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Victoria just had its warmest April on record

April was exactly 1°C warmer than the long-term average across Australia, but the warmth was even more pronounced in Victoria, where temperatures were 2.37°C higher than the long-term average.

That made it Victoria's warmest April since national record-keeping commenced in 1910, while for Australia as a whole it was the 14th-warmest.

In keeping with the underlying influence of the warming climate, every Australian state and territory saw above-average temperatures in April 2025.

All eight Australian capital cities had warmer average minimum temperatures than usual, while seven of the eight Australian capitals had warmer average maximums than usual.

The exception was Darwin, where daily highs were –0.4°C below average due largely to its very wet April (259mm vs the long-term average of 100.5mm).

The four warmest capital cities in April 2025 in terms of their maximum temperature anomaly were all in Australia's southeast: 

• Adelaide: The average April 2025 maximum of 25.2°C was 3.0°C above the long-term average.
• Melbourne: The average April 2025 maximum of 23.2°C was 2.9°C above the long-term average.
• Sydney: The average April 2025 maximum of 25.2°C was 2.7°C above the long-term average.
• Canberra: The average April 2025 maximum of 23.5°C was 2.7°C above the long-term average.

The record April warmth in Victoria is well-illustrated in the BoM’s map of temperature deciles below, while the blue blob in Queensland is consistent with a second consecutive month of significant rainfall in parts of the outback which helped keep daytime temperatures down.

Image: Mean temperature deciles for April 2025 across Australia. Source: BoM. 

In addition to being warm, Victoria was dry in April 2025, with rainfall well below normal in much of the state, as illustrated in the map below. Most of Tasmania, eastern SA and central parts of southern NSW were also dry, in a continuation of the recent trend.

Image: Rainfall deciles for April 2025 across Australia. Source: BoM. 

For Victorians and people just over the SA and NSW border or across Bass Strait who are hoping for cooler, wetter conditions than usual in the next couple of months, the broad outlook is not so great.

The BoM’s long-range forecast overview for the period from May through till the end of July calls for:

• The likelihood of below-average rainfall in Australia's southwest, east, and much of the north.
• The likelihood of warmer than average days across most of Australia, with an increased chance of unusually high daytime temperatures, particularly across southern Australia.
• The likelihood of warmer than average nights across most of Australia, with an increased chance of unusually high overnight temperatures, particularly across far southern Australia.

As if to emphasise the above, Melbourne is kicking off this week with a pair of very balmy May days with tops around 25°C expected on both Monday and Tuesday. Maximums will dip briefly into the teens on Thursday and Friday before again reaching the 20s by the weekend.