Direct DWD Climate Data Downloads

DWD
Tutorials
Open Data
Learn how to build and verify direct DWD OpenData download URLs for recent and historical station files, using Berlin monthly data as a worked example.
Author

Climate Explorer Team

Published

March 20, 2026

Modified

August 3, 2026

While the DWD Explorer dashboard provides a powerful interface for visualizing Germany’s high-resolution meteorological data, there are times when you need the raw files in bulk. Whether you are conducting large-scale climate modeling or need an uninterrupted century-long daily temperature record for a specific city, downloading the data directly is the most efficient approach.

The Deutscher Wetterdienst (DWD) hosts its OpenData archive on a structured, predictable HTTP file server. By understanding this structure, you can bypass intermediate tools and manually build direct download URLs.

In this guide, we will walk through the directory logic of the DWD server and show you how to fetch both historical and recent data to create long time series, using monthly air temperature data for Berlin as our example.

The DWD OpenData Directory Base

All German climate observation data is hosted at a single base URL: https://opendata.dwd.de/climate_environment/CDC/observations_germany/climate/

From this base, the directories follow a strict hierarchical logic: [resolution] / [parameter] / [historical or recent] /

  1. Resolution: The temporal granularity of the data. For monthly data, this directory is monthly.
  2. Parameter: The specific meteorological variable. For basic monthly climate data (which includes air temperature), we use kl (Klima).
  3. Historical vs. Recent:
    • historical/: Contains quality-controlled, finalized records. These files typically cover the start of the station’s measurement history up until December 31st of the previous year.
    • recent/: Contains a rolling window of provisional observations that DWD updates more frequently than the historical archive. Inspect the dates inside the downloaded file for its actual coverage.

Naming Conventions for URLs

Because the DWD filenames use German-based abbreviations, you must map the English parameter names to their German counterparts to construct a working URL. The English parameter names corresponding to these codes can be obtained from the DWD User Guide page.

1. File Prefixes by Resolution

The resolution of the data determines the first part of the filename:

Resolution Filename Prefix
10 Minutes 10minutenwerte
Hourly stundenwerte
Daily tageswerte
Monthly monatswerte

2. Common Parameter Abbreviations

The DWD uses short symbols for each meteorological variable. The most common ones available in the DWD Explorer:

English Name DWD Code
Air Temperature TU
Precipitation RR
Wind Speed/Direction FF
Solar Radiation ST
Bundled Climate Record KL

Step 1: Finding Your Station ID and Parameter

To construct a direct URL, you need to know the Station ID and the exact Parameter Code.

The simplest way to find this information is by using the Climate Explorer tools.

  1. Station ID: A unique 5-digit number identifying the weather station. You can find the Station ID in the Stations Info tab within the DWD Explorer dashboard. Simply search for your city name in the table.
    • Example: For Berlin-Tempelhof, the Station ID is 00433.
  2. Parameter Code: A short abbreviation used in the file name itself. The parameter codes are listed in the DWD Explorer User Guide.
    • Example: The bundled monthly climate dataset is referred to as kl, but in the filename, it is often capitalized as KL.

Step 2: Manually Constructing the URL

DWD zip files follow a highly specific naming convention. We will manually construct the URLs piece by piece for Berlin-Tempelhof (00433).

1. Constructing the Recent Data URL

Recent data files always end with the static suffix _akt.zip (aktuell / current). The formula for the file name is: monatswerte_[PARAMETER]_[STATION_ID]_akt.zip

For Berlin-Tempelhof:

  • Prefix: monatswerte_KL_
  • Station ID: 00433
  • Suffix: _akt.zip
  • Filename: monatswerte_KL_00433_akt.zip

Now, append this to the directory path (.../monthly/kl/recent/):

Your Constructed Recent URL: https://opendata.dwd.de/climate_environment/CDC/observations_germany/climate/monthly/kl/recent/monatswerte_KL_00433_akt.zip

(You can paste this exact URL into your browser to download the current ZIP file of recent monthly climate observations for Berlin. Its first and last available months change as DWD updates the archive.)

2. Constructing the Historical Data URL

Historical files are slightly more complex because the file name includes the exact start and end dates (YYYYMMDD) of the dataset.

The formula is: monatswerte_[PARAMETER]_[STATION_ID]_[START_DATE]_[END_DATE]_hist.zip

For Berlin-Tempelhof, the listing uses a start date of 19380101; the end date advances when DWD releases a new finalized historical archive. Do not hard-code the end date in a reusable workflow.

  • Stable filename pattern: monatswerte_KL_00433_19380101_[END_DATE]_hist.zip

How to Find the Exact Start/End Dates:

DWD Open Data monthly historical directory listing

DWD Open Data monthly historical directory listing

If you try to guess the dates in the file name, you may get a “404 Not Found” error. The exact start and end dates differ between stations and change when the historical archive is refreshed. To find the exact file name:

  1. Open the monthly/kl/historical/ directory.
  2. Press Ctrl+F (or Cmd+F on Mac) and search for the 5-digit Station ID, such as 00433.
  3. Copy the link for the matching .zip file exactly as it appears in the current directory listing.

The resulting URL has this form:

https://opendata.dwd.de/climate_environment/CDC/observations_germany/climate/monthly/kl/historical/monatswerte_KL_00433_19380101_[END_DATE]_hist.zip

Step 3: Stitching Together the Long Time Series

If you want a complete, uninterrupted monthly climate record for Berlin-Tempelhof from 1938 to the latest available month, you will use both files:

  1. Download the Historical File: Copy the current historical URL from the DWD directory, download the ZIP archive, and extract the internal .txt data file. This gives you the long, finalized portion of the record through the end date encoded in the filename.
  2. Download the Recent File: Paste the recent URL into your browser, download the zip, and extract its data file. This covers the most recent months not yet included in the historical archive.
  3. Merge the Text Files: Open both .txt files in Excel, Python, or R. Combine the rows, and simply delete any duplicate rows over the overlapping period.

By manually constructing these two URLs, you bypass any intermediate applications and obtain the full Berlin-Tempelhof monthly record available on the DWD OpenData server, straight from the source. For a faster visual overview before downloading, always remember to check the Climate Explorer.

Frequently Asked Questions

How can I download DWD climate data directly?

You can construct direct URLs to the DWD OpenData server (opendata.dwd.de) using the specific station ID, parameter, and time period, bypassing intermediate applications.

What is the difference between recent and historical DWD files?

Recent files with the suffix _akt.zip contain a rolling window of provisional data and are updated frequently, while historical files with the suffix _hist.zip contain longer, finalized records. Read the dates in the files rather than assuming a fixed cutoff.

How do I find the historical file dates for a DWD station?

Because start and end dates vary by station, navigate to the parameter’s historical/ directory on the OpenData server, search for your 5-digit Station ID, and copy the exact current filename.

Data Annex

Metadata field Berlin worked example
Data owner Deutscher Wetterdienst (DWD) Climate Data Center
Station Berlin-Tempelhof
DWD station ID 00433
Dataset Monthly climate observations (monthly/kl)
Temporal resolution Monthly
Important limitation Recent data are provisional; historical filenames and cutoff dates change when DWD refreshes the archive.
File group Filename pattern Interpretation
Recent monatswerte_KL_00433_akt.zip Rolling recent observations; inspect the internal date column for the actual coverage.
Historical monatswerte_KL_00433_19380101_[END_DATE]_hist.zip Finalized long record; copy the current end date from the DWD directory.
Combined series Historical plus recent rows Remove duplicate station-month rows in the overlapping period and preserve the quality-status distinction.

Data Sources