Y Bala is among the wettest of UK towns: 1,534 mm (60 in) of rain a year
Sunny July days climb to about 19.0°C (66°F). Rain peaks in December and eases off in June. By frosts alone, it ranks colder than 95% of UK towns. Windscreens need scraping on about 57 mornings a year, the nights the air drops below 0°C.
Met Office 1991–2020 averages for the town itself.
A year in Y Bala at a glance
Each month’s typical high and low, in °C.
What a year in Y Bala feels like
Typical highs and lows by season and by month, from the Met Office’s 1991–2020 averages.
About 1,534 mm of rain a year
December is the wettest month and June the driest. About 43 days a year bring 10 mm (0.4 in) or more.
Rain by month
Millimetres
Sunshine by month
Hours of bright sunshine at Shawbury
A frosty town: 57 air frosts and 5 days of 25°C a year
On about 57 nights a year the air drops below freezing, and on about 1 days it stays below freezing all day. About 5 days a year reach 25°C (77°F).
Day counts are 1991–2020 averages from the Met Office’s 2 km grid. The Met Office calls a day of 25°C or more a summer day and a night below 0°C an air frost; ground frosts, on grass, come more often.
The Met Office station at Shawbury
Shawbury is 40 miles east of Y Bala, 72 m (236 ft) above sea level. It is the nearest of the 37 long-running stations the Met Office publishes in full; at that distance read it for sunshine and the station’s own record, not as the town’s figures.
| Month | High | Low | Rain | Air frosts | Sun (hours) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 7.5°C | 1.2°C | 57 mm | 11.7 | 50 |
| February | 8.1°C | 1.2°C | 43 mm | 10.8 | 71 |
| March | 10.3°C | 2.3°C | 43 mm | 8.2 | 109 |
| April | 13.2°C | 3.9°C | 47 mm | 4.4 | 148 |
| May | 16.3°C | 6.7°C | 54 mm | 0.9 | 181 |
| June | 19.1°C | 9.6°C | 59 mm | 0.0 | 173 |
| July | 21.1°C | 11.5°C | 58 mm | 0.0 | 179 |
| August | 20.7°C | 11.4°C | 64 mm | 0.0 | 156 |
| September | 18.1°C | 9.3°C | 61 mm | 0.0 | 127 |
| October | 14.2°C | 6.6°C | 69 mm | 1.8 | 92 |
| November | 10.3°C | 3.5°C | 61 mm | 6.7 | 59 |
| December | 7.7°C | 1.3°C | 66 mm | 11.2 | 48 |
| Year | 13.9°C | 5.7°C | 682 mm | 56 | 1,392 |
Met Office historic station data, Shawbury, 1991–2020 months averaged (a month needs 20 of the 30 years; estimated values counted, missing months left out). Sunshine: Kipp & Zonen recorder.
How Y Bala compares
Against the 2,537 towns and cities of 2,500 or more across the UK, each with its own Met Office averages, and its place among Gwynedd towns that size.
Y Bala weather by month
Average daily high and low, mean temperature and rain, 1991–2020, for the town itself (the Met Office’s HadUK-Grid).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Rain |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 6.8°C 44°F | 1.9°C 35°F | 4.4°C | 153 mm 6.0 in |
| February | 7.0°C 45°F | 1.6°C 35°F | 4.3°C | 155 mm 6.1 in |
| March | 9.0°C 48°F | 2.6°C 37°F | 5.8°C | 120 mm 4.7 in |
| April | 11.8°C 53°F | 4.0°C 39°F | 7.9°C | 90 mm 3.6 in |
| May | 14.8°C 59°F | 6.5°C 44°F | 10.6°C | 90 mm 3.5 in |
| June | 17.4°C 63°F | 9.2°C 49°F | 13.2°C | 85 mm 3.4 in |
| July | 19.0°C 66°F | 11.2°C 52°F | 15.0°C | 87 mm 3.4 in |
| August | 18.5°C 65°F | 11.1°C 52°F | 14.7°C | 102 mm 4.0 in |
| September | 16.2°C 61°F | 9.1°C 48°F | 12.6°C | 112 mm 4.4 in |
| October | 12.7°C 55°F | 6.7°C 44°F | 9.7°C | 160 mm 6.3 in |
| November | 9.4°C 49°F | 4.1°C 39°F | 6.7°C | 172 mm 6.8 in |
| December | 7.2°C 45°F | 2.0°C 36°F | 4.6°C | 209 mm 8.2 in |
| Year | 12.5°C | 5.8°C | 9.1°C | 1,534 mm |
Where Y Bala’s numbers come from
Averages over 30 years, not a forecast.
- Mean temperature, rain and day counts: HadUK-Grid 1991–2020 averages for the 1 Met Office 2 km grid square whose centre lies inside Y Bala’s built-up area.
- Highs and lows: the Met Office publishes average daily maxima and minima on its 12 km grid; each is moved by the difference between the town’s 2 km mean temperature and the 12 km square’s, which carries the town’s own height and setting over.
- Weather station and sunshine: Met Office historic station data for Shawbury, 40 miles away, months of 1991–2020 averaged.
- Comparisons: every town and city of 2,500 or more across the UK, all four nations, read the same way.
Met Office HadUK-Grid · Met Office Climate Data Portal · Historic station data. Open Government Licence v3.0.
Questions about Y Bala’s climate
How warm does Y Bala get in summer?
July is the warmest month, with average highs of 19.0°C (66°F). About 5 days a year reach 25°C (77°F), fewer than 75% of UK towns.
How cold does Y Bala get in winter?
February nights average 1.6°C (35°F). The air drops below freezing on about 57 nights a year, and about 1 days a year stay below freezing all day.
How much rain does Y Bala get?
About 1,534 mm (60 in) a year, more than 97% of UK towns. December is the wettest month (209 mm) and June the driest (85 mm).
How sunny is it?
The nearest Met Office station with a sunshine record, Shawbury (40 miles away), averages 1,392 hours of bright sunshine a year. Sunshine isn’t on the town grid, so this is the station’s figure.
Where do these figures come from?
The Met Office’s HadUK-Grid 1991–2020 averages, which turn thousands of weather stations into a map of the UK in 2 km squares; the page reads the squares inside Y Bala. They are 30-year averages, not a forecast.
Contains Met Office data © Crown copyright 2026, Open Government Licence v3.0. HadUK-Grid 1991–2020 averages via the Met Office Climate Data Portal; station averages from Met Office historic station data. Today’s forecast for Y Bala →
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026 (ONS boundaries). Northern Ireland: Source: NISRA; contains Land & Property Services data and Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland information, © Crown copyright, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Scotland: contains National Records of Scotland data, Registers of Scotland data and SEPA data, © Crown copyright / © SEPA 2025, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.