Phuthaditjhaba weather in May

In May, Phuthaditjhaba sees average daytime highs of 18°C and overnight lows near 4°C, with 25 mm of precipitation across 3.5 wet days and about 10.6 hours of daylight. It is the 9th-warmest and 10th-wettest month of the year here.

Highs ease over the month, from about 18°C in the first days to 16°C by the end. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 71% of the time in May, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 10 h 54 min at the start of May to 10 h 18 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, May is Phuthaditjhaba's 4th-clearest and 9th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Phuthaditjhaba's year-round climate.

Daytime high: 18°; 9th warmest
Overnight low: 4°; 4th coldest
Precipitation: 25 mm; 3.5 wet days
Daylight: 10 h 36 min; 6:43 AM – 5:19 PM
Cloud cover: 26%; 4th clearest
Wind: 9 km/h; 9th windiest
Solar energy: 4.14 kWh/m²
Travel score: 7.1; out of 10

Phuthaditjhaba is town.

Density: 3,536/km²; people per km²
Founded: 1974

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

← April Phuthaditjhaba year-round climate June →Best places to visit in May

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

Temperature in May

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Highs ease over the month, from about 18°C in the first days to 16°C by the end.

A typical May day in Phuthaditjhaba reaches about 18°C in the afternoon and slips back to 4°C overnight — a 14°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 13°C and 21°C. Set against its neighbours, May runs about 2°C cooler than April and about 2°C warmer than June.

	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)	19	19	19	18	18	18	18	18	18	18	18	18	18	18	18	18	18	17	17	17	17	17	17	17	17	17	17	17	16	16	16
Avg low (°C)	6	5	5	5	5	5	5	5	5	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	2	2	2	2	2	2

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

How May really feels in Phuthaditjhaba

Once humidity and wind are folded in, May averages 0 days that feel above 32°C and 8 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

The story in May is cold — wind chill drags the overnight "feels like" below the raw low.

Phuthaditjhaba weather by month

How May compares with the rest of the year at a glance. May is the 9th-warmest and 10th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

Month	High / Low (°C)	Rainfall (mm)	Wet days	Snow days	Daylight (hours)	Travel score
Jan	23° / 13°	177	19	0	13.6	5.6
Feb	23° / 13°	134	15.3	0	13	5.9
Mar	22° / 11°	100	13.9	0	12.2	6.3
Apr	20° / 8°	53	7.8	0.1	11.3	6.8
May	18° / 4°	25	3.5	0.1	10.6	7.1
Jun	15° / 1°	13	1.9	0.2	10.2	6.2
Jul	15° / 0°	11	1.9	0.5	10.4	6.2
Aug	17° / 3°	30	4.2	0.4	11	7.0
Sep	21° / 6°	32	4.5	0.3	11.8	7.7
Oct	22° / 9°	107	12.5	0	12.7	6.5
Nov	22° / 10°	135	14.4	0	13.4	6.1
Dec	23° / 12°	168	18.9	0	13.8	5.6

Cloud cover in May

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 71% of the time in May.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 12% of May, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 17%. Skies tend to open up as the month goes on.

	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 (%)	79	79	80	80	80	82	82	82	82	82	82	82	82	82	82	82	82	82	82	83	83	83	83	85	85	85	86	87	87	87	88
Cloudier (%)	21	21	20	20	20	18	18	18	18	18	18	18	18	18	18	18	18	18	18	17	17	17	17	15	15	15	14	13	13	13	12

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	79	21
2	79	21
3	80	20
4	80	20
5	80	20
6	82	18
7	82	18
8	82	18
9	82	18
10	82	18
11	82	18
12	82	18
13	82	18
14	82	18
15	82	18
16	82	18
17	82	18
18	82	18
19	82	18
20	83	17
21	83	17
22	83	17
23	83	17
24	85	15
25	85	15
26	85	15
27	86	14
28	87	13
29	87	13
30	87	13
31	88	12

Chance of precipitation in May

Any precipitation

Phuthaditjhaba gets around 25 mm of rain and snow over 3.5 wet days in May. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Day to day, the chance of measurable precipitation averages around 11% and peaks near 16% on the wettest days, and about 0 day brings snow. The odds ease toward the end of the month.

	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 (%)	16	16	15	15	14	14	14	14	13	13	13	12	12	12	12	11	11	11	10	10	10	9	9	8	8	7	7	7	6	6	6

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

Humidity in May

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

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

By dew point, May lands in the dry band about 100% 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 (%)	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100

	Dry (%)
1	100
2	100
3	100
4	100
5	100
6	100
7	100
8	100
9	100
10	100
11	100
12	100
13	100
14	100
15	100
16	100
17	100
18	100
19	100
20	100
21	100
22	100
23	100
24	100
25	100
26	100
27	100
28	100
29	100
30	100
31	100

Wind in May

Winds average 9 km/h in May.

Across May, daily wind ranges from about 9 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)	9	9	9	9	9	9	9	9	9	9	9	9	9	9	9	9	9	9	9	9	9	9	9	9	9	9	9	9	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	9	calm
2	9	calm
3	9	calm
4	9	calm
5	9	calm
6	9	calm
7	9	calm
8	9	calm
9	9	calm
10	9	calm
11	9	calm
12	9	calm
13	9	calm
14	9	calm
15	9	calm
16	9	calm
17	9	calm
18	9	calm
19	9	calm
20	9	calm
21	9	calm
22	9	calm
23	9	calm
24	9	calm
25	9	calm
26	9	calm
27	9	calm
28	9	calm
29	10	calm
30	10	calm
31	10	calm

Sunrise & sunset in May

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 10 h 54 min at the start of May to 10 h 18 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days shrink by about 36 minutes over May. Sunrise moves from 6:34 AM to 6:52 AM, and sunset from 5:30 PM to 5:12 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)	10.9	10.9	10.9	10.8	10.8	10.8	10.8	10.8	10.7	10.7	10.7	10.7	10.6	10.6	10.6	10.6	10.6	10.5	10.5	10.5	10.5	10.5	10.5	10.4	10.4	10.4	10.4	10.4	10.4	10.3	10.3
Sunrise (AM)	6:34	6:35	6:35	6:36	6:37	6:37	6:38	6:39	6:39	6:40	6:40	6:41	6:42	6:42	6:43	6:43	6:44	6:45	6:45	6:46	6:46	6:47	6:48	6:48	6:49	6:49	6:50	6:50	6:51	6:52	6:52
Sunset (PM)	5:30	5:29	5:28	5:27	5:26	5:25	5:25	5:24	5:23	5:22	5:22	5:21	5:20	5:20	5:19	5:19	5:18	5:17	5:17	5:16	5:16	5:15	5:15	5:15	5:14	5:14	5:13	5:13	5:13	5:12	5:12

	Daylight (h)	Sunrise (AM)	Sunset (PM)
1	10.9	6:34	5:30
2	10.9	6:35	5:29
3	10.9	6:35	5:28
4	10.8	6:36	5:27
5	10.8	6:37	5:26
6	10.8	6:37	5:25
7	10.8	6:38	5:25
8	10.8	6:39	5:24
9	10.7	6:39	5:23
10	10.7	6:40	5:22
11	10.7	6:40	5:22
12	10.7	6:41	5:21
13	10.6	6:42	5:20
14	10.6	6:42	5:20
15	10.6	6:43	5:19
16	10.6	6:43	5:19
17	10.6	6:44	5:18
18	10.5	6:45	5:17
19	10.5	6:45	5:17
20	10.5	6:46	5:16
21	10.5	6:46	5:16
22	10.5	6:47	5:15
23	10.5	6:48	5:15
24	10.4	6:48	5:15
25	10.4	6:49	5:14
26	10.4	6:49	5:14
27	10.4	6:50	5:13
28	10.4	6:50	5:13
29	10.4	6:51	5:13
30	10.3	6:52	5:12
31	10.3	6:52	5:12

Solar energy in May

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in May, about 4.14 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 3.74 kWh/m² to a high of 6.98 kWh/m² in December across the year — May's 4.14 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

	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)	4.4	4.4	4.4	4.4	4.3	4.3	4.3	4.3	4.3	4.3	4.2	4.2	4.2	4.2	4.2	4.1	4.1	4.1	4.1	4.1	4.1	4.0	4.0	4.0	4.0	4.0	4.0	3.9	3.9	3.9	3.9
Level	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate

	Solar energy (kWh/m²)	Level
1	4.4	Bright
2	4.4	Bright
3	4.4	Bright
4	4.4	Bright
5	4.3	Bright
6	4.3	Bright
7	4.3	Bright
8	4.3	Bright
9	4.3	Bright
10	4.3	Bright
11	4.2	Bright
12	4.2	Bright
13	4.2	Bright
14	4.2	Bright
15	4.2	Bright
16	4.1	Bright
17	4.1	Bright
18	4.1	Bright
19	4.1	Bright
20	4.1	Bright
21	4.1	Bright
22	4.0	Bright
23	4.0	Bright
24	4.0	Bright
25	4.0	Moderate
26	4.0	Moderate
27	4.0	Moderate
28	3.9	Moderate
29	3.9	Moderate
30	3.9	Moderate
31	3.9	Moderate

Planning a trip in May

Hazard calendar for Phuthaditjhaba

In seasonPeak

None of Phuthaditjhaba's seasonal hazards are active in May. The full-year calendar below shows when the rainy season, cyclone risk and dust haze do peak.

Phuthaditjhaba'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 May a good time to visit Phuthaditjhaba?

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

7.1

Sightseeing

2nd-best month of the year

2.0

Beach & pool

9th-best month of the year

May is one of the better times to visit Phuthaditjhaba for general sightseeing.

What to pack for Phuthaditjhaba in May

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

In May, Phuthaditjhaba sees daytime highs around 18°C and nights near 4°C. Worth packing: a warm layer. About 4 days see rain.

a warm layer

UV index in Phuthaditjhaba in May

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in May peaks around 6 — enough to warrant sun protection. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Phuthaditjhaba peaks around January 14 at about 15 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near June 22 at about 5 (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	13	12	8	6	5	5	7	9	10	12	14
Level	Extreme	Extreme	Extreme	Very high	High	Moderate	Moderate	High	Very high	Extreme	Extreme	Extreme

	UV index (midday)	Level
Jan	15	Extreme
Feb	13	Extreme
Mar	12	Extreme
Apr	8	Very high
May	6	High
Jun	5	Moderate
Jul	5	Moderate
Aug	7	High
Sep	9	Very high
Oct	10	Extreme
Nov	12	Extreme
Dec	14	Extreme

Air quality in Phuthaditjhaba in May

GoodModeratePoorUnhealthyVery unhealthy

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

Air quality in Phuthaditjhaba is worst in August — around 27 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 3.8× the cleanest month (December, 7 µg/m³).

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

	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
PM2.5 (µg/m³)	7	9	12	14	18	22	27	27	26	15	9	7
Level	Good	Good	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Good	Good

	PM2.5 (µg/m³)	Level
Jan	7	Good
Feb	9	Good
Mar	12	Moderate
Apr	14	Moderate
May	18	Moderate
Jun	22	Moderate
Jul	27	Moderate
Aug	27	Moderate
Sep	26	Moderate
Oct	15	Moderate
Nov	9	Good
Dec	7	Good

Location & terrain

Where is Phuthaditjhaba?

Phuthaditjhaba sits at 28.5°S, 28.8°E, 1,671 m above sea level, in South Africa. The nearest listed city is Tshiame, 28 km away.

Topography around Phuthaditjhaba

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Phuthaditjhaba has significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 495 m around an average of 1,700 m above sea level; within 16 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,047 m; within 80 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,364 m.

The land around Phuthaditjhaba is covered by artificial surfaces (49%) and grassland (35%) within 3 km, grassland (78%) within 16 km, and grassland (72%) and cropland (24%) within 80 km.

3 km

495 m

artificial surfaces 49%

16 km

1,047 m

grassland 78%

80 km

2,364 m

grassland 72%

treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaceswater

← April Phuthaditjhaba year-round climate June →Best places to visit in May

May weather nearby: Tshiame 28 km · Harrismith 42 km · Bethlehem 60 km · Fouriesburg 60 km · Butha-Buthe 61 km · Hlotse 85 km · Reitz 89 km · Ladysmith 94 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 Phuthaditjhaba (-28.5242°, 28.8158°, elevation 1,671 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).

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

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	79	21
2	79	21
3	80	20
4	80	20
5	80	20
6	82	18
7	82	18
8	82	18
9	82	18
10	82	18
11	82	18
12	82	18
13	82	18
14	82	18
15	82	18
16	82	18
17	82	18
18	82	18
19	82	18
20	83	17
21	83	17
22	83	17
23	83	17
24	85	15
25	85	15
26	85	15
27	86	14
28	87	13
29	87	13
30	87	13
31	88	12

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

	Dry (%)
1	100
2	100
3	100
4	100
5	100
6	100
7	100
8	100
9	100
10	100
11	100
12	100
13	100
14	100
15	100
16	100
17	100
18	100
19	100
20	100
21	100
22	100
23	100
24	100
25	100
26	100
27	100
28	100
29	100
30	100
31	100

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

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	79	21
2	79	21
3	80	20
4	80	20
5	80	20
6	82	18
7	82	18
8	82	18
9	82	18
10	82	18
11	82	18
12	82	18
13	82	18
14	82	18
15	82	18
16	82	18
17	82	18
18	82	18
19	82	18
20	83	17
21	83	17
22	83	17
23	83	17
24	85	15
25	85	15
26	85	15
27	86	14
28	87	13
29	87	13
30	87	13
31	88	12

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

	Dry (%)
1	100
2	100
3	100
4	100
5	100
6	100
7	100
8	100
9	100
10	100
11	100
12	100
13	100
14	100
15	100
16	100
17	100
18	100
19	100
20	100
21	100
22	100
23	100
24	100
25	100
26	100
27	100
28	100
29	100
30	100
31	100

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

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	79	21
2	79	21
3	80	20
4	80	20
5	80	20
6	82	18
7	82	18
8	82	18
9	82	18
10	82	18
11	82	18
12	82	18
13	82	18
14	82	18
15	82	18
16	82	18
17	82	18
18	82	18
19	82	18
20	83	17
21	83	17
22	83	17
23	83	17
24	85	15
25	85	15
26	85	15
27	86	14
28	87	13
29	87	13
30	87	13
31	88	12

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

	Dry (%)
1	100
2	100
3	100
4	100
5	100
6	100
7	100
8	100
9	100
10	100
11	100
12	100
13	100
14	100
15	100
16	100
17	100
18	100
19	100
20	100
21	100
22	100
23	100
24	100
25	100
26	100
27	100
28	100
29	100
30	100
31	100