Last updated: July 31, 2025
Under the Köppen–Geiger climate classification Santa Cruz features a tropical savanna climate (Aw). Temperatures typically range between 26 °C (79 °F) and 29 °C (84 °F) through the year, but rarely can drop to 17 °C (64 °F) or can rise to as high as 39 °C (102 °F). The average annual precipitation amounts to about 2139 mm (84.2 inches) and receives 183 rainy days on the 1 mm (0.04 inches) threshold annually. Santa Cruz enjoys an average of 3499 hours of sunshine throughout the year, and daylight varies from 11 hours 31 minutes to 12 hours 42 minutes per day.
The warmest months in Santa Cruz are February, March and April, with daily mean temperatures ranging from 28 to 29 °C (82 - 84 °F) throughout the day. The coldest temperatures usually occur in September, October and November, when daily mean temperatures range from 26 to 26 °C (79 - 79 °F) throughout the day. On average each year, Santa Cruz experiences 329 days above 25 °C (77.0 °F) and 0 days below 0 °C (32.0 °F).
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Maximum | 36°C (97°F) | 37°C (99°F) | 37°C (99°F) | 39°C (102°F) | 38°C (101°F) | 36°C (97°F) | 35°C (95°F) | 35°C (95°F) | 34°C (93°F) | 33°C (92°F) | 33°C (93°F) | 35°C (95°F) |
| Mean maximum | 35°C (95°F) | 36°C (97°F) | 37°C (98°F) | 38°C (100°F) | 37°C (98°F) | 34°C (93°F) | 33°C (93°F) | 34°C (93°F) | 33°C (92°F) | 33°C (91°F) | 32°C (91°F) | 34°C (93°F) |
| Average high | 32°C (91°F) | 34°C (93°F) | 35°C (94°F) | 35°C (96°F) | 33°C (91°F) | 31°C (89°F) | 31°C (88°F) | 31°C (88°F) | 31°C (88°F) | 30°C (86°F) | 30°C (87°F) | 32°C (89°F) |
| Daily mean | 27°C (81°F) | 28°C (82°F) | 28°C (83°F) | 29°C (84°F) | 28°C (82°F) | 27°C (80°F) | 27°C (80°F) | 26°C (80°F) | 26°C (79°F) | 26°C (79°F) | 26°C (79°F) | 27°C (80°F) |
| Average low | 22°C (73°F) | 23°C (73°F) | 23°C (74°F) | 24°C (76°F) | 24°C (76°F) | 24°C (75°F) | 23°C (74°F) | 23°C (74°F) | 23°C (74°F) | 23°C (73°F) | 22°C (73°F) | 23°C (73°F) |
| Mean minimum | 20°C (68°F) | 20°C (68°F) | 21°C (71°F) | 22°C (72°F) | 23°C (74°F) | 22°C (73°F) | 22°C (71°F) | 22°C (72°F) | 22°C (72°F) | 22°C (71°F) | 21°C (69°F) | 21°C (69°F) |
| Minimum | 17°C (64°F) | 19°C (66°F) | 20°C (69°F) | 22°C (71°F) | 23°C (73°F) | 22°C (72°F) | 21°C (71°F) | 22°C (71°F) | 22°C (71°F) | 21°C (71°F) | 20°C (68°F) | 20°C (69°F) |
Compare temperature, precipitation, sunshine, UV index in Santa Cruz, Costa Rica with other places around the world.
Santa Cruz usually has the most precipitation in June, September and October, with an average of 27 rainy days and 373 mm (14.7 inches) of precipitation per month. The driest months in Santa Cruz are January, February and March. On average, 6 mm (0.2 inches) of precipitation falls during these months.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Average precipitation mm (inches) | 12 (0.5) | 2 (0.1) | 4 (0.1) | 51 (2.0) | 286 (11.2) | 359 (14.1) | 215 (8.4) | 290 (11.4) | 353 (13.9) | 407 (16.0) | 130 (5.1) | 31 (1.2) |
| Average precipitation days (≥ 1 mm) | 2 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 22 | 26 | 23 | 25 | 28 | 29 | 15 | 4 |
The sunniest months in Santa Cruz are March, April and December, when the sun shines an average of 10 hours 39 minutes a day. Least sunny months in Santa Cruz: January, September and October receive an average of 8 hours 24 minutes of sunshine daily.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mean monthly sunshine hours | 261 | 299 | 334 | 324 | 277 | 282 | 311 | 278 | 267 | 244 | 295 | 321 |
| Mean daily daylight hours | 11h 35m | 11h 47m | 12h 3m | 12h 20m | 12h 35m | 12h 42m | 12h 38m | 12h 25m | 12h 9m | 11h 52m | 11h 38m | 11h 31m |
Santa Cruz experiences the highest level of ultraviolet (UV) radiation in March, April and May, when the maximum UV index can reach values of 14 - 14, which corresponds to the Extreme category of sun exposure. January, November and December are in the Very High / Extreme exposure category. In these months, the maximum values of the UV index do not exceed 11. For more detailed information, check out our hourly Santa Cruz UV Index data.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UV Index (month maximum) | 11 | 13 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 11 | 10 |