Ireland has an oceanic climate, cool and damp, cloudy and rainy throughout the year. Both the diurnal and the annual temperature ranges are narrow, so both the summer heat and the winter frost are rare. 

The island of Ireland is located in Western Europe, on the Atlantic Ocean, between 51 and 55 degrees north latitude. 

Temperatures do not vary much on the island; however, the western coasts are milder in winter and cooler in summer. The southwest coast is particularly mild in winter. 

In Ireland, Atlantic weather fronts move relentlessly one after another over the country, resulting in a rapid succession of cloudiness and sunshine, rain showers, and subsequent improvements. Days with completely clear skies are rare: the weather is more likely to be variable or unstable, and in the interludes between disturbances you can expect, rather than clear skies, clouds running in the sky. 

The sun shines for about 1,300 hours a year in the west, 1,450 hours in Dublin, on the east coast, and up to 1,550 hours on the southeast coast (see Waterford). 

The wind in Ireland is frequent and lively, although it is generally stronger between late autumn and early spring. The windiest area is the northern one (Donegal), which is literally windswept; the (relatively) least windy area is the inland south-eastern one (see Thurles, Kilkenny). 

Rainfall is frequent throughout the island, but especially along the west coast, where it rains on average even more than once every two days; rainfall is more abundant on the slopes of the western hills, where it exceeds 2,000 millimeters (80 inches) per year. In Galway, on the west coast, 1,150 mm (45.5 in) of rainfall per year; in Cork, on the south coast, 1,200 mm (48 in). The least rainy area is the eastern one, where Dublin is located: here the rainfall is around 760 mm (30 in) per year. 

Winter, from December to February, is quite cold but not freezing. The sky is often cloudy, the rains are frequent, and the most intense low-pressure systems can cause wind storms. Temperatures are slightly above freezing during the night, while during the day they range from 7/8 °C (45/46 °F) in inland areas, to 8/10 °C (46/50 °F) along the coasts. 

On milder periods, when southerly air masses reach Ireland, the temperature can reach 15 °C (59 °F) even in winter.