Carletonville climate
Carletonville (South Africa) has a cold semi-arid climate (Köppen BSk). The average temperature over the year is 17 °C63 °F, and about 584 mm23 in of precipitation falls in an average year.
Temperature by month
Precipitation by month
Carletonville climate table
| Month | High °C°F | Low °C°F | Mean °C°F | Precip. mmin | Frost days |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 2985 | 1660 | 2272 | 1084.3 | 0 |
| Feb | 2984 | 1559 | 2272 | 803.2 | 0 |
| Mar | 2781 | 1356 | 2069 | 662.6 | 0 |
| Apr | 2475 | 1049 | 1762 | 411.6 | 0 |
| May | 2170 | 542 | 1356 | 150.6 | 1 |
| Jun | 1864 | 235 | 1050 | 80.3 | 3 |
| Jul | 1864 | 134 | 1049 | 30.1 | 5 |
| Aug | 2171 | 439 | 1355 | 70.3 | 2 |
| Sep | 2679 | 847 | 1763 | 140.6 | 0 |
| Oct | 2984 | 1253 | 2068 | 502.0 | 0 |
| Nov | 2984 | 1356 | 2170 | 783.1 | 0 |
| Dec | 2985 | 1559 | 2272 | 1134.4 | 0 |
| Year | 2985 | 134 | 1763 | 58423 | 12 |
“Year” row: highest monthly high, lowest monthly low, annual mean and annual total. Frost days are for the whole grid cell.
| Month | Humid. | Cloud | Solar | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 60% | 61% | 6.7 | 13:37 |
| Feb | 60% | 59% | 6.3 | 13:01 |
| Mar | 59% | 51% | 5.6 | 12:19 |
| Apr | 59% | 46% | 4.8 | 11:30 |
| May | 52% | 27% | 4.4 | 10:50 |
| Jun | 53% | 22% | 4.0 | 10:30 |
| Jul | 48% | 19% | 4.3 | 10:38 |
| Aug | 42% | 22% | 5.1 | 11:12 |
| Sep | 36% | 26% | 6.1 | 11:59 |
| Oct | 44% | 45% | 6.6 | 12:46 |
| Nov | 51% | 54% | 7.0 | 13:27 |
| Dec | 58% | 63% | 6.9 | 13:47 |
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 Carletonville is like
The warmest month is January, with an average high of 29 °C85 °F and a low of 16 °C60 °F. The coldest is July, when highs average 18 °C64 °F and lows 1 °C34 °F. There is a clear seasonal cycle, with 12.9 °C23.3 °F between the average temperature of the warmest and the coolest month.
Annual precipitation is moderate at about 584 mm23 in. The wettest three-month stretch is December–February, which brings 52% of the annual total. Months with less than 20 mm0.8 in on average: May–September. The wettest month is December (113 mm4.4 in), the driest is July (3 mm0.1 in).
Relative humidity ranges from 36% in September to 60% in February. The clearest skies (lowest average cloud amount, 19%) are typical of July. Average wind speed near the ground ranges from 7 km/h (4 mph) in March to 11 km/h (7 mph) in September. Daylight lasts from about 10.5 hours in June to 13.8 hours in December.
Best time to visit Carletonville
Based on these averages, the most comfortable months for sightseeing and outdoor activities are February–May and August–November: average highs of 21 °C70 °F to 29 °C84 °F with 7 mm0.3 in to 80 mm3.2 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.
What to pack for Carletonville
- Summer (December–February) — highs around 29 °C84 °F, lows 1559 to 16 °C60 °F, about 100 mm4.0 in of precipitation a month. Pack light summer clothes such as T-shirts, shorts or light dresses, an extra layer for the cooler mornings and evenings and an umbrella or light rain jacket.
- Autumn (March–May) — highs 2170 to 27 °C81 °F, lows 542 to 13 °C56 °F, about 41 mm1.6 in of precipitation a month. Pack light summer clothes such as T-shirts, shorts or light dresses and an extra layer for the cooler mornings and evenings.
- Winter (June–August) — highs 1864 to 21 °C71 °F, lows 134 to 4 °C39 °F, about 6 mm0.2 in of precipitation a month. Pack light layers — T-shirts plus a light sweater or jacket and an extra layer for the cooler mornings and evenings.
- Spring (September–November) — highs 2679 to 29 °C84 °F, lows 847 to 13 °C56 °F, about 48 mm1.9 in of precipitation a month. Pack light summer clothes such as T-shirts, shorts or light dresses and an extra layer for the cooler mornings and evenings.
How Carletonville compares
Compared with Soweto, about 47 km to the east, Carletonville is on average 0.7 °C1.3 °F warmer and receives a similar amount of precipitation. The difference is largest in January (1 °C1.8 °F warmer).
Of the 49 places in South Africa covered by World Climates, Carletonville is the 33rd warmest by annual mean temperature and the 33rd 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): Xichang (China, Cwa), San Luis (Argentina, Cwa) and Chuxiong (China, Cwa).
The same NASA POWER grid cell also contains Westonaria (pop. 156,831). Their long-term averages in this dataset are essentially the same as for Carletonville, so they do not have separate pages.
Nearby places
- Soweto 47 km · 17 °C62 °F · 586 mm23 in
- Krugersdorp 49 km · 16 °C61 °F · 633 mm25 in
- Potchefstroom 49 km · 19 °C66 °F · 554 mm22 in
- Roodepoort 52 km · 16 °C60 °F · 642 mm25 in
- Sasolburg 65 km · 17 °C63 °F · 550 mm22 in
- Johannesburg 67 km · 16 °C60 °F · 642 mm25 in
- Alberton 73 km · 17 °C63 °F · 586 mm23 in
- Rustenburg 79 km · 20 °C68 °F · 585 mm23 in
Frequently asked questions
What is the warmest month in Carletonville?
January is the warmest month in Carletonville, with an average high of 29 °C (85 °F) and an average low of 16 °C (60 °F).
What is the coldest month in Carletonville?
July is the coldest month, with an average high of 18 °C (64 °F) and an average low of 1 °C (34 °F).
When does it rain the most in Carletonville?
December is the wettest month with about 113 mm (4.4 in) of precipitation; July is the driest with about 3 mm (0.1 in).
What is the best time to visit Carletonville?
Judging by long-term averages, the most comfortable months are February–May and August–November.
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.