Cape Town weather by month & the best time to visit
🇿🇦 South Africa · major city break · Mediterranean climate
The best time to visit Cape Town is February — its sunniest month (Sunshine Score 97/100), with January and December close behind. Cape Town averages about 3,482 hours of sunshine a year. Daytime highs around 28°C / 82°F and roughly 15 mm of rain in February.
Jump to: month-by-month table · sea temperature · nearby alternatives · embed this data
- Sun hours / year
- 3,482
- Sunniest month
- February
- Peak score
- 97/100
- Rain / year
- 734 mm
- Midday UV at peak
- 12 (extreme)
- Sea at warmest
- 20°C / 68°F
- Population
- 4.8M
- Elevation
- 42 m
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When is the best time to visit Cape Town?
For sunshine, the best time to visit Cape Town is February, then January and December. The dullest month is July (51/100, 124 mm of rain). The full month-by-month picture is in the table below.
How sunny is Cape Town?
Cape Town is one of the sunniest places on Earth: about 3,482 hours of sunshine a year. 46 Sunshine Score points separate February (97) from July (51), so the month you pick matters. It ranks #6 of 21 destinations in South Africa for annual sunshine, above the national median of 2,871 hours. Rain has a clear season: the wettest stretch, around July, carries about 52% of the annual 734 mm.
Sunshine Score by month
| Month | Score | Day high | Night low | Rain | UV | Sea |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 96 | 28° / 82°F | 17° / 63°F | 20 mm | 12 | 16° / 61°F |
| February | 97 | 28° / 82°F | 17° / 63°F | 15 mm | 11 | 20° / 68°F |
| March | 95 | 26° / 79°F | 16° / 61°F | 25 mm | 9 | 18° / 64°F |
| April | 91 | 23° / 73°F | 14° / 57°F | 48 mm | 6 | 15° / 59°F |
| May | 87 | 20° / 68°F | 12° / 54°F | 71 mm | 3 | 16° / 61°F |
| June | 56 | 17° / 63°F | 10° / 50°F | 135 mm | 2 | 15° / 59°F |
| July | 51 | 16° / 61°F | 10° / 50°F | 124 mm | 3 | 14° / 57°F |
| August | 58 | 17° / 63°F | 10° / 50°F | 121 mm | 4 | 14° / 57°F |
| September | 74 | 18° / 64°F | 11° / 52°F | 62 mm | 6 | 15° / 59°F |
| October | 91 | 21° / 70°F | 12° / 54°F | 47 mm | 8 | 16° / 61°F |
| November | 91 | 23° / 73°F | 14° / 57°F | 46 mm | 10 | 16° / 61°F |
| December | 96 | 26° / 79°F | 16° / 61°F | 20 mm | 12 | 19° / 66°F |
Sea temperature in Cape Town by month
The sea off Cape Town is warmest in February at around 20°C / 68°F, and coolest in July at 14°C / 57°F. It never reaches comfortable swimming temperatures (21°C+). Month-by-month sea-surface temperatures are in the Sea column of the table above.
See Cape Town on the interactive sunshine globe →
Nearby places for sunshine
- Gqeberha (Port Elizabeth) South Africa · 647 km · best in May · 2,989 h sun/yr
- Gaborone Botswana · 1,264 km · best in Jul · 3,481 h sun/yr
- Johannesburg South Africa · 1,272 km · best in Aug · 3,287 h sun/yr
- Durban South Africa · 1,277 km · best in Jun · 2,503 h sun/yr
- Windhoek Namibia · 1,283 km · best in Jun · 3,829 h sun/yr
- Maputo Mozambique · 1,614 km · best in Jul · 2,689 h sun/yr
Nearest destinations
- George South Africa · 348 km · 2,968 h sun/yr · best in May
- Oranjemund Namibia · 633 km · 3,758 h sun/yr · best in Dec
- Upington South Africa · 669 km · 3,988 h sun/yr · best in Jul
- Sishen South Africa · 819 km · 3,897 h sun/yr · best in Aug
- Kimberley South Africa · 820 km · 3,662 h sun/yr · best in Aug
Head-to-head
How Cape Town compares month by month: Cape Town vs Johannesburg · Cape Town vs Gqeberha (Port Elizabeth) · Cape Town vs Windhoek · Cape Town vs Gaborone · all comparisons
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