Which is better "el tiempo" or "el clima"?

[jakebvt]

Let's say I were in a taxi in South Florida and I wanted to strike up a conversation with my driver about the weather... should I use el tiempo or el clima or does it not matter? Is there any difference? I couldn't find one in the dictionary I'm using. Is it regional?

[AngelicaDeAlquezar]

It's regional.
Although the correct form is "el tiempo", in places like Mexico we use more often "el clima", as if they were perfect synonyms. "El tiempo" is always understood anyway. :)

[jakebvt]

Okay thanks I will try to default to el tiempo but keep el clima in the back of my mind so I understand when I go to Mexico.

[poli]

In Spanish commonly spoken the USA, weather is tiempo and climate is clima.

[Glen]

In Spanish commonly spoken the USA, weather is tiempo and climate is clima.
That helps me, to keep me from confusing tiempo with "time"