Emalahleni climate
Emalahleni (South Africa) has a subtropical highland (dry winter) climate (Köppen Cwb). The average temperature over the year is 16 °C61 °F, and about 656 mm26 in of precipitation falls in an average year.
Temperature by month
Precipitation by month
Emalahleni climate table
| Month | High °C°F | Low °C°F | Mean °C°F | Precip. mmin | Frost days |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 2781 | 1457 | 2069 | 1275.0 | 0 |
| Feb | 2781 | 1356 | 2068 | 793.1 | 0 |
| Mar | 2679 | 1253 | 1966 | 763.0 | 0 |
| Apr | 2373 | 948 | 1661 | 421.6 | 0 |
| May | 2069 | 541 | 1355 | 120.5 | 1 |
| Jun | 1763 | 235 | 949 | 50.2 | 3 |
| Jul | 1864 | 134 | 949 | 40.1 | 4 |
| Aug | 2170 | 439 | 1355 | 70.3 | 2 |
| Sep | 2678 | 846 | 1762 | 150.6 | 0 |
| Oct | 2781 | 1151 | 1966 | 652.6 | 0 |
| Nov | 2781 | 1254 | 2067 | 953.7 | 0 |
| Dec | 2781 | 1457 | 2069 | 1295.1 | 0 |
| Year | 2781 | 134 | 1661 | 65626 | 10 |
“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 | 69% | 60% | 6.8 | 13:35 |
| Feb | 68% | 56% | 6.5 | 13:00 |
| Mar | 67% | 49% | 5.8 | 12:18 |
| Apr | 66% | 42% | 4.9 | 11:31 |
| May | 57% | 23% | 4.5 | 10:52 |
| Jun | 58% | 23% | 4.1 | 10:32 |
| Jul | 52% | 20% | 4.4 | 10:40 |
| Aug | 47% | 22% | 5.1 | 11:13 |
| Sep | 43% | 25% | 6.0 | 11:59 |
| Oct | 53% | 44% | 6.5 | 12:45 |
| Nov | 61% | 58% | 6.7 | 13:25 |
| Dec | 67% | 64% | 6.8 | 13:45 |
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 Emalahleni is like
The warmest month is January, with an average high of 27 °C81 °F and a low of 14 °C57 °F. The coldest is July, when highs average 18 °C64 °F and lows 1 °C34 °F. There is a clear seasonal cycle, with 11 °C19.8 °F between the average temperature of the warmest and the coolest month.
Annual precipitation is moderate at about 656 mm26 in. The wettest three-month stretch is November–January, which brings 54% of the annual total. Months with less than 20 mm0.8 in on average: May–September. The wettest month is December (129 mm5.1 in), the driest is July (4 mm0.1 in).
Relative humidity ranges from 43% in September to 69% in January. The clearest skies (lowest average cloud amount, 20%) are typical of July. Average wind speed near the ground ranges from 7 km/h (4 mph) in April to 11 km/h (7 mph) in September. Daylight lasts from about 10.5 hours in June to 13.7 hours in December.
Best time to visit Emalahleni
Based on these averages, the most comfortable months for sightseeing and outdoor activities are February–May and August–November: average highs of 20 °C69 °F to 27 °C81 °F with 7 mm0.3 in to 95 mm3.7 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 Emalahleni
- Summer (December–February) — highs around 27 °C81 °F, lows 1356 to 14 °C57 °F, about 112 mm4.4 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 2069 to 26 °C79 °F, lows 541 to 12 °C53 °F, about 43 mm1.7 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.
- Winter (June–August) — highs 1763 to 21 °C70 °F, lows 134 to 4 °C39 °F, about 5 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 2678 to 27 °C81 °F, lows 846 to 12 °C54 °F, about 59 mm2.3 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 Emalahleni compares
Compared with Thembisa, about 102 km to the west, Emalahleni is on average 0.6 °C1.1 °F cooler and receives a similar amount of precipitation. The difference is largest in January (1 °C1.8 °F cooler).
Of the 49 places in South Africa covered by World Climates, Emalahleni is the 43rd warmest by annual mean temperature and the 19th 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): Maseru (Lesotho, Cwa), Jianshui (China, Cwb) and Kunming (China, Cwb).
The same NASA POWER grid cell also contains Middelburg (pop. 196,263). Their long-term averages in this dataset are essentially the same as for Emalahleni, so they do not have separate pages.
Nearby places
- Somaroboro 71 km · 18 °C65 °F · 603 mm24 in
- eMbalenhle 75 km · 16 °C61 °F · 639 mm25 in
- Etwatwa 83 km · 17 °C62 °F · 626 mm25 in
- Nigel 98 km · 17 °C62 °F · 619 mm24 in
- Thembisa 102 km · 17 °C62 °F · 642 mm25 in
- Ermelo 105 km · 15 °C59 °F · 796 mm31 in
- Pretoria 106 km · 19 °C66 °F · 571 mm22 in
- Standerton 118 km · 16 °C61 °F · 649 mm26 in
Frequently asked questions
What is the warmest month in Emalahleni?
January is the warmest month in Emalahleni, with an average high of 27 °C (81 °F) and an average low of 14 °C (57 °F).
What is the coldest month in Emalahleni?
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 Emalahleni?
December is the wettest month with about 129 mm (5.1 in) of precipitation; July is the driest with about 4 mm (0.1 in).
What is the best time to visit Emalahleni?
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.