Kirkwall has some of the coolest summers among UK towns
In January the night’s low is typically 2.0°C (36°F). Frost is rarer than in 90% of UK towns: about 25 nights a year drop below freezing. Winter and summer sit 15°C apart. Keep the boiler serviced for the months from October to May, which average under 10°C.
Met Office 1991–2020 averages for the town itself.
A year in Kirkwall at a glance
Each month’s typical high and low, in °C.
What a year in Kirkwall feels like
Typical highs and lows by season and by month, from the Met Office’s 1991–2020 averages.
About 1,066 mm of rain a year
January is the wettest month and July the driest. About 27 days a year bring 10 mm (0.4 in) or more.
Rain by month
Millimetres
25 air frosts and 0 days of 25°C a year
On about 25 nights a year the air drops below freezing; days that stay below freezing are rare. About 0 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 Wick Airport
Wick Airport is 37 miles south of Kirkwall, 36 m (118 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 6.4°C | 1.6°C | 73 mm | 7.6 |
| February | 6.6°C | 1.3°C | 63 mm | 8.5 |
| March | 8.1°C | 2.3°C | 57 mm | 5.8 |
| April | 10.0°C | 3.9°C | 47 mm | 3.2 |
| May | 12.0°C | 5.5°C | 50 mm | 1.5 |
| June | 14.3°C | 8.2°C | 55 mm | 0.0 |
| July | 16.2°C | 10.1°C | 62 mm | 0.0 |
| August | 16.3°C | 10.4°C | 70 mm | 0.0 |
| September | 14.7°C | 8.9°C | 66 mm | 0.2 |
| October | 11.8°C | 6.5°C | 93 mm | 0.7 |
| November | 8.9°C | 3.9°C | 87 mm | 3.4 |
| December | 6.8°C | 1.7°C | 71 mm | 8.7 |
| Year | 11.0°C | 5.4°C | 794 mm | 40 |
Met Office historic station data, Wick Airport, 1991–2020 months averaged (a month needs 20 of the 30 years; estimated values counted, missing months left out). Sunshine: Campbell-Stokes recorder.
How Kirkwall 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 Orkney Islands towns that size.
Kirkwall 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 | 6.6°C 44°F | 2.0°C 36°F | 4.3°C | 135 mm 5.3 in |
| February | 7.0°C 45°F | 1.9°C 35°F | 4.4°C | 92 mm 3.6 in |
| March | 8.1°C 47°F | 2.6°C 37°F | 5.4°C | 83 mm 3.3 in |
| April | 10.3°C 51°F | 3.9°C 39°F | 7.1°C | 69 mm 2.7 in |
| May | 12.6°C 55°F | 5.6°C 42°F | 9.1°C | 56 mm 2.2 in |
| June | 14.7°C 58°F | 8.1°C 47°F | 11.4°C | 65 mm 2.6 in |
| July | 16.6°C 62°F | 9.8°C 50°F | 13.3°C | 49 mm 1.9 in |
| August | 16.6°C 62°F | 10.3°C 50°F | 13.4°C | 65 mm 2.6 in |
| September | 14.7°C 58°F | 8.9°C 48°F | 11.8°C | 88 mm 3.5 in |
| October | 11.8°C 53°F | 6.8°C 44°F | 9.3°C | 118 mm 4.6 in |
| November | 9.1°C 48°F | 4.5°C 40°F | 6.7°C | 131 mm 5.1 in |
| December | 7.3°C 45°F | 2.4°C 36°F | 4.8°C | 115 mm 4.5 in |
| Year | 11.3°C | 5.6°C | 8.4°C | 1,066 mm |
Where Kirkwall’s numbers come from
Averages over 30 years, not a forecast.
- Mean temperature, rain and day counts: HadUK-Grid 1991–2020 averages for the 2 Met Office 2 km grid squares whose centre lies inside Kirkwall’s locality.
- 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 Wick Airport, 37 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 Kirkwall’s climate
How warm does Kirkwall get in summer?
August is the warmest month, with average highs of 16.6°C (62°F). About 0 days a year reach 25°C (77°F), fewer than almost every UK town.
How cold does Kirkwall get in winter?
February nights average 1.9°C (35°F). The air drops below freezing on about 25 nights a year, and about under 1 days a year stay below freezing all day.
How much rain does Kirkwall get?
About 1,066 mm (42 in) a year, more than 82% of UK towns. January is the wettest month (135 mm) and July the driest (49 mm).
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 Kirkwall. 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 Kirkwall →
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.