Palma de Mallorca vs Heraklion: which is sunnier?
🇪🇸 Spain vs 🇬🇷 Greece · 2,030 km apart · long-term climate normals (NASA POWER, 2001–2020)
Palma de Mallorca and Heraklion are virtually tied for annual sunshine — about 2,860 vs 2,929 hours a year. Heraklion has the higher Sunshine Score in 10 of 12 months; the other 2 are within 2 points.
Scores are the 0–100 Sunshine Score — sunshine, daytime warmth and dryness in one number, per month.
At a glance
| Palma de Mallorca | Heraklion | |
|---|---|---|
| Sunshine hours / year | 2,860 | 2,929 |
| Sunniest month | July (94/100) | July (96/100) |
| Nov–Feb average score | 52/100 | 60/100 |
| Jun–Aug average score | 93/100 | 96/100 |
| Rain / year | 513 mm | 463 mm |
| Warmest sea | 29°C / 84°F | 28°C / 82°F |
| Peak midday UV | 9 (very high) | 9 (very high) |
Palma de Mallorca vs Heraklion month by month
| Month | Sunshine Score | Day high °C | Rain mm | Sea °C | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Palma de Mallorca | Heraklion | Palma de Mallorca | Heraklion | Palma de Mallorca | Heraklion | Palma de Mallorca | Heraklion | |
| January | 44 | 47 | 14° | 15° | 47 | 88 | 15° | 17° |
| February | 44 | 48 | 14° | 15° | 40 | 75 | 15° | 17° |
| March | 52 | 66 | 15° | 17° | 36 | 42 | 16° | 17° |
| April | 65 | 84 | 17° | 19° | 47 | 23 | 17° | 18° |
| May | 89 | 94 | 20° | 23° | 37 | 15 | 20° | 20° |
| June | 93 | 95 | 25° | 26° | 14 | 5 | 23° | 24° |
| July | 94 | 96 | 28° | 28° | 10 | 2 | 26° | 27° |
| August | 91 | 96 | 28° | 29° | 25 | 4 | 29° | 28° |
| September | 84 | 93 | 26° | 27° | 63 | 18 | 26° | 26° |
| October | 84 | 88 | 23° | 23° | 63 | 46 | 23° | 24° |
| November | 68 | 86 | 18° | 20° | 80 | 59 | 21° | 21° |
| December | 50 | 60 | 15° | 17° | 51 | 86 | 17° | 19° |
The sunnier month by month: Jan Heraklion · Feb Heraklion · Mar Heraklion · Apr Heraklion · May Heraklion · Jun even · Jul even · Aug Heraklion · Sep Heraklion · Oct Heraklion · Nov Heraklion · Dec Heraklion.
When to pick which
- November–February: Heraklion (average score 60/100 vs 52). Heraklion is the warmer, around 17°C daytime highs vs 15°C. See the winter sun ranking.
- March–May: Heraklion (average score 81/100 vs 69). Heraklion is the warmer, around 20°C daytime highs vs 17°C.
- June–August: Heraklion (average score 96/100 vs 93). Daytime highs are similar (27°C vs 28°C).
- September–October: Heraklion (average score 91/100 vs 84). Daytime highs are similar (25°C vs 25°C).
Sea temperature
Palma de Mallorca's sea gets warmer: 29°C / 84°F at its peak vs 28°C. Swimmable water (21°C+): Palma de Mallorca about 6 months a year, Heraklion about 6 months a year. Month-by-month sea temperatures are in the table above.
Full month-by-month guides: Palma de Mallorca weather by month · Heraklion weather by month · Best time to visit Spain · Best time to visit Greece.
More comparisons: Palma de Mallorca vs Barcelona · Palma de Mallorca vs Ibiza (Eivissa) · Palma de Mallorca vs Mahón (Maó) · Heraklion vs Chaniá · Heraklion vs Paphos · Heraklion vs Karpathos · all head-to-heads