Climate and average weather in Montagu

In Montagu, the summers are hot, fairly dry, and clear and the winters are mild and mostly clear.

Best: mid August to mid June

Over the course of the year, the temperature in Montagu typically varies from 5°C to 29°C, and is rarely below 1°C or above 34°C. January is the hottest month of the year, while July is the coldest.

Based on the travel score, the best time of year to visit Montagu for warm-weather activities is from mid August to mid June.

Hottest
Jan
29°
Coldest
Jul
Wettest
Nov
38 mm
Driest
Sep
23 mm
Rain / yr
370 mm
67 wet days
Daylight
9.8–14.2 h
shortest–longest
Elevation
228 m
33.8°S
Clearest
Feb
29% cloud

Montagu is town in the Western Cape, South Africa.

Founded
1856

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

Montagu 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 mid August to mid June.

Temperature through the year

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

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

The hot season lasts 3.9 months, from November 26 to March 25, with daily high temperatures above 26°C. The hottest month of the year in Montagu is January, with an average high of 29°C and low of 15°C.

The cool season lasts 3.3 months, from May 27 to September 3, with daily high temperatures below 19°C. The coldest month of the year in Montagu is July, with an average low of 5°C and high of 17°C.

Days typically run about 13°C warmer than nights year-round.

10°20°30°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
Jan2915
Feb2916
Mar2714
Apr2411
May218
Jun176
Jul175
Aug186
Sep208
Oct2310
Nov2512
Dec2814

Average hourly temperature in Montagu

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 January afternoons, near 29°C, and coldest before dawn in July, near C.

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

Montagu 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
Jan29° / 15°265146.8
Feb29° / 16°244.513.36.8
Mar27° / 14°34612.37.5
Apr24° / 11°325.511.27.9
May21° / 28510.37.4
Jun17° / 336.69.86.3
Jul17° / 356106.1
Aug18° / 346.510.76.5
Sep20° / 235.611.87.2
Oct23° / 10°375.612.97.8
Nov25° / 12°385.513.87.9
Dec28° / 14°254.914.27.5

Chance of rain

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

Montagu gets about 370 mm of precipitation a year. On a typical day the chance of rain is some rain, and that barely changes with the seasons — rain is spread fairly evenly through the year.

November is the wettest month by volume, with 38 mm over about 6 wet days; September is the driest, with 23 mm.

0%10%20%30%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecmostly drysome rainJun 10 · 22%May 11 · 14%
Rain on a day (%)Rain days
Jan165
Feb165
Mar196
Apr186
May165
Jun217
Jul206
Aug207
Sep196
Oct186
Nov186
Dec165

Monthly rainfall

Over a full year, Montagu collects about 370 mm of rain across 67 wet days — roughly 31 mm in an average month.

It doesn’t fall evenly. November is the wettest month with 38 mm, while September is the driest at just 23 mm. The three wettest months alone bring about 30% of the year’s total.

02550JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec262434322833353423373825
Rainfall (mm)Rain days
Jan265
Feb245
Mar346
Apr326
May285
Jun337
Jul356
Aug347
Sep236
Oct376
Nov386
Dec255

Clouds and sunshine

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

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

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

The clearer part of the year begins around November 23 and lasts for 4.4 months, ending around April 4. The clearest month is February, when the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 81% of the time on average.

The cloudier part of the year begins around April 5 and lasts for 2.3 months, ending around June 14. The cloudiest month is September, when it is overcast or mostly cloudy 36% 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%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecJan 21 · 82%May 26 · 62%clearmostly clearpartly cloudymostly cloudyovercastclearercloudierclearer
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
Jan8119
Feb8119
Mar7525
Apr6931
May6535
Jun7030
Jul7030
Aug6733
Sep6436
Oct6436
Nov6931
Dec7426

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 January 1, brings about 14 h 12 min of light; the shortest, around June 7, only 9 h 48 min — a swing of roughly 4 h 24 min.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AMJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
Jan14.05:487:49
Feb13.36:177:32
Mar12.36:416:57
Apr11.27:056:15
May10.37:285:43
Jun9.87:475:33
Jul10.07:465:44
Aug10.77:226:06
Sep11.86:406:28
Oct12.95:596:50
Nov13.85:317:18
Dec14.25:297:43

Sunny days

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

Montagu averages about 16 sunny days a month — counting the days the sky stays clear or mostly clear — with a clear seasonal swing between 13 and 21 days.

The sunnier stretch runs 4.2 months, from around Nov 26 to Apr 2. The sunniest month is February, with roughly 21 sunny days (bright).

The greyest month is May, down near 14 sunny days — about 31% fewer than the February peak.

0510152025JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecsunniergreyersunniergloomymixedbrightbrilliantFeb 621 daysMay 2613 days
Sunny daysSky
Jan21Bright
Feb19Bright
Mar19Bright
Apr15Bright
May15Mixed
Jun15Bright
Jul16Bright
Aug15Mixed
Sep14Mixed
Oct14Mixed
Nov15Bright
Dec18Bright

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 Montagu, the air stays dry or comfortable essentially all year. Even in February, the muggiest month, it feels humid or worse only about 10% of the time — humidity is not something you need to plan around here.

0%10%20%30%40%50%60%70%80%90%100%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecApr 27 · 100%Feb 16 · 89%humidcomfortabledryhumidcomfortable
Dry (%)Comfortable (%)Humid (%)
Jan63298
Feb533710
Mar67284
Apr9090
May9910
Jun10000
Jul10000
Aug10000
Sep9910
Oct9730
Nov9280
Dec77203

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.

Wind in Montagu is steady company: average speeds sit near 9 km/hcalm — in every month of the year, with no meaningful windy or calm season.

051015JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDeccalmlight breezeJan 10 · 10 km/hApr 26 · 8 km/h
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
Jan10calm
Feb9calm
Mar8calm
Apr8calm
May8calm
Jun8calm
Jul8calm
Aug8calm
Sep9calm
Oct9calm
Nov10calm
Dec10calm

Best time to visit Montagu

TravelBeach/poolTemperatureCloudsPrecipitation

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

Around late August, Montagu 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 Montagu for general outdoor tourist activities is from mid August to mid June, with a peak score in the second week of April.

0246810JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbest timebest timetravel scoretemperaturecloudsprecipitationApr 11 · 8.0

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
Jan6.8good
Feb6.8good
Mar7.5ideal
Apr7.8ideal
May7.4good
Jun6.3good
Jul6.1good
Aug6.5good
Sep7.2good
Oct7.8ideal
Nov7.8ideal
Dec7.5good

The beach/pool score favors clear, rainless days with daytime highs between 24°C and 34°C. Based on this score, the best time of year to visit Montagu for hot-weather activities is from late October to mid April, with a peak score in the last week of January.

024681012JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbest timebest timebeach/pool scoretemperaturecloudsprecipitationJan 30 · 8.4

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 Montagu, 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 January (highs near 29°C), the essentials are light clothes and sun protection. In the cold season around July (highs near 17°C), pack a warm layer.

Light clothing
Warm layer
Winter coat
Rain gear
Sun protection
Windbreaker

In January, Montagu sees daytime highs around 29°C and nights near 15°C. Pack light clothes and sun protection. About 5 days see rain.

UV index (midday) in Montagu 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 Montagu peaks around January 14 at about 14 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near June 20 at about 3 (moderate).

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

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecExtremeVery highModerateHighExtremeJan 14UV 14Jun 20UV 3
UV index (midday)Level
Jan14Extreme
Feb10Extreme
Mar10Extreme
Apr6High
May4Moderate
Jun3Moderate
Jul3Moderate
Aug5Moderate
Sep6High
Oct11Extreme
Nov12Extreme
Dec12Extreme

Average hourly UV index in Montagu

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
Feb85.5
Mar7.55
Apr5.52
May30
Jun10
Jul20
Aug4.50
Sep60.5
Oct85.5
Nov8.56.5
Dec96.5

Air quality in Montagu by month

GoodModeratePoorUnhealthyVery unhealthy

Average fine-particle pollution (PM2.5) through the year — so you can see which months the air is worst, not just the yearly average.

Air quality in Montagu is worst in June — around 17 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 2.9× the cleanest month (January, 6 µg/m³).

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

01020JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecGoodModerateGoodJun 2017 µg/m³Jan 166 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan6Good
Feb8Good
Mar9Good
Apr10Good
May16Moderate
Jun17Moderate
Jul17Moderate
Aug16Moderate
Sep13Moderate
Oct9Good
Nov7Good
Dec8Good
Almanac & agriculture

Growing season

Chance of a frost-free day

Montagu is mild enough that a frost-free day stays more likely than not even in midwinter.

0%25%50%75%100%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Frost-free chance (%)Frost nights
Jan1000
Feb1000
Mar1000
Apr1000
May1000
Jun970
Jul940
Aug980
Sep1000
Oct1000
Nov1000
Dec1000

Growing degree days

Degree days (base 10°C)

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. Montagu banks about 2,422 degree days a year, and the running total — which growers use to time plantings and predict maturity — climbs fastest around February.

01,0002,000JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Growing degree days (°C·days)
Jan372
Feb339
Mar326
Apr222
May138
Jun41
Jul20
Aug48
Sep119
Oct206
Nov257
Dec336

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.

Montagu receives about 5.3 kWh/m² a day of solar energy on average — bright — with a clear seasonal swing between 2.6 and 8.0 kWh/m².

The brighter stretch of the year lasts 5.9 months, from around Sep 23 to Mar 22. The brightest month is December, averaging about 8.0 kWh/m² (intense).

The dimmest month is June, down near 2.7 kWh/m² — roughly 67% less than the December peak.

0123456789JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbrighterdimmerbrighterdimmoderatebrightintenseDec 308.0 kWhJun 192.6 kWh
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
Jan7.9Intense
Feb7.0Intense
Mar5.7Bright
Apr4.2Bright
May3.1Moderate
Jun2.6Moderate
Jul2.9Moderate
Aug3.7Moderate
Sep5.0Bright
Oct6.3Intense
Nov7.4Intense
Dec8.0Intense

Where is Montagu?

Montagu sits at 33.8°S, 20.1°E, 228 m above sea level, in South Africa. The nearest listed city is Ashton, 8.0 km away.

Topography around Montagu

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Montagu has large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 663 m around an average of 339 m above sea level; within 16 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,341 m; within 80 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,219 m.

The land around Montagu is covered by shrubs (43%) and grassland (35%) within 3 km, shrubs (48%) and grassland (40%) within 16 km, and grassland (43%), shrubs (33%) and cropland (21%) within 80 km.

3 km
663 m
16 km
1,341 m
80 km
2,219 m
treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater
Nearby: Ashton 8.0 km · Robertson 22 km · Swellendam 40 km · Worcester 64 km · Caledon 81 km · Bredasdorp 83 km · Ceres 88 km · Franschhoek 93 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 Montagu (-33.7866°, 20.1211°, elevation 228 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).