Morocco Weather by Month: What to Expect in Each Region
Morocco has several climates, not one. In January the afternoon average is about 19 °C in Marrakech, 16 °C in Fes with rain, 18 °C on the coast at Essaouira, 9 °C at Ifrane in the Middle Atlas where nights average below freezing, and about 19 °C by day and 6 °C at night at Merzouga on the edge of the Sahara. Asking what the weather is like in Morocco in a given month only makes sense once you say where. This guide gives the monthly averages for each region and then explains what each month means for a trip: which months suit the desert, which suit the cities and which belong to the coast.
How Morocco's climate works
The figures below are 30-year averages: measured station normals for 1991–2020 for Marrakech, Fes, Casablanca, Essaouira, Agadir, Ifrane, Ouarzazate and Errachidia, and modelled averages for Merzouga, which has no weather station of its own. Averages smooth out the extremes, so a given week can run several degrees either side of them. If you want the short answer by region rather than the numbers, our region-by-region guide to the best time to visit gives it.
The Atlantic coast has the smallest annual range. Essaouira's average high moves only from 18.4 °C in January to 22.6 °C in September, and Agadir's from 21.2 °C to 27.0 °C. Casablanca, where many flights land, runs from 17.6 °C in January to 26.7 °C in August and is wet from October to March, with 84 mm in November.
The north around Tangier is the wettest part of the country. Its station record is an older series (1961–1990), so it is not directly comparable with the 1991–2020 tables below, but it shows the pattern: about 135 mm in November and 129 mm in December, with mild temperatures of 16 °C by day in January and 28.6 °C in August.
The interior cities, Marrakech and Fes, have a continental pattern: hot, dry summers, with average July highs of 37.7 °C in Marrakech and 35.1 °C in Fes, and cool winters. Fes is the wetter and cooler of the two, with more than 50 mm in every month from October to April and a January average low of 3.7 °C.
The mountains are colder than visitors expect. Ifrane in the Middle Atlas, on the road from Fes to the desert, averages 9.4 °C by day and −1.0 °C at night in January and receives 143 mm in December, its wettest month.
The pre-Sahara and Sahara are dry all year and swing widely between day and night. Ouarzazate records under 17 mm in any month. Errachidia, the nearest measured station to the Erg Chebbi dunes, averages 39.5 °C in July and 2.0 °C on January nights, and Merzouga's modelled averages run a few degrees warmer than that.
Weather by region, month by month
| Month | Average high | Average low | Rain |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 19.1 °C | 5.9 °C | 25.0 mm |
| February | 20.7 °C | 7.6 °C | 25.7 mm |
| March | 23.6 °C | 10.3 °C | 35.2 mm |
| April | 25.7 °C | 12.4 °C | 26.3 mm |
| May | 29.4 °C | 15.2 °C | 10.5 mm |
| June | 33.6 °C | 17.9 °C | 3.1 mm |
| July | 37.7 °C | 20.6 °C | 2.2 mm |
| August | 37.4 °C | 21.1 °C | 4.7 mm |
| September | 32.5 °C | 18.6 °C | 15.2 mm |
| October | 28.5 °C | 15.7 °C | 19.1 mm |
| November | 23.1 °C | 10.7 °C | 29.8 mm |
| December | 20.1 °C | 7.3 °C | 24.2 mm |
| Month | Average high | Average low | Rain |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 16.0 °C | 3.7 °C | 60.1 mm |
| February | 17.3 °C | 4.4 °C | 54.3 mm |
| March | 19.9 °C | 6.6 °C | 59.2 mm |
| April | 22.0 °C | 8.3 °C | 54.7 mm |
| May | 26.4 °C | 11.5 °C | 38.2 mm |
| June | 31.2 °C | 14.9 °C | 11.1 mm |
| July | 35.1 °C | 17.9 °C | 1.1 mm |
| August | 35.1 °C | 18.3 °C | 4.9 mm |
| September | 30.3 °C | 15.6 °C | 22.1 mm |
| October | 26.1 °C | 12.6 °C | 53.9 mm |
| November | 20.2 °C | 8.1 °C | 66.1 mm |
| December | 17.2 °C | 5.2 °C | 62.0 mm |
| Month | Essaouira high / low | Essaouira rain | Agadir high / low | Agadir rain |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 18.4 / 11.1 °C | 48.5 mm | 21.2 / 8.4 °C | 32.0 mm |
| February | 18.7 / 12.0 °C | 37.3 mm | 22.0 / 10.1 °C | 28.6 mm |
| March | 19.4 / 13.3 °C | 38.1 mm | 23.4 / 12.3 °C | 31.3 mm |
| April | 19.5 / 14.1 °C | 17.3 mm | 23.2 / 14.1 °C | 13.8 mm |
| May | 20.6 / 15.7 °C | 9.4 mm | 24.2 / 15.9 °C | 5.6 mm |
| June | 21.4 / 17.1 °C | 0.5 mm | 25.6 / 18.1 °C | 0.8 mm |
| July | 21.9 / 17.7 °C | 0.0 mm | 26.7 / 19.2 °C | 0.2 mm |
| August | 22.4 / 18.1 °C | 0.8 mm | 27.0 / 19.5 °C | 3.1 mm |
| September | 22.6 / 18.0 °C | 4.3 mm | 26.1 / 18.6 °C | 3.7 mm |
| October | 22.2 / 17.0 °C | 33.3 mm | 26.1 / 16.7 °C | 21.2 mm |
| November | 20.5 / 14.4 °C | 54.5 mm | 24.1 / 12.9 °C | 42.3 mm |
| December | 19.4 / 12.6 °C | 55.7 mm | 22.1 / 10.1 °C | 49.0 mm |
| Month | Ouarzazate high / low (station) | Errachidia high / low (station) | Merzouga high / low (modelled) |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 17.3 / 1.8 °C | 15.9 / 2.0 °C | 19 / 6 °C |
| February | 19.3 / 4.5 °C | 18.2 / 4.6 °C | 21 / 8 °C |
| March | 22.7 / 8.2 °C | 22.1 / 8.8 °C | 26 / 12 °C |
| April | 26.7 / 11.9 °C | 26.1 / 13.0 °C | 30 / 16 °C |
| May | 30.7 / 15.7 °C | 30.3 / 17.3 °C | 34 / 21 °C |
| June | 35.5 / 19.6 °C | 35.4 / 22.0 °C | 39 / 25 °C |
| July | 38.8 / 22.7 °C | 39.5 / 25.8 °C | 43 / 29 °C |
| August | 37.5 / 22.1 °C | 38.2 / 24.9 °C | 42 / 28 °C |
| September | 33.1 / 18.1 °C | 32.9 / 19.9 °C | 37 / 24 °C |
| October | 27.5 / 13.3 °C | 26.8 / 14.2 °C | 30 / 17 °C |
| November | 21.7 / 7.2 °C | 20.6 / 7.7 °C | 24 / 11 °C |
| December | 17.7 / 3.2 °C | 16.7 / 3.5 °C | 20 / 7 °C |
Merzouga's figures are modelled averages published by weather-and-climate.com, rounded to whole degrees, not station measurements; they are the same figures used in our Merzouga guide, and the same source puts Merzouga's annual rainfall at about 63 mm, with October the wettest month and July the driest. Errachidia's station normals, from the World Meteorological Organization, are the closest measured reference: the station is about 120 km north of Merzouga and at a higher altitude, and it reads a few degrees cooler.
What each month means for a trip
November to February: the cool season
November. Marrakech still averages 23.1 °C by day and Fes 20.2 °C, and both are turning wet (29.8 mm and 66.1 mm). The desert is at its most comfortable: Merzouga about 24 °C by day and 11 °C at night in the modelled averages, Ouarzazate 21.7 °C and 7.2 °C at the station. Ifrane drops to 13.0 °C days and 2.7 °C nights.
December. Marrakech 20.1 °C by day and 7.3 °C at night; Fes 17.2 °C and 5.2 °C with 62 mm of rain; Essaouira and Agadir still 19 to 22 °C by day (Casablanca 18.9 °C); Merzouga about 20 °C and 7 °C; Ifrane 10.6 °C and 0.4 °C in its wettest month. Morocco in December is mild by day almost everywhere and cold at night inland, so desert nights need a warm layer.
January. The coldest month: Marrakech 19.1 °C and 5.9 °C, Fes 16.0 °C and 3.7 °C, Ifrane 9.4 °C and −1.0 °C, Ouarzazate 17.3 °C and 1.8 °C, Errachidia 15.9 °C and 2.0 °C, Merzouga about 19 °C and 6 °C in the modelled figures. Days are pleasant for sightseeing; nights in the pre-Sahara and the mountains are the coldest of the year.
February. One or two degrees warmer than January everywhere and still wet in the north and in Fes (54 mm). Merzouga about 21 °C and 8 °C.
March to May: spring
March. Marrakech 23.6 °C and 10.3 °C; Fes 19.9 °C and 6.6 °C with 59 mm of rain; Merzouga about 26 °C and 12 °C. Balanced conditions for a route that combines cities and desert.
April. Marrakech 25.7 °C and 12.4 °C, Fes 22.0 °C and 8.3 °C, Ouarzazate 26.7 °C and 11.9 °C, Merzouga about 30 °C and 16 °C, the coast 19.5 to 23.2 °C by day. The last fully comfortable desert month before summer.
May. Heat arrives inland: Marrakech 29.4 °C, Fes 26.4 °C, Ouarzazate 30.7 °C and Merzouga about 34 °C by day, while rain almost stops (Marrakech 10.5 mm). Still good for the cities; desert afternoons begin to bite.
June to September: summer
June. Marrakech 33.6 °C, Fes 31.2 °C, Ouarzazate 35.5 °C, Merzouga about 39 °C; on the coast Essaouira 21.4 °C and Agadir 25.6 °C.
July. The hottest month inland: Marrakech 37.7 °C, Fes 35.1 °C, Ouarzazate 38.8 °C, Errachidia 39.5 °C at the station and Merzouga about 43 °C in the modelled figures, with nights around 29 °C. The coast stays at 21.9 °C in Essaouira, 26.7 °C in Agadir and 26.1 °C in Casablanca, and rain is close to zero everywhere.
August. Marrakech 37.4 °C, Fes 35.1 °C, Merzouga about 42 °C with nights about 28 °C. Morocco in August is a coast month: Agadir 27.0 °C, Essaouira 22.4 °C, and Tangier 28.6 °C in its older series.
September. Marrakech 32.5 °C, Fes 30.3 °C, Merzouga about 37 °C by day and 24 °C at night. Essaouira reaches its warmest month (22.6 °C), and the first rain returns inland (Fes 22.1 mm, Errachidia 18.2 mm).
October: the autumn window
October. Marrakech 28.5 °C and 15.7 °C, Fes 26.1 °C and 12.6 °C with rain returning (53.9 mm), Ouarzazate 27.5 °C and 13.3 °C, Merzouga about 30 °C and 17 °C, the coast 22 to 26 °C. Warm days everywhere and the first comfortable desert nights since April, which is why October suits a route that mixes cities and desert.
The Sahara window
For the dunes, the modelled Merzouga averages give highs of 19 to 30 °C and lows of 6 to 17 °C from October to April, against highs of 37 to 43 °C and lows of 24 to 29 °C from June to September. The measured Errachidia station shows the same shape a few degrees cooler, with January nights averaging 2.0 °C. Two things follow: summer afternoons in the dunes are extreme, and winter nights are cold even after a warm day. What that means for a night in a desert camp, and what to pack for it, is in our guide to what to expect on a Sahara desert tour; the village, the dunes and the road there are in the Merzouga guide linked above.
Choosing when to go for your route
A desert loop from Marrakech or Fes: October to April. Within that window, March, April, October and November are the months where the modelled Merzouga row shows both mild days (24 to 30 °C) and nights above 10 °C.
The imperial cities: March to May and September to November, remembering that Fes is wet from October to April and that Marrakech afternoons pass 32 °C from June to September.
The coast: June to September, when Essaouira and Agadir sit between 21 and 27 °C while the interior and the desert are at their hottest.
If you are still deciding how long to travel, how long to spend in Morocco explains what fits each trip length. The desert departures from Marrakech are all on one page.
Frequently asked questions
Is Morocco cold in December?
By day, no: 17 to 20 °C in Fes and Marrakech, 19 to 22 °C at Essaouira and Agadir, about 20 °C at Merzouga. At night, yes, inland: 5 to 7 °C in Fes and Marrakech, about 7 °C at Merzouga and near freezing at Ifrane.
Is Morocco too hot in August?
Inland and in the desert, yes: average highs of 35 to 38 °C in Fes, Marrakech and Ouarzazate and about 42 °C at Merzouga. On the coast, no: 22 to 27 °C at Essaouira and Agadir.
When is the rainy season in Morocco?
November to March in the north and the interior. Fes averages about 54 to 66 mm a month from October to April, Casablanca 84 mm in November, and Tangier over 100 mm in November, December and January in its older series. Marrakech's wettest month is March at 35 mm. The Sahara side is dry all year: no month at Ouarzazate or Errachidia averages more than 21 mm.
Does it snow in Morocco?
The tables here record precipitation, not snowfall. Ifrane, at the mountain end of the Fes to desert road, averages below freezing at night in January and February and receives 114 to 143 mm a month from November to March; our best-time guide notes that snow is likely in the High Atlas in winter.
Which month is best for the Sahara desert?
Any month from October to April. March, April, October and November give the mildest combination of days and nights in the modelled averages; December to February give comfortable days but nights of 6 to 8 °C.
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