Francistown weather in October

In October, Francistown sees average daytime highs of 32°C and overnight lows near 18°C, with 15 mm of rain across 3.4 wet days and about 12.5 hours of daylight. It is the 1st-warmest and 6th-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 32°C through the month. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 67% of the time in October, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 12 h 12 min at the start of October to 12 h 48 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, October is Francistown's 6th-clearest and 1st-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Francistown's year-round climate.

Daytime high: 32°; 1st warmest
Overnight low: 18°; 7th coldest
Rainfall: 15 mm; 3.4 wet days
Daylight: 12 h 30 min; 5:40 AM – 6:10 PM
Cloud cover: 31%; 6th clearest
Wind: 16 km/h; 1st windiest
Solar energy: 6.85 kWh/m²
Travel score: 5.0; out of 10

Francistown is city in northern Botswana.

Founded: 1897

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

← September Francistown year-round climate November →Best places to visit in October

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

Temperature in October

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 32°C through the month.

A typical October day in Francistown reaches about 32°C in the afternoon and slips back to 18°C overnight — a 14°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 25°C and 37°C. Set against its neighbours, October runs about 2°C warmer than September and on par with November.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Avg high (°C)	31	31	31	32	32	32	32	32	32	32	32	32	32	32	32	32	32	32	32	32	32	32	32	32	32	32	32	32	32	32	32
Avg low (°C)	17	17	17	17	17	18	18	18	18	18	18	18	18	18	18	18	18	19	19	19	19	19	19	19	19	19	19	19	19	19	19

	Avg high (°C)	Avg low (°C)
1	31	17
2	31	17
3	31	17
4	32	17
5	32	17
6	32	18
7	32	18
8	32	18
9	32	18
10	32	18
11	32	18
12	32	18
13	32	18
14	32	18
15	32	18
16	32	18
17	32	18
18	32	19
19	32	19
20	32	19
21	32	19
22	32	19
23	32	19
24	32	19
25	32	19
26	32	19
27	32	19
28	32	19
29	32	19
30	32	19
31	32	19

How October really feels in Francistown

Once humidity and wind are folded in, October averages 12 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

heat index over the day's high

Days feeling ≤ 0°C

wind chill below the day's low

The story in October is heat — humidity pushes the afternoon "feels like" well above the raw temperature.

Francistown weather by month

How October compares with the rest of the year at a glance. October is the 1st-warmest and 6th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

Month	High / Low (°C)	Rainfall (mm)	Wet days	Daylight (hours)	Travel score
Jan	31° / 20°	95	11.7	13.1	4.6
Feb	30° / 20°	87	9.5	12.7	4.9
Mar	30° / 19°	45	6.8	12.1	5.8
Apr	28° / 16°	11	2.5	11.5	7.4
May	26° / 11°	4	0.9	11	8.9
Jun	24° / 9°	4	0.5	10.7	9.3
Jul	23° / 8°	4	0.4	10.8	9.2
Aug	27° / 11°	1	0.1	11.3	9.0
Sep	30° / 15°	6	1.1	11.9	6.6
Oct	32° / 18°	15	3.4	12.5	5.0
Nov	32° / 20°	55	9.3	13	4.3
Dec	31° / 20°	96	12.8	13.3	4.4

Cloud cover in October

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 67% of the time in October.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 15% of October, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 18%. Skies tend to cloud over as the month goes on.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Clearer (%)	89	89	89	89	89	88	88	87	87	87	86	86	84	84	83	83	82	82	81	79	79	78	78	76	76	76	74	74	74	73	73
Cloudier (%)	11	11	11	11	11	12	12	13	13	13	14	14	16	16	17	17	18	18	19	21	21	22	22	24	24	24	26	26	26	27	27

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	89	11
2	89	11
3	89	11
4	89	11
5	89	11
6	88	12
7	88	12
8	87	13
9	87	13
10	87	13
11	86	14
12	86	14
13	84	16
14	84	16
15	83	17
16	83	17
17	82	18
18	82	18
19	81	19
20	79	21
21	79	21
22	78	22
23	78	22
24	76	24
25	76	24
26	76	24
27	74	26
28	74	26
29	74	26
30	73	27
31	73	27

Chance of precipitation in October

Any precipitation

Francistown gets around 15 mm of rain over 3.4 wet days in October. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Day to day, the chance of measurable rain averages around 11% and peaks near 21% on the wettest days. The odds climb toward the end of the month.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Rain chance (%)	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	8	8	8	9	9	9	10	11	11	12	13	14	15	15	16	17	18	18	19	20	21

	Rain chance (%)
1	7
2	7
3	7
4	7
5	7
6	7
7	7
8	7
9	7
10	7
11	8
12	8
13	8
14	9
15	9
16	9
17	10
18	11
19	11
20	12
21	13
22	14
23	15
24	15
25	16
26	17
27	18
28	18
29	19
30	20
31	21

Humidity in October

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

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

By dew point, October lands in the dry band about 74% of days. It rarely turns muggy — the humid and sticky bands barely register.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Dry (%)	84	82	82	81	80	80	80	79	79	79	78	78	78	78	78	76	76	75	74	73	72	70	69	68	67	65	64	63	62	60	60
Comfortable (%)	14	15	15	16	17	17	17	18	18	18	19	19	19	19	19	20	20	21	21	22	22	23	24	24	25	26	27	27	28	29	29
Humid (%)	2	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	4	4	4	5	5	6	7	7	8	8	9	9	10	10	11	11

	Dry (%)	Comfortable (%)	Humid (%)
1	84	14	2
2	82	15	3
3	82	15	3
4	81	16	3
5	80	17	3
6	80	17	3
7	80	17	3
8	79	18	3
9	79	18	3
10	79	18	3
11	78	19	3
12	78	19	3
13	78	19	3
14	78	19	3
15	78	19	3
16	76	20	4
17	76	20	4
18	75	21	4
19	74	21	5
20	73	22	5
21	72	22	6
22	70	23	7
23	69	24	7
24	68	24	8
25	67	25	8
26	65	26	9
27	64	27	9
28	63	27	10
29	62	28	10
30	60	29	11
31	60	29	11

Wind in October

Winds average 16 km/h in October, the windiest month of the year.

Across October, daily wind ranges from about 15 km/h on the calmest days to 16 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Wind speed (km/h)	16	16	16	16	16	16	16	16	16	16	16	16	16	16	16	16	16	16	16	16	16	16	16	16	16	16	16	16	16	16	15
Feels	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze

	Wind speed (km/h)	Feels
1	16	light breeze
2	16	light breeze
3	16	light breeze
4	16	light breeze
5	16	light breeze
6	16	light breeze
7	16	light breeze
8	16	light breeze
9	16	light breeze
10	16	light breeze
11	16	light breeze
12	16	light breeze
13	16	light breeze
14	16	light breeze
15	16	light breeze
16	16	light breeze
17	16	light breeze
18	16	light breeze
19	16	light breeze
20	16	light breeze
21	16	light breeze
22	16	light breeze
23	16	light breeze
24	16	light breeze
25	16	light breeze
26	16	light breeze
27	16	light breeze
28	16	light breeze
29	16	light breeze
30	16	light breeze
31	15	light breeze

Sunrise & sunset in October

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 12 h 12 min at the start of October to 12 h 48 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 36 minutes over October. Sunrise moves from 5:53 AM to 5:30 AM, and sunset from 6:05 PM to 6:17 PM.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Daylight (h)	12.2	12.2	12.2	12.3	12.3	12.3	12.3	12.3	12.4	12.4	12.4	12.4	12.4	12.5	12.5	12.5	12.5	12.5	12.6	12.6	12.6	12.6	12.6	12.6	12.7	12.7	12.7	12.7	12.7	12.8	12.8
Sunrise (AM)	5:53	5:52	5:51	5:50	5:49	5:49	5:48	5:47	5:46	5:45	5:44	5:43	5:43	5:42	5:41	5:40	5:39	5:39	5:38	5:37	5:36	5:36	5:35	5:34	5:34	5:33	5:33	5:32	5:31	5:31	5:30
Sunset (PM)	6:05	6:05	6:05	6:06	6:06	6:06	6:07	6:07	6:07	6:08	6:08	6:08	6:09	6:09	6:09	6:10	6:10	6:11	6:11	6:12	6:12	6:12	6:13	6:13	6:14	6:14	6:15	6:15	6:16	6:16	6:17

	Daylight (h)	Sunrise (AM)	Sunset (PM)
1	12.2	5:53	6:05
2	12.2	5:52	6:05
3	12.2	5:51	6:05
4	12.3	5:50	6:06
5	12.3	5:49	6:06
6	12.3	5:49	6:06
7	12.3	5:48	6:07
8	12.3	5:47	6:07
9	12.4	5:46	6:07
10	12.4	5:45	6:08
11	12.4	5:44	6:08
12	12.4	5:43	6:08
13	12.4	5:43	6:09
14	12.5	5:42	6:09
15	12.5	5:41	6:09
16	12.5	5:40	6:10
17	12.5	5:39	6:10
18	12.5	5:39	6:11
19	12.6	5:38	6:11
20	12.6	5:37	6:12
21	12.6	5:36	6:12
22	12.6	5:36	6:12
23	12.6	5:35	6:13
24	12.6	5:34	6:13
25	12.7	5:34	6:14
26	12.7	5:33	6:14
27	12.7	5:33	6:15
28	12.7	5:32	6:15
29	12.7	5:31	6:16
30	12.8	5:31	6:16
31	12.8	5:30	6:17

Solar energy in October

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in October, about 6.85 kWh/m² — the sunniest month for solar.

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 — October's 6.85 kWh/m² sits near the top of that range.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Solar energy (kWh/m²)	6.6	6.7	6.7	6.7	6.7	6.8	6.8	6.8	6.8	6.8	6.8	6.8	6.8	6.8	6.9	6.9	6.9	6.9	6.9	6.9	6.9	6.9	6.9	6.9	6.9	6.9	6.9	6.9	6.9	6.8	6.8
Level	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense

	Solar energy (kWh/m²)	Level
1	6.6	Intense
2	6.7	Intense
3	6.7	Intense
4	6.7	Intense
5	6.7	Intense
6	6.8	Intense
7	6.8	Intense
8	6.8	Intense
9	6.8	Intense
10	6.8	Intense
11	6.8	Intense
12	6.8	Intense
13	6.8	Intense
14	6.8	Intense
15	6.9	Intense
16	6.9	Intense
17	6.9	Intense
18	6.9	Intense
19	6.9	Intense
20	6.9	Intense
21	6.9	Intense
22	6.9	Intense
23	6.9	Intense
24	6.9	Intense
25	6.9	Intense
26	6.9	Intense
27	6.9	Intense
28	6.9	Intense
29	6.9	Intense
30	6.8	Intense
31	6.8	Intense

Planning a trip in October

Is October a good time to visit Francistown?

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

5.0

Sightseeing

8th-best month of the year

7.9

Beach & pool

5th-best month of the year

October 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 October

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

In October, Francistown sees daytime highs around 32°C and nights near 18°C. Pack light clothes and sun protection. About 3 days see rain.

light clothessun protection

UV index in Francistown in October

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in October peaks around 11 (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.

	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
UV index (midday)	15	14	13	10	8	6	7	8	10	11	13	13
Level	Extreme	Extreme	Extreme	Very high	Very high	High	High	Very high	Very high	Extreme	Extreme	Extreme

	UV index (midday)	Level
Jan	15	Extreme
Feb	14	Extreme
Mar	13	Extreme
Apr	10	Very high
May	8	Very high
Jun	6	High
Jul	7	High
Aug	8	Very high
Sep	10	Very high
Oct	11	Extreme
Nov	13	Extreme
Dec	13	Extreme

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.

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

artificial surfaces 39%

16 km

138 m

shrubs 74%

80 km

588 m

shrubs 75%

treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrain

← September Francistown year-round climate November →Best places to visit in October

October 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

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).

	Avg high (°C)	Avg low (°C)
1	31	17
2	31	17
3	31	17
4	32	17
5	32	17
6	32	18
7	32	18
8	32	18
9	32	18
10	32	18
11	32	18
12	32	18
13	32	18
14	32	18
15	32	18
16	32	18
17	32	18
18	32	19
19	32	19
20	32	19
21	32	19
22	32	19
23	32	19
24	32	19
25	32	19
26	32	19
27	32	19
28	32	19
29	32	19
30	32	19
31	32	19

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	89	11
2	89	11
3	89	11
4	89	11
5	89	11
6	88	12
7	88	12
8	87	13
9	87	13
10	87	13
11	86	14
12	86	14
13	84	16
14	84	16
15	83	17
16	83	17
17	82	18
18	82	18
19	81	19
20	79	21
21	79	21
22	78	22
23	78	22
24	76	24
25	76	24
26	76	24
27	74	26
28	74	26
29	74	26
30	73	27
31	73	27

	Rain chance (%)
1	7
2	7
3	7
4	7
5	7
6	7
7	7
8	7
9	7
10	7
11	8
12	8
13	8
14	9
15	9
16	9
17	10
18	11
19	11
20	12
21	13
22	14
23	15
24	15
25	16
26	17
27	18
28	18
29	19
30	20
31	21

	Dry (%)	Comfortable (%)	Humid (%)
1	84	14	2
2	82	15	3
3	82	15	3
4	81	16	3
5	80	17	3
6	80	17	3
7	80	17	3
8	79	18	3
9	79	18	3
10	79	18	3
11	78	19	3
12	78	19	3
13	78	19	3
14	78	19	3
15	78	19	3
16	76	20	4
17	76	20	4
18	75	21	4
19	74	21	5
20	73	22	5
21	72	22	6
22	70	23	7
23	69	24	7
24	68	24	8
25	67	25	8
26	65	26	9
27	64	27	9
28	63	27	10
29	62	28	10
30	60	29	11
31	60	29	11

	Avg high (°C)	Avg low (°C)
1	31	17
2	31	17
3	31	17
4	32	17
5	32	17
6	32	18
7	32	18
8	32	18
9	32	18
10	32	18
11	32	18
12	32	18
13	32	18
14	32	18
15	32	18
16	32	18
17	32	18
18	32	19
19	32	19
20	32	19
21	32	19
22	32	19
23	32	19
24	32	19
25	32	19
26	32	19
27	32	19
28	32	19
29	32	19
30	32	19
31	32	19

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	89	11
2	89	11
3	89	11
4	89	11
5	89	11
6	88	12
7	88	12
8	87	13
9	87	13
10	87	13
11	86	14
12	86	14
13	84	16
14	84	16
15	83	17
16	83	17
17	82	18
18	82	18
19	81	19
20	79	21
21	79	21
22	78	22
23	78	22
24	76	24
25	76	24
26	76	24
27	74	26
28	74	26
29	74	26
30	73	27
31	73	27

	Rain chance (%)
1	7
2	7
3	7
4	7
5	7
6	7
7	7
8	7
9	7
10	7
11	8
12	8
13	8
14	9
15	9
16	9
17	10
18	11
19	11
20	12
21	13
22	14
23	15
24	15
25	16
26	17
27	18
28	18
29	19
30	20
31	21

	Dry (%)	Comfortable (%)	Humid (%)
1	84	14	2
2	82	15	3
3	82	15	3
4	81	16	3
5	80	17	3
6	80	17	3
7	80	17	3
8	79	18	3
9	79	18	3
10	79	18	3
11	78	19	3
12	78	19	3
13	78	19	3
14	78	19	3
15	78	19	3
16	76	20	4
17	76	20	4
18	75	21	4
19	74	21	5
20	73	22	5
21	72	22	6
22	70	23	7
23	69	24	7
24	68	24	8
25	67	25	8
26	65	26	9
27	64	27	9
28	63	27	10
29	62	28	10
30	60	29	11
31	60	29	11

	Avg high (°C)	Avg low (°C)
1	31	17
2	31	17
3	31	17
4	32	17
5	32	17
6	32	18
7	32	18
8	32	18
9	32	18
10	32	18
11	32	18
12	32	18
13	32	18
14	32	18
15	32	18
16	32	18
17	32	18
18	32	19
19	32	19
20	32	19
21	32	19
22	32	19
23	32	19
24	32	19
25	32	19
26	32	19
27	32	19
28	32	19
29	32	19
30	32	19
31	32	19

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	89	11
2	89	11
3	89	11
4	89	11
5	89	11
6	88	12
7	88	12
8	87	13
9	87	13
10	87	13
11	86	14
12	86	14
13	84	16
14	84	16
15	83	17
16	83	17
17	82	18
18	82	18
19	81	19
20	79	21
21	79	21
22	78	22
23	78	22
24	76	24
25	76	24
26	76	24
27	74	26
28	74	26
29	74	26
30	73	27
31	73	27

	Rain chance (%)
1	7
2	7
3	7
4	7
5	7
6	7
7	7
8	7
9	7
10	7
11	8
12	8
13	8
14	9
15	9
16	9
17	10
18	11
19	11
20	12
21	13
22	14
23	15
24	15
25	16
26	17
27	18
28	18
29	19
30	20
31	21

	Dry (%)	Comfortable (%)	Humid (%)
1	84	14	2
2	82	15	3
3	82	15	3
4	81	16	3
5	80	17	3
6	80	17	3
7	80	17	3
8	79	18	3
9	79	18	3
10	79	18	3
11	78	19	3
12	78	19	3
13	78	19	3
14	78	19	3
15	78	19	3
16	76	20	4
17	76	20	4
18	75	21	4
19	74	21	5
20	73	22	5
21	72	22	6
22	70	23	7
23	69	24	7
24	68	24	8
25	67	25	8
26	65	26	9
27	64	27	9
28	63	27	10
29	62	28	10
30	60	29	11
31	60	29	11