Weather in Santiago in February

A good month. February is a solid month to be in Santiago. Highs average 33 °C, lows 18.2 °C, and rain falls on 2 days — nothing in the month is working against you.

February ranks 11 of 12 — near the bottom of Santiago's year. September is the month that works, and the swing between the two is 28 points, which is a different holiday rather than a slightly better one. Worth keeping in perspective: February is the weakest month of Santiago's year and it is still a perfectly good one. The downside here is small.

Rain falls on only 2 days, so an itinerary with no wet-weather fallback is a reasonable risk. Pack for 33 °C days and 18.2 °C nights; the spread matters more here than any single number.

What the averages hide

Averages flatten a month, and this one hides a few things: 6 days clear 35 °C, so a serious heatwave is normal rather than notable. Across the twenty years measured, the hottest February day reached 40.9 °C and the coldest night fell to 10.5 °C.

February is moderately variable: 1 mm in the driest year against 25 mm in the wettest, around an average of 8 mm. Roughly two Februarys in three land near that average, and the third does something else entirely.

Wind is light at 7.6 km/h, so the temperature on the page is close to the temperature on your skin, and the air is dry at 33% humidity, which makes the heat far more bearable than the same figure somewhere humid — and dehydrates you faster than you expect.

How February sits in the year

Temperatures hold steady either side: 33.7 °C in January, 33 here, 31.6 in March. Nothing about the timing within the month matters much.

Daylight in February

13.3 hours of daylight, losing 1 hours across the month. That is between Santiago's extremes of 14.3 and 9.9 hours, so days are long enough not to constrain the plan.

An inland climate

With no coast nearby, the year swings a fair way — 26.3 °C between the warmest afternoons and the coldest nights, wider than any coastal city at this latitude would manage. Within February itself the daily swing is 14.8 °C, so mornings and afternoons need different clothes.

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.

February in Santiago versus nearby

If Santiago is one option among several, the nearby comparison is worth making. Córdoba is the weaker option in February — within a degree on temperature, 10 days more rain. San Miguel de Tucumán is the weaker option in February — within a degree on temperature, 10 days more rain.

So: February is a compromise. September is 25 points better and is what Santiago 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 Santiago

See all twelve months in Santiago, or where else to go in February.