2°C | 63 mm | 179 |
| May | 15.4°C | 9.9°C | 12.7°C | 55 mm | 203 |
| June | 18.4°C | 12.4°C | 15.4°C | 52 mm | 213 |
| July | 20.2°C | 14.5°C | 17.3°C | 48 mm | 219 |
| August | 20.7°C | 15.1°C | 17.9°C | 52 mm | 205 |
| September | 19.0°C | 13.8°C | 16.4°C | 67 mm | 171 |
| October | 16.2°C | 11.5°C | 13.8°C | 115 mm | 117 |
| November | 12.6°C | 8.5°C | 10.5°C | 122 mm | 82 |
| December | 10.0°C | 6.0°C | 8.0°C | 139 mm | 67 |
| Year | 14.6°C | 9.7°C | 12.1°C | 964 mm | 1,746 |
Where Cherbourg-en-Cotentin’s numbers come from
Averages over 30 years, not a forecast.
- Temperature, rain and day counts: Météo-France’s fiche climatologique for Cherbourg-Homet, 2.4 km away: statistics for 1991–2020 (the station’s own years, 1991–2014, 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, Caen-Carpiquet, 99 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 Manche.
Météo-France fiches climatologiques · IGN RGE ALTI®. Licence Ouverte 2.0.
Questions about Cherbourg-en-Cotentin’s climate
How warm does Cherbourg-en-Cotentin get in summer?
August is the warmest month, with average highs of 20.7°C. About 5 days a year reach 25°C, fewer than almost every mainland French town, and about under 1 reach 30°C.
How cold does Cherbourg-en-Cotentin get in winter?
February nights average 5.1°C. The air drops to 0°C or below on about 5 nights a year, and about 0 days a year stay below freezing all day.
How much rain does Cherbourg-en-Cotentin get?
About 964 mm a year, more than 85% of mainland French towns. December is the wettest month (139 mm) and July the driest (48 mm).
How sunny is it?
The nearest Météo-France station that records sunshine, Caen-Carpiquet (99 km away), averages 1,746 hours of sunshine a year.
Are these figures for Cherbourg-en-Cotentin itself?
No: they are the normals of the Météo-France station matched to Cherbourg-en-Cotentin, Cherbourg-Homet, 2.4 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 CHERBOURG-HOMET, edited 15/10/2026); altitude: IGN, RGE ALTI®. Licence Ouverte 2.0. Today’s forecast for Cherbourg-en-Cotentin →
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.