Netherlands Climate
Top 5 Cities: Amsterdam, Rotterdam, The Hague, Utrecht, and Eindhoven
This month in numbers
The Netherlands experienced a significantly warmer April 2026, with an average temperature of 11.04°C, marking it the 6th warmest April in 86 years of records, with an anomaly of +3.1°C above 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 14th warmest on record for the Netherlands, at 7.24°C, an anomaly of +2.1°C.
What changed
The recent warmth in the Netherlands is part of a broader trend, with the country's average temperature for the latest month being 0.62°C warmer than the overall European group average. The Netherlands has experienced a consistently warmer start to the year, with every month from November 2025 to April 2026 showing positive temperature anomalies. This follows the warmest year on record in 2025, with an average temperature of 11.73°C. The country is currently grappling with a second consecutive unusually dry spring, with virtually no rainfall in April and rising temperatures leading to early drought signs and increasing water stress.
What’s driving change?
The persistent warmth and dryness in the Netherlands are indicative of and the broader impact of climate change, which is making extreme weather events more frequent. The lack of significant rainfall in March and April, following a winter that failed to fully replenish soil moisture, has exacerbated the current dry conditions. The national precipitation deficit reached approximately 50 millimeters this spring, placing the country among the driest 5 percent of years based on measurements since early April. The current ENSO state is Neutral, but forecasts indicate a strong likelihood of El Niño developing from May-July 2026 onwards (ENSO tracker). While El Niño typically brings cooler late winters to Northern Europe, its influence on spring and summer temperatures and precipitation is less clear.
Looking ahead
Forecasts suggest the dry trend in the Netherlands is likely to continue in the coming weeks, potentially leading to further water stress and increased risk of wildfires.
Sources:
Generated by Gemini from climate data and web sources
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Data Sources
Data Sources for Netherlands
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 Netherlands changing?
Netherlands 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 Netherlands come from?
Climate data for Netherlands 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 Netherlands climate data cover?
The Netherlands climate profile covers Amsterdam, Rotterdam, The Hague, Utrecht and surrounding areas. Temperature, rainfall and emissions data for Netherlands
How often is the Netherlands climate update refreshed?
The Netherlands 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.