Francistown weather in January

In January, Francistown sees average daytime highs of 31°C and overnight lows near 20°C, with 95 mm of rain across 11.7 wet days and about 13.1 hours of daylight. It is the 3rd-warmest and 2nd-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 31°C through the month. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 34% of the time in January, and the air most often feels muggy.

Daylight stretches from about 13 h 18 min at the start of January to 13 hours by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, January is Francistown's 11th-clearest and 4th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Francistown's year-round climate.

Daytime high
31°
3rd warmest
Overnight low
20°
12th coldest
Rainfall
95 mm
11.7 wet days
Daylight
13 h 12 min
5:45 AM – 6:54 PM
Cloud cover
57%
11th clearest
Wind
14 km/h
4th windiest
Solar energy
6.43 kWh/m²
Travel score
4.6
out of 10

Francistown is city in northern Botswana.

Founded
1897

Air quality: WHO Ambient Air Quality Database. Density & description: Wikidata (CC0), GeoNames.

Temperature in January

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 31°C through the month.

A typical January day in Francistown reaches about 31°C in the afternoon and slips back to 20°C overnight — a 10°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 26°C and 35°C. Set against its neighbours, January runs on par with December and on par with February.

15°20°25°30°35°40°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
13120
23120
33120
43120
53120
63120
73120
83120
93120
103120
113120
123120
133120
143120
153020
163020
173020
183020
193020
203020
213020
223020
233020
243020
253020
263020
273020
283020
293020
303020
313020

How January really feels in Francistown

Once humidity and wind are folded in, January averages 0 days that feel above 32°C and 0 that feel at or below 0°C — the comfort signal a plain temperature reading hides.

Days feeling ≥ 32°C
0
heat index over the day's high
Days feeling ≤ C
0
wind chill below the day's low

January sits comfortably in between — no days that feel dangerously hot or drop to a hard freeze once humidity and wind are folded in.

Francistown weather by month

How January compares with the rest of the year at a glance. January is the 3rd-warmest and 2nd-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan31° / 20°9511.713.14.6
Feb30° / 20°879.512.74.9
Mar30° / 19°456.812.15.8
Apr28° / 16°112.511.57.4
May26° / 11°40.9118.9
Jun24° / 40.510.79.3
Jul23° / 40.410.89.2
Aug27° / 11°10.111.39.0
Sep30° / 15°61.111.96.6
Oct32° / 18°153.412.55.0
Nov32° / 20°559.3134.3
Dec31° / 20°9612.813.34.4

Cloud cover in January

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 34% of the time in January.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 18% of January, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 48%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
14852
24852
34852
44852
54951
65050
75050
85149
95149
105248
115248
125248
135248
145248
155248
165347
175347
185347
195347
205347
215347
225446
235545
245545
255545
265446
275545
285545
295545
305545
315446

Chance of precipitation in January

Any precipitation

Francistown gets around 95 mm of rain over 11.7 wet days in January. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Day to day, the chance of measurable rain averages around 38% and peaks near 40% on the wettest days.

0%10%20%30%40%50%151015202531
Rain chance (%)
139
238
338
437
537
637
736
836
936
1036
1137
1237
1337
1438
1539
1639
1739
1840
1940
2040
2140
2240
2340
2439
2539
2639
2738
2838
2938
3038
3137

Humidity in January

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

Most of January feels muggy — the stacked bands show each day's mix of comfort levels, read off the dew point.

By dew point, January lands in the muggy band about 33% of days. Sticky, muggy-or-worse air turns up on roughly 33% of them.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Dry (%)Comfortable (%)Humid (%)Muggy (%)Oppressive (%)
1132234300
2142233300
3142233310
4142332300
5152232300
6152231301
7162231301
8162231301
9162231311
10162231311
11162131311
12162131320
13162130330
14152130330
15152130340
16142030350
17142030350
18142030360
19142030360
20142030360
21142030360
22142030360
23142030360
24142030350
25142031350
26142131350
27142131340
28132131340
29132231340
30132231330
31132231330

Wind in January

Winds average 14 km/h in January.

Across January, daily wind ranges from about 13 km/h on the calmest days to 14 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

05101520151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
113light breeze
213light breeze
313light breeze
413light breeze
513light breeze
613light breeze
714light breeze
814light breeze
914light breeze
1014light breeze
1114light breeze
1214light breeze
1314light breeze
1414light breeze
1514light breeze
1614light breeze
1714light breeze
1814light breeze
1914light breeze
2014light breeze
2114light breeze
2214light breeze
2313light breeze
2413light breeze
2513light breeze
2613light breeze
2713light breeze
2813light breeze
2913light breeze
3013light breeze
3113light breeze

Sunrise & sunset in January

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 13 h 18 min at the start of January to 13 hours by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days shrink by about 18 minutes over January. Sunrise moves from 5:35 AM to 5:54 AM, and sunset from 6:51 PM to 6:52 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
113.35:356:51
213.35:366:51
313.35:366:52
413.35:376:52
513.25:376:52
613.25:386:53
713.25:396:53
813.25:396:53
913.25:406:53
1013.25:416:53
1113.25:416:54
1213.25:426:54
1313.25:436:54
1413.25:436:54
1513.25:446:54
1613.25:456:54
1713.15:456:54
1813.15:466:54
1913.15:466:54
2013.15:476:54
2113.15:486:54
2213.15:486:54
2313.15:496:54
2413.15:506:54
2513.15:506:54
2613.05:516:53
2713.05:526:53
2813.05:526:53
2913.05:536:53
3013.05:546:53
3113.05:546:52

Solar energy in January

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in January, about 6.43 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 4.24 kWh/m² to a high of 6.85 kWh/m² in October across the year — January's 6.43 kWh/m² sits near the top of that range.

0246151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
16.5Intense
26.5Intense
36.5Intense
46.5Intense
56.5Intense
66.5Intense
76.5Intense
86.5Intense
96.5Intense
106.5Intense
116.5Intense
126.4Intense
136.4Intense
146.4Intense
156.4Intense
166.4Intense
176.3Intense
186.3Intense
196.3Intense
206.3Intense
216.3Intense
226.3Intense
236.3Intense
246.3Intense
256.4Intense
266.4Intense
276.4Intense
286.4Intense
296.4Intense
306.4Intense
316.4Intense
Planning a trip in January

Is January a good time to visit Francistown?

Our two travel scores rate January for general sightseeing and for beach or pool weather — 0 (poor) to 10 (ideal).

4.6
Sightseeing
10th-best month of the year
6.5
Beach & pool
11th-best month of the year

January is a reasonable time to visit Francistown for sightseeing. The water and warmth also suit a beach or pool day.

What to pack for Francistown in January

From January's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.

In January, Francistown sees daytime highs around 31°C and nights near 20°C. Pack light clothes and sun protection. Worth having: rain gear. About 12 days see rain.

light clothessun protectionrain gear

UV index in Francistown in January

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in January peaks around 15 (very high — sun protection essential). The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Francistown peaks around January 18 at about 15 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near June 20 at about 6 (high).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — every month of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecExtremeVery highHighVery highExtremeJan 18UV 15Jun 20UV 6
UV index (midday)Level
Jan15Extreme
Feb14Extreme
Mar13Extreme
Apr10Very high
May8Very high
Jun6High
Jul7High
Aug8Very high
Sep10Very high
Oct11Extreme
Nov13Extreme
Dec13Extreme
Location & terrain

Where is Francistown?

Francistown sits at 21.2°S, 27.5°E, 989 m above sea level, in Botswana. The nearest listed city is Tonota, 31 km away.

TutumeSelebi-PhikweBobonongGwandaPalapyeSeroweBulawayo

Topography around Francistown

How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Francistown.

Within 3 km, the terrain around Francistown has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 110 m around an average of 993 m above sea level; within 16 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 138 m; within 80 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 588 m.

The land around Francistown is covered by artificial surfaces (39%), shrubs (25%) and trees (22%) within 3 km, shrubs (74%) within 16 km, and shrubs (75%) within 80 km.

3 km
110 m
16 km
138 m
80 km
588 m
treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrain
January weather nearby: Tonota 31 km · Tutume 90 km · Selebi-Phikwe 96 km · Bobonong 131 km · Gwanda 158 km · Palapye 158 km · Serowe 158 km · Bulawayo 159 km

Botswana travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 2
Exercise Increased Caution
Power plugs
Type D / G / M
230 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 38% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$7,778
2025
Happiness
3.5 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
63%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
11.4
per 100k, 2021
Road deaths
26.4
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
Upper middle
World Bank
Religion
Christian 79%none 15%Badimo 4%other 1%

Sources: World Bank, US State Department, World Happiness Report, WHO/UNICEF, EF EPI, CIA World Factbook.

Data sources

Temperature, precipitation, cloud, humidity, wind and solar figures are a 1991–2020 climatology for Francistown (-21.17°, 27.5078°, elevation 989 m), computed from hourly ERA5 reanalysis — contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information. Sun figures are astronomical calculations, not observations. City data © GeoNames, CC BY 4.0. Map outlines from Natural Earth (public domain); interactive map © Google. UV index is derived from CAMS (Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service) clear-sky UV data — contains modified Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service information. Topography is sampled from the Copernicus DEM GLO-90 elevation model (© ESA/Airbus) and ESA WorldCover 2021 land cover (CC BY 4.0).