Winnie Mandela weather in May

In May, Winnie Mandela sees average daytime highs of 21°C and overnight lows near 6°C, with 23 mm of rain across 3.4 wet days and about 10.6 hours of daylight. It is the 9th-warmest and 8th-wettest month of the year here.

Highs ease over the month, from about 22°C in the first days to 19°C by the end. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 73% 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 Winnie Mandela's 4th-clearest and 12th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Winnie Mandela's year-round climate.

Daytime high
21°
9th warmest
Overnight low
4th coldest
Rainfall
23 mm
3.4 wet days
Daylight
10 h 36 min
6:53 AM – 5:28 PM
Cloud cover
26%
4th clearest
Wind
10 km/h
12th windiest
Solar energy
4.06 kWh/m²
Travel score
8.1
out of 10

Winnie Mandela is town in the Free State, South Africa.

Founded
1875

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

Temperature in May

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Highs ease over the month, from about 22°C in the first days to 19°C by the end.

A typical May day in Winnie Mandela reaches about 21°C in the afternoon and slips back to 6°C overnight — a 15°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 16°C and 25°C. Set against its neighbours, May runs about 3°C cooler than April and about 3°C warmer than June.

10°20°30°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
1228
2228
3228
4227
5227
6227
7227
8227
9227
10227
11226
12216
13216
14216
15216
16216
17216
18216
19215
20215
21205
22205
23205
24205
25204
26204
27204
28194
29194
30194
31193

How May really feels in Winnie Mandela

Once humidity and wind are folded in, May averages 0 days that feel above 32°C and 0 that feel at or below 0°C — the comfort signal a plain temperature reading hides.

Days feeling ≥ 32°C
0
heat index over the day's high
Days feeling ≤ C
0
wind chill below the day's low

May sits comfortably in between — no days that feel dangerously hot or drop to a hard freeze once humidity and wind are folded in.

Winnie Mandela weather by month

How May compares with the rest of the year at a glance. May is the 9th-warmest and 8th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan30° / 17°10213.513.64.9
Feb29° / 17°8411.9135.4
Mar27° / 15°8211.112.26.6
Apr24° / 10°537.711.37.6
May21° / 233.410.68.1
Jun18° / 131.810.27.7
Jul18° / 81.310.47.9
Aug21° / 182.7118.3
Sep25° / 162.811.88.6
Oct27° / 12°527.612.77.3
Nov28° / 14°76913.46.2
Dec30° / 16°9212.413.85.1

Cloud cover in May

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 73% of the time in May.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 10% of May, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 17%. Skies tend to open up as the month goes on.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
18218
28218
38218
48317
58317
68317
78317
88317
98317
108416
118317
128317
138317
148317
158317
168317
178218
188218
198218
208218
218218
228218
238218
248317
258416
268416
278416
288614
298614
308614
318713

Chance of precipitation in May

Any precipitation

Winnie Mandela gets around 23 mm of rain over 3.4 wet days in May. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Day to day, the chance of measurable rain averages around 10% and peaks near 17% on the wettest days. The odds ease toward the end of the month.

0%10%20%30%151015202531
Rain chance (%)
117
216
316
415
515
614
714
814
913
1013
1112
1212
1311
1411
1510
1610
1710
189
199
209
218
228
238
247
257
267
276
286
296
306
316

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.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Dry (%)
1100
2100
3100
4100
5100
6100
7100
8100
9100
10100
11100
12100
13100
14100
15100
16100
17100
18100
19100
20100
21100
22100
23100
24100
25100
26100
27100
28100
29100
30100
31100

Wind in May

Winds average 10 km/h in May, the calmest month.

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.

051015151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
110calm
210calm
310calm
410calm
510calm
610calm
710calm
89calm
99calm
109calm
119calm
129calm
139calm
149calm
159calm
169calm
179calm
189calm
199calm
209calm
2110calm
2210calm
2310calm
2410calm
2510calm
2610calm
2710calm
2810calm
2910calm
3010calm
3110calm

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 6:44 AM to 7:02 AM, and sunset from 5:39 PM to 5:21 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
110.96:445:39
210.96:455:38
310.96:455:37
410.86:465:36
510.86:465:35
610.86:475:35
710.86:485:34
810.76:485:33
910.76:495:32
1010.76:495:32
1110.76:505:31
1210.76:515:30
1310.66:515:30
1410.66:525:29
1510.66:535:28
1610.66:535:28
1710.66:545:27
1810.56:545:26
1910.56:555:26
2010.56:565:25
2110.56:565:25
2210.56:575:24
2310.46:575:24
2410.46:585:24
2510.46:595:23
2610.46:595:23
2710.47:005:22
2810.47:005:22
2910.37:015:22
3010.37:015:21
3110.37:025:21

Solar energy in May

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in May, about 4.06 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 3.63 kWh/m² to a high of 7.63 kWh/m² in December across the year — May's 4.06 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

012345151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
14.4Bright
24.4Bright
34.4Bright
44.3Bright
54.3Bright
64.3Bright
74.3Bright
84.3Bright
94.2Bright
104.2Bright
114.2Bright
124.2Bright
134.1Bright
144.1Bright
154.1Bright
164.1Bright
174.0Bright
184.0Bright
194.0Bright
204.0Moderate
214.0Moderate
223.9Moderate
233.9Moderate
243.9Moderate
253.9Moderate
263.9Moderate
273.9Moderate
283.8Moderate
293.8Moderate
303.8Moderate
313.8Moderate
Planning a trip in May

Hazard calendar for Winnie Mandela

In seasonPeak

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

Winnie Mandela's rainy season runs October–April, 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 Winnie Mandela?

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

8.1
Sightseeing
3rd-best month of the year
4.8
Beach & pool
10th-best month of the year

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

What to pack for Winnie Mandela in May

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

In May, Winnie Mandela sees daytime highs around 21°C and nights near 6°C. Worth packing: a warm layer. About 3 days see rain.

a warm layer

UV index in Winnie Mandela 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 Winnie Mandela peaks around January 13 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.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecExtremeVery highHighModerateHighVery highExtremeJan 13UV 15Jun 22UV 5
UV index (midday)Level
Jan15Extreme
Feb13Extreme
Mar11Extreme
Apr8Very high
May6High
Jun5Moderate
Jul5Moderate
Aug7High
Sep9Very high
Oct11Extreme
Nov13Extreme
Dec14Extreme

Air quality in Winnie Mandela 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 Winnie Mandela is worst in June — around 17 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 3.1× the cleanest month (December, 6 µg/m³).

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

01020JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecGoodModerateGoodJun 1917 µg/m³Dec 116 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan6Good
Feb8Good
Mar10Good
Apr12Good
May16Moderate
Jun17Moderate
Jul17Moderate
Aug16Moderate
Sep16Moderate
Oct11Good
Nov6Good
Dec6Good
Location & terrain

Where is Winnie Mandela?

Winnie Mandela sits at 28.7°S, 26.5°E, 1,402 m above sea level, in South Africa. The nearest listed city is Theunissen, 40 km away.

Topography around Winnie Mandela

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Winnie Mandela has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 102 m around an average of 1,396 m above sea level; within 16 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 278 m; within 80 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 897 m.

The land around Winnie Mandela is covered by grassland (59%) and cropland (20%) within 3 km, grassland (79%) within 16 km, and grassland (71%) and cropland (26%) within 80 km.

3 km
102 m
16 km
278 m
80 km
897 m
treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaceswater
May weather nearby: Theunissen 40 km · Bloemfontein 52 km · Bultfontein 55 km · Winburg 57 km · Thaba Nchu 68 km · Botshabelo 68 km · Virginia 77 km · Welkom 85 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 Winnie Mandela (-28.7003°, 26.4581°, elevation 1,402 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).