Climate averages 1991–2020
Mbombela weather
in May.
A warm, fairly dry month: the 10th warmest and the 4th driest of the year. Meets the pleasant-weather rule
Long-term climate patterns, not a forecast for a particular trip.
May is a warm month in Mbombela: daytime highs average 23.8°C and nights cool to about 10.6°C. By daytime temperature it is the 10th warmest of the 12 months.
Expect about 19 mm of rain on roughly 4 days, which makes May a fairly dry month (the 4th driest of the 12 months). Daylight, from sunrise to sunset, lasts about 10 h 54 min on an average May day.
The nearest other city in this atlas is Mbabane (95 km away). In May its highs average 20.4°C, 3.4°C cooler than Mbombela, with 32 mm of rain.
Among the 95 cities listed in South Africa, Mbombela ranks 6th of 95 for the warmest May highs and joint 53rd of 95 for the driest May (rainfall, lowest first). The mean May high of those 95 cities is 21.0°C; Mbombela is 2.8°C warmer than that mean.
From May to June, average highs fall by 1.8°C to 21.9°C, and monthly rainfall falls from 19 mm to 9.0 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
Mbombela climate table
| Month | Average highHigh / low | Average low | Rainfall mm/month | Rain days ≥1 mm/day | Daylight hours/dayDaylight h/day |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 27.8°C18.9°C | 18.9°C | 155 | 17.5 | 13.514 h |
| February | 27.9°C18.9°C | 18.9°C | 135 | 15.0 | 13.013 h |
| March | 27.1°C17.6°C | 17.6°C | 107 | 14.0 | 12.312 h |
| April | 25.2°C14.7°C | 14.7°C | 53 | 8.4 | 11.512 h |
| May, selected | 23.8°C10.6°C | 10.6°C | 19 | 3.5 | 10.911 h |
| June | 21.9°C7.4°C | 7.4°C | 9.0 | 2.3 | 10.611 h |
| July | 21.7°C6.9°C | 6.9°C | 12 | 2.6 | 10.711 h |
| August | 23.9°C9.1°C | 9.1°C | 17 | 3.8 | 11.211 h |
| September | 26.3°C12.3°C | 12.3°C | 34 | 6.5 | 11.912 h |
| October | 26.4°C14.8°C | 14.8°C | 71 | 13.3 | 12.713 h |
| November | 27.0°C16.6°C | 16.6°C | 122 | 16.3 | 13.313 h |
| December | 27.7°C18.2°C | 18.2°C | 151 | 18.4 | 13.714 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
- Mbabane in MayEswatini · 95 kmHigh 20.4°C · Low 9.5°C · 32 mm rain
- Ressano Garcia in MayMozambique · 103 kmHigh 27.2°C · Low 16.1°C · 14 mm rain
- Manzini in MayEswatini · 121 kmHigh 23.3°C · Low 11.3°C · 24 mm rain
- Ermelo in MaySouth Africa · 153 kmHigh 18.5°C · Low 6.3°C · 15 mm rain
- Middelburg in MaySouth Africa · 154 kmHigh 20.3°C · Low 7.6°C · 15 mm rain
- Matola in MayMozambique · 159 kmHigh 25.8°C · Low 17.4°C · 23 mm rain
- Maputo in MayMozambique · 171 kmHigh 25.1°C · Low 17.7°C · 23 mm rain
- Piet Retief in MaySouth Africa · 171 kmHigh 20.2°C · Low 8.5°C · 18 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 Mbombela) is explained once on the Mbombela year overview and on the Sources, method and limits page.