Climate and Average Weather Year Round in South Africa

We show the climate in South Africa by comparing the average weather in 3 representative places: Cape Town, Johannesburg, and Durban.

You can add or remove cities to customize the report to your liking. See all locations in South Africa.

You can drill down to a specific season, month, and even day by clicking the graphs or using the navigation panel.

Cape Town
South Africa
Johannesburg
South Africa
Durban
South Africa
Map

Average High and Low Temperature in South Africa

Average High and Low Temperature in South AfricaJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec30°F30°F35°F35°F40°F40°F45°F45°F50°F50°F55°F55°F60°F60°F65°F65°F70°F70°F75°F75°F80°F80°F85°F85°F90°F90°F634876625936787357827245316088NowNowCape TownCape TownJohannesburgJohannesburgDurbanDurban
The daily average high and low air temperature at 2 meters above the ground. The thin dotted lines are the corresponding perceived temperatures.
HighJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Cape Town 76°F76°F74°F71°F67°F63°F63°F63°F65°F69°F71°F74°F
Johannesburg 78°F77°F75°F71°F67°F62°F62°F68°F73°F75°F76°F77°F
Durban 81°F82°F81°F78°F76°F73°F73°F73°F74°F75°F77°F80°F
LowJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Cape Town 63°F63°F60°F56°F52°F49°F48°F49°F51°F54°F58°F61°F
Johannesburg 59°F59°F56°F50°F42°F37°F37°F41°F48°F52°F55°F58°F
Durban 72°F72°F71°F67°F62°F58°F57°F60°F63°F65°F68°F71°F

Cape Town

Average Hourly Temperature in Cape TownJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec12 AM12 AM4 AM4 AM8 AM8 AM12 PM12 PM4 PM4 PM8 PM8 PM12 AM12 AMNowNowcoldcoolcomfortablecomfortablecoldcomfortable

Johannesburg

Average Hourly Temperature in JohannesburgJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec12 AM12 AM4 AM4 AM8 AM8 AM12 PM12 PM4 PM4 PM8 PM8 PM12 AM12 AMNowNowvery coldcoldcoolcomfortablecomfortablewarmcoldwarmvery cold

Durban

Average Hourly Temperature in DurbanJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec12 AM12 AM4 AM4 AM8 AM8 AM12 PM12 PM4 PM4 PM8 PM8 PM12 AM12 AMNowNowcoolcomfortablewarmwarmcoolwarm
frigid 15°F freezing 32°F very cold 45°F cold 55°F cool 65°F comfortable 75°F warm 85°F hot 95°F sweltering
The average hourly temperature, color coded into bands. The shaded overlays indicate night and civil twilight.

Chance of Clearer Skies in South Africa

Chance of Clearer Skies in South AfricaJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec0%0%10%10%20%20%30%30%40%40%50%50%60%60%70%70%80%80%90%90%100%100%895692628559NowNowCape TownCape TownJohannesburgJohannesburgDurbanDurban
The percentage of time the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy (i.e., less than 60% of the sky is covered by clouds).
Clearer SkiesJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Cape Town 86%87%79%66%57%59%63%66%61%66%70%77%
Johannesburg 67%73%76%82%87%90%91%90%85%73%64%65%
Durban 70%73%75%76%79%84%85%82%71%61%60%66%

Daily Chance of Precipitation in South Africa

Daily Chance of Precipitation in South AfricaJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec0%0%10%10%20%20%30%30%40%40%50%50%60%60%70%70%80%80%90%90%100%100%274551477NowNowCape TownCape TownJohannesburgJohannesburgDurbanDurban
The percentage of days in which precipitation is observed, excluding trace quantities.
Days of Precip.JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Cape Town 1.7d1.4d2.3d4.4d6.2d7.7d7.9d6.8d5.2d3.6d2.5d1.9d
Johannesburg 15.7d12.4d10.6d5.4d1.9d0.9d0.5d1.0d2.7d8.5d13.1d16.4d
Durban 13.3d11.9d10.0d5.7d2.9d2.5d2.5d3.3d5.8d10.4d12.2d14.2d

Average Monthly Rainfall in South Africa

Average Monthly Rainfall in South AfricaJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec0 in0 in1 in1 in2 in2 in3 in3 in4 in4 in5 in5 in3.00.43.90.14.40.7NowNowCape TownCape TownJohannesburgJohannesburgDurbanDurban
The average rainfall accumulated over the course of a sliding 31-day period centered on the day in question.
RainfallJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Cape Town 0.5″0.4″0.6″1.4″2.1″2.9″2.8″2.1″1.4″0.9″0.7″0.4″
Johannesburg 3.9″3.2″2.5″1.2″0.5″0.2″0.1″0.2″0.7″2.2″3.3″3.7″
Durban 4.2″4.1″2.9″1.9″0.9″0.8″1.1″1.3″2.3″3.6″4.3″4.2″

Hours of Daylight in South Africa

Hours of Daylight in South AfricaJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec4 hr4 hr6 hr6 hr8 hr8 hr10 hr10 hr12 hr12 hr14 hr14 hr16 hr16 hr18 hr18 hr20 hr20 hr14.49.913.810.5NowNowCape TownCape TownJohannesburgJohannesburgDurbanDurban
The number of hours during which the Sun is at least partly above the horizon.
DaylightJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Cape Town 14.1h13.3h12.3h11.2h10.4h9.9h10.2h10.9h11.9h13.0h13.9h14.4h
Johannesburg 13.6h13.0h12.2h11.5h10.8h10.5h10.7h11.2h12.0h12.7h13.4h13.8h
Durban 13.8h13.1h12.2h11.3h10.6h10.3h10.4h11.1h11.9h12.8h13.6h14.0h

Chance of Muggy Conditions in South Africa

Chance of Muggy Conditions in South AfricaJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec0%0%10%10%20%20%30%30%40%40%50%50%60%60%70%70%80%80%90%90%100%100%92911NowNowJohannesburgJohannesburgDurbanDurban
The percentage of time that is muggy, oppressive, or miserable (i.e., a dew point greater than 65°F).
Muggy daysJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Cape Town 2.1d2.4d1.4d0.2d0.0d0.0d0.0d0.0d0.0d0.0d0.1d0.7d
Johannesburg 0.3d0.4d0.2d0.0d0.0d0.0d0.0d0.0d0.0d0.0d0.0d0.1d
Durban 27.6d26.2d26.0d16.9d6.2d0.9d0.8d2.8d7.1d12.8d18.2d24.2d

Average Wind Speed in South Africa

Average Wind Speed in South AfricaJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec0 mph0 mph2 mph2 mph4 mph4 mph6 mph6 mph8 mph8 mph10 mph10 mph12 mph12 mph14 mph14 mph13.910.59.76.413.010.0NowNowCape TownCape TownJohannesburgJohannesburgDurbanDurban
The average of mean hourly wind speeds at 10 meters above the ground.
Wind Speed (mph)JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Cape Town 13.713.412.311.110.811.211.511.611.912.613.313.4
Johannesburg 7.06.76.56.77.17.67.88.89.69.38.77.6
Durban 11.711.210.910.610.210.410.711.712.412.912.612.0

Average Water Temperature in South Africa

Average Water Temperature in South AfricaJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec60°F60°F65°F65°F70°F70°F75°F75°F80°F80°F6659NaN7870NowNowCape TownCape TownDurbanDurban
The daily average wide-area surface water temperature.
Water Temp.JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Cape Town 66°F66°F64°F62°F61°F60°F59°F59°F59°F60°F62°F64°F
Durban 77°F78°F78°F76°F74°F72°F71°F70°F70°F71°F73°F75°F

Tourism Score in South Africa

Tourism Score in South AfricaJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec002244668810108.94.77.63.88.65.8NowNowCape TownCape TownJohannesburgJohannesburgDurbanDurban
The tourism score, which favors clear, rainless days with perceived temperatures between 65°F and 80°F.

Beach/Pool Score in South Africa

Beach/Pool Score in South AfricaJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec002244668810106.30.34.90.17.63.9NowNowCape TownCape TownJohannesburgJohannesburgDurbanDurban
The beach/pool score, which favors clear, rainless days with perceived temperatures between 75°F and 90°F.

Growing Season in South Africa

Growing Season in South AfricaJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec0%0%20%20%40%40%60%60%80%80%100%100%NowNowCape TownCape TownJohannesburgJohannesburgDurbanDurban
The percentage chance that a given day is within the growing season, defined as the longest continuous period of non-freezing temperatures (≥ 32°F) in the year (the calendar year in the Northern Hemisphere, or from July 1 until June 30 in the Southern Hemisphere).

Growing Degree Days in South Africa

Growing Degree Days in South AfricaJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec1,000°F1,000°F2,000°F2,000°F3,000°F3,000°F4,000°F4,000°F5,000°F5,000°F6,000°F6,000°F7,000°F7,000°F8,000°F8,000°FNowNowCape TownCape TownJohannesburgJohannesburgDurbanDurban
The average growing degree days accumulated over the course of the year, where growing degree days are defined as the integral of warmth above a base temperature (50°F in this case).

Average Daily Incident Shortwave Solar Energy in South Africa

Average Daily Incident Shortwave Solar Energy in South AfricaJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec0 kWh0 kWh1 kWh1 kWh2 kWh2 kWh3 kWh3 kWh4 kWh4 kWh5 kWh5 kWh6 kWh6 kWh7 kWh7 kWh8 kWh8 kWh9 kWh9 kWh8.72.57.74.27.43.3NowNowCape TownCape TownJohannesburgJohannesburgDurbanDurban
The average daily shortwave solar energy reaching the ground per square meter.
Solar Energy (kWh)JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Cape Town 8.57.76.14.43.12.52.83.75.06.67.88.5
Johannesburg 7.57.26.45.54.74.34.55.46.47.07.37.5
Durban 7.26.75.84.73.83.43.64.35.26.06.87.2

This report illustrates the typical weather for Cape Town, Johannesburg, and Durban year round, based on a statistical analysis of historical hourly weather reports and model reconstructions from January 1, 1980 to December 31, 2016.

The details of the data sources used on this page vary between places and are discussed in detail on each place's dedicated page:

Disclaimer

The information on this site is provided as is, without any assurances as to its accuracy or suitability for any purpose. Weather data is prone to errors, outages, and other defects. We assume no responsibility for any decisions made on the basis of the content presented on this site.

We draw particular cautious attention to our reliance on the MERRA-2 model-based reconstructions for a number of important data series. While having the tremendous advantages of temporal and spatial completeness, these reconstructions: (1) are based on computer models that may have model-based errors, (2) are coarsely sampled on a 50 km grid and are therefore unable to reconstruct the local variations of many microclimates, and (3) have particular difficulty with the weather in some coastal areas, especially small islands.

We further caution that our travel scores are only as good as the data that underpin them, that weather conditions at any given location and time are unpredictable and variable, and that the definition of the scores reflects a particular set of preferences that may not agree with those of any particular reader.

Please review our full terms contained on our Terms of Service page.

Other Locations