Montagu weather in January

In January, Montagu sees average daytime highs of 29°C and overnight lows near 15°C, with 26 mm of rain across 5 wet days and about 14 hours of daylight. It is the 1st-warmest and 9th-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 29°C through the month. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 68% of the time in January, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 14 h 12 min at the start of January to 13 h 42 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, January is Montagu's 2nd-clearest and 2nd-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Montagu's year-round climate.

Daytime high
29°
1st warmest
Overnight low
15°
11th coldest
Rainfall
26 mm
5 wet days
Daylight
14 hours
5:48 AM – 7:49 PM
Cloud cover
29%
2nd clearest
Wind
10 km/h
2nd windiest
Solar energy
7.91 kWh/m²
Travel score
6.8
out of 10

Montagu is town in the Western Cape, South Africa.

Founded
1856

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 29°C through the month.

A typical January day in Montagu reaches about 29°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 23°C and 34°C. Set against its neighbours, January runs about 1°C warmer than December and on par with February.

10°15°20°25°30°35°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
12815
22815
32915
42915
52915
62915
72915
82915
92915
102915
112915
122915
132915
142915
152915
162915
172915
182915
192915
202916
212916
222916
232916
242916
252916
262916
272916
282916
292916
302916
312916

Montagu weather by month

How January compares with the rest of the year at a glance. January is the 1st-warmest and 9th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

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

Cloud cover in January

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 68% of the time in January.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 14% of January, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 19%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
17723
27822
37822
47921
57921
68020
78020
88020
98119
108119
118119
128119
138119
148218
158218
168317
178218
188218
198218
208317
218317
228317
238218
248218
258218
268218
278218
288218
298218
308218
318218

Chance of precipitation in January

Any precipitation

Montagu gets around 26 mm of rain over 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 16% and peaks near 18% on the wettest days.

0%10%20%30%151015202531
Rain chance (%)
118
218
317
417
517
617
717
817
916
1016
1116
1216
1316
1416
1515
1615
1715
1815
1915
2015
2115
2215
2316
2416
2516
2616
2716
2816
2916
3015
3115

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 63% of days. It rarely turns muggy — the humid and sticky bands barely register.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Dry (%)Comfortable (%)Humid (%)
167276
267276
367276
467276
567276
667276
767276
867276
967276
1067267
1167267
1267267
1367267
1466268
1566268
1665278
1763289
1863289
1962299
2061309
2160319
2259329
2359329
2458339
2557349
2658348
2757358
2857358
2957358
3056368
3156368

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.

051015151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
110calm
210calm
310calm
410calm
510calm
610calm
710calm
810calm
910calm
1010calm
1110calm
1210calm
1310calm
1410calm
1510calm
1610calm
1710calm
1810calm
1910calm
2010calm
2110calm
2210calm
2310calm
2410calm
2510calm
2610calm
2710calm
2810calm
2910calm
3010calm
3110calm

Sunrise & sunset in January

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 14 h 12 min at the start of January to 13 h 42 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 5:36 AM to 6:02 AM, and sunset from 7:49 PM to 7:43 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
114.25:367:49
214.25:377:49
314.25:387:49
414.25:387:50
514.25:397:50
614.25:407:50
714.25:417:50
814.15:427:50
914.15:427:50
1014.15:437:50
1114.15:447:50
1214.15:457:50
1314.15:467:50
1414.15:477:50
1514.05:477:49
1614.05:487:49
1714.05:497:49
1814.05:507:49
1914.05:517:49
2013.95:527:48
2113.95:537:48
2213.95:547:48
2313.95:557:47
2413.95:567:47
2513.85:577:46
2613.85:587:46
2713.85:587:46
2813.85:597:45
2913.76:007:45
3013.76:017:44
3113.76:027:43

Solar energy in January

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in January, about 7.91 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 2.63 kWh/m² to a high of 7.98 kWh/m² in December across the year — January's 7.91 kWh/m² sits near the top of that range.

02468151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
18.1Intense
28.1Intense
38.0Intense
48.0Intense
58.0Intense
68.0Intense
78.0Intense
88.0Intense
98.0Intense
108.0Intense
118.0Intense
128.0Intense
138.0Intense
148.0Intense
158.0Intense
167.9Intense
177.9Intense
187.9Intense
197.9Intense
207.8Intense
217.8Intense
227.8Intense
237.8Intense
247.7Intense
257.7Intense
267.7Intense
277.7Intense
287.6Intense
297.6Intense
307.6Intense
317.5Intense
Planning a trip in January

Is January a good time to visit Montagu?

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

6.8
Sightseeing
8th-best month of the year
8.3
Beach & pool
1st-best month of the year

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

What to pack for Montagu in January

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

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.

light clothessun protection

UV index in Montagu in January

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in January peaks around 14 (very high — sun protection essential). The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

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

Air quality in Montagu 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 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
Location & terrain

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
January weather 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).