Port Elizabeth in Spring

In spring (September, October and November), Port Elizabeth sees average daytime highs around 20°C and overnight lows near 15°C, with 139 mm of rain over about 23 wet days across the season. It is the 3rd-warmest season and the wettest season of the year.

Over the season highs climb from about 19°C in early September to 22°C by late November. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 41% of the time across spring, and the air most often feels dry.

Spring is Port Elizabeth's weakest season of the year to visit on our travel score. For the whole year in context, see Port Elizabeth's year-round climate.

Avg daytime high: 20°C; 3rd-warmest season
Avg overnight low: 15°C
Rainfall: 139 mm; 23 wet days
Avg wind: 20 km/h
Travel score: 6.8; weakest season of the year
Months: Sep · Oct · Nov

← Winter Port Elizabeth year-round climate Summer →

Spring Summer Fall Winter

Temperature in Port Elizabeth in Spring

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Over the season highs climb from about 19°C in early September to 22°C by late November.

A typical spring day in Port Elizabeth reaches about 20°C and drops to 15°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is November, the coolest September.

Port Elizabeth weather by month

How the three spring months (September, October and November) compare with the rest of the year — the season's months are highlighted.

Month	High / Low (°C)	Rainfall (mm)	Wet days	Daylight (hours)	Travel score
Jan	24° / 19°	34	6.9	14	7.8
Feb	24° / 20°	37	6.8	13.3	7.7
Mar	23° / 19°	44	7.5	12.3	7.7
Apr	22° / 17°	43	7.5	11.2	7.3
May	21° / 15°	38	6.3	10.3	7.3
Jun	20° / 13°	41	6.5	9.8	7.1
Jul	19° / 12°	38	6.4	10	7.1
Aug	19° / 13°	52	7.9	10.7	6.8
Sep	19° / 14°	38	6.8	11.8	6.8
Oct	20° / 15°	48	7.8	12.9	6.8
Nov	21° / 16°	53	7.9	13.8	6.9
Dec	23° / 18°	42	6.9	14.2	7.5

Cloud cover in Spring

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 41% of the time across spring.

Chance of precipitation in Spring

Any precipitation

Port Elizabeth gets around 139 mm of rain over 23 wet days across spring. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Humidity in Spring

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

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

Wind in Spring

Winds average 20 km/h across spring.

Sunrise & sunset in Spring

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 11 h 18 min in early September to 14 h 06 min by late November. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Solar energy in Spring

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day across spring, about 5.8 kWh/m².

Planning a trip in spring

Is spring a good time to visit Port Elizabeth?

Our two travel scores rate spring for general sightseeing and for beach or pool weather — 0 (poor) to 10 (ideal), averaged across the three months.

6.8

Sightseeing

4th-best month of the year

3.7

Beach & pool

3rd-best month of the year

spring is a reasonable time to visit Port Elizabeth for sightseeing.

What to pack for Port Elizabeth in Spring

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

In spring, Port Elizabeth sees daytime highs around 20°C and nights near 15°C. Pack sun protection. Worth having: a windbreaker. About 23 days see rain.

sun protectiona windbreaker

Sea temperature near Port Elizabeth in Spring

The nearest coast averages about 18°C across spring — the other half of the beach question. The full-year curve and swim-comfort zones are below.

The sea offshore is warmest in January at about 21°C and coldest in August near 17°C.

It's comfortable for a long swim from Dec 26 to Mar 29 — about 3.1 months when the water holds above 20°C.

	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Sea temperature (°C)	21	21	20	20	19	18	17	17	17	18	19	20
Comfort	Refreshing	Refreshing	Refreshing	Cool	Cool	Cool	Cool	Cool	Cool	Cool	Cool	Cool

	Sea temperature (°C)	Comfort
Jan	21	Refreshing
Feb	21	Refreshing
Mar	20	Refreshing
Apr	20	Cool
May	19	Cool
Jun	18	Cool
Jul	17	Cool
Aug	17	Cool
Sep	17	Cool
Oct	18	Cool
Nov	19	Cool
Dec	20	Cool

UV index in Port Elizabeth in Spring

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV across spring averages around 9 (very high — sun protection essential). The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Port Elizabeth peaks around January 15 at about 13 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near June 23 at about 3 (moderate).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 10 months of the year.

	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
UV index (midday)	13	11	9	6	4	3	3	4	6	10	11	12
Level	Extreme	Extreme	Very high	High	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	High	Very high	Extreme	Extreme

	UV index (midday)	Level
Jan	13	Extreme
Feb	11	Extreme
Mar	9	Very high
Apr	6	High
May	4	Moderate
Jun	3	Moderate
Jul	3	Moderate
Aug	4	Moderate
Sep	6	High
Oct	10	Very high
Nov	11	Extreme
Dec	12	Extreme

Air quality in Port Elizabeth in Spring

GoodModeratePoorUnhealthyVery unhealthy

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

Air quality in Port Elizabeth is worst in June — around 22 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 2.5× the cleanest month (January, 9 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)	9	9	11	14	19	22	18	19	16	13	10	9
Level	Good	Good	Good	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Good	Good

	PM2.5 (µg/m³)	Level
Jan	9	Good
Feb	9	Good
Mar	11	Good
Apr	14	Moderate
May	19	Moderate
Jun	22	Moderate
Jul	18	Moderate
Aug	19	Moderate
Sep	16	Moderate
Oct	13	Moderate
Nov	10	Good
Dec	9	Good

Location & terrain

Where is Port Elizabeth?

Port Elizabeth sits at 34.0°S, 25.6°E, 61 m above sea level, in South Africa. The nearest listed city is Kariega, 30 km away.

Topography around Port Elizabeth

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Port Elizabeth has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 105 m around an average of 38 m above sea level; within 16 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 285 m; within 80 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,357 m.

The land around Port Elizabeth is covered by artificial surfaces (46%) and water (26%) within 3 km, water (51%) within 16 km, and water (41%), grassland (26%) and trees (21%) within 80 km.

3 km

105 m

artificial surfaces 46%

16 km

285 m

water 51%

80 km

1,357 m

water 41%

treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwaterwetland

← Winter Port Elizabeth year-round climate Summer →

Spring weather nearby: Kariega 30 km · Jeffreys Bay 65 km · Humansdorp 78 km · Kruisfontein 82 km · Grahamstown 112 km · Port Alfred 124 km · Somerset East 138 km · Fort Beaufort 162 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 Port Elizabeth (-33.9611°, 25.6149°, elevation 61 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.