The most active basin in the year was the Western Pacific, which documented 25 named systems, while the North Atlantic saw its fifth-most-active season on record, tied with 1887, 1995, 2010, and 2011.

Activity across the southern hemisphere's three basins—South-West Indian, Australian, and South Pacific—was spread evenly, with each region recording seven named storms apiece.

The accumulated cyclone energy (ACE) index for the 2012 (seven basins combined), as calculated by Colorado State University was 740.5 units.

The strongest tropical cyclone was Typhoon Sanba, which strengthened to a minimum barometric pressure of 900 mbar (hPa; 26.58 inHg) before striking South Korea.

The costliest tropical cyclone of the year was Hurricane Sandy, which caused $68.7 billion (2012 USD) in damages after striking the Caribbean and United States.

During the month of May to November along the Pacific hurricane season a favorable organization began due to the sea surface temperatures and the formation of El Niño–Southern Oscillation.