Butare climate — normals and trends
Butare (Rwanda) has a tropical savanna climate (Aw) under the Köppen-Geiger classification. Its mean annual temperature is 19.4 °C and it receives 853 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 August (20.5 °C on average) and the coldest is November (18.6 °C). Rainfall peaks in April.
Butare averages 0 frost days, 1 hot days (≥ 30 °C) and 170 rainy days per year.
Butare 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 32.4 °C (on 25 September 1997) and the coldest 8.1 °C (on 31 July 1960).
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
ButareSouthern Province
- coords
- -2.60°, 29.74°
- period
- 1940–2025 · 86 yrs
Mean daily temperature
19.4°C
Average daily high
24.7°C
Average daily low
14.4°C
Annual rainfall
853mm
Sunshine / day
10.4h
Mean relative humidity
70%
Average peak wind
10.5km/h
Seasonal range
1.9°C
Frost days (< 0 °C)
0 d/yr
Hot days (≥ 30 °C)
1 d/yr
Rainy days (≥ 1 mm)
170 d/yr
Annual snowfall
0.0 cm
Average feels-like high
25.6 °C
Average feels-like low
14.4 °C
Average peak gust
29.1 km/h
Tropical nights (≥ 20 °C)
0 d/yr
Solar radiation
18.8 MJ/m²
Has the climate changed?
One stripe per year, 1940 to 2025
+1.6 °C
since 1940
+0.2 °C per decade · r² = 0.52 · 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
32.4 °C
25 September 1997
Coldest day
8.1 °C
31 July 1960
Wettest day
67 mm
8 April 1987
Windiest day
21.1 km/h
8 September 1948
Strongest gust
57.6 km/h
28 December 2006
Hottest feels-like
32.6 °C
1 March 2020
Coldest feels-like
5.3 °C
12 July 1944
Sunniest day
12.0 h
2 January 1940
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 | 25.9 °C | +1.2 °C | 48 mm | -40 mm |
| Feb | 26.8 °C | +1.6 °C | 35 mm | -56 mm |
| Mar | 25.8 °C | +1.1 °C | 110 mm | -6 mm |
| Apr | 24.7 °C | +0.9 °C | 143 mm | +13 mm |
| May | 24.0 °C | +0.4 °C | 51 mm | -16 mm |
| Jun | 25.1 °C | +0.6 °C | 13 mm | +3 mm |
| Jul | 26.0 °C | +0.8 °C | 1 mm | -2 mm |
| Aug | 26.1 °C | 0.0 °C | 22 mm | +9 mm |
| Sep | 27.2 °C | +1.2 °C | 17 mm | -23 mm |
| Oct | 25.3 °C | +0.3 °C | 113 mm | +26 mm |
| Nov | 24.7 °C | +0.9 °C | 57 mm | -55 mm |
| Dec | 24.4 °C | +0.4 °C | 82 mm | -13 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 Butare?
Butare has a tropical savanna climate (Köppen Aw). Over 1940-2025, the average annual temperature is 19.4 °C and it receives 853 mm of precipitation per year.
What is the hottest day ever recorded in Butare?
The hottest day measured in Butare between 1940 and 2025 was 25 September 1997, reaching 32.4 °C.
What is the coldest day in Butare?
The coldest day measured in Butare between 1940 and 2025 was 31 July 1960, at 8.1 °C.
Does it snow in Butare?
Almost never: Butare sees virtually no snow, with about 0 frost days per year.
Has the climate of Butare warmed?
Yes: Butare warmed by +1.6 °C between 1940 and 2025, a statistically significant trend.
What is the wettest day in Butare?
The wettest day measured in Butare between 1940 and 2025 was 8 April 1987, with 67 mm of rain in 24 hours.
What was the windiest day in Butare?
The windiest day measured in Butare between 1940 and 2025 was 8 September 1948, with winds reaching 21.1 km/h.
What is the warmest month in Butare?
The warmest month in Butare is August (20.5 °C on average); the coldest is November (18.6 °C).
How much does it rain in Butare?
Butare receives on average 853 mm of precipitation per year, spread over about 170 rainy days.
Is it sunny in Butare?
Butare gets on average 10.4 hours of sunshine per day, roughly 3,796 hours per year over 1940-2025.
Are there tropical nights in Butare?
Almost never: tropical nights (temperature staying above 20 °C) are virtually non-existent in Butare.
What was the most extreme apparent temperature in Butare?
In Butare, between 1940 and 2025, the highest apparent temperature reached 32.6 °C on 1 March 2020, and the lowest was 5.3 °C on 12 July 1944.
Compare Butare with another city
Pick a second city: its normals will be set against these, indicator by indicator.
Nearby cities
The climate around Butare