Dominican Republic Climate
Top 5 Cities: Santo Domingo, Santiago, La Romana, San Pedro de Macorís, and San Cristóbal
This month in numbers
The Dominican Republic experienced its 3rd warmest February–April on record, with an average temperature of 24°C, a significant 1.2°C above the 1961–1990 baseline. April 2026 alone was the 14th warmest April on record, with an anomaly of +0.8°C. Globally, April 2026 ranked as the 2nd warmest April for land temperatures, with a +1.1°C anomaly, while the February–April period was also the 2nd warmest on record globally for land temperatures, at +1.2°C above average.
What changed
The past three months have seen consistently warmer-than-average temperatures across the Dominican Republic, with February, March, and April all recording anomalies well above the historical average. This trend aligns with the broader regional picture, as sea surface temperatures around the Caribbean and in the subtropical North Atlantic have been 0.2-1°C warmer than usual. The country's 3-month anomaly of +1.2°C places it 161st out of 234 regions globally for this period.
What’s driving change?
The persistently warm temperatures are largely influenced by the ongoing Neutral ENSO state, with a transition to El Niño becoming the most likely scenario for the coming months, with a 61% probability for May-July and 79% for June-August. El Niño conditions typically lead to drier conditions and suppressed Atlantic hurricane activity in the Caribbean. Additionally, warmer sea surface temperatures in the Caribbean are contributing to higher air temperatures and humidity.
The Dominican Republic also experienced significant extreme weather events during this period. Heavy rains and widespread flooding affected the country from early April, leading to at least 7 fatalities and displacing over 30,000 people. More than 6,500 homes were damaged, and dozens of communities were cut off. Some areas received over 300 mm of rain in less than 24 hours, overwhelming drainage systems. Flood and landslide alerts were issued for numerous provinces, including Santo Domingo, which was particularly hard hit. For more details on active extreme weather events, see Extreme Weather tracker.
Generated by Gemini from climate data and web sources
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Data Sources
Data Sources for Dominican Republic
Every figure on this page is sourced from official, openly published climate datasets. Anomalies are calculated against the 1961–1990 baseline (temperature) and 1991–2020 (rainfall, sunshine, frost) — see the Methodology & Sources page for the complete dataset list and update calendar.
FAQs
FAQs
How is the climate in Dominican Republic changing?
Dominican Republic is warming in line with the rest of the world. The page above shows the latest monthly temperature anomaly versus the 1961-1990 baseline, the long-term annual trend, and the region's rank in the historical record. The trend rate is shown as °C per decade in the headline panel; you can also see the warmest and coolest years on file.
Where does the climate data for Dominican Republic come from?
Climate data for Dominican Republic comes from Our World in Data, sourcing Copernicus ERA5 and HadCRUT5 (national temperature anomaly) and the Global Carbon Project via Our World in Data (CO₂ emissions), refreshed every month, when the upstream temperature and rainfall data are refreshed.
What is the climate baseline used on this page?
Anomalies on this page are calculated against the 1961-1990 climatological baseline, which is the standard reference period used by the Met Office, NOAA, IPCC and most national climate services. Some panels also show the source-native 1901-2000 (NOAA) or 1991-2020 (WMO) baselines for verification. See Methodology & Sources for the full reference.
Which areas does the Dominican Republic climate data cover?
The Dominican Republic climate profile covers Santo Domingo, Santiago, La Romana, San Pedro de Macorís and surrounding areas. Temperature, rainfall and emissions data for Dominican Republic
How often is the Dominican Republic climate update refreshed?
The Dominican Republic climate update is refreshed monthly, typically a few days after the previous month closes and the upstream provider (Met Office HadUK-Grid, NOAA Climate at a Glance, Copernicus ERA5 or the Global Carbon Project) publishes its update. See the Climate Rankings for cross-region comparisons.