Songea climate
Songea (Tanzania) has a hot-summer Mediterranean climate (Köppen Csa). The average temperature over the year is 21 °C69 °F, and about 1,282 mm50 in of precipitation falls in an average year.
Temperature by month
Precipitation by month
Songea climate table
| Month | High °C°F | Low °C°F | Mean °C°F | Precip. mmin |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 2577 | 1864 | 2170 | 30212 |
| Feb | 2576 | 1864 | 2170 | 2309.1 |
| Mar | 2576 | 1763 | 2170 | 2329.1 |
| Apr | 2475 | 1660 | 2068 | 1275.0 |
| May | 2474 | 1356 | 1865 | 471.8 |
| Jun | 2373 | 1151 | 1762 | 140.6 |
| Jul | 2475 | 1050 | 1763 | 50.2 |
| Aug | 2780 | 1254 | 1967 | 40.2 |
| Sep | 3085 | 1558 | 2272 | 30.1 |
| Oct | 3289 | 1763 | 2476 | 170.7 |
| Nov | 3289 | 1865 | 2577 | 742.9 |
| Dec | 2882 | 1864 | 2373 | 2289.0 |
| Year | 3289 | 1050 | 2169 | 1,28250 |
“Year” row: highest monthly high, lowest monthly low, annual mean and annual total.
| Month | Humid. | Cloud | Solar | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 86% | 88% | 5.3 | 12:41 |
| Feb | 88% | 84% | 5.4 | 12:27 |
| Mar | 88% | 83% | 5.2 | 12:11 |
| Apr | 88% | 71% | 4.7 | 11:53 |
| May | 83% | 54% | 4.6 | 11:38 |
| Jun | 76% | 46% | 4.5 | 11:30 |
| Jul | 69% | 50% | 4.5 | 11:33 |
| Aug | 59% | 47% | 5.0 | 11:46 |
| Sep | 51% | 39% | 5.8 | 12:03 |
| Oct | 51% | 45% | 6.1 | 12:22 |
| Nov | 56% | 57% | 6.2 | 12:37 |
| Dec | 75% | 78% | 5.6 | 12:45 |
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 Songea is like
The warmest month is November, with an average high of 32 °C89 °F and a low of 18 °C65 °F. The coldest is June, when highs average 23 °C73 °F and lows 11 °C51 °F. There is a clear seasonal cycle, with 8.1 °C14.5 °F between the average temperature of the warmest and the coolest month.
It is wet, with about 1,282 mm50 in of precipitation per year. The wettest three-month stretch is January–March, which brings 60% of the annual total. Months with less than 20 mm0.8 in on average: June–October. The wettest month is January (302 mm12 in), the driest is September (3 mm0.1 in).
Relative humidity ranges from 51% in October to 88% in March. The clearest skies (lowest average cloud amount, 39%) are typical of September. Average wind speed near the ground ranges from 6 km/h (4 mph) in February to 13 km/h (8 mph) in October. Daylight lasts from about 11.5 hours in June to 12.7 hours in December.
Best time to visit Songea
Based on these averages, the most comfortable months for sightseeing and outdoor activities are May–September: average highs of 23 °C73 °F to 30 °C85 °F with 3 mm0.1 in to 47 mm1.8 in of precipitation per month.
The most challenging month is January, which is very wet (302 mm12 in).
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 Songea
- Wetter months (December–April) — highs 2475 to 28 °C82 °F, lows 1660 to 18 °C64 °F, about 224 mm8.8 in of precipitation a month. Pack light summer clothes such as T-shirts, shorts or light dresses and a good rain jacket or umbrella and quick-drying shoes.
- Drier months (May–November) — highs 2373 to 32 °C89 °F, lows 1050 to 18 °C65 °F, about 23 mm0.9 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 Songea compares
Compared with Mbeya, about 312 km to the northwest, Songea is on average 3 °C5.5 °F warmer and receives 16% less precipitation (1,282 mm50 in vs 1,521 mm60 in). The difference is largest in November (4.9 °C8.8 °F warmer).
Of the 34 places in Tanzania covered by World Climates, Songea is the 26th warmest by annual mean temperature and the 8th wettest by annual precipitation. See all of them on the Tanzania climate page.
Places in other countries with the most similar temperature and rainfall pattern (seasons shifted for the other hemisphere where needed): Mzuzu (Malawi, Csa), Cuernavaca (Mexico, Csa) and Chilpancingo (Mexico, Aw).
Nearby places
- Mzuzu 198 km · 19 °C67 °F · 1,250 mm49 in
- Makumbako 223 km · 17 °C63 °F · 1,765 mm69 in
- Katumba 275 km · 20 °C67 °F · 1,521 mm60 in
- Lichinga 296 km · 20 °C68 °F · 1,025 mm40 in
- Ifakara 305 km · 26 °C79 °F · 1,182 mm47 in
- Mbeya 312 km · 18 °C64 °F · 1,521 mm60 in
- Iringa 324 km · 18 °C64 °F · 1,585 mm62 in
- Tunduma 351 km · 18 °C64 °F · 1,273 mm50 in
Frequently asked questions
What is the warmest month in Songea?
November is the warmest month in Songea, with an average high of 32 °C (89 °F) and an average low of 18 °C (65 °F).
What is the coldest month in Songea?
June is the coldest month, with an average high of 23 °C (73 °F) and an average low of 11 °C (51 °F).
When does it rain the most in Songea?
January is the wettest month with about 302 mm (11.9 in) of precipitation; September is the driest with about 3 mm (0.1 in).
What is the best time to visit Songea?
Judging by long-term averages, the most comfortable months are May–September.
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.
The grid cell’s average elevation is 994 m, while Songea lies at about 1,113 m. Temperatures on this page were therefore adjusted by −0.8 °C1.4 °F using the standard lapse rate of 6.5 °C per 1,000 m.