Climate averages 1991–2020
Grahamstown weather
in May.
A mild, fairly dry month: the joint 8th warmest and one of the driest of the year. Meets the pleasant-weather rule
Long-term climate patterns, not a forecast for a particular trip.
May is a mild month in Grahamstown: daytime highs average 21.9°C and nights cool to about 10.1°C. By daytime temperature it is the joint 8th warmest of the 12 months.
Expect about 22 mm of rain on roughly 5 days, which makes May a fairly dry month (one of the driest months of the year). Daylight, from sunrise to sunset, lasts about 10 h 26 min on an average May day.
The nearest other city in this atlas is Qonce (93 km away). In May its highs average 22.5°C, 0.6°C warmer than Grahamstown, with 23 mm of rain.
Among the 95 cities listed in South Africa, Grahamstown ranks joint 26th of 95 for the warmest May highs and 68th of 95 for the driest May (rainfall, lowest first). The mean May high of those 95 cities is 21.0°C; Grahamstown is 0.9°C warmer than that mean.
From May to June, average highs fall by 2.3°C to 19.6°C, and monthly rainfall stays at 22 mm.
The annual picture
May in context
Monthly rainfall
Average total · mmAverages from hourly ERA5 reanalysis data. Actual weather varies from year to year. How these numbers are calculated
Every month, side by side
Grahamstown climate table
| Month | Average highHigh / low | Average low | Rainfall mm/month | Rain days ≥1 mm/day | Daylight hours/dayDaylight h/day |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 26.8°C16.1°C | 16.1°C | 63 | 9.2 | 14.114 h |
| February | 27.0°C16.5°C | 16.5°C | 64 | 9.9 | 13.313 h |
| March | 25.9°C15.3°C | 15.3°C | 59 | 8.7 | 12.312 h |
| April | 23.6°C12.6°C | 12.6°C | 49 | 8.1 | 11.311 h |
| May, selected | 21.9°C10.1°C | 10.1°C | 22 | 5.0 | 10.410 h |
| June | 19.6°C7.5°C | 7.5°C | 22 | 4.0 | 10.010 h |
| July | 19.6°C6.9°C | 6.9°C | 22 | 3.6 | 10.210 h |
| August | 20.3°C7.6°C | 7.6°C | 35 | 5.9 | 10.911 h |
| September | 21.9°C9.2°C | 9.2°C | 40 | 6.2 | 11.912 h |
| October | 22.5°C11.1°C | 11.1°C | 56 | 8.9 | 12.913 h |
| November | 23.7°C12.6°C | 12.6°C | 60 | 9.2 | 13.814 h |
| December | 25.6°C14.8°C | 14.8°C | 62 | 9.8 | 14.314 h |
Rainfall is the average of the 30 separate monthly totals. A rain day is a local calendar day with at least 1 mm of precipitation. Daylight is the calculated sunrise-to-sunset length, not measured sunshine.
Compare places
May in nearby cities
- Qonce in MaySouth Africa · 93 kmHigh 22.5°C · Low 10.6°C · 23 mm rain
- Bhisho in MaySouth Africa · 99 kmHigh 21.8°C · Low 9.9°C · 28 mm rain
- Motherwell in MaySouth Africa · 103 kmHigh 22.3°C · Low 12.6°C · 23 mm rain
- Gqeberha in MaySouth Africa · 112 kmHigh 20.8°C · Low 14.8°C · 38 mm rain
- Kariega in MaySouth Africa · 116 kmHigh 22.6°C · Low 12.4°C · 23 mm rain
- Mdantsane in MaySouth Africa · 123 kmHigh 22.4°C · Low 12.9°C · 25 mm rain
- East London in MaySouth Africa · 132 kmHigh 22.9°C · Low 15.8°C · 34 mm rain
- Queenstown in MaySouth Africa · 160 kmHigh 20.6°C · Low 6.9°C · 14 mm rain
Read the numbers correctly
Climate, not a promise.
These patterns help compare months. They cannot tell you the weather on a specific day of your trip.
Sources, method and limitsHow these numbers are made (what the highs, lows and rain days mean, the sources and the model cell used for Grahamstown) is explained once on the Grahamstown year overview and on the Sources, method and limits page.