Soweto climate

Name: Soweto
Address: ZA

Soweto is warmest in October, with average highs of 25 °C, and coldest in July, when nights average 2.8 °C. December is the wettest month (135 mm) and July the driest (2.9 mm). Figures are 1991–2020 climate normals.

Across a full year Soweto averages 729 mm of rain, 102 days above 25 °C and 9 days below freezing.

South Africa · population 1,695,047 · 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 October 25 °C
Coldest month July 2.8 °C
Driest month July 3 mm
Wettest month December 135 mm
Least cloud July 12 % cloud
Hottest on record January 37 °C
Coldest on record June -4.8 °C

What to expectSoweto through the year

Soweto has a clear annual cycle: average daily highs run from 17 °C in July to 25 °C in October, a swing of 10 °C in mean temperature across the year.

Counted across a normal year, 102 days a year reach 25 °C, 8 of them reach 30 °C, 9 nights drop below freezing. The warmest reading in the 1991–2020 record is 37 °C, in January.

Rain is strongly seasonal. December averages 135 mm against 3 mm in July — 46 times as much. Planning around the dry months matters more here than planning around temperature.

Month by month

Month	Avg high	Rainfall	Cloud
January	25.0 °C	125 mm	51 %
February	24.8 °C	113 mm	48 %
March	23.5 °C	89 mm	42 %
April	21.2 °C	44 mm	36 %
May	19.1 °C	18 mm	21 %
June	16.8 °C	8 mm	15 %
July	16.9 °C	3 mm	12 %
August	20.1 °C	10 mm	16 %
September	24.1 °C	21 mm	23 %
October	25.1 °C	70 mm	39 %
November	24.8 °C	94 mm	49 %
December	25.0 °C	135 mm	54 %

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	25.0 °C	14.9 °C	19.8 °C	36.8 °C	7.1 °C	15	1	0
February	24.8 °C	14.6 °C	19.5 °C	31.6 °C	8.0 °C	13	1	0
March	23.5 °C	13.0 °C	18.1 °C	30.5 °C	5.8 °C	9	0	0
April	21.2 °C	10.0 °C	15.4 °C	28.0 °C	1.0 °C	2	0	0
May	19.1 °C	6.5 °C	12.5 °C	27.1 °C	-3.6 °C	0	0	1
June	16.8 °C	3.5 °C	9.7 °C	23.9 °C	-4.8 °C	0	0	2
July	16.9 °C	2.8 °C	9.5 °C	23.9 °C	-4.2 °C	0	0	5
August	20.1 °C	5.5 °C	12.6 °C	28.2 °C	-4.0 °C	2	0	1
September	24.1 °C	9.2 °C	16.6 °C	31.5 °C	-1.6 °C	14	0	0
October	25.1 °C	11.6 °C	18.3 °C	34.0 °C	3.1 °C	17	3	0
November	24.8 °C	12.9 °C	18.7 °C	34.6 °C	3.7 °C	15	2	0
December	25.0 °C	14.4 °C	19.5 °C	34.5 °C	4.9 °C	15	2	0

Rain, sun and wind month by month

Month	Rainfall	Wet days	Daylight	Cloud cover	Humidity	Wind
January	125 mm	16	14 h/day	51 %	71 %	17 km/h
February	113 mm	13	13 h/day	48 %	71 %	16 km/h
March	89 mm	12	12 h/day	42 %	70 %	15 km/h
April	44 mm	7	11 h/day	36 %	67 %	15 km/h
May	18 mm	3	11 h/day	21 %	57 %	15 km/h
June	8 mm	1	11 h/day	15 %	55 %	16 km/h
July	3 mm	1	11 h/day	12 %	50 %	16 km/h
August	10 mm	2	11 h/day	16 %	45 %	18 km/h
September	21 mm	3	12 h/day	23 %	42 %	20 km/h
October	70 mm	10	13 h/day	39 %	53 %	20 km/h
November	94 mm	13	13 h/day	49 %	62 %	20 km/h
December	135 mm	18	14 h/day	54 %	69 %	18 km/h

How Soweto 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
Soweto	25 °C	2.8 °C	729 mm	102
Johannesburg · South Africa	25 °C	2.4 °C	731 mm	87
Westonaria · South Africa	26 °C	3.1 °C	728 mm	117
Krugersdorp · South Africa	25 °C	2.6 °C	664 mm	92
Evaton · South Africa	26 °C	2.8 °C	731 mm	136
Vereeniging · South Africa	27 °C	2.7 °C	708 mm	151
Benoni · South Africa	25 °C	2.7 °C	705 mm	107

Where Soweto ranks

Ranking	Position	Value
The coolest places in Africa in May	5th of 50	19 °C
The coolest places in Africa in June	6th of 50	17 °C
The coolest places in Africa in July	8th of 50	17 °C
The coolest places in Africa in August	19th of 50	20 °C
Places with the best weather in Africa in September	23rd of 50	91/100
The coolest places in Africa year-round	34th of 50	22 °C

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

QuestionsCommon questions about Soweto’s climate

When is the best time to visit Soweto?

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, October is the warmest month and July the driest. The month-by-month table above has the full picture.

How hot does Soweto get?

In October, the warmest month, daily highs average 25 °C. About 8 days a year pass 30 °C. The highest value in the 1991–2020 record is 37 °C.

How cold does it get in winter?

Nights average 2.8 °C in July, the coldest month. A normal year has 9 nights below freezing.

Which month is wettest in Soweto?

December, averaging 135 mm over 18 days with rain. The driest month is July with 3 mm. The year as a whole averages 729 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 Soweto 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: -26.268°, 27.858° (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.