Newcastle climate

Name: Newcastle
Address: ZA

Newcastle is warmest in December, with average highs of 26 °C, and coldest in July, when nights average 3.6 °C. December is the wettest month (150 mm) and June the driest (10 mm). Figures are 1991–2020 climate normals.

Across a full year Newcastle averages 847 mm of rain, 152 days above 25 °C and 4 days below freezing.

South Africa · population 404,838 · 1991–2020 normals

Temperature below 0 °C to above 30 °C Rain band height is that month’s share of the wettest month

Warmest month December 26 °C
Coldest month July 3.6 °C
Driest month June 10 mm
Wettest month December 150 mm
Least cloud July 17 % cloud
Hottest on record January 38 °C
Coldest on record July -7.4 °C

What to expectNewcastle through the year

Newcastle has a clear annual cycle: average daily highs run from 19 °C in July to 26 °C in December, a swing of 10.0 °C in mean temperature across the year.

Counted across a normal year, 152 days a year reach 25 °C, 28 of them reach 30 °C, 4 nights drop below freezing. The warmest reading in the 1991–2020 record is 38 °C, in January.

Rain is strongly seasonal. December averages 150 mm against 10 mm in June — 15 times as much. Planning around the dry months matters more here than planning around temperature.

Month by month

Month	Avg high	Rainfall	Cloud
January	26.3 °C	140 mm	57 %
February	26.2 °C	103 mm	53 %
March	25.0 °C	98 mm	47 %
April	22.8 °C	42 mm	38 %
May	20.8 °C	17 mm	24 %
June	18.5 °C	10 mm	17 %
July	18.5 °C	13 mm	17 %
August	21.5 °C	22 mm	23 %
September	24.9 °C	38 mm	35 %
October	25.3 °C	93 mm	52 %
November	25.7 °C	118 mm	59 %
December	26.4 °C	150 mm	60 %

Temperature month by month

Month	Avg high	Avg low	Mean	Record high	Record low	Days above 25 °C	Days above 30 °C	Days below 0 °C
January	26.3 °C	15.5 °C	20.5 °C	38.2 °C	8.0 °C	22	4	0
February	26.2 °C	15.5 °C	20.5 °C	33.3 °C	8.5 °C	20	3	0
March	25.0 °C	13.9 °C	19.1 °C	34.2 °C	6.1 °C	17	1	0
April	22.8 °C	10.9 °C	16.5 °C	30.9 °C	2.1 °C	8	0	0
May	20.8 °C	7.1 °C	13.6 °C	29.1 °C	-1.6 °C	2	0	0
June	18.5 °C	4.1 °C	10.8 °C	25.9 °C	-4.0 °C	0	0	1
July	18.5 °C	3.6 °C	10.6 °C	27.6 °C	-7.4 °C	0	0	3
August	21.5 °C	6.1 °C	13.4 °C	30.6 °C	-1.7 °C	6	0	0
September	24.9 °C	9.5 °C	16.8 °C	35.2 °C	0.1 °C	18	4	0
October	25.3 °C	11.8 °C	18.1 °C	36.4 °C	2.1 °C	18	6	0
November	25.7 °C	13.3 °C	19.1 °C	36.5 °C	3.3 °C	19	5	0
December	26.4 °C	14.9 °C	20.3 °C	36.5 °C	6.1 °C	21	5	0

Rain, sun and wind month by month

Month	Rainfall	Wet days	Daylight	Cloud cover	Humidity	Wind
January	140 mm	17	14 h/day	57 %	75 %	14 km/h
February	103 mm	13	13 h/day	53 %	74 %	13 km/h
March	98 mm	12	12 h/day	47 %	74 %	13 km/h
April	42 mm	7	11 h/day	38 %	70 %	13 km/h
May	17 mm	3	11 h/day	24 %	62 %	13 km/h
June	10 mm	2	10 h/day	17 %	58 %	15 km/h
July	13 mm	2	11 h/day	17 %	55 %	15 km/h
August	22 mm	4	11 h/day	23 %	53 %	16 km/h
September	38 mm	7	12 h/day	35 %	54 %	18 km/h
October	93 mm	13	13 h/day	52 %	64 %	17 km/h
November	118 mm	15	13 h/day	59 %	69 %	17 km/h
December	150 mm	18	14 h/day	60 %	73 %	16 km/h

How Newcastle compares

The same four figures for nearby destinations, so the numbers above have something to be read against. Summer high is the warmest month's average high; winter low is the coldest month's average low.

Destination	Summer high	Winter low	Rain per year	Days above 25 °C
Newcastle	26 °C	3.6 °C	847 mm	152
Vryheid · South Africa	26 °C	4.5 °C	880 mm	139
Mbabane · Eswatini	24 °C	6.5 °C	1,264 mm	101
Pietermaritzburg · South Africa	27 °C	6.4 °C	888 mm	158
KwaDukuza · South Africa	28 °C	12 °C	865 mm	173
Emalahleni · South Africa	25 °C	2.6 °C	711 mm	101

Where Newcastle ranks

Ranking	Position	Value
The coolest places in Africa in June	21st of 50	19 °C
The coolest places in Africa in July	24th of 50	19 °C
The coolest places in Africa in May	24th of 50	21 °C
The coolest places in Africa in August	41st of 50	21 °C
Places with the best weather in Africa in September	43rd of 50	90/100
Places with the best weather in Africa in April	47th of 50	92/100

Planning a trip? See the best time to visit Newcastle.

QuestionsCommon questions about Newcastle’s climate

When is the best time to visit Newcastle?

That depends on what you want, so the honest answer is a comparison rather than a single month. January, February, December sit closest to 20 °C on average, December is the warmest month and June the driest. The month-by-month table above has the full picture.

How hot does Newcastle get?

In December, the warmest month, daily highs average 26 °C. About 28 days a year pass 30 °C. The highest value in the 1991–2020 record is 38 °C.

How cold does it get in winter?

Nights average 3.6 °C in July, the coldest month. A normal year has 4 nights below freezing.

Which month is wettest in Newcastle?

December, averaging 150 mm over 18 days with rain. The driest month is June with 10 mm. The year as a whole averages 847 mm.

Are these figures a forecast?

No. They are 1991–2020 climate normals: the average of thirty years, which describes what a month is usually like in Newcastle rather than what any particular week will bring. Individual years can differ substantially from the normal.

Data sources and method

ERA5 / ERA5-Land reanalysis — Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S), ECMWF. Copernicus Licence
Open-Meteo — Open-Meteo.com. CC BY 4.0
NOAA OISST v2.1 — NOAA Physical Sciences Laboratory. Public domain
GeoNames — GeoNames.org. CC BY 4.0

Normal period: 1991–2020
Data point: -27.758°, 29.932° (the coordinates the reanalysis values are taken for)
Dataset version: era5-1991-2020-scores1.1
Last processed: 1 August 2026

Measured values come from ERA5 reanalysis and are reproduced unchanged. Calculated by us: monthly rankings, daylight hours, beach and comfort scores. Full formulas are on the methodology page.

Contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information 2026. Neither the European Commission nor ECMWF is responsible for any use that may be made of the Copernicus information or data it contains.