Piet Retief weather in January

In January, Piet Retief sees average daytime highs of 26°C and overnight lows near 16°C, with 144 mm of rain across 18.2 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 28% of the time in January, and the air most often feels humid.

Daylight stretches from about 13 h 42 min at the start of January to 13 h 18 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, January is Piet Retief's 10th-clearest and 9th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Piet Retief's year-round climate.

Daytime high
26°
1st warmest
Overnight low
16°
12th coldest
Rainfall
144 mm
18.2 wet days
Daylight
13 h 30 min
5:20 AM – 6:52 PM
Cloud cover
62%
10th clearest
Wind
8 km/h
9th windiest
Solar energy
5.95 kWh/m²
Travel score
5.5
out of 10

Piet Retief is town.

Founded
1882

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 Piet Retief 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 20°C and 30°C. Set against its neighbours, January runs on par with December and on par with February.

10°15°20°25°30°35°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

Piet Retief 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°14418.213.55.5
Feb26° / 16°11613.9135.9
Mar25° / 14°10413.512.26.6
Apr23° / 12°487.711.47.5
May21° / 183.310.78.2
Jun20° / 112.210.38.1
Jul20° / 12210.58.1
Aug22° / 213.6118.3
Sep24° / 10°38711.87.8
Oct24° / 12°9613.412.66.5
Nov25° / 14°13116.913.35.6
Dec26° / 15°15519.413.75.3

Cloud cover in January

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 28% of the time in January.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 16% of January, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 56%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
14654
24555
34555
44654
54555
64555
74654
84654
94555
104555
114456
124357
134357
144357
154258
164258
174258
184258
194159
204159
214159
224159
234159
244258
254456
264654
274654
284753
294753
304852
315050

Chance of precipitation in January

Any precipitation

Piet Retief gets around 144 mm of rain over 18.2 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 58% and peaks near 60% on the wettest days.

0%20%40%60%151015202531
Rain chance (%)
160
260
359
459
559
659
759
859
959
1059
1159
1259
1359
1459
1559
1660
1759
1859
1959
2059
2159
2258
2358
2457
2557
2656
2756
2855
2955
3054
3154

Humidity in January

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

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

By dew point, January lands in the humid band about 58% of days. Sticky, muggy-or-worse air turns up on roughly 6% of them.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Dry (%)Comfortable (%)Humid (%)Muggy (%)
1729586
2729586
3829576
4829576
5829576
6829576
7829576
8829585
9829585
10829585
11830575
12830575
13830575
14830575
15830575
16730585
17730585
18730576
19630586
20630586
21630586
22531586
23531586
24531577
25431587
26431587
27431587
28332587
29332587
30332587
31332587

Wind in January

Winds average 8 km/h in January.

Across January, daily wind ranges from about 8 km/h on the calmest days to 8 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

0246810151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
18calm
28calm
38calm
48calm
58calm
68calm
78calm
88calm
98calm
108calm
118calm
128calm
138calm
148calm
158calm
168calm
178calm
188calm
198calm
208calm
218calm
228calm
238calm
248calm
258calm
268calm
278calm
288calm
298calm
308calm
318calm

Sunrise & sunset in January

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 13 h 42 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 24 minutes over January. Sunrise moves from 5:10 AM to 5:32 AM, and sunset from 6:50 PM to 6:48 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
113.75:106:50
213.75:106:50
313.75:116:51
413.75:126:51
513.65:126:51
613.65:136:51
713.65:146:51
813.65:146:52
913.65:156:52
1013.65:166:52
1113.65:166:52
1213.65:176:52
1313.65:186:52
1413.65:196:52
1513.55:196:52
1613.55:206:52
1713.55:216:52
1813.55:226:52
1913.55:226:52
2013.55:236:51
2113.55:246:51
2213.45:256:51
2313.45:266:51
2413.45:266:51
2513.45:276:50
2613.45:286:50
2713.45:296:50
2813.35:296:50
2913.35:306:49
3013.35:316:49
3113.35:326:48

Solar energy in January

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in January, about 5.95 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 3.68 kWh/m² to a high of 6.03 kWh/m² in December across the year — January's 5.95 kWh/m² sits near the top of that range.

0246151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
16.2Intense
26.2Intense
36.2Intense
46.2Intense
56.1Intense
66.1Intense
76.1Intense
86.1Intense
96.1Intense
106.0Intense
116.0Intense
126.0Bright
136.0Bright
145.9Bright
155.9Bright
165.9Bright
175.9Bright
185.9Bright
195.9Bright
205.9Bright
215.9Bright
225.8Bright
235.9Bright
245.9Bright
255.9Bright
265.9Bright
275.9Bright
285.9Bright
295.9Bright
305.9Bright
315.9Bright
Planning a trip in January

Hazard calendar for Piet Retief

In seasonPeak

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

Piet Retief'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 Piet Retief?

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

5.5
Sightseeing
11th-best month of the year
5.2
Beach & pool
7th-best month of the year

January is a reasonable time to visit Piet Retief for sightseeing.

What to pack for Piet Retief in January

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

In January, Piet Retief sees daytime highs around 26°C and nights near 16°C. Pack rain gear. Worth having: light clothes and sun protection. About 18 days see rain.

rain gearlight clothessun protection

UV index in Piet Retief 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 Piet Retief peaks around January 15 at about 14 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near June 21 at about 5 (moderate).

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

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecExtremeVery highHighModerateHighVery highExtremeJan 15UV 14Jun 21UV 5
UV index (midday)Level
Jan14Extreme
Feb13Extreme
Mar11Extreme
Apr7Very high
May6High
Jun5Moderate
Jul5Moderate
Aug7High
Sep8Very high
Oct9Very high
Nov11Extreme
Dec13Extreme

Air quality in Piet Retief 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 Piet Retief is worst in May — around 56 µg/m³ PM2.5 (unhealthy), about 3.0× the cleanest month (December, 19 µg/m³).

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

0204060JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModeratePoorModerateModerateMay 1754 µg/m³Dec 2319 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan20Moderate
Feb19Moderate
Mar26Moderate
Apr38Poor
May56Unhealthy
Jun38Poor
Jul36Poor
Aug30Moderate
Sep33Moderate
Oct28Moderate
Nov40Poor
Dec19Moderate
Location & terrain

Where is Piet Retief?

Piet Retief sits at 27.0°S, 30.8°E, 1,251 m above sea level, in South Africa. The nearest listed city is Driefontein, 38 km away.

Topography around Piet Retief

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Piet Retief has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 195 m around an average of 1,272 m above sea level; within 16 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 452 m; within 80 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,004 m.

The land around Piet Retief is covered by grassland (47%) and trees (32%) within 3 km, grassland (43%) and trees (42%) within 16 km, and grassland (56%) and trees (27%) within 80 km.

3 km
195 m
16 km
452 m
80 km
2,004 m
treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrain
January weather nearby: Driefontein 38 km · Frischgewaagd 45 km · Fernie 69 km · Lobamba 71 km · Empuluzu 78 km · Manzini 80 km · Redhill 83 km · Mbabane 83 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 Piet Retief (-27.0071°, 30.8132°, elevation 1,251 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).