August weather in Malta: hot days, warmer nights and two different summers

The same month, a different thermostat

August in Malta has a reputation to maintain. There are swims to fit in, shaded tables to negotiate and a car steering wheel that would quite like to become a frying pan. Yet “August is hot” leaves out the useful part: how hot, for how long, and whether the night gives you a break.

Weather.mt’s saved forecasts for August 2024 and August 2025 tell two different stories. At Mosta, our central Malta reference point, the monthly mean was 27.9°C in 2024 against 26.4°C in 2025. That is a difference of about 1.6°C across the full month, rather than a comparison between two unusually hot afternoons.

The average daily high fell from 30.6°C to 29.2°C, while the average daily low fell from 25.4°C to 23.9°C. In other words, the difference ran through both the warmest and coolest parts of the day. August 2025 still looked thoroughly summery; it simply spent less time with the thermostat turned up.

Fewer 30-degree days, without cancelling summer

The Mosta series reached at least 30°C on 22 of the 31 days in August 2024. In 2025, that happened on 12 days. The highest hourly value at Mosta was 32.8°C on 10 August 2024, against 31.4°C on 10 August 2025. These are peaks in the saved forecasts, rather than official thermometer records.

There is a useful distinction here between a month with a higher average and a month containing one dramatic spike. August 2024’s character came from persistent warmth: repeated days around or above 30°C, supported by high overnight temperatures. One exceptional afternoon would not tell that story on its own.

The daily profile also resists the idea that August must cool down steadily as the calendar advances. In 2025, Mosta’s first ten days averaged 25.8°C and the closing eleven averaged 26.5°C. The month finished slightly warmer than it began. The calendar may promise approaching autumn; the atmosphere has not signed anything.

Three parts of August, rather than one long hot afternoon

The 2025 Mosta series opened at a lower level: its first ten days averaged 25.8°C. The middle ten averaged about 26.9°C, while the final eleven averaged 26.5°C. The warmer background developed after the opening stretch, rather than being strongest on the first page of the calendar.

The lowest hourly value, 21.3°C on August 2, belongs to that cooler opening. Later in the month, August 21 had a daily mean of about 27.9°C. That latter figure describes warmth sustained across many hours, not simply a short afternoon peak. It is another way of seeing why nights deserve a place in the summer story.

In 2024, the opening ten-day mean was already 28.0°C and the final ten averaged 27.4°C. Its background therefore stayed at a higher level even as it eased near the end. The two Augusts were different in persistence as well as in their highest values, which is what makes the daily profile worth reading alongside the summary table.

The night shift matters

Anyone who has waited for a bedroom to cool down knows that the afternoon maximum is only half the story. We counted nights where every hourly temperature from midnight through 06:00 stayed at or above 24°C. Mosta had 30 such nights in August 2024, compared with 18 in 2025.

This is a simple way to describe persistent overnight warmth, rather than a medical comfort index or a formal heatwave definition. Indoor temperatures depend on buildings, ventilation and air conditioning, and humidity changes how the air feels. Even so, the contrast helps explain what a daily high alone can hide: two sunny months can offer quite different amounts of overnight relief.

For someone choosing between a busy daytime itinerary and a slower evening schedule, that distinction is useful. A cooler night in the forecast does not erase a hot afternoon, but it does change the rhythm of the day. August deserves to be judged on more than the number you see at lunchtime.

What about Sliema, the south and the smaller islands?

The same direction appears at all six locations shared by both years. Sliema’s monthly mean fell from 28.4°C to 26.8°C; Marsaxlokk’s from 28.6°C to 26.9°C; and Comino’s from 28.6°C to 27.0°C. The Victoria, Gozo point moved from 27.4°C to 25.9°C. This makes the cooler 2025 pattern broader than one Mosta series.

These are location forecasts, so small differences should not become a league table of Malta’s hottest streets. Neighbouring points can be very similar, and a model’s daily range is not a substitute for a local weather station. Dingli and Mosta, for example, have almost identical monthly means in these files.

The useful finding is the shared year-to-year movement. The six-point comparison gives us a consistent view of Malta, Gozo and Comino without allowing the much larger number of archived locations in 2025 to change the comparison halfway through.

Mostly dry, with a little more breeze in 2025

Mosta’s forecast rainfall added up to 4.8 mm in August 2024 and 1.3 mm in August 2025. Using a threshold of at least 1 mm in a day, the 2024 series had two wet days and the 2025 series had none. Most of the 2024 total came on 22 and 28 August, rather than from frequent rain throughout the month.

That does not mean every beach stayed dry, or that the islands experienced exactly these measured totals. It shows that rain was a minor part of the Mosta forecast picture in both months. A few short showers and an entire wet holiday are very different propositions; the monthly total needs its daily context.

Average hourly wind speed at Mosta rose from about 4.0 m/s to 4.5 m/s. The highest hourly speeds were 10.1 m/s and 9.5 m/s respectively, both Beaufort force 5. So 2025 had the higher average breeze without the higher peak. Average wind and maximum wind answer different questions—particularly when a beach umbrella is involved.

The change into September was much larger in 2024

Mosta’s mean fell from 27.9°C in August 2024 to 25.1°C in September, a reduction of about 2.8°C. In 2025 it fell from 26.4°C to 25.4°C, a smaller change of about 1.0°C. The same pair of month names therefore described different-sized seasonal steps in the two years.

That comparison adds useful perspective to August 2025’s lower temperature level. September 2025 was slightly warmer on its monthly mean than September 2024, so the gap between the two summers narrowed and changed direction as the season moved on. A cooler August did not lock the rest of the year into a cooler outcome.

For anyone choosing between a late-summer and an early-autumn visit, the point is the range of possible transitions. A monthly archive gives examples of how the season unfolded, while the forecast closer to the date supplies the relevant conditions. The atmosphere does not reduce every temperature by the same amount when somebody turns the calendar over.

Three August dates worth opening

August 10 is the warmest-hour date at Mosta in both years: 32.8°C in 2024 and 31.4°C in 2025. It offers a neat entry point into the two archives, although comparing the same hour as well as the daily peak gives a fuller view of the difference.

August 2, 2025 supplies the cooler example, with its 21.3°C early-morning low. August 22, 2024 adds the rain story: 2.7 mm in the complete daily series, the largest daily amount of that month. These examples show why a summer review needs more than a ranking of hot afternoons.

Use the date links below to begin with one of those points, then move through nearby hours. That makes the archive useful for an actual visit or memory, rather than leaving the article as a list of averages. An especially warm hour, a relatively fresh morning and a small rain interruption can all belong to the same August story.

What these two Augusts tell us

The strongest finding is persistence: August 2024 combined more 30-degree days with warmer nights, while August 2025 offered a cooler overall profile and a little more average wind. Both remained largely dry in the Mosta series. These are useful contrasts between two summers, rather than evidence that every future August will follow either script.

For a future visit, use this article to understand the range of conditions that can sit behind the word “August”, then check the current forecast as the date approaches. For a date already in the past, the archive tool lets you inspect the saved forecast around a particular day and hour. And if you want to see what happens when summer starts sharing the calendar, September is the next chapter.

Around the islands