Kabul in 2050: climate change in numbers
Kabul has warmed 2.1 °C, comparing the last ten years (2016–2025) with 1951–1980 — faster than the world as a whole (+1.1 °C). By 2050, its climate is projected to feel like Ankara, Turkey today.
2050 = 2040–2059 average, intermediate emissions (SSP2-4.5), median of CMIP6 climate models. “Today” = 1991–2020. Model range for average temperature: 11.4–12.6 °C.
Kabul: average annual temperature, 1950–2025 (°C)
1950 → 2025. Kabul's warming stripes: each stripe is one year's average temperature.
What Kabul's climate will feel like
Matching temperature, heat extremes, frost days and rainfall against the current climate of more than 1,000 large cities, Kabul's 2050 climate is closest to Ankara, Turkey — about 3,200 km away.
| Kabul today | Kabul 2050 | Ankara today | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average temperature | 9.9 °C | 11.9 °C | 11.9 °C |
| Average daily high | 16.1 °C | 18.2 °C | 17.7 °C |
| Hottest day | 34 °C | 36 °C | 37 °C |
| Frost days | 132 | 114 | 97 |
| Rainfall | 425 mm | 419 mm | 454 mm |
A year in Kabul, day by day
Each square is one day of the year; the coloured squares are the days that cross the threshold in an average year.
Days above 30 °C (86 °F) in Kabul
Tropical nights in Kabul (never cooler than 20 °C)
Frost days in Kabul (below 0 °C)
What changes by 2050
- The average temperature rises a further 2.0 °C compared with 1991–2020 (model range 1.5–2.6 °C).
- Days above 30 °C (86 °F) rise from about 27 a year (1991–2020) to about 59 by 2040–2059.
- Frost days fall from about 132 to 114 a year: shorter, milder winters.
Dangerous heat in Kabul
Even by 2090 under very high emissions, Kabul is not projected to have days with a heat index of 39 °C or more in a typical year. See where dangerous heat spreads worldwide.
Under high emissions
If emissions keep rising (SSP5-8.5), Kabul would average 12.5 °C by 2040–2059, with a hottest day around 36 °C and 71 days above 30 °C (86 °F) a year. By mid-century the scenarios are still close; the choices made now mostly decide what happens after 2050 — see the world in 2050.
More places
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Frequently asked questions
How hot will Kabul be in 2050?
Under an intermediate emissions scenario (SSP2-4.5), Kabul's average annual temperature in 2040–2059 is projected at about 11.9 °C (range 11.4–12.6 °C across climate models), compared with 9.9 °C in 1991–2020. The hottest day of a typical year reaches about 36 °C (97 °F).
Is Kabul getting hotter?
Yes. The last ten years (2016–2025) averaged 2.1 °C warmer than 1951–1980 in Kabul, faster than the global average of 1.1 °C over the same period (Copernicus ERA5).
Which city will Kabul feel like in 2050?
By 2040–2059, Kabul's climate is projected to resemble the climate of Ankara, Turkey today, based on temperature, heat extremes, frost and rainfall.
What would happen under high emissions?
Under a very high emissions scenario (SSP5-8.5), Kabul's average temperature in 2040–2059 is projected at 12.5 °C and the hottest day at about 36 °C. The differences between scenarios grow much larger after 2050.
Sources: World Bank Climate Change Knowledge Portal (CMIP6 0.25°, ERA5 0.25°); Copernicus ERA5 reanalysis (C3S/ECMWF); NASA NEX-GDDP-CMIP6 (Thrasher et al. 2022); GeoNames
Method: Delta method: ERA5 1995–2014 + CMIP6 ensemble change 2040–2059 vs 1995–2014. Values are for the ~25 km grid cell containing the city and can differ from a single weather station, especially for coastal and mountain cities. Methodology · Download CSV
Licence: Derived from ERA5 (CC BY 4.0, Copernicus/ECMWF), CMIP6 via World Bank CCKP (CC BY-SA 4.0) and GeoNames (CC BY 4.0). City data on this site: CC BY-SA 4.0. · Generated 17 October 2026