Malaysia is fairly hot and humid throughout the year with temperatures ranging from 21 degrees to 32 degrees Celsius in the lowlands. Humidity is between 85% and 95% but temperatures rarely climb above 32 degrees during the daytime and 23 degrees at night. The extreme heat found in some countries rarely occurs here. In the highlands, temperatures can fall to as low as 16 degrees Celsius. Annual rainfall is heavy at 2,500mm (100 inches), and there are frequent heavy downpours with thunder and lightning.

There are two fairly distinct seasons in Malaysia, with the dry season occurring during the south-west monsoon from May to September, and the rainy season during the northeast monsoon from mid-November till March. However, rain interspersed with dry, hot spells occurs throughout the year.