Balfour weather in January

In January, Balfour sees average daytime highs of 26°C and overnight lows near 16°C, with 133 mm of rain across 15.5 wet days and about 13.5 hours of daylight. It is the 1st-warmest and 2nd-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 26°C through the month. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 38% of the time in January, and the air most often feels comfortable.

Daylight stretches from about 13 h 36 min at the start of January to 13 h 18 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, January is Balfour's 11th-clearest and 6th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Balfour's year-round climate.

Daytime high
26°
1st warmest
Overnight low
16°
12th coldest
Rainfall
133 mm
15.5 wet days
Daylight
13 h 30 min
5:30 AM – 7:00 PM
Cloud cover
53%
11th clearest
Wind
11 km/h
6th windiest
Solar energy
6.74 kWh/m²
Travel score
6.0
out of 10

Balfour is place in Mpumalanga, South Africa.

Founded
1898

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 26°C through the month.

A typical January day in Balfour reaches about 26°C in the afternoon and slips back to 16°C overnight — a 10°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 22°C and 30°C. Set against its neighbours, January runs on par with December and on par with February.

10°15°20°25°30°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
12616
22616
32616
42616
52616
62616
72616
82616
92616
102616
112616
122616
132616
142616
152616
162616
172616
182616
192616
202616
212616
222616
232616
242616
252616
262616
272616
282616
292616
302616
312616

Balfour weather by month

How January compares with the rest of the year at a glance. January is the 1st-warmest and 2nd-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan26° / 16°13315.513.56.0
Feb26° / 16°9812.312.96.3
Mar25° / 14°8711.112.27.0
Apr23° / 11°406.911.47.6
May21° / 162.810.78.2
Jun18° / 81.610.48.0
Jul18° / 4110.58.0
Aug21° / 132.511.18.5
Sep25° / 10°23411.88.4
Oct26° / 13°8310.412.67.0
Nov26° / 14°1081313.36.3
Dec26° / 15°14817.213.65.7

Cloud cover in January

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 38% of the time in January.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 22% of January, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 40%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
16139
26040
36040
46040
56040
66238
76238
86238
96139
106139
116139
126040
136040
145941
155941
165941
175842
185842
195842
205842
215941
225941
235941
245941
256040
266040
276040
286139
296139
306238
316337

Chance of precipitation in January

Any precipitation

Balfour gets around 133 mm of rain over 15.5 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 50% and peaks near 52% on the wettest days.

0%20%40%60%151015202531
Rain chance (%)
152
252
351
450
550
649
748
848
947
1047
1147
1247
1347
1448
1548
1648
1749
1849
1950
2050
2151
2251
2352
2452
2552
2652
2751
2851
2950
3049
3149

Humidity in January

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

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

By dew point, January lands in the comfortable band about 47% of days. It rarely turns muggy — the humid and sticky bands barely register.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Dry (%)Comfortable (%)Humid (%)
1244729
2244729
3244729
4244728
5254728
6254728
7254827
8254827
9254827
10254927
11244927
12244927
13244927
14244828
15234828
16234829
17224830
18224830
19214731
20214732
21214732
22214633
23204633
24204634
25214534
26214534
27214633
28214633
29214632
30214732
31224731

Wind in January

Winds average 11 km/h in January.

Across January, daily wind ranges from about 10 km/h on the calmest days to 11 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

051015151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
111calm
211calm
311calm
411calm
511calm
611calm
711calm
811calm
911calm
1011calm
1111calm
1211calm
1311calm
1411calm
1511calm
1611calm
1711calm
1811calm
1911calm
2011calm
2111calm
2210calm
2310calm
2410calm
2510calm
2610calm
2710calm
2810calm
2910calm
3010calm
3110calm

Sunrise & sunset in January

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 13 h 36 min at the start of January to 13 h 18 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days shrink by about 18 minutes over January. Sunrise moves from 5:19 AM to 5:41 AM, and sunset from 6:58 PM to 6:57 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
113.65:196:58
213.65:206:59
313.65:216:59
413.65:216:59
513.65:226:59
613.65:236:59
713.65:237:00
813.65:247:00
913.65:257:00
1013.65:257:00
1113.65:267:00
1213.65:277:00
1313.55:287:00
1413.55:287:00
1513.55:297:00
1613.55:307:00
1713.55:317:00
1813.55:317:00
1913.55:327:00
2013.45:337:00
2113.45:347:00
2213.45:346:59
2313.45:356:59
2413.45:366:59
2513.45:376:59
2613.45:376:58
2713.35:386:58
2813.35:396:58
2913.35:406:58
3013.35:406:57
3113.35:416:57

Solar energy in January

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in January, about 6.74 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 3.86 kWh/m² to a high of 6.92 kWh/m² in December across the year — January's 6.74 kWh/m² sits near the top of that range.

0246151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
16.9Intense
26.9Intense
36.9Intense
46.9Intense
56.9Intense
66.9Intense
76.9Intense
86.8Intense
96.8Intense
106.8Intense
116.8Intense
126.8Intense
136.8Intense
146.8Intense
156.7Intense
166.7Intense
176.7Intense
186.7Intense
196.7Intense
206.7Intense
216.6Intense
226.6Intense
236.6Intense
246.6Intense
256.6Intense
266.6Intense
276.6Intense
286.6Intense
296.6Intense
306.6Intense
316.6Intense
Planning a trip in January

Hazard calendar for Balfour

In seasonPeak

In January, Balfour sits inside its rainy season season. The full year is below, with each hazard's peak months called out.

Balfour's rainy season runs October–March, when most of the year's rain falls.

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

Is January a good time to visit Balfour?

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

6.0
Sightseeing
11th-best month of the year
5.8
Beach & pool
6th-best month of the year

January is a reasonable time to visit Balfour for sightseeing.

What to pack for Balfour in January

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

In January, Balfour sees daytime highs around 26°C and nights near 16°C. Pack rain gear and sun protection. Worth having: light clothes. About 16 days see rain.

rain gearsun protectionlight clothes

UV index in Balfour 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 Balfour peaks around January 13 at about 14 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near June 20 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 13UV 14Jun 20UV 5
UV index (midday)Level
Jan15Extreme
Feb13Extreme
Mar12Extreme
Apr8Very high
May6High
Jun5High
Jul5High
Aug7Very high
Sep9Very high
Oct10Extreme
Nov12Extreme
Dec14Extreme

Air quality in Balfour in January

GoodModeratePoorUnhealthyVery unhealthy

Average fine-particle pollution (PM2.5) through the year — so you can see where January falls, not just the annual average.

Air quality in Balfour is worst in July — around 69 µg/m³ PM2.5 (unhealthy), about 3.9× the cleanest month (January, 18 µg/m³).

Modeled monthly averages (CAMS reanalysis, 2015–2024).

020406080JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModeratePoorUnhealthyPoorModerateJul 1468 µg/m³Jan 1418 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan18Moderate
Feb23Moderate
Mar33Moderate
Apr44Poor
May56Unhealthy
Jun65Unhealthy
Jul69Unhealthy
Aug59Unhealthy
Sep50Poor
Oct33Moderate
Nov25Moderate
Dec21Moderate
Location & terrain

Where is Balfour?

Balfour sits at 26.7°S, 28.6°E, 1,622 m above sea level, in South Africa. The nearest listed city is Nigel, 28 km away.

Topography around Balfour

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Balfour has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 136 m around an average of 1,631 m above sea level; within 16 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 326 m; within 80 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 511 m.

The land around Balfour is covered by grassland (45%) and cropland (41%) within 3 km, grassland (55%) and cropland (42%) within 16 km, and grassland (51%) and cropland (39%) within 80 km.

3 km
136 m
16 km
326 m
80 km
511 m
treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater
January weather nearby: Nigel 28 km · Heidelberg 29 km · Villiers 41 km · Lebohang 46 km · Leslie 46 km · eMbalenhle 50 km · Springs 50 km · Brakpan 52 km

South Africa travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 2
Exercise Increased Caution
Power plugs
Type C / M / N
230 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 41% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$6,598
2025
Happiness
5.0 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
68%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
43.7
per 100k, 2022
Road deaths
22.2
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
Upper middle
World Bank
English
Very high
EF EPI 602
Religion
Christian 86%or other traditional African religions 5%nothing in particular 5%Muslim 2%

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 Balfour (-26.6633°, 28.5902°, elevation 1,622 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. Monthly air-quality (PM2.5) seasonality is from the CAMS EAC4 reanalysis (Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service), scaled to the WHO annual mean where available. Topography is sampled from the Copernicus DEM GLO-90 elevation model (© ESA/Airbus) and ESA WorldCover 2021 land cover (CC BY 4.0).