Francistown climate — normals and trends
Francistown has a hot semi-arid climate, averaging 21.4 °C annually with 435 mm of rain per year.
Climate normals · ERA5
FrancistownCity of Francistown
- coords
- -21.17°, 27.51°
- period
- 1940–2025 · 86 yrs
The normals for this period
The average of every indicator across the whole window: temperature, water, sky, wind and notable days.
Mean daily temperature
21.4°C
Average daily high
28.0°C
Average daily low
15.5°C
Annual rainfall
435mm
Sunshine / day
10.6h
Mean relative humidity
53%
Average peak wind
19.1km/h
Seasonal range
9.8°C
Frost days (< 0 °C)
0 d/yr
Hot days (≥ 30 °C)
131 d/yr
Rainy days (≥ 1 mm)
63 d/yr
Annual snowfall
0.0 cm
Average feels-like high
27.6 °C
Average feels-like low
14.0 °C
Average peak gust
37.4 km/h
Tropical nights (≥ 20 °C)
71 d/yr
Solar radiation
20.6 MJ/m²
Has the climate changed?
What the yearly averages say about warming here, and whether the slope is statistically solid.
+0.9 °C
since 1940
+0.1 °C per decade · r² = 0.12 · p = < 0.001
Trend fitted by linear regression (ordinary least squares) on annual means. A trend is shown only when it is statistically significant (p < 0.05).
Climate month by month
How an average year unfolds: when it rains, when it turns hot, when the sun is out.
A climograph overlays rainfall (bars) and temperature (line): the standard reading in climatology, where you can see at a glance whether the warm season is also the dry one.
Records for the period
The most extreme days ever measured here, then the year-by-year detail.
Hottest day
41.6 °C
7 January 2016
Coldest day
-0.2 °C
13 June 1968
Wettest day
90 mm
6 February 2000
Windiest day
43.2 km/h
15 September 2000
Strongest gust
76.3 km/h
15 September 2000
Hottest feels-like
42.9 °C
7 January 2016
Coldest feels-like
-4.6 °C
15 June 1968
Sunniest day
13.3 h
8 December 1940
Normals computed over complete calendar years 1940–2025.
A specific year
Pick a year and compare it with the normal: warmer, drier, more extreme?
Across the whole year
Month by month
| High | vs. normal | Precipitation | vs. normal | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 27.9 °C | -2.0 °C | 246 mm | +153 mm |
| Feb | 28.3 °C | -1.2 °C | 299 mm | +214 mm |
| Mar | 28.3 °C | -0.9 °C | 10 mm | -32 mm |
| Apr | 27.6 °C | -0.3 °C | 12 mm | -5 mm |
| May | 24.0 °C | -1.7 °C | 2 mm | -2 mm |
| Jun | 23.3 °C | +0.4 °C | 0 mm | -3 mm |
| Jul | 23.4 °C | +0.6 °C | 2 mm | -0 mm |
| Aug | 28.6 °C | +2.5 °C | 1 mm | +1 mm |
| Sep | 32.8 °C | +3.0 °C | 1 mm | -4 mm |
| Oct | 32.3 °C | +0.5 °C | 3 mm | -16 mm |
| Nov | 28.0 °C | -2.9 °C | 108 mm | +48 mm |
| Dec | 28.6 °C | -1.4 °C | 152 mm | +50 mm |
The year's extremes
What was the weather like that day?
The weather actually measured on a given date, anywhere in the covered window.
Climate at a glance
What these normals say about the place, in a few sentences, and the notions needed to read them.
Francistown (Botswana) has a hot semi-arid climate (BSh) under the Köppen-Geiger classification. Its mean annual temperature is 21.4 °C and it receives 435 mm of precipitation per year.
These figures are normals computed over 86 complete calendar years, from 1940 to 2025, using ERA5 reanalysis data from the Copernicus programme.
The warmest month is October (24.8 °C on average) and the coldest is July (15.0 °C). Rainfall peaks in December.
Francistown averages 0 frost days, 131 hot days (≥ 30 °C) and 63 rainy days per year.
Francistown has warmed by +0.9 °C between 1940 and 2025, or +0.11 °C per decade. This trend is statistically significant.
The hottest day of the period reached 41.6 °C (on 7 January 2016) and the coldest -0.2 °C (on 13 June 1968).
Data from ERA5 reanalysis (Copernicus Climate Change Service), redistributed under a CC-BY 4.0 licence. Normals are recomputed whenever the archive is updated.
Compare Francistown with another city
Pick a second city: its normals will be set against these, indicator by indicator.
Nearby cities
The climate around Francistown
Other cities — Botswana
Frequently asked questions
What is the climate of Francistown?
Francistown has a hot semi-arid climate (Köppen BSh). Over 1940-2025, the average annual temperature is 21.4 °C and it receives 435 mm of precipitation per year.
What is the hottest day ever recorded in Francistown?
The hottest day measured in Francistown between 1940 and 2025 was 7 January 2016, reaching 41.6 °C.
What is the coldest day in Francistown?
The coldest day measured in Francistown between 1940 and 2025 was 13 June 1968, at -0.2 °C.
Does it snow in Francistown?
Almost never: Francistown sees virtually no snow, with about 0 frost days per year.
Has the climate of Francistown warmed?
Yes: Francistown warmed by +0.9 °C between 1940 and 2025, a statistically significant trend.
What is the wettest day in Francistown?
The wettest day measured in Francistown between 1940 and 2025 was 6 February 2000, with 90 mm of rain in 24 hours.
What was the windiest day in Francistown?
The windiest day measured in Francistown between 1940 and 2025 was 15 September 2000, with winds reaching 43.2 km/h.
What is the warmest month in Francistown?
The warmest month in Francistown is October (24.8 °C on average); the coldest is July (15.0 °C).
How much does it rain in Francistown?
Francistown receives on average 435 mm of precipitation per year, spread over about 63 rainy days.
Is it sunny in Francistown?
Francistown gets on average 10.6 hours of sunshine per day, roughly 3,869 hours per year over 1940-2025.
Are there tropical nights in Francistown?
Yes: Francistown has on average 71 tropical nights per year (temperature staying above 20 °C), over 1940-2025.
What was the most extreme apparent temperature in Francistown?
In Francistown, between 1940 and 2025, the highest apparent temperature reached 42.9 °C on 7 January 2016, and the lowest was -4.6 °C on 15 June 1968.
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