Butha-Buthe climate — normals and trends
Butha-Buthe (Lesotho) has a subtropical highland, dry winter climate (Cwb) under the Köppen-Geiger classification. Its mean annual temperature is 12.3 °C and it receives 939 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 January (17.7 °C on average) and the coldest is July (5.0 °C). Rainfall peaks in December.
Butha-Buthe averages 64 frost days, 1 hot days (≥ 30 °C) and 124 rainy days per year.
Butha-Buthe has warmed by +1.6 °C between 1940 and 2025, or +0.18 °C per decade. This trend is statistically significant.
The hottest day of the period reached 36.5 °C (on 6 January 2016) and the coldest -9.7 °C (on 20 July 1989).
Data from ERA5 reanalysis (Copernicus Climate Change Service), redistributed under a CC-BY 4.0 licence. Normals are recomputed whenever the archive is updated.
Climate normals · ERA5
Butha-ButheButha-Buthe
- coords
- -28.77°, 28.25°
- period
- 1940–2025 · 86 yrs
Mean daily temperature
12.3°C
Average daily high
19.4°C
Average daily low
6.4°C
Annual rainfall
939mm
Sunshine / day
10.9h
Mean relative humidity
63%
Average peak wind
12.7km/h
Seasonal range
12.7°C
Frost days (< 0 °C)
64 d/yr
Hot days (≥ 30 °C)
1 d/yr
Rainy days (≥ 1 mm)
124 d/yr
Annual snowfall
4.2 cm
Average feels-like high
18.3 °C
Average feels-like low
4.1 °C
Average peak gust
34.7 km/h
Tropical nights (≥ 20 °C)
0 d/yr
Solar radiation
20.3 MJ/m²
Has the climate changed?
One stripe per year, 1940 to 2025
+1.6 °C
since 1940
+0.2 °C per decade · r² = 0.42 · 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).
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
Hottest day
36.5 °C
6 January 2016
Coldest day
-9.7 °C
20 July 1989
Wettest day
88 mm
2 November 1942
Windiest day
40.0 km/h
23 September 1941
Strongest gust
85.0 km/h
31 August 2008
Hottest feels-like
35.0 °C
6 January 2016
Coldest feels-like
-14.0 °C
20 July 1989
Snowiest day
16.2 cm
2 August 2006
Sunniest day
13.8 h
25 December 2025
Normals computed over complete calendar years 1940–2025.
A specific year
Pick a year and see how it compares to normal — warmer, drier or more extreme than usual?
Across the whole year
Month by month
| High | vs. normal | Precipitation | vs. normal | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 25.2 °C | +1.5 °C | 98 mm | -42 mm |
| Feb | 24.4 °C | +1.3 °C | 114 mm | -0 mm |
| Mar | 22.8 °C | +1.0 °C | 116 mm | +16 mm |
| Apr | 18.2 °C | -0.8 °C | 252 mm | +183 mm |
| May | 17.9 °C | +1.5 °C | 12 mm | -19 mm |
| Jun | 14.3 °C | +0.7 °C | 35 mm | +17 mm |
| Jul | 13.8 °C | +0.1 °C | 21 mm | +9 mm |
| Aug | 18.2 °C | +2.0 °C | 14 mm | -11 mm |
| Sep | 20.1 °C | +0.4 °C | 86 mm | +45 mm |
| Oct | 21.5 °C | +0.3 °C | 93 mm | -14 mm |
| Nov | 20.8 °C | -1.1 °C | 182 mm | +43 mm |
| Dec | 22.8 °C | -0.3 °C | 128 mm | -15 mm |
The year's extremes
What was the weather like that day?
Your birthday, a wedding, a memorable trip: discover the actual weather for any date since 1940.
Frequently asked questions
What is the climate of Butha-Buthe?
Butha-Buthe has a subtropical highland, dry winter climate (Köppen Cwb). Over 1940-2025, the average annual temperature is 12.3 °C and it receives 939 mm of precipitation per year.
What is the hottest day ever recorded in Butha-Buthe?
The hottest day measured in Butha-Buthe between 1940 and 2025 was 6 January 2016, reaching 36.5 °C.
What is the coldest day in Butha-Buthe?
The coldest day measured in Butha-Buthe between 1940 and 2025 was 20 July 1989, at -9.7 °C.
Does it snow in Butha-Buthe?
Yes. Butha-Buthe gets on average 4.2 cm of snow per year and has around 64 frost days.
Has the climate of Butha-Buthe warmed?
Yes: Butha-Buthe warmed by +1.6 °C between 1940 and 2025, a statistically significant trend.
What is the wettest day in Butha-Buthe?
The wettest day measured in Butha-Buthe between 1940 and 2025 was 2 November 1942, with 88 mm of rain in 24 hours.
What was the windiest day in Butha-Buthe?
The windiest day measured in Butha-Buthe between 1940 and 2025 was 23 September 1941, with winds reaching 40.0 km/h.
What is the warmest month in Butha-Buthe?
The warmest month in Butha-Buthe is January (17.7 °C on average); the coldest is July (5.0 °C).
How much does it rain in Butha-Buthe?
Butha-Buthe receives on average 939 mm of precipitation per year, spread over about 124 rainy days.
Is it sunny in Butha-Buthe?
Butha-Buthe gets on average 10.9 hours of sunshine per day, roughly 3,979 hours per year over 1940-2025.
What is the biggest single-day snowfall in Butha-Buthe?
The heaviest 24-hour snowfall measured in Butha-Buthe between 1940 and 2025 was 2 August 2006, with 16.2 cm.
Are there tropical nights in Butha-Buthe?
Almost never: tropical nights (temperature staying above 20 °C) are virtually non-existent in Butha-Buthe.
What was the most extreme apparent temperature in Butha-Buthe?
In Butha-Buthe, between 1940 and 2025, the highest apparent temperature reached 35.0 °C on 6 January 2016, and the lowest was -14.0 °C on 20 July 1989.
Compare Butha-Buthe with another city
Pick a second city: its normals will be set against these, indicator by indicator.
Nearby cities
The climate around Butha-Buthe