South Korea Climate
Top 5 Cities: Seoul, Busan, Incheon, Daegu, and Daejeon
This month in numbers
South Korea experienced an April that was 1.5°C warmer than the 1961–1990 baseline, ranking it the 17th warmest April in 86 years of records. 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 was also notably warm, ranking as the 23rd warmest such period on record for South Korea, with an anomaly of +1.3°C.
What changed
The past three months (February–April 2026) in South Korea have been significantly warmer than average, continuing a trend seen throughout the past year. The country's average temperature for 2025 was 14.18°C, making it the warmest year on record. South Korea's long-term warming trend stands at +1.55°C compared to the 1961–1990 baseline. For the latest month, South Korea's temperature anomaly of +1.53°C places it 129th out of 234 regions globally. The broader Asian region also experienced a warmer-than-average month, with a group mean anomaly of +1.77°C.
What’s driving change?
The persistent warmth in South Korea is influenced by several factors. The broader trend of contributes to the overall temperature increases observed. Additionally, the region experienced unseasonably warm temperatures and persistent haze in March, linked to stagnant high-pressure systems trapping pollutants over the Korean Peninsula, a manifestation of . South Korea's atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration reached its highest level in 2025 since observations began in 1999, at 432.7 parts per million, exceeding the global average. This indicates a significant contribution to greenhouse warming. The current ENSO state is Neutral, but an El Niño phase is strongly forecast to develop from May-July 2026 onwards, with a 98% probability by August-October 2026. Typically, El Niño brings warmer and wetter conditions to East Asia during winter, with increased rainfall over central and eastern China, and a risk of Yangtze flooding in the following summer. More information on ENSO can be found at ENSO tracker.
Looking ahead
With a strong forecast for El Niño to develop in the coming months, South Korea could anticipate a warmer and potentially wetter winter season later in the year.
Sources:
Generated by Gemini from climate data and web sources
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Data Sources
Data Sources for South Korea
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 South Korea changing?
South Korea 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 South Korea come from?
Climate data for South Korea 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 South Korea climate data cover?
The South Korea climate profile covers Seoul, Busan, Incheon, Daegu and surrounding areas. Temperature, rainfall and emissions data for South Korea
How often is the South Korea climate update refreshed?
The South Korea 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.