Climate and average weather in Lobatse

In Lobatse, the summers are hot, showery, and partly cloudy and the winters are mild and clear.

Best: early April to late September

Over the course of the year, the temperature in Lobatse typically varies from 6°C to 30°C, and is rarely below 2°C or above 35°C. December is the hottest month of the year, while July is the coldest.

Based on the travel score, the best time of year to visit Lobatse for warm-weather activities is from early April to late September.

Hottest
Dec
30°
Coldest
Jul
Wettest
Jan
83 mm
Driest
Jul
2 mm
Rain / yr
472 mm
71 wet days
Daylight
10.4–13.6 h
shortest–longest
Elevation
1,191 m
25.2°S
Clearest
Jul
13% cloud

Lobatse is city in Botswana.

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

Lobatse weather by month, at a glance

The whole year in one picture — sky, rain, humidity, temperature and travel score. Click any band to jump to its full chart.

Each stripe is one measure across the whole year, stacked so a single day reads top to bottom. The sky band runs overcast grey on top down to clear blue at the base — more blue means sunnier — followed by the rainfall curve, the humidity band, a temperature strip that tints each stretch of the year by how warm its average high is, and the travel-score line at the foot. Scan straight down any date to read that day across every measure at once; the score climbs highest around early April to late September.

Temperature through the year

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Daily average highs and lows in Lobatse, from 1991–2020 of climate data. The shaded bands show the range most days fall in — 10th to 90th percentile.

The hot season lasts 6.2 months, from September 14 to March 21, with daily high temperatures above 28°C. The hottest month of the year in Lobatse is December, with an average high of 30°C and low of 19°C.

The cool season lasts 2.1 months, from May 30 to August 2, with daily high temperatures below 22°C. The coldest month of the year in Lobatse is July, with an average low of 6°C and high of 20°C.

Days typically run about 13°C warmer than nights, with the widest day–night swing (around 15°C) in August.

10°20°30°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
Jan3019
Feb2919
Mar2817
Apr2614
May2310
Jun216
Jul206
Aug249
Sep2813
Oct2916
Nov3018
Dec3019

Average hourly temperature in Lobatse

A compact picture of the whole year, hour by hour: each column is a day, each row an hour, and the color is the modeled average temperature. Darker overlays mark night, lighter ones the civil-twilight hours around sunrise and sunset.

Read left to right for the day of the year and top to bottom for the hour of the day; the color is the modeled temperature, cool blues through to hot reds on the same scale as the other charts. A vertical slice is a single day's swing — coolest just before dawn, warmest in the mid-afternoon — while a horizontal slice follows one hour across the seasons. The darker overlay marks night and the lighter one the twilight around sunrise and sunset. Colors run warmest on December afternoons, near 30°C, and coldest before dawn in July, near C.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec12 AM2 AM4 AM6 AM8 AM10 AM12 PM2 PM4 PM6 PM8 PM10 PM12 AM

Lobatse weather by month

Every month at a glance. Click a month for its detailed page.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan30° / 19°8312.213.45.0
Feb29° / 19°771012.95.4
Mar28° / 17°619.212.26.5
Apr26° / 14°324.911.47.9
May23° / 10°152.110.89.0
Jun21° / 81.110.58.7
Jul20° / 20.410.68.7
Aug24° / 4111.19.3
Sep28° / 13°111.511.88.1
Oct29° / 16°355.812.66.2
Nov30° / 18°6310.113.25.3
Dec30° / 19°7912.213.54.9

Chance of rain

How likely it is to rain on a typical day, and how that shifts across the wetter and drier seasons.

Lobatse gets about 472 mm of precipitation a year. On a typical day the chance of rain is some rain, but that rises and falls sharply with the seasons.

The wetter season lasts 5.7 months, from around Oct 19 to Apr 9, peaking in January at about 41% chance on a given day. The drier stretch runs the rest of the year, bottoming out around Jul 14.

January is the wettest month by volume, with 83 mm over about 12 wet days; July is the driest, with 2 mm.

0%10%20%30%40%50%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecwetterdrierwettermostly drysome rainoften wetvery wetJan 20 · 41%Jul 14 · 1%
Rain on a day (%)Rain days
Jan4012
Feb3510
Mar309
Apr175
May62
Jun41
Jul20
Aug31
Sep62
Oct186
Nov3410
Dec3812

Monthly rainfall

Over a full year, Lobatse collects about 472 mm of rain across 71 wet days — roughly 39 mm in an average month.

It doesn’t fall evenly. January is the wettest month with 83 mm, while July is the driest at just 2 mm. The three wettest months alone bring about 51% of the year’s total.

0255075100JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec837761321582411356379
Rainfall (mm)Rain days
Jan8312
Feb7710
Mar619
Apr325
May152
Jun81
Jul20
Aug41
Sep112
Oct356
Nov6310
Dec7912

Clouds and sunshine

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

How often the daytime sky is clear, partly cloudy or overcast.

In Lobatse, the average share of the sky covered by clouds shows significant seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The clearer part of the year begins around April 17 and lasts for 6.0 months, ending around October 16. The clearest month is August, when the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 94% of the time on average.

The cloudier part of the year begins around October 17 and lasts for 6.0 months, ending around April 16. The cloudiest month is December, when it is overcast or mostly cloudy 34% of the time.

0%100%10%90%20%80%30%70%40%60%50%50%60%40%70%30%80%20%90%10%100%0%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecJul 28 · 94%Nov 24 · 64%clearmostly clearpartly cloudymostly cloudyovercastcloudierclearercloudier
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
Jan6832
Feb7030
Mar7327
Apr8020
May919
Jun919
Jul937
Aug946
Sep8911
Oct8119
Nov6832
Dec6634

Daylight, sunrise and sunset

DaylightNight

Hours of daylight through the year, with sunrise and sunset times.

The gold band is daylight — sunrise runs along its lower edge, sunset along the upper — so it widens toward summer and pinches toward winter, with night the dark area above and below. The longest day, around December 13, brings about 13 h 36 min of light; the shortest, around June 14, only 10 h 24 min — a swing of roughly 3 h 12 min.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AMJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
Jan13.45:447:09
Feb12.96:066:58
Mar12.26:216:32
Apr11.46:356:00
May10.86:505:37
Jun10.57:045:31
Jul10.67:065:40
Aug11.16:485:55
Sep11.86:166:07
Oct12.65:446:20
Nov13.25:256:40
Dec13.55:277:00

Sunny days

How many genuinely sunny days each month brings — days the sky stays clear or mostly clear — banded into plain-language zones.

Lobatse averages about 20 sunny days a month — counting the days the sky stays clear or mostly clear — with a clear seasonal swing between 12 and 27 days.

The sunnier stretch runs 6.0 months, from around Apr 17 to Oct 15. The sunniest month is July, with roughly 26 sunny days (brilliant).

The greyest month is December, down near 12 sunny days — about 53% fewer than the July peak.

051015202530JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecgreyersunniergreyergloomymixedbrightbrilliantJul 2427 daysDec 2512 days
Sunny daysSky
Jan13Mixed
Feb13Mixed
Mar17Bright
Apr19Bright
May25Brilliant
Jun25Brilliant
Jul27Brilliant
Aug27Brilliant
Sep24Brilliant
Oct20Bright
Nov14Mixed
Dec13Mixed

Humidity comfort

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

Share of days at each humidity comfort level, based on the dew point — the measure that tracks how muggy it actually feels.

Humidity comfort is graded by the dew point — the temperature at which the air would be fully saturated — because it tracks how muggy it actually feels far better than relative humidity does. A low dew point feels dry and crisp; a high one feels sticky and oppressive no matter the reading on a humidity gauge.

In Lobatse, how humid it feels changes dramatically over the year.

The more humid part of the year lasts 4.5 months, from around November 18 to April 3. The muggiest month is January, when the air feels humid, muggy or worse about 51% of the time.

The most comfortable stretch runs from around April 4 to November 17, and May is the most comfortable month — the air is dry or comfortable 100% of the time.

0%10%20%30%40%50%60%70%80%90%100%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecMay 8 · 100%Jan 24 · 44%muggyhumidcomfortabledryhumidcomfortablehumid
Dry (%)Comfortable (%)Humid (%)Muggy (%)
Jan16323813
Feb16334011
Mar3138275
Apr692560
May97300
Jun100000
Jul100000
Aug100000
Sep99100
Oct851310
Nov5828140
Dec2838304

Wind

Average wind speed through the year, banded into plain-language speed zones so a number reads as 'breezy' or 'calm' without knowing the scale.

This is the average sustained wind speed at the standard 10 metres above open ground — the steady flow a weather station reports, not the sharper gusts that come and go, which can run half again as fast. It's the number that says whether a place is generally breezy or calm.

Across the year, average wind speed in Lobatse is typically calm, near 11 km/h, and varies little with the seasons.

The windier part of the year lasts 5.1 months, from around Aug 1 to Jan 3. The windiest month is October, averaging about 13 km/h (light breeze).

The calmer part of the year runs from around Jan 4 to Jul 31, with May the calmest month at about 9 km/h.

05101520JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDeccalmerwindiercalmlight breezeOct 13 · 13 km/hMay 17 · 9 km/h
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
Jan10calm
Feb10calm
Mar9calm
Apr9calm
May9calm
Jun9calm
Jul10calm
Aug11calm
Sep12light breeze
Oct13light breeze
Nov12light breeze
Dec11calm

Best time to visit Lobatse

TravelBeach/poolTemperatureCloudsPrecipitation

To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Lobatse throughout the year, we compute two travel scores — one for general sightseeing, one for beach and pool weather.

Around mid April, Lobatse is still near the start of its best-weather window — great conditions with the peak-season crowds not yet at full swing.

Inferred from the travel-score curve; month-by-month visitor numbers are a planned addition.

The travel score favors clear, rainless days with daytime highs between 18°C and 28°C. Based on this score, the best time of year to visit Lobatse for general outdoor tourist activities is from early April to late September, with a peak score in the third week of August.

0246810JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbest timetravel scoretemperaturecloudsprecipitationAug 17 · 9.4

The travel score (filled area), and its constituents: the temperature score (red line), the cloud cover score (blue line), and the precipitation score (green line).

Travel score (0–10)Rating
Jan5.0fair
Feb5.4fair
Mar6.5good
Apr7.9ideal
May8.9ideal
Jun8.7ideal
Jul8.8ideal
Aug9.2ideal
Sep8.1ideal
Oct6.2good
Nov5.3fair
Dec5.0fair

The beach/pool score favors clear, rainless days with daytime highs between 24°C and 34°C. Based on this score, the best times of year to visit Lobatse for hot-weather activities run from mid February to mid May and again from mid August to mid November, with a peak score in the third week of September.

024681012JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbest timebest timebeach/pool scoretemperaturecloudsprecipitationSep 21 · 8.8

The beach/pool score (filled area), and its constituents: the temperature score (red line), the cloud cover score (blue line), and the precipitation score (green line).

What to pack for Lobatse, by month

EssentialRecommendedOptional

Month by month, what's worth putting in the bag — from the temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind. Tap a month for a quick packing note.

For a warm-season trip around December (highs near 30°C), the essentials are light clothes, rain gear and sun protection. In the cold season around July (highs near 20°C), pack a warm layer.

Light clothing
Warm layer
Winter coat
Rain gear
Sun protection
Windbreaker

In December, Lobatse sees daytime highs around 30°C and nights near 19°C. Pack light clothes and sun protection. Worth having: rain gear. About 12 days see rain.

UV index (midday) in Lobatse by month

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV index through the year, shaded by the WHO exposure levels — how much sun protection each month calls for.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Lobatse peaks around January 14 at about 14 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near June 17 at about 5 (high).

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

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecExtremeVery highHighVery highExtremeJan 14UV 14Jun 17UV 5
UV index (midday)Level
Jan15Extreme
Feb13Extreme
Mar12Extreme
Apr9Very high
May6High
Jun5High
Jul6High
Aug8Very high
Sep9Very high
Oct11Extreme
Nov12Extreme
Dec14Extreme

Average hourly UV index in Lobatse

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Modeled clear-sky UV for every hour of every day — when in the day sun protection actually matters.

The whole year hour by hour: each column is a day, each row an hour, and the color is the modeled clear-sky UV index — the midday peak scaled down as the sun sits lower in the sky. Darker overlays mark night, lighter ones the civil-twilight hours around sunrise and sunset.

UV falls off far faster than brightness as the sun drops, so even in January the burn window is concentrated in the middle of the day: about 9 hours a day reach index 3 (protection recommended), and 7 hours reach 6 or more. Mornings and late afternoons stay comparatively gentle year round.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec12 AM2 AM4 AM6 AM8 AM10 AM12 PM2 PM4 PM6 PM8 PM10 PM12 AM
UV ≥ 3 (h/day)UV ≥ 6 (h/day)
Jan97
Feb8.56.5
Mar86
Apr74.5
May5.51.5
Jun50
Jul50
Aug63.5
Sep74.5
Oct86
Nov8.56.5
Dec97
Almanac & agriculture

Growing season

Chance of a frost-free dayFrost-free year round

Lobatse is frost-free year round — even the coldest nights rarely reach freezing, so there is no start or end to the growing season.

0%25%50%75%100%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecfrost-free year round
Frost-free chance (%)Frost nights
Jan1000
Feb1000
Mar1000
Apr1000
May1000
Jun1000
Jul990
Aug1000
Sep1000
Oct1000
Nov1000
Dec1000

Growing degree days

Degree days (base 10°C)Frost-free shaded

Growing degree days tally heat above 10°C: each day adds however many degrees its average temperature runs over that threshold, and cold days add nothing. Lobatse banks about 3,685 degree days a year, and the running total — which growers use to time plantings and predict maturity — climbs fastest around January.

01,0002,0003,0004,000JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Growing degree days (°C·days)
Jan453
Feb398
Mar392
Apr290
May200
Jun104
Jul97
Aug190
Sep311
Oct398
Nov409
Dec443

Solar energy

Average daily shortwave solar energy reaching the ground, banded into brightness zones so the number means something at a glance.

Solar energy is how much sunlight actually reaches the ground each day, measured in kilowatt-hours per square metre (kWh/m²) — the combined effect of how long the sun is up, how high it climbs, and how much cloud gets in the way. It's the raw fuel a solar panel has to work with: for scale, 1 kWh/m² a day is dim and wintry, while 7+ is desert-bright.

Lobatse receives about 5.7 kWh/m² a day of solar energy on average — bright — with a clear seasonal swing between 3.9 and 7.0 kWh/m².

The brighter stretch of the year lasts 6.4 months, from around Sep 1 to Mar 15. The brightest month is December, averaging about 7.0 kWh/m² (intense).

The dimmest month is June, down near 4.0 kWh/m² — roughly 43% less than the December peak.

012345678JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbrighterdimmerbrighterdimmoderatebrightintenseDec 207.0 kWhJun 203.9 kWh
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
Jan6.8Intense
Feb6.4Intense
Mar5.7Bright
Apr4.9Bright
May4.4Bright
Jun4.0Moderate
Jul4.3Bright
Aug5.1Bright
Sep6.2Intense
Oct6.9Intense
Nov6.9Intense
Dec7.0Intense

Where is Lobatse?

Lobatse sits at 25.2°S, 25.7°E, 1,191 m above sea level, in Botswana. The nearest listed city is Janeng, 25 km away.

MosopaGabaneThamagaGaborone

Topography around Lobatse

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Lobatse has significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 262 m around an average of 1,248 m above sea level; within 16 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 424 m; within 80 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 610 m.

The land around Lobatse is covered by shrubs (52%) and trees (23%) within 3 km, shrubs (66%) and trees (21%) within 16 km, and shrubs (54%) and grassland (27%) within 80 km.

3 km
262 m
16 km
424 m
80 km
610 m
treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaces
Nearby: Janeng 25 km · Ramotswa 44 km · Kanye 45 km · Zeerust 53 km · Mosopa 57 km · Gabane 63 km · Thamaga 63 km · Gaborone 68 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 Lobatse (-25.2244°, 25.6773°, elevation 1,191 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).