Similar Climates › City Pairings › Baghdad ≈ Riyadh
City Pairings
fair match
Baghdad, Iraq and Riyadh, Saudi Arabia are a fair climate match — 988 km (614 mi) apart. Baghdad is Köppen zone BWh; Riyadh is BWh.
See Baghdad on the interactive map →Baghdad and Riyadh both sit in the hot desert (BWh) zone, so their seasonal arcs line up. They sit only about 988 km (614 mi) apart — a short hop on the atlas for a climate match this close.
It is a fair match — close on the main numbers, with a few seasonal quirks between Baghdad and Riyadh. January means differ by 5°C (Riyadh warmer); July within half a degree.
Sunshine stays close: Riyadh at 10.6 h/day on average versus 10.8 h/day in Baghdad (January 9.4 h / 8.6 h, July 11.7 h / 12.9 h). PM2.5 averages stay near each other (28 µg/m³ in Riyadh, 27 in Baghdad). Humidity: dew point in Riyadh runs about 8°C lower in July (2°C vs 10°C), so the air feels drier.
January & July · °C and mm
Compare Baghdad and Riyadh month by month on the interactive map →
See Riyadh's climate twin on its own page.
On Similar Climates, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia is the closest distant match for Baghdad, Iraq — scored fair, about 988 km (614 mi) away.
Baghdad and Riyadh are separated by roughly 988 km (614 mi) on the great-circle route.
Yes — both cities are in the same hemisphere, so summer and winter fall in the same calendar months.
Yes — both are hot desert (BWh).
Baghdad has a hot desert climate (BWh). January averages a high of 16°C and a low of 4°C with 26 mm of rain; July averages 44°C / 27°C and 0 mm.
Baghdad averages about 8.6 hours of sunshine a day in January and 12.9 hours in July.
January PM2.5 averages about 30.2 µg/m³ (US AQI 91); July averages 23.8 µg/m³ (US AQI 79).
Other close climate matches for Baghdad: Las Vegas (loose), Phoenix (loose), Marrakesh (loose).
All hot desert (BWh) cities on Similar Climates →
Explore Baghdad and Riyadh on the interactive map →