Climate and seasons
Kota humidity by month: why the same heat feels so different
Written by Kota Weather Editorial Team · Updated
Kota humidity is the reason the city’s weather can feel so different at the same temperature. A 40 C afternoon in May is brutally dry: your skin feels hot and tight, sweat seems to vanish, and you can be dehydrated before you feel thirsty. A 36 C afternoon in late June or August can feel almost as bad for the opposite reason: the air is so moist that sweat sits on your skin and does little to cool you. This guide uses the India Meteorological Department’s (IMD) 1991-2020 normals for Kota Airport to show how humidity changes through the year and what it means for comfort, health and daily life.
These figures are long-term averages. For today’s humidity, use the current conditions on the IMD website or our Kota weather today page.
Kota humidity by month: IMD normals
| Month | Relative humidity at 17:30 IST | Mean max | Mean min | Rainfall |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 40% | 23.2 C | 11.2 C | 5.7 mm |
| February | 30% | 27.1 C | 14.3 C | 8.2 mm |
| March | 19% | 33.3 C | 19.8 C | 2.7 mm |
| April | 13% | 39.3 C | 25.7 C | 8.4 mm |
| May | 15% | 42.6 C | 30.0 C | 9.7 mm |
| June | 33% | 40.3 C | 29.5 C | 80.3 mm |
| July | 62% | 34.3 C | 27.0 C | 296.7 mm |
| August | 69% | 32.2 C | 25.8 C | 269.6 mm |
| September | 54% | 33.9 C | 25.5 C | 108.7 mm |
| October | 31% | 34.6 C | 22.3 C | 18.9 mm |
| November | 31% | 30.1 C | 16.9 C | 3.8 mm |
| December | 37% | 25.7 C | 12.6 C | 3.6 mm |
| Year | 36% | 33.1 C | 21.8 C | 816.2 mm |
Source: IMD climatological normals 1991-2020 for Kota Airport, as reproduced in the Kota climate table on Wikipedia.
What relative humidity means
Relative humidity is how much water vapour the air holds compared with the most it could hold at that temperature. Warm air can hold far more moisture than cool air, so relative humidity normally rises overnight as the air cools and falls in the afternoon as it warms. A dawn reading can easily be double the afternoon one.
That is why the time of the observation matters. The figures above are for 17:30 IST, late afternoon, so they sit near the daily low. Mornings are more humid than these numbers suggest, especially in the monsoon and in winter.
The dry season: March to May
From March to May, Kota is one of the driest places you are likely to spend time in India. Evening relative humidity averages 19 percent in March, 13 percent in April and 15 percent in May. Combined with afternoons around 39 to 43 C, that creates classic dry heat.
What it feels like and what to do:
- Sweat evaporates instantly, which cools you well but hides how much water you are losing. Drink steadily through the day, not just when thirsty.
- Skin, lips and eyes dry out. Moisturiser, lip balm and sunglasses help, and eye drops if you wear contact lenses.
- Evaporative coolers work well, because dry air can absorb a lot of water. This is when a desert cooler earns its place.
- Hot winds in the afternoon feel like a hair dryer. Cover your head and neck.
Our Kota heatwave guide covers heat safety in detail.
The sticky stretch: June to September
June is the turning point. By day it is nearly as hot as May, but evening humidity more than doubles to 33 percent on average, and it climbs further in the days before the monsoon arrives. Many residents find this the hardest part of the year: the heat is still there and sweat no longer cools the body as efficiently.
Once the monsoon sets in, humidity jumps to 62 percent in July and 69 percent in August, even in the late afternoon. Temperatures fall, to a mean maximum of 32.2 C in August, but the air is heavy. Comfort depends more on a breeze and a fan than on the thermometer.
- Coolers lose much of their power and can make rooms damp; fans and good ventilation help more.
- Clothes and books can get mouldy. Dry clothes fully and keep a fan running in cupboards or storage areas if possible.
- Heat illness is still possible, especially during breaks in the rain when the sun returns. Keep drinking water.
- Mosquitoes thrive, so use repellent and empty any standing water.
See Kota monsoon for the rain itself.
Drying out: October and November
After the monsoon withdraws in September, humidity drops quickly, to 31 percent in both October and November. October afternoons can still be warm, but the air feels fresher than in September, and by November the combination of dry air and mild temperatures makes for some of the most comfortable weather of the year. See Kota weather in November.
Winter: dry, with damp mornings
Evening humidity in winter is 37 percent in December and 40 percent in January, still dry by most standards. Mornings, though, can be much more humid, and when the air near the ground cools enough, that moisture forms mist or fog, especially over the Chambal and low-lying areas. Expect dry skin and chapped lips by day and the occasional foggy dawn. Read Kota winter weather.
Humidity and winter mist
Higher morning humidity in winter has a visible side effect. IMD’s tables for Kota Airport show 63 percent mean relative humidity at 08:30 IST in December and 67 percent in January, combined with calm air on more than half of mornings. On those mornings the visibility at the observatory is often reduced to 1 to 4 km: about 24 mornings in December and 21 in January. Most of this is mist and haze rather than true fog; real fog, with visibility under 1 km, is recorded on only about 2.9 days a year. See Kota fog for the full picture and travel tips.
Humidity and the “feels like” temperature
Weather apps often show a “feels like” or heat index figure that combines temperature and humidity. In Kota’s dry season, the feels-like value can be close to, or even below, the actual temperature, because dry air lets the body shed heat through sweat. In the humid months, it is often higher than the actual temperature. Neither number changes the advice: in either season, plan outdoor activity for the cooler parts of the day.
Humidity compared with Jaipur
Kota’s humidity pattern is almost identical to Jaipur’s: both average 13 to 22 percent in the hot dry months and reach 69 percent in August. See Kota vs Jaipur weather for the full comparison.
For how temperature and rainfall change through the year alongside humidity, see Kota weather by month and Kota temperature.
Frequently asked questions
Is Kota humid?
For most of the year, no. Kota's average evening relative humidity is 36 percent across the year in IMD normals. It is only humid from late June to September, peaking at 69 percent in August.
What is the driest month in Kota?
April, with an average relative humidity of 13 percent at 17:30 IST, followed by May at 15 percent and March at 19 percent.
Why does June feel worse than May in Kota?
June is only slightly cooler than May by day, but humidity more than doubles, from 15 percent to 33 percent in the evening normals, and rises further as the monsoon nears. Sweat evaporates more slowly, so the body cools less efficiently.
Why are these humidity figures for 17:30?
IMD normals report relative humidity at fixed observation times. Humidity is usually highest around dawn and lowest in the afternoon, so the 17:30 figure is closer to the afternoon low than to the morning high.
Do coolers work in Kota?
Evaporative coolers work best in dry air, which is why they are popular in Kota's April and May. As humidity rises in late June and the monsoon, they cool less and can make rooms feel damp.
Sources
Editorial team, Kota
The Kota Weather team writes from Kota and builds every guide on official IMD climate data, with sources listed on each page.
