Weather in Portugal: What the Full Year Actually Looks Like

Portugal has a genuine claim to some of the best year-round climate in Western Europe, but the country is not climatically uniform (and the difference between Lisbon, Porto, the Algarve, and the interior is significant enough to affect the relocation decision materially. Lisbon is warm, sunny, and mild) around 300 days of sunshine per year, summers that are hot but not oppressive by Mediterranean standards (typically 30 to 35°C, with sea breeze off the Atlantic), and winters that are cool and rainy but short (January average of 12°C). Porto is wetter and cooler (a proper Atlantic city where the rain is a genuine seasonal companion from October through March. The Algarve is the warmest and sunniest region, with a near-Mediterranean climate and the mildest winters in the country. The interior) Alentejo, Trás-os-Montes, Beira Interior, has more extreme seasonal variation: very hot summers and cooler winters than the coast. For most expats coming from the UK, Northern Europe, or the northeastern US, any of these is a meaningful upgrade. The question is which version of Portugal matches what you actually want.