Mean temperatures

Temperatures in Greenland
The temperature in Greenland is highly dependent on where you are and which time of the year you visit the country. The mean temperature remains below +10° C (50° F) in June, July and August in just about every town in Greenland, whilst all places are below freezing from November through to April.

Owing to the low humidity in Greenland, summer temperatures will often feel warmer than you might otherwise expect. If the sun is shining, short-sleeved shirts and T-shirts are perfectly adequate.

Conversely, the winter is particularly cold in the very north of Greenland, for example in Upernavik, where the thermometer shows an average of -20° C (-4° F) in February.

Greenlandic mean temperatures
The table shows mean temperatures in most of the towns in Greenland measured in degrees Celsius. As these are 24-hour mean temperatures, the average daytime temperature will be a little higher, whilst the average nighttime temperatures will be a little lower. At the same time, there can be large fluctuations from day to day; for example in the summer months there are several places in Greenland where day temperatures can exceed 20° C (68° F).

	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Upernavik	-17	-20	-20.1	-13.1	-3.7	1.7	5.5	5.2	0.8	-4	-8.8	-14.2
Ilulissat	-14.8	-19.6	-19.9	-8.2	-0.5	5.1	7.5	5.9	2.4	-3.1	-7.8	-9.9
Aasiaat	-13.4	-15.6	-16.2	-9.6	-1.8	2.7	5.7	5.3	2.3	-2.3	-6	-9.9
Sisimiut	-12.8	-13.9	-14	-7.1	-0.2	3.6	6.3	6.1	3.2	-1.9	-5.9	-10.1
Kangerlussuaq	-19.8	-21.4	-18.1	-7.8	2.5	8.6	10.7	8.2	3	-5.5	-12.1	-16.4
Nuuk	-7.4	-7.8	-8	-3.8	0.6	3.9	6.5	6.1	3.5	-0.7	-3.7	-6.2
Paamiut	-6.6	-6.4	-6	-2.3	1.4	3.7	5.6	5.3	3.5	0.1	-2.8	-5.4
Narsarsuaq	-6.8	-6.1	-5.1	-0.1	5.2	8.3	10.3	9.3	5.5	0.4	-3.2	-6.1
Qaqortoq	-5.5	-5	-4.4	-0.6	3.3	5.2	7.2	7.2	5	1.2	-1.9	-4.4
Tasiilaq	-7.5	-7.7	-8.1	-4	0.7	4.2	6.4	6	3	-0.9	-4.8	-7.3
Ittoqqortoormiit	-16.1	-17.1	-16.5	-11.2	-3.5	1.1	3.3	3.5	-0.4	-6.4	-12.2	-14.7

Source: Danish Meteorological Institute

In Qaqortoq in South Greenland the winter is mild with -5.5° C (22° F) as the coldest mean temperature, whilst the mean temperature remains above freezing from May to October. In Kangerlussuaq on the Arctic Circle it is cold during winter with a mean temperature as low as -22° C (-7.6 ° F), yet during the summer it is the warmest place in Greenland with mean temperatures of around +11° C (52° F) in July.