Climate averages 1991–2020
Zanzibar weather
in March.
A hot, wet month: the 2nd warmest and the 10th driest of the year.
Long-term climate patterns, not a forecast for a particular trip.
March is a hot month in Zanzibar: daytime highs average 30.1°C and nights cool to about 25.7°C. By daytime temperature it is the 2nd warmest of the 12 months.
Expect about 122 mm of rain on roughly 21 days, which makes March a wet month (the 10th driest of the 12 months). Daylight, from sunrise to sunset, lasts about 12 h 08 min on an average March day.
The nearest other city in this atlas is Bagamoyo (45 km away). In March its highs average 30.8°C, 0.7°C warmer than Zanzibar, with 131 mm of rain.
Among the 43 cities listed in Tanzania, Zanzibar ranks 6th of 43 for the warmest March highs and joint 8th of 43 for the driest March (rainfall, lowest first). The mean March high of those 43 cities is 27.2°C; Zanzibar is 2.9°C warmer than that mean.
From March to April, average highs fall by 1.5°C to 28.6°C, and monthly rainfall rises from 122 mm to 200 mm.
The annual picture
March 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
Zanzibar climate table
| Month | Average highHigh / low | Average low | Rainfall mm/month | Rain days ≥1 mm/day | Daylight hours/dayDaylight h/day |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 30.0°C26.1°C | 26.1°C | 43 | 9.7 | 12.412 h |
| February | 30.5°C26.2°C | 26.2°C | 36 | 7.7 | 12.312 h |
| March, selected | 30.1°C25.7°C | 25.7°C | 122 | 21.0 | 12.112 h |
| April | 28.6°C24.9°C | 24.9°C | 200 | 25.5 | 12.012 h |
| May | 27.7°C24.3°C | 24.3°C | 146 | 18.8 | 11.812 h |
| June | 27.4°C23.5°C | 23.5°C | 35 | 9.6 | 11.812 h |
| July | 27.3°C22.8°C | 22.8°C | 22 | 6.4 | 11.812 h |
| August | 27.6°C22.6°C | 22.6°C | 21 | 6.2 | 11.912 h |
| September | 28.5°C23.1°C | 23.1°C | 19 | 5.4 | 12.112 h |
| October | 29.2°C23.9°C | 23.9°C | 52 | 9.8 | 12.212 h |
| November | 29.3°C24.7°C | 24.7°C | 84 | 18.0 | 12.412 h |
| December | 29.6°C25.5°C | 25.5°C | 93 | 20.3 | 12.512 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
March in nearby cities
- Bagamoyo in MarchTanzania · 45 kmHigh 30.8°C · Low 24.7°C · 131 mm rain
- Dar es Salaam in MarchTanzania · 74 kmHigh 30.6°C · Low 25.0°C · 156 mm rain
- Kibaha in MarchTanzania · 74 kmHigh 30.8°C · Low 23.6°C · 164 mm rain
- Vikindu in MarchTanzania · 94 kmHigh 30.2°C · Low 24.7°C · 158 mm rain
- Tanga in MarchTanzania · 122 kmHigh 32.1°C · Low 25.1°C · 87 mm rain
- Handeni in MarchTanzania · 154 kmHigh 29.3°C · Low 21.1°C · 160 mm rain
- Morogoro in MarchTanzania · 185 kmHigh 29.3°C · Low 22.2°C · 192 mm rain
- Ukunda in MarchKenya · 212 kmHigh 31.3°C · Low 25.3°C · 54 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 Zanzibar) is explained once on the Zanzibar year overview and on the Sources, method and limits page.