Major storm and rain events pushed winter rainfall totals well above their long-term average for coastal parts of New South Wales, with Sydney seeing its third wettest August since 1858, according to the Bureau of Meteorology.
In contrast, areas of inland NSW, the Melbourne area and much of Tasmania had lower than average rainfall this winter.
The country had its second coolest winter this decade, the bureau data shows, but temperatures were still almost half a degree above the long-term average.
“It’s been a complex winter,” said David Gooding, climate team lead at the bureau.
“The high rainfall along the NSW coast was down to a few key events – those low-pressure systems that we saw.”
From the Illawarra region south of Sydney to the Queensland border, Gooding said rainfall for August was between two and four times the average.
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Cool-season rainfall in those areas – the period spanning from April to the end of August – was also well above average.
This winter the NSW coast was smashed with a “vigorous” coastal low at the beginning of July and a further low-pressure system in late July brought more torrential downpours.
Sydney had its wettest start to August for more than a decade, while farther north, the Byron writers festival was cancelled because of the rain.
Sydney’s Observatory Hill rain gauge, where the data goes back to 1858, recorded 389.6mm – the third wettest August on record.
But that was still almost 100mm below the record-setting August of 1998, when 482.6mm fell in Sydney.
Perth also had its wettest winter since 1996, Gooding said, with more than 500mm falling there.
Increases in ocean temperatures around the globe and Australia have been linked to global heating. Sea surface temperatures in June and July were above average off the NSW and Perth coasts.
Gooding said warmer ocean temperatures “give more energy for rain and storms”.
For temperatures, the winter of 2025 was the 25th warmest on record but the second coolest this decade behind 2022. But the continent-wide temperature was still 0.48C above the long-term average taken from 1961 to 1990.
Night-time temperatures were close to average for the country this winter, but maximums were 0.83C above average.
The relatively cool winter comes after the 2023 and 2024 winters that were the hottest and second-hottest on record respectively.
“Maximum temperatures have been above average for most of the country, but closer to average in inland areas,” Gooding said.
“With those cooler temperatures and some Antarctic fronts coming through, we have also had a close to average snow season.”
More rain is predicted for eastern Australia in coming months, with the bureau’s forecast for spring also pointing to warmer than average night-time temperatures over almost the entire country.
Australia’s climate has warmed by 1.5C since the bureau’s continent-wide record started in 1910.
The 12-month period up to March this year was hotter than any other 12-month period on the nation’s record.
