Satellite: Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 by EOX (CC BY 4.0). Outline and points © OpenStreetMap contributors / Natural Earth. North up.
In numbers
380km²
Area
94km
Coastline
measured on a simplified outline
241m
Highest point
140,459
People
17°C
Warmest sea
August
97km
To the mainland
When to go to Isle of Wight
Best to visit from July to September.
The sea is warmest in August (17 °C) and coolest in March (8 °C). The water never reaches 21 °C: bring a wetsuit.
Averages 1991–2020. Sea: NOAA OISST, the water within 35 km of the coast. Air, rain and sun: NASA POWER. Best months weigh warm afternoons (23–30 °C), sea of 24 °C or more and few wet days.
Island, county and unitary authority area of England, United Kingdom
Isle of Wight is an island in United Kingdom. It covers 380 km², with 94 km of coastline. Its highest point rises to 241 m. About 140,459 people live on it. The nearest mainland is 97 km away.
Getting there
- Southampton Airport (SOU)nearest airport with scheduled flights · 28 km in a straight lineCar hire at SOU airport (Southampton)Discover Cars · Affiliate link↗
- FerriesWightlink Yarmouth - Lymington, Southampton - East Cowes, Southampton - Cowes, Cowes Floating Bridge (Chain Ferry)
- 97 km from the mainlanddistance to the nearest continental coast
- From July to Septemberbest months to go (from 30 years of averages)
Plan the trip
Ferries, stays and things to do
Some links above are affiliate links: if you book through them we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you. It never changes what the data on this page says.
On the island
What you find on Isle of Wight.
- 90beachesSmall Hope Beach, Bembridge Point Beach, Welcome Beach and 87 more
- 29viewpointsTennyson Monument, Mottistone Down, Winkle Street and 26 more
- 1lighthousesEgypt Point Light (Disused)
- 17ferry terminalsYarmouth Quay, Wightlink Fishbourne Car Ferry terminal, Ryde Pier Head and 14 more
- 13marinasRyde Harbour, Cowes Yacht Haven, Proposed Marina (Victoria Quays Development) and 10 more
- 41named peaksSt Boniface Down, St Catherines Hill, Shanklin Down and 38 more
- 2waterfalls
- 12castles and fortsPill Box, Osborne House, Garden and Grounds, Carisbrooke Castle and 9 more
- 31ruins and archaeological sitesHeadon Warren Barrow, The Longstone, Gallibury Hump and 28 more
- 39waymarked walking routesYar River Trail, Isle of Wight Coastal Path, Worsley Trail and 36 more
- 62campsitesCorf Camp (Scouts), Alverstone Ponds, Comforts Farm (Caravan Park) and 59 more
- 324hotels, guesthouses and apartments
- 401restaurants, cafés and bars
Counted in OpenStreetMap, the map anyone can edit, inside the island's outline. A low number may only mean nobody has mapped it yet.
Cross-checked with our atlases
Isle of Wight in our other atlases
Everything Coastya, Peakyas, Lakeyas and Cascadyas know about what lies inside Isle of Wight, each with its own numbers.
4beaches and covesCoastya
Beach with the warmest sea
17.8°C
Bembridge Beach
sea in the warmest month · according to Coastya
4 beaches
on Coastya, the beach atlas
- Bembridge Beach17.8°C
- Ventnor Beach17.8°C
- Steephill Covecove17.8°C
- Castle Covecove17.8°C
The shape of the land.
On average the island stands 48 m above the sea. 99 % of it is below 200 m.
- 64 %0–50 m
- 35 %50–200 m
- <1 %200–500 m
Share of the island's area in each altitude band, from the Copernicus DEM (30 m, read at 30–240 m on large islands).
Size, for real
Next to islands you may know.
20 km
All outlines drawn to the same scale (Natural Earth and OpenStreetMap).
Towns on the island
- Newport24,884 people
- Ryde24,096 people
- Cowes21,226 people
- Sandown20,155 people
- East Cowes8,428 people
- Shanklin8,055 people
- Freshwater7,829 people
- Ventnor5,976 people
- Wootton4,231 people
- Bembridge3,688 people
- Totland2,927 people
- Seaview2,337 people
Month by month
The weather on the island.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Afternoon high (°C) | 9 | 8 | 9 | 11 | 13 | 16 | 18 | 18 | 18 | 15 | 12 | 10 |
| Night low (°C) | 7 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 11 | 13 | 16 | 16 | 15 | 13 | 10 | 8 |
| Sea (°C) | 9 | 8 | 8 | 9 | 11 | 14 | 16 | 17 | 17 | 16 | 13 | 11 |
| Rain (mm) | 86 | 67 | 59 | 45 | 49 | 49 | 51 | 58 | 46 | 88 | 96 | 94 |
| Wet days | 15 | 12 | 11 | 11 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 11 | 11 | 15 | 16 | 15 |
| Sun h/day | 1.5 | 2.8 | 4.7 | 7.4 | 8.2 | 8.8 | 8.7 | 7.4 | 6.2 | 3.5 | 1.9 | 1.2 |
| Wind (km/h) | 31 | 30 | 26 | 22 | 21 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 24 | 28 | 29 | 31 |
Averages 1991–2020 for the ~55 km NASA POWER cell over the island; the sea from NOAA OISST.
Recent years
Warmer and cooler years at sea.
Each month's sea temperature compared with its 1991–2020 average, in degrees.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | +0.9 | +1.0 | +0.8 | +0.6 | +0.6 | +1.0 | +0.8 | +1.0 | +0.7 | −0.1 | +0.2 | +0.8 |
| 2021 | +0.5 | +0.1 | +0.1 | −0.6 | −0.7 | −0.2 | ±0.0 | +0.1 | +0.7 | +0.9 | +0.7 | +0.2 |
| 2022 | +0.7 | +0.8 | +1.1 | +1.0 | +1.5 | +1.2 | +1.6 | +1.6 | +1.6 | +1.0 | +1.5 | +0.5 |
| 2023 | +1.0 | +0.2 | +0.3 | +0.4 | +0.7 | +1.2 | +1.2 | +0.2 | +1.1 | +1.2 | +0.5 | +0.5 |
| 2024 | +0.5 | +0.9 | +1.4 | +1.5 | +1.2 | +1.2 | +1.1 | +1.0 | +0.3 | +0.5 | +0.9 | +0.3 |
| 2025 | +0.3 | ±0.0 | +0.4 | +1.0 | +1.2 | +1.7 | +2.1 | +1.1 | +0.4 | +0.2 | +0.2 | +0.4 |
+1 warmer than usual −1 cooler than usual
Photos
Seen by visitors.
Nearby
More islands nearby.
Brownsea Island
United Kingdom2.1 km²39 m47 km away
Isle of PortlandUnited Kingdom12 km²149 m82 km away
Alderney
Guernsey8.1 km²90 m127 km away
GuernseyGuernsey63 km²110 m166 km away
SarkGuernsey5.3 km²114 m160 km awayBarry IslandUnited Kingdom41 m158 km away
HermGuernsey1.3 km²66 m159 km away
Jersey
Jersey120 km²143 m176 km awayAbout these numbers
| Names, area, population | Wikidata (Q9679) · CC0 |
|---|---|
| Outline | Natural Earth · public domain |
| Sea temperature | NOAA OISST v2.1 · 1991–2020 |
| Climate | NASA POWER · 1991–2020 |
| Relief, 3D model | Copernicus DEM GLO-30 · © DLR e.V., © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, Copernicus/ESA |
| Beaches, ports, lighthouses, trails | © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL |
| Towns | GeoNames · CC BY 4.0 |
| Images | EOX Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 · CC BY 4.0; Wikimedia Commons |
| Beaches, mountains, lakes and waterfalls | Coastya — Wikidata · CC0; © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL; GeoNames · CC BY 4.0; NOAA OISST |
Every figure is an average, an estimate or a count from a public dataset. Licences and methods: data sources.
The family
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