Iraq Climate
Top 5 Cities: Baghdad, Basra, Mosul, Erbil, and Sulaymaniyah
This month in numbers
Iraq experienced its 7th warmest April on record, with an average temperature of 24.18°C, an anomaly of +3.3°C compared to the 1961–1990 baseline. Globally, April 2026 was the 2nd warmest April on record for land temperatures, with an anomaly of +1.1°C. The three-month period from February to April 2026 also ranked as the 21st warmest on record for Iraq, at 17.21°C, an anomaly of +1.7°C.
What changed
Iraq's April temperature anomaly of +3.3°C was significantly warmer than the average for the Asia group, which saw a +1.77°C anomaly across its 23 members. Iraq ranked 25th globally for its one-month temperature anomaly. The country's long-term warming trend stands at +2.18°C compared to the 1961–1990 baseline. Recent heavy rainfall in March and April brought a "relative revival" to parts of the Hawizeh Marshes in southeastern Iraq, which had been severely impacted by years of drought.
What’s driving change?
The significant warming trend in Iraq is largely driven by and the broader , where higher-latitude regions tend to warm faster. Iraq's climate variability is also influenced by ENSO (El Niño–Southern Oscillation) and the (). The country continues to face severe climate impacts including desertification, reduced river flows, and declining rainfall, which have degraded 12 million hectares of arable land. These factors contribute to increased dust storms, with a massive dust storm disrupting visibility across western and central Iraq in May 2026.
Looking ahead
Temperatures are expected to decline across Iraq in the coming weeks, with light rain anticipated in northern mountainous areas and moderate dust activity in several regions.
Generated by Gemini from climate data and web sources
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Data Sources
Data Sources for Iraq
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 Iraq changing?
Iraq 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 Iraq come from?
Climate data for Iraq 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 Iraq climate data cover?
The Iraq climate profile covers Baghdad, Basra, Mosul, Erbil and surrounding areas. Temperature, rainfall and emissions data for Iraq
How often is the Iraq climate update refreshed?
The Iraq 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.