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The COVID-19 outbreak emerged in Wuhan, China, and was declared a global pandemic in March 2020. This study aimed to explore the association of daily mean temperature with the daily counts of COVID-19 cases in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen, China. Data on daily confirmed cases of COVID-19 and daily mean temperatures were retrieved from the 4 first-tier cities in China. Distributed lag nonlinear models (DLNMs) were used to assess the association between daily mean temperature and the daily cases of COVID-19 during the study period. After controlling for the imported risk index and long-term trends, the distributed lag nonlinear model showed that there were nonlinear and lag relationships. The daily cumulative relative risk decreased for every 1.0 °C change in temperature in Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen. However, the cumulative relative risk increased with a daily mean temperature below − 3 °C in Beijing and then decreased. Moreover, the delayed effects of lower temperatures mostly occurred within 6–7 days of exposure. There was a negative correlation between the cumulative relative risk of COVID-19 incidence and temperature, especially when the temperature was higher than − 3 °C. The conclusions from this paper will help government and health regulators in these cities take prevention and protection measures to address the COVID-19 crisis and the possible collapse of the health system in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]