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Climate and Average Weather Year Round in Iquique Chile

In Iquique, the summers are warm, arid, and partly cloudy and the winters are long, cool, dry, and mostly clear. Over the course of the year, the temperature typically varies from 59°F to 79°F and is rarely below 55°F or above 82°F.

Based on the tourism score, the best times of year to visit Iquique for warm-weather activities are from late February to early June and from late August to early January.

Climate in Iquique

warmcomfortablecoolcomfortableJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecNowNow80%80%50%50%clearovercastprecipitation: 0.0 inprecipitation: 0.0 in0.0 in0.0 inmuggy: 5%muggy: 5%0%0%drydrytourism score: 8.0tourism score: 8.07.37.3
Iquique weather by month. Click on each chart for more information.

The warm season lasts for 3.0 months, from December 25 to March 26, with an average daily high temperature above 76°F. The hottest month of the year in Iquique is February, with an average high of 78°F and low of 68°F.

The cool season lasts for 4.0 months, from June 4 to October 5, with an average daily high temperature below 68°F. The coldest month of the year in Iquique is July, with an average low of 59°F and high of 65°F.

Average High and Low Temperature in Iquique

Average High and Low Temperature in IquiquewarmcoolJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec0°F0°F10°F10°F20°F20°F30°F30°F40°F40°F50°F50°F60°F60°F70°F70°F80°F80°F90°F90°F100°F100°FJul 3165°FJul 3165°FFeb 579°FFeb 579°F59°F59°F68°F68°FDec 2576°FDec 2576°FMar 2676°FMar 2676°FJun 468°FJun 468°FOct 568°FOct 568°F66°F66°F66°F66°F60°F60°F61°F61°FNowNow
The daily average high (red line) and low (blue line) temperature, with 25th to 75th and 10th to 90th percentile bands. The thin dotted lines are the corresponding average perceived temperatures.
AverageJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
High 78°F78°F77°F73°F70°F67°F65°F65°F66°F69°F72°F75°F
Temp. 73°F73°F72°F68°F65°F63°F62°F62°F63°F65°F67°F70°F
Low 68°F68°F67°F64°F61°F60°F59°F59°F60°F61°F63°F66°F

The figure below shows you a compact characterization of the entire year of hourly average temperatures. The horizontal axis is the day of the year, the vertical axis is the hour of the day, and the color is the average temperature for that hour and day.

Average Hourly Temperature in Iquique

Average Hourly Temperature in IquiqueJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec12 AM12 AM2 AM2 AM4 AM4 AM6 AM6 AM8 AM8 AM10 AM10 AM12 PM12 PM2 PM2 PM4 PM4 PM6 PM6 PM8 PM8 PM10 PM10 PM12 AM12 AMNowNowcoolcomfortablecomfortablewarmwarm
frigid 15°F freezing 32°F very cold 45°F cold 55°F cool 65°F comfortable 75°F warm 85°F hot 95°F sweltering
The average hourly temperature, color coded into bands. The shaded overlays indicate night and civil twilight.

Caniçal, Portugal (5,085 miles away) and Haría, Spain (5,091 miles) are the far-away foreign places with temperatures most similar to Iquique (view comparison).

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In Iquique, the average percentage of the sky covered by clouds experiences significant seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The clearer part of the year in Iquique begins around April 18 and lasts for 6.5 months, ending around November 2.

The clearest month of the year in Iquique is August, during which on average the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 79% of the time.

The cloudier part of the year begins around November 2 and lasts for 5.5 months, ending around April 18.

The cloudiest month of the year in Iquique is January, during which on average the sky is overcast or mostly cloudy 49% of the time.

Cloud Cover Categories in Iquique

Cloud Cover Categories in IquiqueclearercloudiercloudierJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec0%100%10%90%20%80%30%70%40%60%50%50%60%40%70%30%80%20%90%10%100%0%Aug 2480%Aug 2480%Jan 1750%Jan 1750%Apr 1865%Apr 1865%Nov 265%Nov 265%NowNowclearmostly clearpartly cloudyovercastmostly cloudy
0% clear 20% mostly clear 40% partly cloudy 60% mostly cloudy 80% overcast 100%
The percentage of time spent in each cloud cover band, categorized by the percentage of the sky covered by clouds.
FractionJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Cloudier 49%48%41%35%29%29%25%21%24%33%37%44%
Clearer 51%52%59%65%71%71%75%79%76%67%63%56%

Iquique does not experience significant seasonal variation in the frequency of wet days (i.e., those with greater than 0.04 inches of liquid or liquid-equivalent precipitation). The frequency ranges from 0% to 0%, with an average value of 0%.

Daily Chance of Precipitation in Iquique

Daily Chance of Precipitation in IquiqueJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec0%0%10%10%20%20%30%30%40%40%50%50%60%60%70%70%80%80%90%90%100%100%Jan 130%Jan 130%Feb 260%Feb 260%May 240%May 240%NowNow
The percentage of days in which various types of precipitation are observed, excluding trace quantities: rain alone, snow alone, and mixed (both rain and snow fell in the same day).

The length of the day in Iquique varies over the course of the year. In 2024, the shortest day is June 20, with 10 hours, 54 minutes of daylight; the longest day is December 21, with 13 hours, 22 minutes of daylight.

Hours of Daylight and Twilight in Iquique

Hours of Daylight and Twilight in IquiqueJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec0 hr24 hr4 hr20 hr8 hr16 hr12 hr12 hr16 hr8 hr20 hr4 hr24 hr0 hr12 hr, 6 minSep 2212 hr, 6 minSep 2213 hr, 22 minDec 2113 hr, 22 minDec 2112 hr, 7 minMar 2012 hr, 7 minMar 2010 hr, 54 minJun 2010 hr, 54 minJun 20daydaynightNowNow
The number of hours during which the Sun is visible (black line). From bottom (most yellow) to top (most gray), the color bands indicate: full daylight, twilight (civil, nautical, and astronomical), and full night.
Hours ofJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Daylight 13.2h12.8h12.2h11.6h11.1h10.9h11.0h11.5h12.0h12.6h13.1h13.3h

The earliest sunrise is at 6:43 AM on September 7, and the latest sunrise is 1 hour, 6 minutes later at 7:49 AM on April 6. The earliest sunset is at 6:07 PM on June 4, and the latest sunset is 2 hours, 19 minutes later at 8:26 PM on January 17.

Daylight saving time (DST) is observed in Iquique during 2024, starting in the spring on September 8 and ending in the fall on April 6.

Sunrise & Sunset with Twilight and Daylight Saving Time in Iquique

Sunrise & Sunset with Twilight and Daylight Saving Time in IquiqueJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec2 AM4 AM6 AM8 AM10 AM12 PM2 PM4 PM6 PM8 PM10 PM12 AMSep 76:43 AMSep 76:43 AM8:26 PMJan 178:26 PMJan 17Jun 46:07 PMJun 46:07 PM7:49 AMApr 67:49 AMApr 6DSTApr 6DSTApr 6Sep 8DSTSep 8DSTdaynightSolarMidnightSolarMidnightSolarNoonSunriseSunsetNowNow
The solar day over the course of the year 2024. From bottom to top, the black lines are the previous solar midnight, sunrise, solar noon, sunset, and the next solar midnight. The day, twilights (civil, nautical, and astronomical), and night are indicated by the color bands from yellow to gray. The transitions to and from daylight saving time are indicated by the 'DST' labels.

The figure below presents a compact representation of the sun's elevation (the angle of the sun above the horizon) and azimuth (its compass bearing) for every hour of every day in the reporting period. The horizontal axis is the day of the year and the vertical axis is the hour of the day. For a given day and hour of that day, the background color indicates the azimuth of the sun at that moment. The black isolines are contours of constant solar elevation.

Solar Elevation and Azimuth in Iquique

Solar Elevation and Azimuth in IquiqueJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec12 AM12 AM2 AM2 AM4 AM4 AM6 AM6 AM8 AM8 AM10 AM10 AM12 PM12 PM2 PM2 PM4 PM4 PM6 PM6 PM8 PM8 PM10 PM10 PM12 AM12 AM0000101010202020303030304040405050606070708000010101010202020303030404040405050606070708046NowNow
northeastsouthwest
Solar elevation and azimuth over the course of the year 2024. The black lines are lines of constant solar elevation (the angle of the sun above the horizon, in degrees). The background color fills indicate the azimuth (the compass bearing) of the sun. The lightly tinted areas at the boundaries of the cardinal compass points indicate the implied intermediate directions (northeast, southeast, southwest, and northwest).

The figure below presents a compact representation of key lunar data for 2024. The horizontal axis is the day, the vertical axis is the hour of the day, and the colored areas indicate when the moon is above the horizon. The vertical gray bars (new Moons) and blue bars (full Moons) indicate key Moon phases.

Moon Rise, Set & Phases in Iquique

The time in which the moon is above the horizon (light blue area), with new moons (dark gray lines) and full moons (blue lines) indicated. The shaded overlays indicate night and civil twilight.

We base the humidity comfort level on the dew point, as it determines whether perspiration will evaporate from the skin, thereby cooling the body. Lower dew points feel drier and higher dew points feel more humid. Unlike temperature, which typically varies significantly between night and day, dew point tends to change more slowly, so while the temperature may drop at night, a muggy day is typically followed by a muggy night.

The perceived humidity level in Iquique, as measured by the percentage of time in which the humidity comfort level is muggy, oppressive, or miserable, does not vary significantly over the course of the year, staying within 2% of 2% throughout.

Humidity Comfort Levels in Iquique

Humidity Comfort Levels in IquiqueJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec0%0%10%10%20%20%30%30%40%40%50%50%60%60%70%70%80%80%90%90%100%100%Aug 160%Aug 160%Jan 225%Jan 225%NowNowhumidhumidcomfortablecomfortabledrydry
dry 55°F comfortable 60°F humid 65°F muggy 70°F oppressive 75°F miserable
The percentage of time spent at various humidity comfort levels, categorized by dew point.
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Muggy days 1.2d0.8d0.6d0.1d0.0d0.0d0.0d0.0d0.0d0.0d0.0d0.2d

This section discusses the wide-area hourly average wind vector (speed and direction) at 10 meters above the ground. The wind experienced at any given location is highly dependent on local topography and other factors, and instantaneous wind speed and direction vary more widely than hourly averages.

The average hourly wind speed in Iquique experiences mild seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The windier part of the year lasts for 7.1 months, from September 15 to April 18, with average wind speeds of more than 7.3 miles per hour. The windiest month of the year in Iquique is December, with an average hourly wind speed of 8.1 miles per hour.

The calmer time of year lasts for 4.9 months, from April 18 to September 15. The calmest month of the year in Iquique is June, with an average hourly wind speed of 6.4 miles per hour.

Average Wind Speed in Iquique

Average Wind Speed in IquiquewindywindyJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec0 mph0 mph2 mph2 mph4 mph4 mph6 mph6 mph8 mph8 mph10 mph10 mph12 mph12 mphDec 68.2 mphDec 68.2 mphJun 276.4 mphJun 276.4 mphSep 157.3 mphSep 157.3 mphApr 187.3 mphApr 187.3 mphNowNow
The average of mean hourly wind speeds (dark gray line), with 25th to 75th and 10th to 90th percentile bands.
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Wind Speed (mph) 8.17.97.77.36.86.46.56.87.37.88.08.1

The predominant average hourly wind direction in Iquique varies throughout the year.

The wind is most often from the south for 11 months, from January 26 to December 24, with a peak percentage of 71% on June 23. The wind is most often from the west for 1.1 months, from December 24 to January 26, with a peak percentage of 51% on January 1.

Wind Direction in Iquique

Wind Direction in IquiqueWSJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec0%100%20%80%40%60%60%40%80%20%100%0%NowNowsouthwest
northeastsouthwest
The percentage of hours in which the mean wind direction is from each of the four cardinal wind directions, excluding hours in which the mean wind speed is less than 1.0 mph. The lightly tinted areas at the boundaries are the percentage of hours spent in the implied intermediate directions (northeast, southeast, southwest, and northwest).

Iquique is located near a large body of water (e.g., ocean, sea, or large lake). This section reports on the wide-area average surface temperature of that water.

The average water temperature experiences some seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The time of year with warmer water lasts for 2.9 months, from December 29 to March 25, with an average temperature above 71°F. The month of the year in Iquique with the warmest water is February, with an average temperature of 73°F.

The time of year with cooler water lasts for 4.0 months, from June 17 to October 18, with an average temperature below 64°F. The month of the year in Iquique with the coolest water is August, with an average temperature of 62°F.

Average Water Temperature in Iquique

The daily average water temperature (purple line), with 25th to 75th and 10th to 90th percentile bands.
WaterJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Temperature 72°F73°F71°F69°F67°F64°F63°F62°F63°F64°F67°F69°F

To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Iquique throughout the year, we compute two travel scores.

The tourism score favors clear, rainless days with perceived temperatures between 65°F and 80°F. Based on this score, the best times of year to visit Iquique for general outdoor tourist activities are from late February to early June and from late August to early January, with a peak score in the last week of March.

Tourism Score in Iquique

Tourism Score in Iquiquebest timebest timeJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec002244668810108.08.07.37.3NowNowtemperaturetemperature cloudscloudsprecipitationprecipitationtourism score
The tourism score (filled area), and its constituents: the temperature score (red line), the cloud cover score (blue line), and the precipitation score (green line).

The beach/pool score favors clear, rainless days with perceived temperatures between 75°F and 90°F. Based on this score, the best time of year to visit Iquique for hot-weather activities is from late December to late March, with a peak score in the last week of January.

Beach/Pool Score in Iquique

Beach/Pool Score in Iquiquebest timeJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec002244668810106.56.50.40.4NowNowtemperaturetemperature cloudscloudsprecipitationprecipitationbeach/pool score
The beach/pool score (filled area), and its constituents: the temperature score (red line), the cloud cover score (blue line), and the precipitation score (green line).

Methodology

For each hour between 8:00 AM and 9:00 PM of each day in the analysis period (1980 to 2016), independent scores are computed for perceived temperature, cloud cover, and total precipitation. Those scores are combined into a single hourly composite score, which is then aggregated into days, averaged over all the years in the analysis period, and smoothed.

Our cloud cover score is 10 for fully clear skies, falling linearly to 9 for mostly clear skies, and to 1 for fully overcast skies.

Our precipitation score, which is based on the three-hour precipitation centered on the hour in question, is 10 for no precipitation, falling linearly to 9 for trace precipitation, and to 0 for 0.04 inches of precipitation or more.

Our tourism temperature score is 0 for perceived temperatures below 50°F, rising linearly to 9 for 65°F, to 10 for 75°F, falling linearly to 9 for 80°F, and to 1 for 90°F or hotter.

Our beach/pool temperature score is 0 for perceived temperatures below 65°F, rising linearly to 9 for 75°F, to 10 for 82°F, falling linearly to 9 for 90°F, and to 1 for 100°F or hotter.

Definitions of the growing season vary throughout the world, but for the purposes of this report, we define it as the longest continuous period of non-freezing temperatures (≥ 32°F) in the year (the calendar year in the Northern Hemisphere, or from July 1 until June 30 in the Southern Hemisphere).

Temperatures in Iquique are sufficiently warm year round that it is not entirely meaningful to discuss the growing season in these terms. We nevertheless include the chart below as an illustration of the distribution of temperatures experienced throughout the year.

Time Spent in Various Temperature Bands and the Growing Season in Iquique

Time Spent in Various Temperature Bands and the Growing Season in IquiqueJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec0%100%10%90%20%80%30%70%40%60%50%50%60%40%70%30%80%20%90%10%100%0%100%Jan 1100%Jan 1100%Jul 2100%Jul 2NowNowcoolcomfortablewarm
frigid 15°F freezing 32°F very cold 45°F cold 55°F cool 65°F comfortable 75°F warm 85°F hot 95°F sweltering
The percentage of time spent in various temperature bands. The black line is the percentage chance that a given day is within the growing season.

Growing degree days are a measure of yearly heat accumulation used to predict plant and animal development, and defined as the integral of warmth above a base temperature, discarding any excess above a maximum temperature. In this report, we use a base of 50°F and a cap of 86°F.

Growing Degree Days in Iquique

Growing Degree Days in IquiqueJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec0°F0°F1,000°F1,000°F2,000°F2,000°F3,000°F3,000°F4,000°F4,000°F5,000°F5,000°F6,000°F6,000°FJul 990°FJul 990°FSep 15900°FSep 15900°FNov 161,800°FNov 161,800°FJun 306,113°FJun 306,113°FNowNow
The average growing degree days accumulated over the course of the year, with 25th to 75th and 10th to 90th percentile bands.

This section discusses the total daily incident shortwave solar energy reaching the surface of the ground over a wide area, taking full account of seasonal variations in the length of the day, the elevation of the Sun above the horizon, and absorption by clouds and other atmospheric constituents. Shortwave radiation includes visible light and ultraviolet radiation.

The average daily incident shortwave solar energy experiences significant seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The brighter period of the year lasts for 4.4 months, from October 8 to February 18, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter above 7.7 kWh. The brightest month of the year in Iquique is November, with an average of 8.3 kWh.

The darker period of the year lasts for 2.9 months, from May 6 to August 3, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter below 5.5 kWh. The darkest month of the year in Iquique is June, with an average of 4.8 kWh.

Average Daily Incident Shortwave Solar Energy in Iquique

Average Daily Incident Shortwave Solar Energy in IquiquebrightbrightdarkJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec0 kWh0 kWh1 kWh1 kWh2 kWh2 kWh3 kWh3 kWh4 kWh4 kWh5 kWh5 kWh6 kWh6 kWh7 kWh7 kWh8 kWh8 kWh9 kWh9 kWh10 kWh10 kWhDec 68.4 kWhDec 68.4 kWhJun 194.8 kWhJun 194.8 kWhOct 87.7 kWhOct 87.7 kWhFeb 187.7 kWhFeb 187.7 kWhMay 65.5 kWhMay 65.5 kWhAug 35.5 kWhAug 35.5 kWhNowNow
The average daily shortwave solar energy reaching the ground per square meter (orange line), with 25th to 75th and 10th to 90th percentile bands.
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Solar Energy (kWh) 8.17.77.16.15.34.85.15.97.07.98.38.3

For the purposes of this report, the geographical coordinates of Iquique are -20.220 deg latitude, -70.139 deg longitude, and 121 ft elevation.

The topography within 2 miles of Iquique contains large variations in elevation, with a maximum elevation change of 2,631 feet and an average elevation above sea level of 432 feet. Within 10 miles contains large variations in elevation (4,570 feet). Within 50 miles also contains extreme variations in elevation (7,608 feet).

The area within 2 miles of Iquique is covered by water (32%), artificial surfaces (31%), and bare soil (11%), within 10 miles by water (49%) and bare soil (45%), and within 50 miles by bare soil (50%) and water (48%).

This report illustrates the typical weather in Iquique, based on a statistical analysis of historical hourly weather reports and model reconstructions from January 1, 1980 to December 31, 2016.

Temperature and Dew Point

There is only a single weather station, Diego Aracena International Airport, in our network suitable to be used as a proxy for the historical temperature and dew point records of Iquique.

At a distance of 35 kilometers from Iquique, closer than our threshold of 150 kilometers, this station is deemed sufficiently nearby to be relied upon as our primary source for temperature and dew point records.

The station records are corrected for the elevation difference between the station and Iquique according to the International Standard Atmosphere , and by the relative change present in the MERRA-2 satellite-era reanalysis between the two locations.

Please note that the station records themselves may additionally have been back-filled using other nearby stations or the MERRA-2 reanalysis.

Other Data

All data relating to the Sun's position (e.g., sunrise and sunset) are computed using astronomical formulas from the book, Astronomical Algorithms 2nd Edition , by Jean Meeus.

All other weather data, including cloud cover, precipitation, wind speed and direction, and solar flux, come from NASA's MERRA-2 Modern-Era Retrospective Analysis . This reanalysis combines a variety of wide-area measurements in a state-of-the-art global meteorological model to reconstruct the hourly history of weather throughout the world on a 50-kilometer grid.

Land Use data comes from the Global Land Cover SHARE database , published by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.

Elevation data comes from the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) , published by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

Names, locations, and time zones of places and some airports come from the GeoNames Geographical Database .

Time zones for airports and weather stations are provided by AskGeo.com .

Maps are © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Disclaimer

The information on this site is provided as is, without any assurances as to its accuracy or suitability for any purpose. Weather data is prone to errors, outages, and other defects. We assume no responsibility for any decisions made on the basis of the content presented on this site.

We draw particular cautious attention to our reliance on the MERRA-2 model-based reconstructions for a number of important data series. While having the tremendous advantages of temporal and spatial completeness, these reconstructions: (1) are based on computer models that may have model-based errors, (2) are coarsely sampled on a 50 km grid and are therefore unable to reconstruct the local variations of many microclimates, and (3) have particular difficulty with the weather in some coastal areas, especially small islands.

We further caution that our travel scores are only as good as the data that underpin them, that weather conditions at any given location and time are unpredictable and variable, and that the definition of the scores reflects a particular set of preferences that may not agree with those of any particular reader.

Please review our full terms contained on our Terms of Service page.