Marrakech weather in August
Marrakech weather in August: highs of 37.4 °C, lows of 21.1 °C and about 5 mm of rain. Keep the middle of the day for shade; go out early or after 6 pm.
In August, Marrakech is almost as hot as in July: the average high is 37.4 °C, the average low 21.1 °C, and only about 5 mm of rain falls in the month. The middle of the day is very hot, so time outdoors belongs to the early morning and to the hours after about 6 pm.
What is the weather like in Marrakech in August?
August is the second-hottest month of the year in Marrakech, measured at the Menara weather station over 1991–2020. The average afternoon high is 37.4 °C, barely below July, and heatwaves go well beyond it: the station record is 49.6 °C. The nights are the warmest of the year, with an average low of 21.1 °C, so the heat eases after dark without really going away.
The air stays dry, with an average humidity of 47 %, the same as in July. Rain is rare but not absent: 4.7 mm on average, over 0.8 days with at least 1 mm. It often comes as a single storm rather than a wet spell.
The sun shines about 315 hours in the month, around ten hours a day. The day works in three parts: a pleasant early morning, a long, hot stretch from late morning to late afternoon when the open ground is hard to bear, and a warm evening that is the easiest time to be outside.
August compared with July and September
| Month | Average high | Average low | Rain | Rainy days | Sunshine | Sunset (15th) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| July | 37.7 °C | 20.6 °C | 2.2 mm | 0.3 | 330 h | 19:38 |
| August | 37.4 °C | 21.1 °C | 4.7 mm | 0.8 | 315 h | 19:15 |
| September | 32.5 °C | 18.6 °C | 15.2 mm | 1.3 | 267 h | 18:37 |
August and July are two halves of the same peak: the days are within half a degree of each other, and August’s nights are slightly warmer. The change comes after. By September, the average high drops by about 5 °C, the nights cool down and the first autumn rain appears.
For the months on either side, see Marrakech weather in July and Marrakech weather in September.
Sunrise and sunset in August
On 15 August the sun rises at about 5:57 am and sets at about 7:15 pm, at GMT (UTC+0), the time in Morocco since 20 September 2026: a little over 13 hours of daylight. The evenings are getting shorter: sunset comes some 20 minutes earlier than in mid-July, and by mid-September it is at about 6:37 pm.
Morocco’s time changes neither in summer nor during Ramadan.
In August, the afternoon departure in Agafay is at 5:00 pm, and the meeting point at the base is at the start time. Sunset in mid-August is at about 7:15 pm. Agafay at sunset gives the sunset time month by month and the fixed afternoon departures.
The Agafay desert in August
The Agafay desert, 45 minutes by road south-west of the city, has the same climate as Marrakech: afternoons around 37 °C and dry air. What changes is the exposure. The plateau is open, with very little shade, so the midday sun is harder there than in the city streets. Once the sun is down, the ground loses its heat quickly, even in August, although the average low stays around 21 °C.
In August, choose the time of day before the outing:
- Early morning. Sunrise is the coolest hour of the day; the hot air balloon flight near Marrakech takes off at that moment.
- The afternoon departure. The quad, camel and sunset dinner leaves at 5:00 pm in August: the quad, the camels, and dinner under the tents. If you would rather not ride, dinner and live music is an evening at the camp, with departures at 5:00 pm and 8:00 pm, dinner at low tables and live music through the meal.
Keep away from the plateau in the hours around midday.
What to wear in Marrakech in August
With highs of 37.4 °C, dress for the sun:
- light, loose clothes that cover your arms and legs, in a breathable fabric;
- a hat, sunglasses and sun cream;
- water at all times, in the city as in the desert.
For a quad ride, add closed shoes, long trousers you do not mind getting dusty, and a scarf or buff to pull over your face against the dust. With nights around 21 °C, a light layer is all you need for an evening in the desert. What to wear quad biking in Agafay goes through the kit piece by piece.
Is August a good time to visit Marrakech?
August is, with July, the hardest month of the year for heat: average highs of 37 to 38 °C, heatwaves well above that, and the warmest nights of the year. In exchange, it is almost always dry and sunny, with long evenings that stay light until after 7 pm for most of the month.
It suits travellers who like the heat and organise their days around it: an early start, a long break in the shade at midday, and evenings outdoors. If you want comfortable weather for whole days outside, spring and autumn are easier; Marrakech weather month by month compares all twelve months.
