Soweto climate
Soweto (South Africa) has a cold semi-arid climate (Köppen BSk). The average temperature over the year is 17 °C62 °F, and about 586 mm23 in of precipitation falls in an average year.
Temperature by month
Precipitation by month
Soweto climate table
| Month | High °C°F | Low °C°F | Mean °C°F | Precip. mmin | Frost days |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 2883 | 1558 | 2171 | 1074.2 | 0 |
| Feb | 2882 | 1458 | 2170 | 742.9 | 0 |
| Mar | 2780 | 1254 | 2067 | 652.6 | 0 |
| Apr | 2374 | 948 | 1661 | 391.5 | 0 |
| May | 2069 | 541 | 1355 | 150.6 | 1 |
| Jun | 1763 | 134 | 948 | 70.3 | 4 |
| Jul | 1763 | 133 | 948 | 30.1 | 6 |
| Aug | 2170 | 439 | 1254 | 80.3 | 2 |
| Sep | 2678 | 846 | 1762 | 140.6 | 0 |
| Oct | 2882 | 1152 | 1967 | 542.1 | 0 |
| Nov | 2883 | 1355 | 2069 | 833.3 | 0 |
| Dec | 2883 | 1458 | 2170 | 1174.6 | 0 |
| Year | 2883 | 133 | 1762 | 58623 | 13 |
“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 | 62% | 61% | 6.7 | 13:37 |
| Feb | 61% | 59% | 6.3 | 13:01 |
| Mar | 61% | 51% | 5.6 | 12:19 |
| Apr | 60% | 46% | 4.8 | 11:30 |
| May | 54% | 27% | 4.4 | 10:51 |
| Jun | 55% | 22% | 4.0 | 10:30 |
| Jul | 49% | 19% | 4.3 | 10:38 |
| Aug | 43% | 22% | 5.1 | 11:12 |
| Sep | 37% | 26% | 6.1 | 11:59 |
| Oct | 46% | 45% | 6.6 | 12:46 |
| Nov | 54% | 54% | 7.0 | 13:27 |
| Dec | 60% | 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 Soweto is like
The warmest month is January, with an average high of 28 °C83 °F and a low of 15 °C58 °F. The coldest is July, when highs average 17 °C63 °F and lows 1 °C33 °F. There is a clear seasonal cycle, with 12.4 °C22.4 °F between the average temperature of the warmest and the coolest month.
Annual precipitation is moderate at about 586 mm23 in. The wettest three-month stretch is November–January, which brings 52% of the annual total. Months with less than 20 mm0.8 in on average: May–September. The wettest month is December (117 mm4.6 in), the driest is July (3 mm0.1 in).
Relative humidity ranges from 37% in September to 62% in January. 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 Soweto
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 28 °C83 °F with 8 mm0.3 in to 83 mm3.3 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.
Soweto weather by month
- January28 °C83 °F / 15 °C58 °F
- February28 °C82 °F / 14 °C58 °F
- March27 °C80 °F / 12 °C54 °F
- April23 °C74 °F / 9 °C48 °F
- May20 °C69 °F / 5 °C41 °F
- June17 °C63 °F / 1 °C34 °F
- July17 °C63 °F / 1 °C33 °F
- August21 °C70 °F / 4 °C39 °F
- September26 °C78 °F / 8 °C46 °F
- October28 °C82 °F / 11 °C52 °F
- November28 °C83 °F / 13 °C55 °F
- December28 °C83 °F / 14 °C58 °F
What to pack for Soweto
- Summer (December–February) — highs around 28 °C82 °F, lows 1458 to 15 °C58 °F, about 99 mm3.9 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 27 °C80 °F, lows 541 to 12 °C54 °F, about 40 mm1.6 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 133 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 2678 to 28 °C83 °F, lows 846 to 13 °C55 °F, about 50 mm2.0 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 Soweto compares
Compared with Johannesburg, about 20 km to the east, Soweto is on average 1 °C1.7 °F warmer and receives 9% less precipitation (586 mm23 in vs 642 mm25 in). The difference is largest in January (1.3 °C2.3 °F warmer).
Of the 49 places in South Africa covered by World Climates, Soweto is the 40th warmest by annual mean temperature and the 29th 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), Xichang (China, Cwa) and San Luis (Argentina, Cwa).
The same NASA POWER grid cell also contains Evaton (pop. 725,468), Vereeniging (pop. 474,681) and Vanderbijlpark (pop. 246,754). Their long-term averages in this dataset are essentially the same as for Soweto, so they do not have separate pages.
Nearby places
- Roodepoort 12 km · 16 °C60 °F · 642 mm25 in
- Johannesburg 20 km · 16 °C60 °F · 642 mm25 in
- Krugersdorp 22 km · 16 °C61 °F · 633 mm25 in
- Alberton 26 km · 17 °C63 °F · 586 mm23 in
- Carletonville 47 km · 17 °C63 °F · 584 mm23 in
- Thembisa 48 km · 17 °C62 °F · 642 mm25 in
- Sasolburg 61 km · 17 °C63 °F · 550 mm22 in
- Etwatwa 62 km · 17 °C62 °F · 626 mm25 in
Frequently asked questions
What is the warmest month in Soweto?
January is the warmest month in Soweto, with an average high of 28 °C (83 °F) and an average low of 15 °C (58 °F).
What is the coldest month in Soweto?
July is the coldest month, with an average high of 17 °C (63 °F) and an average low of 1 °C (33 °F).
When does it rain the most in Soweto?
December is the wettest month with about 117 mm (4.6 in) of precipitation; July is the driest with about 3 mm (0.1 in).
What is the best time to visit Soweto?
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.
The grid cell’s average elevation is 1,559 m, while Soweto lies at about 1,632 m. Temperatures on this page were therefore adjusted by −0.5 °C0.9 °F using the standard lapse rate of 6.5 °C per 1,000 m.