Ireland’s weather in 2026 in charts: record heat, a dry July and a wet winter

Met Éireann's monthly climate statements for January to September 2026 show eight months warmer than normal, the driest July on record and the hottest summer since 1900. The charts compare each month with the 1991 to 2020 average.

Ireland got just 16mm of rain in July 2026. That is 17% of the normal July amount, and the driest July in Met Éireann's national records. The same month brought the sunniest month ever measured at an Irish station.

This page follows the year month by month, from January to September 2026, using Met Éireann's climate statements. Each month is compared with the 1991 to 2020 average, which Met Éireann calls the long-term average or LTA. All 2026 figures are provisional.

Eight of nine months were warmer than normal

January was the only month colder than its 1991 to 2020 average, by 0.51°C. Every month from February to September was warmer. July was the warmest month at 17.25°C, the second hottest July since 1900, behind July 2013.

Taken together, the nine months averaged about 1.1°C above normal. That is an Irish Wire average of Met Éireann's monthly figures, and is a simple guide rather than an official annual figure. Spring 2026 was the 3rd warmest spring since 1900, at 10.14°C.

A wet start, then a very dry July

The year opened wet: January had 164mm of rain nationally, 123% of normal and the wettest January since 2018. February, March and April were all wetter than average too. Winter 2025/26 as a whole had 428.2mm, 113% of normal.

Dublin had a soggy start. Dublin Airport had its wettest February on record, with 133.7mm, after its second-wettest January. Johnstown Castle, Co Wexford, had 652.5mm from November 2025 to January 2026, its highest three-month total in 85 years.

The hottest summer since 1900

Summer 2026 averaged 16.28°C, the highest since national records began in 1900. It beat summer 2025 by 0.09°C. Met Éireann says 14 stations, including all three in Dublin, had their hottest summer on record.

The heat began early: 18 stations set new May temperature records in late May. Abbeyfeale, Co Limerick, and Clonmel, Co Tipperary, reached 30.9°C, well above the old national May record of 28.4°C from 1997. Met Éireann says these records are still under review.

June was the 4th warmest since 1900 and July the 2nd hottest. Valentia Observatory, Co Kerry, reached 30.0°C on 12 July, its highest reading in 127 years. In August, Casement Aerodrome hit 31.2°C, the highest August temperature at any Dublin station.

Sunshine broke a 71-year record

Johnstown Castle, Co Wexford, logged 332.4 hours of sunshine in July 2026. That beats the national record of 308.2 hours, set at Valentia in July 1955. Cork Airport also passed the old record, with 315.1 hours.

The south and east did best. February was the exception: Casement Aerodrome had its dullest February on record, with 36.7 hours, in 62 years of records.

Storms in 2026

The 2025/26 storm season had five named storms, from Amy in October 2025 to Dave in April 2026. Two of them struck in 2026: Storm Chandra in January and Storm Dave in April.

• Storm Chandra, 26 to 27 January: gust of 130 km/h at Malin Head, Co Donegal, the only station to reach storm force
• Storm Dave, 4 April, named by the UK Met Office: gusts of 111 km/h at Roches Point and Valentia
• Storm Dave brought Belmullet, Co Mayo, its wettest April day in 69 years, 38.6mm
• Storm Austen, the first named storm of 2026/27, reached Ireland around 22 to 23 October, with orange rain warnings for six counties.

The records of 2026