Climate averages 1991–2020
Piet Retief weather
in May.
A mild, fairly dry month: the 10th warmest and the 3rd 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 Piet Retief: daytime highs average 20.2°C and nights cool to about 8.5°C. By daytime temperature it is the 10th warmest of the 12 months.
Expect about 18 mm of rain on roughly 3 days, which makes May a fairly dry month (the 3rd driest of the 12 months). Daylight, from sunrise to sunset, lasts about 10 h 48 min on an average May day.
The nearest other city in this atlas is Manzini (80 km away). In May its highs average 23.3°C, 3.1°C warmer than Piet Retief, with 24 mm of rain.
Among the 95 cities listed in South Africa, Piet Retief ranks joint 58th of 95 for the warmest May highs and joint 40th of 95 for the driest May (rainfall, lowest first). The mean May high of those 95 cities is 21.0°C; Piet Retief is 0.8°C cooler than that mean.
From May to June, average highs fall by 2.0°C to 18.2°C, and monthly rainfall falls from 18 mm to 11 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
Piet Retief climate table
| Month | Average highHigh / low | Average low | Rainfall mm/month | Rain days ≥1 mm/day | Daylight hours/dayDaylight h/day |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 24.8°C15.5°C | 15.5°C | 144 | 18.2 | 13.614 h |
| February | 24.8°C15.6°C | 15.6°C | 117 | 14.0 | 13.013 h |
| March | 23.8°C14.3°C | 14.3°C | 103 | 13.5 | 12.312 h |
| April | 21.8°C11.7°C | 11.7°C | 48 | 7.7 | 11.511 h |
| May, selected | 20.2°C8.5°C | 8.5°C | 18 | 3.3 | 10.811 h |
| June | 18.2°C5.8°C | 5.8°C | 11 | 2.2 | 10.510 h |
| July | 18.3°C5.3°C | 5.3°C | 12 | 2.0 | 10.611 h |
| August | 20.9°C7.5°C | 7.5°C | 21 | 3.6 | 11.211 h |
| September | 23.5°C10.1°C | 10.1°C | 38 | 7.0 | 11.912 h |
| October | 23.3°C11.6°C | 11.6°C | 96 | 13.3 | 12.713 h |
| November | 24.0°C13.2°C | 13.2°C | 131 | 16.9 | 13.413 h |
| December | 24.9°C14.8°C | 14.8°C | 155 | 19.4 | 13.814 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
- Manzini in MayEswatini · 80 kmHigh 23.3°C · Low 11.3°C · 24 mm rain
- Mbabane in MayEswatini · 83 kmHigh 20.4°C · Low 9.5°C · 32 mm rain
- Vryheid in MaySouth Africa · 85 kmHigh 21.3°C · Low 8.1°C · 19 mm rain
- Ermelo in MaySouth Africa · 98 kmHigh 18.5°C · Low 6.3°C · 15 mm rain
- Newcastle, South Africa in MaySouth Africa · 121 kmHigh 20.7°C · Low 7.4°C · 17 mm rain
- Dundee, South Africa in MaySouth Africa · 141 kmHigh 20.9°C · Low 8.7°C · 18 mm rain
- Bethal in MaySouth Africa · 147 kmHigh 19.0°C · Low 5.9°C · 15 mm rain
- Standerton in MaySouth Africa · 156 kmHigh 19.5°C · Low 6.0°C · 15 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 Piet Retief) is explained once on the Piet Retief year overview and on the Sources, method and limits page.