Cradock weather in January

In January, Cradock sees average daytime highs of 28°C and overnight lows near 15°C, with 95 mm of rain across 12.2 wet days and about 13.9 hours of daylight. It is the 1st-warmest and 1st-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 28°C through the month. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 48% of the time in January, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 14 h 06 min at the start of January to 13 h 36 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, January is Cradock's 8th-clearest and 8th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Cradock's year-round climate.

Daytime high: 28°; 1st warmest
Overnight low: 15°; 11th coldest
Rainfall: 95 mm; 12.2 wet days
Daylight: 13 h 54 min; 5:30 AM – 7:24 PM
Cloud cover: 44%; 8th clearest
Wind: 10 km/h; 8th windiest
Solar energy: 7.23 kWh/m²
Travel score: 6.4; out of 10

Cradock is town in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa.

Founded: 1816

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

← December Cradock year-round climate February →Best places to visit in January

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

Temperature in January

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 28°C through the month.

A typical January day in Cradock reaches about 28°C in the afternoon and slips back to 15°C overnight — a 13°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 21°C and 34°C. Set against its neighbours, January runs about 1°C warmer than December and on par with February.

	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)	28	28	28	28	28	28	28	28	28	28	28	28	28	28	28	28	28	28	28	28	28	28	28	28	28	28	28	28	28	28	28
Avg low (°C)	14	14	14	14	14	14	14	14	14	14	14	14	14	14	15	15	15	15	15	15	15	15	15	15	15	15	15	15	15	15	15

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

How January really feels in Cradock

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

heat index over the day's high

Days feeling ≤ 0°C

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.

Cradock weather by month

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

Month	High / Low (°C)	Rainfall (mm)	Wet days	Daylight (hours)	Travel score
Jan	28° / 15°	95	12.2	13.9	6.4
Feb	27° / 15°	88	12	13.2	6.2
Mar	26° / 13°	84	10.6	12.2	6.9
Apr	23° / 10°	45	7.5	11.2	7.4
May	20° / 7°	20	4.3	10.4	7.5
Jun	17° / 4°	17	3.5	9.9	6.6
Jul	17° / 3°	17	3	10.1	6.7
Aug	18° / 5°	20	4.2	10.8	7.3
Sep	22° / 7°	25	3.8	11.8	7.9
Oct	24° / 9°	44	7.4	12.8	7.6
Nov	25° / 11°	59	8.7	13.6	7.2
Dec	27° / 13°	73	10.3	14.1	6.7

Cloud cover in January

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 48% of the time in January.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 20% of January, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 32%.

	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 (%)	70	70	70	70	70	70	70	70	70	70	70	69	69	70	70	69	69	68	67	67	67	67	66	66	66	66	65	65	66	66	66
Cloudier (%)	30	30	30	30	30	30	30	30	30	30	30	31	31	30	30	31	31	32	33	33	33	33	34	34	34	34	35	35	34	34	34

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	70	30
2	70	30
3	70	30
4	70	30
5	70	30
6	70	30
7	70	30
8	70	30
9	70	30
10	70	30
11	70	30
12	69	31
13	69	31
14	70	30
15	70	30
16	69	31
17	69	31
18	68	32
19	67	33
20	67	33
21	67	33
22	67	33
23	66	34
24	66	34
25	66	34
26	66	34
27	65	35
28	65	35
29	66	34
30	66	34
31	66	34

Chance of precipitation in January

Any precipitation

Cradock gets around 95 mm of rain over 12.2 wet days in January, the wettest month. 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.

	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 (%)	36	37	38	38	39	39	39	39	39	39	39	38	38	38	37	37	37	37	37	37	37	38	38	38	39	39	39	40	40	40	40

	Rain chance (%)
1	36
2	37
3	38
4	38
5	39
6	39
7	39
8	39
9	39
10	39
11	39
12	38
13	38
14	38
15	37
16	37
17	37
18	37
19	37
20	37
21	37
22	38
23	38
24	38
25	39
26	39
27	39
28	40
29	40
30	40
31	40

Humidity in January

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

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

By dew point, January lands in the dry band about 55% 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 (%)	62	61	60	60	60	59	58	58	57	57	57	57	57	56	56	56	55	55	55	54	54	53	53	52	52	51	51	50	50	49	49
Comfortable (%)	30	30	31	31	31	32	32	32	33	33	33	33	33	33	33	33	33	33	33	33	33	34	34	35	35	36	36	37	37	38	38
Humid (%)	8	9	9	9	9	9	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	11	11	11	12	12	12	13	13	13	13	13	13	13	13	13	13	13	13

	Dry (%)	Comfortable (%)	Humid (%)
1	62	30	8
2	61	30	9
3	60	31	9
4	60	31	9
5	60	31	9
6	59	32	9
7	58	32	10
8	58	32	10
9	57	33	10
10	57	33	10
11	57	33	10
12	57	33	10
13	57	33	10
14	56	33	11
15	56	33	11
16	56	33	11
17	55	33	12
18	55	33	12
19	55	33	12
20	54	33	13
21	54	33	13
22	53	34	13
23	53	34	13
24	52	35	13
25	52	35	13
26	51	36	13
27	51	36	13
28	50	37	13
29	50	37	13
30	49	38	13
31	49	38	13

Wind in January

Winds average 10 km/h in January.

Across January, daily wind ranges from about 10 km/h on the calmest days to 10 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)	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10
Feels	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm

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

Sunrise & sunset in January

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 14 h 06 min at the start of January to 13 h 36 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days shrink by about 30 minutes over January. Sunrise moves from 5:18 AM to 5:43 AM, and sunset from 7:23 PM to 7:18 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)	14.1	14.1	14.1	14.0	14.0	14.0	14.0	14.0	14.0	14.0	14.0	14.0	13.9	13.9	13.9	13.9	13.9	13.9	13.8	13.8	13.8	13.8	13.8	13.7	13.7	13.7	13.7	13.7	13.6	13.6	13.6
Sunrise (AM)	5:18	5:19	5:20	5:21	5:21	5:22	5:23	5:24	5:24	5:25	5:26	5:27	5:28	5:28	5:29	5:30	5:31	5:32	5:33	5:34	5:34	5:35	5:36	5:37	5:38	5:39	5:40	5:41	5:42	5:43	5:43
Sunset (PM)	7:23	7:23	7:23	7:24	7:24	7:24	7:24	7:24	7:24	7:24	7:24	7:24	7:24	7:24	7:24	7:24	7:23	7:23	7:23	7:23	7:22	7:22	7:22	7:22	7:21	7:21	7:20	7:20	7:19	7:19	7:18

	Daylight (h)	Sunrise (AM)	Sunset (PM)
1	14.1	5:18	7:23
2	14.1	5:19	7:23
3	14.1	5:20	7:23
4	14.0	5:21	7:24
5	14.0	5:21	7:24
6	14.0	5:22	7:24
7	14.0	5:23	7:24
8	14.0	5:24	7:24
9	14.0	5:24	7:24
10	14.0	5:25	7:24
11	14.0	5:26	7:24
12	14.0	5:27	7:24
13	13.9	5:28	7:24
14	13.9	5:28	7:24
15	13.9	5:29	7:24
16	13.9	5:30	7:24
17	13.9	5:31	7:23
18	13.9	5:32	7:23
19	13.8	5:33	7:23
20	13.8	5:34	7:23
21	13.8	5:34	7:22
22	13.8	5:35	7:22
23	13.8	5:36	7:22
24	13.7	5:37	7:22
25	13.7	5:38	7:21
26	13.7	5:39	7:21
27	13.7	5:40	7:20
28	13.7	5:41	7:20
29	13.6	5:42	7:19
30	13.6	5:43	7:19
31	13.6	5:43	7:18

Solar energy in January

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in January, about 7.23 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 3.08 kWh/m² to a high of 7.56 kWh/m² in December across the year — January's 7.23 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)	7.5	7.5	7.5	7.4	7.4	7.4	7.4	7.4	7.4	7.3	7.3	7.3	7.3	7.3	7.3	7.3	7.3	7.3	7.2	7.2	7.2	7.2	7.1	7.1	7.1	7.0	7.0	7.0	7.0	6.9	6.9
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	7.5	Intense
2	7.5	Intense
3	7.5	Intense
4	7.4	Intense
5	7.4	Intense
6	7.4	Intense
7	7.4	Intense
8	7.4	Intense
9	7.4	Intense
10	7.3	Intense
11	7.3	Intense
12	7.3	Intense
13	7.3	Intense
14	7.3	Intense
15	7.3	Intense
16	7.3	Intense
17	7.3	Intense
18	7.3	Intense
19	7.2	Intense
20	7.2	Intense
21	7.2	Intense
22	7.2	Intense
23	7.1	Intense
24	7.1	Intense
25	7.1	Intense
26	7.0	Intense
27	7.0	Intense
28	7.0	Intense
29	7.0	Intense
30	6.9	Intense
31	6.9	Intense

Planning a trip in January

Hazard calendar for Cradock

In seasonPeak

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

Cradock's rainy season runs October–April, 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 Cradock?

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

6.4

Sightseeing

11th-best month of the year

6.8

Beach & pool

2nd-best month of the year

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

What to pack for Cradock in January

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

In January, Cradock sees daytime highs around 28°C and nights near 15°C. Pack light clothes and sun protection. Worth having: rain gear. About 12 days see rain.

light clothessun protectionrain gear

UV index in Cradock 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 Cradock peaks around January 14 at about 14 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near June 22 at about 4 (moderate).

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	12	10	7	5	4	4	5	7	11	12	13
Level	Extreme	Extreme	Extreme	High	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	High	High	Extreme	Extreme	Extreme

	UV index (midday)	Level
Jan	15	Extreme
Feb	12	Extreme
Mar	10	Extreme
Apr	7	High
May	5	Moderate
Jun	4	Moderate
Jul	4	Moderate
Aug	5	High
Sep	7	High
Oct	11	Extreme
Nov	12	Extreme
Dec	13	Extreme

Location & terrain

Where is Cradock?

Cradock sits at 32.2°S, 25.6°E, 896 m above sea level, in South Africa. The nearest listed city is Somerset East, 62 km away.

Topography around Cradock

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Cradock has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 157 m around an average of 915 m above sea level; within 16 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,015 m; within 80 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,857 m.

The land around Cradock is covered by grassland (57%) within 3 km, grassland (66%) and shrubs (25%) within 16 km, and grassland (76%) within 80 km.

3 km

157 m

grassland 57%

16 km

1,015 m

grassland 66%

80 km

1,857 m

grassland 76%

treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrain

← December Cradock year-round climate February →Best places to visit in January

January weather nearby: Somerset East 62 km · Middelburg 94 km · Graaff Reinet 103 km · Whittlesea 113 km · Fort Beaufort 117 km · Queenstown 122 km · Queensdale 132 km · Alice 133 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

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 Cradock (-32.1642°, 25.6192°, elevation 896 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	28	14
2	28	14
3	28	14
4	28	14
5	28	14
6	28	14
7	28	14
8	28	14
9	28	14
10	28	14
11	28	14
12	28	14
13	28	14
14	28	14
15	28	15
16	28	15
17	28	15
18	28	15
19	28	15
20	28	15
21	28	15
22	28	15
23	28	15
24	28	15
25	28	15
26	28	15
27	28	15
28	28	15
29	28	15
30	28	15
31	28	15

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	70	30
2	70	30
3	70	30
4	70	30
5	70	30
6	70	30
7	70	30
8	70	30
9	70	30
10	70	30
11	70	30
12	69	31
13	69	31
14	70	30
15	70	30
16	69	31
17	69	31
18	68	32
19	67	33
20	67	33
21	67	33
22	67	33
23	66	34
24	66	34
25	66	34
26	66	34
27	65	35
28	65	35
29	66	34
30	66	34
31	66	34

	Rain chance (%)
1	36
2	37
3	38
4	38
5	39
6	39
7	39
8	39
9	39
10	39
11	39
12	38
13	38
14	38
15	37
16	37
17	37
18	37
19	37
20	37
21	37
22	38
23	38
24	38
25	39
26	39
27	39
28	40
29	40
30	40
31	40

	Dry (%)	Comfortable (%)	Humid (%)
1	62	30	8
2	61	30	9
3	60	31	9
4	60	31	9
5	60	31	9
6	59	32	9
7	58	32	10
8	58	32	10
9	57	33	10
10	57	33	10
11	57	33	10
12	57	33	10
13	57	33	10
14	56	33	11
15	56	33	11
16	56	33	11
17	55	33	12
18	55	33	12
19	55	33	12
20	54	33	13
21	54	33	13
22	53	34	13
23	53	34	13
24	52	35	13
25	52	35	13
26	51	36	13
27	51	36	13
28	50	37	13
29	50	37	13
30	49	38	13
31	49	38	13

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

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	70	30
2	70	30
3	70	30
4	70	30
5	70	30
6	70	30
7	70	30
8	70	30
9	70	30
10	70	30
11	70	30
12	69	31
13	69	31
14	70	30
15	70	30
16	69	31
17	69	31
18	68	32
19	67	33
20	67	33
21	67	33
22	67	33
23	66	34
24	66	34
25	66	34
26	66	34
27	65	35
28	65	35
29	66	34
30	66	34
31	66	34

	Rain chance (%)
1	36
2	37
3	38
4	38
5	39
6	39
7	39
8	39
9	39
10	39
11	39
12	38
13	38
14	38
15	37
16	37
17	37
18	37
19	37
20	37
21	37
22	38
23	38
24	38
25	39
26	39
27	39
28	40
29	40
30	40
31	40

	Dry (%)	Comfortable (%)	Humid (%)
1	62	30	8
2	61	30	9
3	60	31	9
4	60	31	9
5	60	31	9
6	59	32	9
7	58	32	10
8	58	32	10
9	57	33	10
10	57	33	10
11	57	33	10
12	57	33	10
13	57	33	10
14	56	33	11
15	56	33	11
16	56	33	11
17	55	33	12
18	55	33	12
19	55	33	12
20	54	33	13
21	54	33	13
22	53	34	13
23	53	34	13
24	52	35	13
25	52	35	13
26	51	36	13
27	51	36	13
28	50	37	13
29	50	37	13
30	49	38	13
31	49	38	13

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

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	70	30
2	70	30
3	70	30
4	70	30
5	70	30
6	70	30
7	70	30
8	70	30
9	70	30
10	70	30
11	70	30
12	69	31
13	69	31
14	70	30
15	70	30
16	69	31
17	69	31
18	68	32
19	67	33
20	67	33
21	67	33
22	67	33
23	66	34
24	66	34
25	66	34
26	66	34
27	65	35
28	65	35
29	66	34
30	66	34
31	66	34

	Rain chance (%)
1	36
2	37
3	38
4	38
5	39
6	39
7	39
8	39
9	39
10	39
11	39
12	38
13	38
14	38
15	37
16	37
17	37
18	37
19	37
20	37
21	37
22	38
23	38
24	38
25	39
26	39
27	39
28	40
29	40
30	40
31	40

	Dry (%)	Comfortable (%)	Humid (%)
1	62	30	8
2	61	30	9
3	60	31	9
4	60	31	9
5	60	31	9
6	59	32	9
7	58	32	10
8	58	32	10
9	57	33	10
10	57	33	10
11	57	33	10
12	57	33	10
13	57	33	10
14	56	33	11
15	56	33	11
16	56	33	11
17	55	33	12
18	55	33	12
19	55	33	12
20	54	33	13
21	54	33	13
22	53	34	13
23	53	34	13
24	52	35	13
25	52	35	13
26	51	36	13
27	51	36	13
28	50	37	13
29	50	37	13
30	49	38	13
31	49	38	13