Weather in Kolkata in April

The month to avoid. Of the twelve, April is the one to avoid. Daytime highs average 38.9 °C and the afternoon is not negotiable — outdoor plans move to early morning or evening.

April ranks 11 of 12 — near the bottom of Kolkata's year. December is the month that works, and the swing between the two is 78 points, which is a different holiday rather than a slightly better one.

Rain on 9 days, 1 of them heavy. Enough to need a plan B, not enough to need a plan around it. Pack for heat management rather than style: shade, water, and a schedule that gives up on the middle of the day.

What the averages hide

Averages flatten a month, and this one hides a few things: 27 days of the month clear 35 °C — that is not a heatwave, it is the month. Across the twenty years measured, the hottest April day reached 45.3 °C and the coldest night fell to 19.4 °C, and the wettest single day dropped 27 mm — roughly 54% of the month's rain in one day.

April is moderately variable: 2 mm in the driest year against 110 mm in the wettest, around an average of 50 mm. Roughly two Aprils in three land near that average, and the third does something else entirely.

Wind is light at 10.3 km/h, so the temperature on the page is close to the temperature on your skin, and humidity is unremarkable at 60%.

How April sits in the year

This is a turning point in the year — March and May sit on opposite sides of it, so the month contains the change rather than following it. Rain is the thing that moves: May brings 8 days more of it, so the earlier half of a flexible trip is the safer half.

Daylight in April

12.7 hours of daylight, gaining 0.6 hours across the month. That is between Kolkata's extremes of 13.5 and 10.8 hours, so days are long enough not to constrain the plan.

An inland climate

With no coast nearby, the year swings a fair way — 28.3 °C between the warmest afternoons and the coldest nights, wider than any coastal city at this latitude would manage.

How busy it gets

Off season. The genuine off season: cheapest by a distance, with the caveat that some tours and restaurants close entirely.

Crowd levels are estimated from climate desirability and school-holiday calendars, not from visitor numbers.

April in Kolkata versus nearby

If Kolkata is one option among several, the nearby comparison is worth making. Jamshedpur is close enough to be a coin toss — within a degree on temperature, 1 day less rain. Ranchi is close enough to be a coin toss — within a degree on temperature, 4 days less rain.

So: April is a compromise. December is 68 points better and is what Kolkata is actually like at its best — worth moving the trip for if that is possible, and worth adjusting expectations for if it is not.

Every month in Kolkata

See all twelve months in Kolkata, or where else to go in April.