Sri Lanka Climate
Top 5 Cities: Colombo, Kandy, Galle, Jaffna, and Negombo
This month in numbers
Sri Lanka experienced its 30th warmest April on record, with an average temperature of 27.45°C, marking an anomaly of +0.3°C compared to the 1961–1990 baseline. The period of February–April 2026 ranked as the 15th warmest on record, with an average temperature of 26.75°C, an anomaly of +0.6°C. Globally, April 2026 was the 2nd warmest April on record for land temperatures, with an anomaly of +1.1°C, while the February–April 2026 period also ranked as the 2nd warmest globally for land temperatures, with an anomaly of +1.2°C.
What changed
Sri Lanka's recent temperatures continue a warming trend, with the latest full-year average in 2025 being the warmest on record at 27.27°C. The country's 12-month rolling anomaly of +0.88°C places it 224th out of 234 regions globally for warmth. While Sri Lanka's April anomaly was 1.50°C cooler than the overall Asia group average, the region has been experiencing prolonged and intensifying heat conditions, with authorities warning that high temperatures would persist until at least mid-May 2026.
What’s driving change?
The warming trend in Sri Lanka is influenced by the broader global warming trend, with land warming faster than the ocean. The effect is also contributing to aggravated heat in densely populated areas with high concrete density. The current ENSO state is Neutral, but the NOAA CPC forecast indicates a strong likelihood of El Niño developing from May–July 2026 onwards, with probabilities reaching 98% by August–October 2026. Historically, El Niño events often lead to a weakened Southwest Monsoon and drier, warmer conditions in Sri Lanka, particularly in the western, central, and southern regions.
Looking ahead
A strong El Niño event is highly likely to develop in the coming months, which could lead to a weakened Southwest Monsoon and drier conditions in western and southern Sri Lanka from May to September, followed by potential floods in the east and north from December 2026 to February 2027.
Generated by Gemini from climate data and web sources
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Data Sources
Data Sources for Sri Lanka
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 Sri Lanka changing?
Sri Lanka 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 Sri Lanka come from?
Climate data for Sri Lanka 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 Sri Lanka climate data cover?
The Sri Lanka climate profile covers Colombo, Kandy, Galle, Jaffna and surrounding areas. Temperature, rainfall and emissions data for Sri Lanka
How often is the Sri Lanka climate update refreshed?
The Sri Lanka 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.