Lead chart · Met Office HadUK-Grid, summer (June–August) daytime highs
UK summer daytime highs hit a new peak in 2026
Across the UK, June–August daily maximum temperatures averaged 21.31°C in 2026 (provisional), above 1976’s 21.00°C and the highest in Met Office records that start in 1884. Yet only about 2–3% of homes have any cooling.
Source: Met Office HadUK-Grid, UK mean daily maximum temperature · checked 29 October 2026
How we read this Each dot is the June–August average of daily maximum temperatures across the UK, from the "sum" column of the file updated 1 October 2026. We show every year from 1991 plus 1976 for comparison; 2026 is the latest data and the Met Office may revise it.
Show the numbers
| Label | °C | Note |
|---|---|---|
| 1976 | 21.00° | 1976: the old benchmark |
| 1991 | 18.34° | |
| 1992 | 18.46° | |
| 1993 | 17.49° | |
| 1994 | 18.69° | |
| 1995 | 20.64° | |
| 1996 | 18.87° | |
| 1997 | 19.38° | |
| 1998 | 17.62° | |
| 1999 | 18.77° | |
| 2000 | 18.39° | |
| 2001 | 18.57° | |
| 2002 | 18.39° | |
| 2003 | 20.26° | |
| 2004 | 18.93° | |
| 2005 | 19.09° | |
| 2006 | 20.49° | |
| 2007 | 18.09° | |
| 2008 | 18.40° | |
| 2009 | 18.99° | |
| 2010 | 18.96° | |
| 2011 | 17.97° | |
| 2012 | 17.74° | |
| 2013 | 19.75° | |
| 2014 | 19.28° | |
| 2015 | 18.21° | |
| 2016 | 18.97° | |
| 2017 | 18.76° | |
| 2018 | 20.62° | |
| 2019 | 19.36° | |
| 2020 | 18.84° | |
| 2021 | 19.57° | |
| 2022 | 20.56° | |
| 2023 | 19.75° | |
| 2024 | 18.62° | |
| 2025 | 20.66° | |
| 2026 | 21.31° | 2026, provisional |
19 chart pages · 69 charts · every figure sourced and dated
Heat How hot UK summers and homes get, and who is at risk
- Heat
UK summer temperatures: how hot the days now get
Summer 2026 beat 1976 for UK daytime highs, and recent summers crowd the top - Heat
Heat deaths in England, summer by summer
Summer 2022 had the highest estimate in England's 2016–2025 series - Heat
House overheating in summer: how many homes, and why
Homes reported as overheating rose from 7% to 12% between 2019 and 2024 - Heat
Is air conditioning worth it in the UK?
A 2018-style hot summer could become a coin toss by mid-century - Heat
How to keep your house cool without AC
Nine in ten households who overheat open windows; only 7% switch on AC
Kit Split, portable and heat pump equipment, compared on declared figures
- Kit
Portable vs split air conditioner: what the numbers say
Single splits are the most common fixed cooling in UK homes, about 64,000 by 2024 - Kit
Single hose vs dual hose portable air conditioners
US tests rate portables with 35.0°C outdoor air against a 26.7°C room - Kit
Air to air vs air to water heat pump
Air-to-air gets £2,500 under BUS, a third of the standard air-to-water grant - Kit
SEER and SCOP explained, with every label threshold
An A+++ cooling label needs a SEER of 8.50 or more; G is anything under 2.60 - Kit
R32 vs R290 refrigerant: the numbers and the rules
R290's global warming potential is 3, against 675 for R32 and 2,088 for R410A
Money Running costs, grants, VAT and installed prices
- Money
How much air con costs to run in the UK
The capped electricity unit rate rose to 26.32p in October 2026, with VAT removed - Money
The Boiler Upgrade Scheme air-to-air heat pump grant
Air-to-air gets £2,500 under BUS, a third of the air-to-water grant - Money
VAT on air conditioning installation and heat pumps
Fitted AC can pay 0% VAT to March 2027; portables and supply-only kit pay 20% - Money
Air source heat pump cost in the UK, by quarter
The median air-to-water install has stayed between £12,000 and £13,600 since 2022
Rules Planning, noise, F-gas, electrics, leases and servicing
- Rules
Planning permission for air conditioning, nation by nation
In England a house can take an outdoor unit 2.5 times the size a block of flats can - Rules
Air conditioning noise and neighbours: the 37 dB rule
Outdoor units we checked declare 56 to 65 dB(A) of sound power - Rules
F-gas certified installers, electricians and who does what
A Category 2 certificate stops at 3 kg of refrigerant, or 6 kg if sealed - Rules
Air conditioning in a leasehold flat or listed building
A block of flats gets 0.6 m³ in England and 1 m³ in Wales, against 1.5 m³ for a house - Rules
Air conditioning servicing: leak checks and owner jobs
Bigger refrigerant charges mean more frequent legal leak checks
How these charts are made
- Numbers come from the bodies that publish them: the Met Office, UKHSA, DESNZ, Ofgem, HMRC, MCS and the legislation itself.
- Every chart names its source and the date we checked it. Provisional figures and method changes are flagged on the chart.
- Where we work something out (running costs, for example), the chart says “worked example” and shows the inputs.