What Are the Warmest Cities in Switzerland?

KEY TAKEAWAYS
The three warmest cities in Switzerland are Locarno, Lugano, and Bellinzona.

Switzerland is one of the most popular European tourist destinations. While many people visit Switzerland only in the ski season, the country has more to offer than cold winters. In fact, some destinations in Switzerland offer warmer than typical Swiss weather, perfect for those who want to enjoy the country in the summer months (or perhaps even live there year round).

In this article I’ll share with you my list of the warmest Swiss cities with at least 10,000 residents. I’ll cover the top 10 in more detail and then present the entire ranking in a table with 33 major cities in the country.

Top 10 Warmest Cities in Switzerland

Here are the top 10 warmest places in Switzerland. The places are ranked by their annual daily mean temperature. Each city also includes temperatures in January (typically the coldest month) and July (usually the hottest month).

1. Locarno – 13.25 °C

Locarno, located in the Italian-speaking Ticino canton on Lake Maggiore in southern Switzerland, is the warmest city in Switzerland. With average 2,228 sunshine hours a year, it’s also the sunniest city in Switzerland. Weather conditions in Locarno are mild throughout the year. Winters are much warmer than what you’d expect from an otherwise cold Swiss climate while summer months bring sunny, warm to hot weather.

Average high temperature in January: 7.3 °C

Average high temperature in July: 27.5 °C

2. Lugano – 13.2 °C

Lugano, another city in the Ticino canton, is located on Lake Lugano. Like Locarno, it enjoys a mild climate moderated by the nearby large body of water. With average 2,120 annual sunshine hours, it’s also one of the sunniest cities in the country.

Average high temperature in January: 7.1 °C

Average high temperature in July: 27.3 °C

3. Bellinzona – 11.95 °C

Bellinzona is the capital of the canton of Ticino, located about 23 km east of Locarno. Because it’s located further from the lake, Bellinzona has hot summers, with the highest temperatures out of all cities in this ranking. The city has some of the coldest nights out of all places in this list, experiencing temperatures below freezing at night between December and February.

Average high temperature in January: 6.7 °C

Average high temperature in July: 28 °C

4. Lausanne – 11.35 °C

Lausanne is the first city on this list not located in Ticino. Located on Lake Geneva in the French-speaking canton of Vaud, Lausanne has a much colder climate than the first three cities, but still warmer than other places in Switzerland. The city sees temperatures that are year round up to 2-3 degrees Celsius lower than in the previous three places. With 1,957 sunshine hours a year, it’s still one of the sunniest cities of Switzerland, though with more rainy days than Locarno or Lugano.

Average high temperature in January: 4.7 °C

Average high temperature in July: 25 °C

5. Pully – 11.35 °C

Pully is an eastern suburb of Lausanne. It has the same climate as Lausanne because it’s located just 3 kilometers from it.

Average high temperature in January: 4.7 °C

Average high temperature in July: 25 °C

6. Basel – 11.15 °C

Basel is the third largest city in Switzerland. The city is located in northern Switzerland, in a German-speaking canton of Basel-Stadt. Basel experiences slightly warmer daytime temperatures than Lausanne and slightly colder nights. With 1,687 sunshine hours a year, it’s not a particularly sunny place.

Average high temperature in January: 5.1 °C

Average high temperature in July: 25.8 °C

7. Sion – 11.15 °C

Sion is one of the driest and sunniest regions of Switzerland. While it’s colder than Locarno or Lugano, it experiences much fewer rainy days: on average 82 compared to 100-101 in Locarno and Lugano. Sion experiences cold winter nights, with temperatures dropping on average to -3 °C in January. Sion is the largest city located close to the world-famous mountainous areas of the country, including the resort town of Zermatt and the Matterhorn peak.

Average high temperature in January: 5 °C

Average high temperature in July: 27.4 °C

8. Geneva – 11 °C

Geneva is the second largest city in Switzerland. Located in the French-speaking western part of Switzerland, Geneva has a milder climate than Zürich. If you’re looking for the warmest major city of Switzerland, Geneva is your best option. Geneva is sunnier than Basel as it gets 1,887 sunshine hours compared to 1,687 in Basel (though that difference is visible in the summer tourist season and not in the coldest months).

Average high temperature in January: 5.1 °C

Average high temperature in July: 26.7 °C

9. Neuchâtel – 10.85 °C

Neuchâtel is located in the French-speaking canton of the same name. It lies on the northern shore of Lake Neuchâtel (do you see a theme here?). The city has the coldest winter temperatures out of all cities in this ranking. The reason why it ranks above Chur that placed tenth is because it has warmer nights, with average temperatures barely going below freezing in January and February.

Average high temperature in January: 3.9 °C

Average high temperature in July: 25.3 °C

10. Chur – 10.8 °C

Chur is a city in eastern Switzerland, located in a valley almost entirely surrounded by the Alps. The city gets 1,740 sunshine hours a year. Even though it’s less than in Geneva, the sunshine is more evenly spread throughout the year so that winters aren’t as bleak (but summers aren’t as sunny).

Average high temperature in January: 5.2 °C

Average high temperature in July: 25.3 °C

Top 33 Warmest Swiss Cities Ranked by the Average Temperature

Here’s a table with 33 major Swiss cities that have at least 10,000 residents. Many cities are missing because no climate data was available for them. The data comes primarily from MeteoSwiss.

Since the warmest cities in Switzerland are Italian-speaking, you may also want to read my article on the warmest cities in Italy. You may also be interested in articles about the warmest cities in other European countries.

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