Skip to Content


Local Weather

Cape Town Climate History

Past weather including monthly averages for Cape Town

South Africa

Country Overview For South Africa

The climate in South Africa is typically mostly semiarid; subtropical along east coast; sunny days, cool nights. The terrain: vast interior plateau rimmed by rugged hills and narrow coastal plain. For Pretoria in January the daily average maximum temperatures is 29°C with the average minimum 15°C, while in June the average maximum is 20°C with a minimum of 1°C. The wettest month for Pretoria is December with an average of 112.1mm of precipitation falling while the driest month is July with 1.5mm falling.


 

HISTORICAL MONTHLY AVERAGES FOR OCTOBER

The information presented below gives detailed historical monthly average weather conditions along with exceptional weather occurrences. To maintain relevance to current weather trends the displayed information has been calculated using data collected over the past two decades. The climate profile is taken from closest available data source to Cape Town.

Temperature

Throughout the month of October daytime temperatures will generally reach highs of around 21°C that's about 70°F. At night the average minimum temperature drops down to around 11°C, that's 52°F.

In recent times the highest recorded temperature in October has been 36°C that's 96°F, with the lowest recorded temperature 0°C, about 32°F.

Relative Humidity

The average daily relative humidity for October is around 69%.

Heat Index

The Heat Index is a measure of how hot it feels when relative humidity is added to actual air temperature. From this a comfort level is calculated providing categories on how heat conditions might adversely affect someone.

Comfort Levels: Given average maximum temperatures and humidity levels generally you should not anticipate any discomfort from heat (see heat index for more information).

Precipitation

The average monthly amount of precipitation has been recorded at around 30 mm, that's 1 inches. Throughout the month you can expect to see rain or drizzle falling on 9 days of the month.

Estimated Hours of Sunshine per Day

We calculate sunshine hours per day using our past forecast data. For October expect the sun to shine for an average of 10 hours per day. This represents the average number of hours in the daytime that the sun is visible and not obscured by cloud e.g. the average number of hours the sun is actually out and shining. Note we calculate hours of sunshine per day using our past forecast data, not observation data, thus it is an estimate and not actual.

Wind

The average daily wind speed in October has been around 20 km/h, that’s the equivalent to about 12 mph, or 11 knots. In recent years the maximum sustained wind speed has reached 67 km/h, that’s the equivalent of around 41 mph, or 36 knots.

Fog

On average the month of October is affected by foggy conditions on 4 days.

SWIMMING AND WATER TEMPERATURE

The temperature of water an individual will feel comfortable in is very much personal preference. What feels unbearably cold to one person for a swim might be fine for another. We have created our own Swimming Water Temperature Index offering a guide to water temperature and comfort levels for swimming;

In October, for the nearest coastal location, the temperature of the sea averages around 17°C, that's 63° Fahrenheit. Our index indicates for swimming this is considered relatively cool and though enjoyed by the more hardy among us, any more than 10-20 minutes in the sea would leave you feeling refreshed to say the least.

 

YEARLY TRENDS: WEATHER AVERAGES & EXTREMES

The following charts show yearly weather trends with information on monthly weather averages and extremes.

Temperature

The chart below plots the average high and low temperature for each month of the year. It also shows the maximum and minimum recorded temperatures.

Precipitation Amount

The chart below plots the average monthly precipitation amount.

Rain days

The chart below plots the average number of days in any month that you can expect to see rain falling.

Wind Speed

The chart below plots the average daily wind speed you can expect for any month. It also shows the maximum recorded sustained wind speed for each month.