Cape Town climate
Cape Town (South Africa) has a warm-summer Mediterranean climate (Köppen Csb). The average temperature over the year is 17 °C63 °F, and about 489 mm19 in of precipitation falls in an average year.
Temperature by month
Precipitation by month
Cape Town climate table
| Month | High °C°F | Low °C°F | Mean °C°F | Precip. mmin |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 2271 | 1865 | 2068 | 140.5 |
| Feb | 2272 | 1965 | 2068 | 90.4 |
| Mar | 2170 | 1864 | 1967 | 170.7 |
| Apr | 1967 | 1661 | 1864 | 371.5 |
| May | 1864 | 1559 | 1662 | 512.0 |
| Jun | 1661 | 1457 | 1559 | 913.6 |
| Jul | 1660 | 1355 | 1458 | 813.2 |
| Aug | 1660 | 1355 | 1458 | 763.0 |
| Sep | 1662 | 1456 | 1559 | 401.6 |
| Oct | 1864 | 1558 | 1661 | 311.2 |
| Nov | 1966 | 1660 | 1763 | 301.2 |
| Dec | 2169 | 1763 | 1966 | 120.5 |
| Year | 2272 | 1355 | 1763 | 48919 |
“Year” row: highest monthly high, lowest monthly low, annual mean and annual total.
| Month | Humid. | Cloud | Solar | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 78% | 25% | 8.4 | 14:10 |
| Feb | 79% | 25% | 7.5 | 13:21 |
| Mar | 79% | 26% | 6.1 | 12:23 |
| Apr | 80% | 32% | 4.5 | 11:17 |
| May | 81% | 41% | 3.1 | 10:23 |
| Jun | 79% | 41% | 2.6 | 9:54 |
| Jul | 80% | 38% | 2.9 | 10:06 |
| Aug | 79% | 41% | 3.7 | 10:52 |
| Sep | 79% | 40% | 5.0 | 11:56 |
| Oct | 79% | 35% | 6.6 | 13:00 |
| Nov | 78% | 32% | 7.9 | 13:57 |
| Dec | 78% | 27% | 8.5 | 14:24 |
Humid. = average relative humidity at 2 m; cloud = average cloud amount; solar = average daily solar energy reaching the ground in kWh/m² (all-sky); daylight in hours:minutes, calculated for the 15th of each month.
What the climate of Cape Town is like
The warmest month is February, with an average high of 22 °C72 °F and a low of 19 °C65 °F. The coldest is August, when highs average 16 °C60 °F and lows 13 °C55 °F. Seasonal differences are small — just 6 °C10.8 °F between the warmest and the coolest month.
Annual precipitation is moderate at about 489 mm19 in. The wettest three-month stretch is June–August, which brings 51% of the annual total. Months with less than 20 mm0.8 in on average: December–March. The wettest month is June (91 mm3.6 in), the driest is February (9 mm0.4 in).
Relative humidity ranges from 78% in December to 81% in May. The clearest skies (lowest average cloud amount, 25%) are typical of January. Average wind speed near the ground ranges from 16 km/h (10 mph) in May to 21 km/h (13 mph) in January. Daylight lasts from about 9.9 hours in June to 14.4 hours in December.
Best time to visit Cape Town
Based on these averages, the most comfortable months for sightseeing and outdoor activities are November–April: average highs of 19 °C66 °F to 22 °C72 °F with 9 mm0.4 in to 37 mm1.5 in of precipitation per month.
Comfort score: months are ranked by how close they come to an average high of 21–28 °C (70–82 °F), lows above 5 °C (41 °F), little precipitation and moderate humidity. The best-ranked months of each place are recommended, even where none meets all of these. These are general rules of thumb applied to long-term averages.
Cape Town weather by month
- January22 °C71 °F / 18 °C65 °F
- February22 °C72 °F / 19 °C65 °F
- March21 °C70 °F / 18 °C64 °F
- April19 °C67 °F / 16 °C61 °F
- May18 °C64 °F / 15 °C59 °F
- June16 °C61 °F / 14 °C57 °F
- July16 °C60 °F / 13 °C55 °F
- August16 °C60 °F / 13 °C55 °F
- September16 °C62 °F / 14 °C56 °F
- October18 °C64 °F / 15 °C58 °F
- November19 °C66 °F / 16 °C60 °F
- December21 °C69 °F / 17 °C63 °F
What to pack for Cape Town
- Summer (December–February) — highs 2169 to 22 °C72 °F, lows 1763 to 19 °C65 °F, about 12 mm0.5 in of precipitation a month. Pack light layers — T-shirts plus a light sweater or jacket.
- Autumn (March–May) — highs 1864 to 21 °C70 °F, lows 1559 to 18 °C64 °F, about 35 mm1.4 in of precipitation a month. Pack light layers — T-shirts plus a light sweater or jacket.
- Winter (June–August) — highs around 16 °C60 °F, lows 1355 to 14 °C57 °F, about 83 mm3.3 in of precipitation a month. Pack long sleeves, a sweater and a medium jacket.
- Spring (September–November) — highs 1662 to 19 °C66 °F, lows 1456 to 16 °C60 °F, about 34 mm1.3 in of precipitation a month. Pack long sleeves, a sweater and a medium jacket.
How Cape Town compares
Of the 49 places in South Africa covered by World Climates, Cape Town is the 35th warmest by annual mean temperature and the 45th wettest by annual precipitation. See all of them on the South Africa climate page.
Places in other countries with the most similar temperature and rainfall pattern (seasons shifted for the other hemisphere where needed): Augusta (Australia, Csb), Funchal (Portugal, Csb) and Lisbon (Portugal, Csb).
Nearby places
- Somerset West 41 km · 18 °C64 °F · 734 mm29 in
- Paarl 55 km · 18 °C64 °F · 727 mm29 in
- Worcester 100 km · 18 °C65 °F · 671 mm26 in
- George 373 km · 17 °C63 °F · 481 mm19 in
- Gqeberha 663 km · 19 °C66 °F · 436 mm17 in
- Queenstown 820 km · 16 °C61 °F · 725 mm29 in
- Kimberley 834 km · 19 °C66 °F · 417 mm16 in
- Mdantsane 875 km · 18 °C65 °F · 1,002 mm39 in
Frequently asked questions
What is the warmest month in Cape Town?
February is the warmest month in Cape Town, with an average high of 22 °C (72 °F) and an average low of 19 °C (65 °F).
What is the coldest month in Cape Town?
August is the coldest month, with an average high of 16 °C (60 °F) and an average low of 13 °C (55 °F).
When does it rain the most in Cape Town?
June is the wettest month with about 91 mm (3.6 in) of precipitation; February is the driest with about 9 mm (0.4 in).
What is the best time to visit Cape Town?
Judging by long-term averages, the most comfortable months are November–April.
About this data
All figures are 25-year averages (January 2001 – December 2025) from the NASA POWER project. Temperature, humidity, wind and precipitation come from the MERRA-2 reanalysis (precipitation is the bias-corrected MERRA-2 product), cloud and solar values from CERES satellite data. They describe a grid cell of roughly 50–70 km, not a single weather station, so they can differ from airport records — most of all on coasts, in mountains and for rainfall. Average highs and lows are the monthly mean temperature plus/minus half of the average daily temperature range. Counts of rainy days are not part of this dataset.