Lugano is amongst the warmest places in Switzerland, along with Locarno and Grono. Lugano has a rare humid subtropical climate for the latitude, closely bordering on a subtropical oceanic climate due to the warmer average being 22 °C (71.6 °F). Although the US National Academy of Sciences considers a sea-like climate, the vegetation is from the subtropics with deciduous forest. It is characterized by relatively mild winters and warm humid summers. It has an average of 98.1 days of rain or snow per year and on average receives 1,559 mm (61.4 in) of precipitation. The wettest month is May during which Lugano receives an average of 196 mm (7.7 in) of rain, while the driest month of the year is February with an average of 52 mm (2.0 in) of precipitation over 4.6 days.
Located on a plains in southern Switzerland and protected by the Alps and lakes, the climate is one of the mildest in the country, typical of the Italian Lakes in the Insubrian region. In addition, the precipitation is lower than in many other places as well as the deviations of temperature. Lugano is also one of the sunniest Swiss cities. The greatest precipitates anticipate and succeed much of the summer. Winter freezing temperatures are more common on the night of January (between 27 and 28 days), but the low temperatures remains are rare and do not occur every year. Much of the summer is pleasant, but warm days above 30 °C (86 °F) are not uncommon (average of about 8 days).
The highest temperature recorded in Lugano is 38.0 °C (100.4 °F), recorded in July 1945, with the lowest temperature recorded being −14.0 °C (6.8 °F), recorded in February 1929.