Best Time to Visit Australia: Season-by-Season Weather for 4 Cities

The best time to visit Australia for the four cities most travellers fly into is April, with October a close second. April is autumn there, and it gives Sydney 71.6°F (22.0°C), Melbourne 68.0°F (20.0°C), Brisbane 77.5°F (25.3°C) and Perth 76.6°F (24.8°C), with only 5 to 10 rainy days in each. Seasons run backwards south of the equator, so March to May is autumn and September to November is spring.

One caveat before the detail. Australia is roughly the size of the contiguous United States, and our numbers cover just four places: Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth. The tropical north, the red centre and Tasmania behave very differently, and where we mention them we use no figures. Everything below is a WeatherApex 20-year average (2006 to 2025).

Best time to visit Australia: the four big cities compared

These are the two months we would pick for all four cities at once. Highs and lows are daily averages, and rainy days count days with measurable rain.

Notice how little separates April and October in Sydney: 71.6°F against 72.0°F, and 10 rainy days against 9. That symmetry is why both months travel well. Perth is the one city where the two months differ in a useful way, because October has 6 rainy days and 11.5 hours of sun, while April has 5 rainy days and 10.1 hours. Either works.

Autumn, March to May: the safest bet

March is a mixed month. Perth is still hot at 84.0°F (28.9°C) with 3 rainy days, but Sydney and Brisbane are finishing their wet season: Sydney gets 4.3 inches (109 mm) over 13 rainy days, and Brisbane 5.9 inches (150 mm) over 14. Fine for a beach holiday if you accept a shower, less fine if you have a tight sightseeing list.

By April the rain eases. Brisbane drops to 2.2 inches (56 mm) and 9 rainy days, which is a huge change from March. May is cooler and calm: Sydney in May averages 66.6°F (19.2°C) with 7 rainy days, and Brisbane 72.9°F (22.7°C), also with 7. Melbourne is cooler at 61.3°F (16.3°C) with 10 rainy days, and Perth has started its winter rains, with 8 rainy days and 2.9 inches (74 mm). We would take April for a multi-city trip and May if you are only doing Sydney and Brisbane.

Winter, June to August: mild, but only one city shines

Winter here is gentle by northern standards, and it is not beach weather in the south. The exception is Brisbane. In July it has a 68.5°F (20.3°C) high, a 50.2°F (10.1°C) low, just 5 rainy days, 1.5 inches (38 mm) of rain and 9.0 hours of sun. If you want to travel in the Australian winter, Brisbane in July is the best version of it.

Sydney is fine, if cool: 61.5°F (16.4°C) in July, 6 rainy days, 9.0 hours of sun. Melbourne is greyer, with 55.6°F (13.1°C), 12 rainy days and 7.0 hours of sun. Perth is the wettest of the four in July, at 4.4 inches (112 mm) over 14 rainy days. Humpback whales usually pass the east coast from about June to November, and the alpine ski areas usually run from about June to September, which are real reasons to come, but they are not weather reasons.

Spring, September to November: Sydney, Brisbane and Perth at their best

September is Sydney's driest month in our data, at 1.8 inches (46 mm) over 7 rainy days, with a 68.5°F (20.3°C) high and 10.5 hours of sun. Brisbane in September is nearly as good: 75.9°F (24.4°C), 1.7 inches (43 mm), 6 rainy days. Perth turns spectacular in the late part of spring. November there has a 78.1°F (25.6°C) high, only 4 rainy days, 0.8 inches (20 mm) and 13.0 hours of sun a day. Western Australia's spring wildflowers usually peak around September, so Perth is worth a slot in that month too.

Melbourne is the weak link. October has 10 rainy days, and November is its wettest month at 3.1 inches (79 mm). It is pleasant at 71.2°F (21.8°C) in November, just not reliably dry. If Melbourne is your priority, March is the better call, with 75.2°F (24.0°C), 6 rainy days and 10.0 hours of sun.

Summer, December to February: classic, crowded, and uneven

Summer is the postcard season, and the one we like least for sightseeing, for a different reason in each city. Perth is hot and dry: 87.4°F (30.8°C) in January, 87.8°F (31.0°C) in February, 2 rainy days and 52% humidity. Great for the beach, hard work for a walking tour at midday. Brisbane is hot and sticky, at 84.0°F (28.9°C) with 76% humidity and 15 rainy days in January.

Melbourne is the surprise winner. January averages 79.5°F (26.4°C) with 6 rainy days, 64% humidity and 11.6 hours of sun, which is easier to enjoy than Sydney's 11 rainy days at 79.0°F (26.1°C). The Australian Open tennis usually fills Melbourne in mid to late January. School holidays usually run from about mid-December to late January, so flights, rooms and beaches are at their busiest. Southern states can also see bushfire smoke in summer, so check local advisories before you go.

Where we would not go, and when

• Brisbane, January to March. 14 to 15 rainy days a month and between 5.3 and 6.0 inches (135 to 152 mm) of rain, on top of 76% to 79% humidity.
• Perth, June to August. 10 to 14 rainy days a month, with July at 4.4 inches (112 mm) and a 62.8°F (17.1°C) high.
• Melbourne, June and July, if you want to be outdoors. Highs are 56.5°F (13.6°C) and 55.6°F (13.1°C), with 10 and 12 rainy days.
• The tropical north, roughly November to April. This is the wet season, with heavy storms and stinger season in the water. We have no figures for it, so treat this as general knowledge, not a forecast.

Choosing by what you want from the trip

• Beaches: Perth from December to March (December is 84.0°F, or 28.9°C, with 2 rainy days), or Sydney in December at 76.8°F (24.9°C). Brisbane works best in October and November, before the humidity builds.
• Sightseeing: April or October, in every city. Sydney in October and Perth in October are both dependable.
• Lower prices: May and the winter months outside school holidays. Brisbane in July is the only winter we would pick for the weather.
• Families: September and October in Brisbane or Sydney. Highs are in the 70s F (20s C), the sun is out for 10 hours or more, and you avoid the Christmas peak.
• Fewer crowds: May and early September.

The best time to visit Australia if you are linking two or three cities

Most first trips join Sydney and Melbourne, sometimes with Brisbane added on. For that pairing we would go in late March or April. Sydney is at 76.1°F (24.5°C) in March and 71.6°F (22.0°C) in April, Melbourne at 75.2°F (24.0°C) and 68.0°F (20.0°C), and Melbourne has only 6 rainy days in March. The cost is a wetter Sydney in March, so April is the safer half of that window.

For Sydney and Brisbane together, September and October are better. Both cities have long, bright days (10.5 and 10.6 hours of sun in Sydney, 10.6 and 11.0 in Brisbane), highs between 68.5°F and 79.0°F, and rainy-day counts of 6 to 9. Add Perth only if you can spare the extra flight time, and then aim for October or November, when it is 72.0°F to 78.1°F and mostly dry.

The combination we would avoid is Melbourne plus Perth in July. You would be trading 12 rainy days and 55.6°F (13.1°C) for 14 rainy days and 62.8°F (17.1°C), and neither city is at its best. If July is your only window, put Brisbane and Sydney on the list and skip the rest.

What to pack for Australia

Layers for the south, sun protection for everywhere. Sydney's July lows reach 47.7°F (8.7°C) and Melbourne's 44.1°F (6.7°C), so a proper jacket and a scarf belong in a winter bag. In summer Perth can see 13.4 hours of sun a day in December, so hat, sunglasses and high-SPF sunscreen are not optional. Bring a light waterproof for Sydney and Brisbane at any time of year. Our guide to what to wear in 70-degree weather covers the April and October wardrobe.

Rainy days by month

Here is how the four cities compare on rain across the year. Perth and Melbourne are almost opposites: Perth is driest from December to March, while Melbourne's low point runs from January to March.

Two details stand out. Sydney peaks at 13 rainy days in March and bottoms out at 6 in July and August, so its dry season is the cool one. Melbourne rarely goes above 12 rainy days in any month, which makes it the most even of the four, and the one where a rain jacket is a year-round habit rather than a seasonal need. Humidity follows the same pattern: Perth sits at 52% to 56% from January to March, while Brisbane stays between 76% and 79% across the same months.

How we picked these months

We weighed each month on comfort (highs between roughly 65°F and 80°F), rainy days and hours of sun, then checked the picture against crowd patterns. The averages come from the Open-Meteo Historical Weather API and cover 2006 to 2025. They describe a typical month, not a forecast, and a single year can be wetter or hotter. If you are comparing the Southern Hemisphere more widely, our best time to visit Australia and New Zealand guide and the Brazil and South Africa pages follow the same reversed calendar. You can also use the trip planner to line up dates with the weather. So the best time to visit Australia really depends on which coast you are standing on. Pick two cities rather than four, and fly between them instead of trying to cover everything in one trip.