Durban weather by month & the best time to visit

🇿🇦 South Africa · major coastal city · semi-arid climate

The best time to visit Durban is June — its sunniest month (Sunshine Score 90/100), with May and July close behind. Durban averages about 2,503 hours of sunshine a year. Daytime highs around 23°C / 73°F and roughly 19 mm of rain in June.

Jump to: month-by-month table · sea temperature · nearby alternatives · embed this data

Sun hours / year

2,503

Sunniest month

June

Peak score

90/100

Rain / year

698 mm

Midday UV at peak

11 (extreme)

Sea at warmest

25°C / 77°F

Population

3.3M

Elevation

93 m

When is the best time to visit Durban?

For sunshine, the best time to visit Durban is June, then May and July. The dullest month is January (77/100, 92 mm of rain). The full month-by-month picture is in the table below.

How sunny is Durban?

Durban gets a lot of sun: around 2,503 hours a year. Conditions barely change through the year — only 13 Sunshine Score points separate June from January. It ranks #20 of 21 destinations in South Africa for annual sunshine, below the national median of 2,871 hours. The year's 698 mm of rain spreads fairly evenly across the months, with no pronounced dry season.

Sunshine Score by month

Sea temperature in Durban by month

The sea off Durban is warmest in January at around 25°C / 77°F, and coolest in August at 21°C / 70°F. The water sits at a comfortable 21°C or warmer roughly all year round. Month-by-month sea-surface temperatures are in the Sea column of the table above.

See Durban on the interactive sunshine globe →

Nearby places for sunshine

• Maputo Mozambique · 435 km · best in Jul · 2,689 h sun/yr
• Johannesburg South Africa · 478 km · best in Aug · 3,287 h sun/yr
• Gqeberha (Port Elizabeth) South Africa · 712 km · best in May · 2,989 h sun/yr
• Gaborone Botswana · 762 km · best in Jul · 3,481 h sun/yr
• Cape Town South Africa · 1,277 km · best in Feb · 3,482 h sun/yr
• Harare Zimbabwe · 1,299 km · best in Aug · 3,184 h sun/yr

Nearest destinations

• Pietermaritzburg South Africa · 70 km · 2,600 h sun/yr · best in Jun
• Richards Bay South Africa · 135 km · 2,540 h sun/yr · best in Jun
• Margate South Africa · 157 km · 2,327 h sun/yr · best in Jun
• Mkuze South Africa · 239 km · 2,582 h sun/yr · best in Jun
• Mthatha South Africa · 318 km · 2,871 h sun/yr · best in May

Head-to-head

How Durban compares month by month: Durban vs Johannesburg · Durban vs Maputo · Durban vs Gqeberha (Port Elizabeth) · Durban vs Gaborone · all comparisons