Phola climate — normals and trends
Phola (South Africa) has a subtropical highland, dry winter climate (Cwb) under the Köppen-Geiger classification. Its mean annual temperature is 16.3 °C and it receives 733 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 (20.2 °C on average) and the coldest is June (9.9 °C). Rainfall peaks in December.
Phola averages 3 frost days, 17 hot days (≥ 30 °C) and 104 rainy days per year.
Phola 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 36.4 °C (on 7 January 2016) and the coldest -4.0 °C (on 28 June 1964).
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
PholaMpumalanga
- coords
- -26.00°, 29.03°
- period
- 1940–2025 · 86 yrs
Mean daily temperature
16.3°C
Average daily high
23.2°C
Average daily low
10.8°C
Annual rainfall
733mm
Sunshine / day
10.7h
Mean relative humidity
62%
Average peak wind
17.0km/h
Seasonal range
10.3°C
Frost days (< 0 °C)
3 d/yr
Hot days (≥ 30 °C)
17 d/yr
Rainy days (≥ 1 mm)
104 d/yr
Annual snowfall
0.2 cm
Average feels-like high
22.2 °C
Average feels-like low
9.0 °C
Average peak gust
34.4 km/h
Tropical nights (≥ 20 °C)
0 d/yr
Solar radiation
19.9 MJ/m²
Has the climate changed?
One stripe per year, 1940 to 2025
+1.6 °C
since 1940
+0.2 °C per decade · r² = 0.40 · 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
36.4 °C
7 January 2016
Coldest day
-4.0 °C
28 June 1964
Wettest day
114 mm
17 March 2016
Windiest day
45.9 km/h
23 September 1941
Strongest gust
85.3 km/h
29 October 1961
Hottest feels-like
36.6 °C
6 January 2016
Coldest feels-like
-8.2 °C
27 June 1964
Snowiest day
8.6 cm
10 September 1981
Sunniest day
13.6 h
16 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 | 26.8 °C | +0.9 °C | 193 mm | +71 mm |
| Feb | 26.3 °C | +0.7 °C | 240 mm | +138 mm |
| Mar | 24.6 °C | -0.2 °C | 126 mm | +42 mm |
| Apr | 21.4 °C | -1.3 °C | 79 mm | +30 mm |
| May | 21.1 °C | +0.4 °C | 6 mm | -10 mm |
| Jun | 19.0 °C | +0.8 °C | 1 mm | -6 mm |
| Jul | 19.0 °C | +0.6 °C | 3 mm | -1 mm |
| Aug | 23.1 °C | +1.9 °C | 32 mm | +23 mm |
| Sep | 25.9 °C | +1.2 °C | 43 mm | +19 mm |
| Oct | 25.3 °C | -0.4 °C | 63 mm | -11 mm |
| Nov | 22.9 °C | -2.3 °C | 231 mm | +118 mm |
| Dec | 24.6 °C | -1.0 °C | 137 mm | +6 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 Phola?
Phola has a subtropical highland, dry winter climate (Köppen Cwb). Over 1940-2025, the average annual temperature is 16.3 °C and it receives 733 mm of precipitation per year.
What is the hottest day ever recorded in Phola?
The hottest day measured in Phola between 1940 and 2025 was 7 January 2016, reaching 36.4 °C.
What is the coldest day in Phola?
The coldest day measured in Phola between 1940 and 2025 was 28 June 1964, at -4.0 °C.
Does it snow in Phola?
Almost never: Phola sees virtually no snow, with about 3 frost days per year.
Has the climate of Phola warmed?
Yes: Phola warmed by +1.6 °C between 1940 and 2025, a statistically significant trend.
What is the wettest day in Phola?
The wettest day measured in Phola between 1940 and 2025 was 17 March 2016, with 114 mm of rain in 24 hours.
What was the windiest day in Phola?
The windiest day measured in Phola between 1940 and 2025 was 23 September 1941, with winds reaching 45.9 km/h.
What is the warmest month in Phola?
The warmest month in Phola is January (20.2 °C on average); the coldest is June (9.9 °C).
How much does it rain in Phola?
Phola receives on average 733 mm of precipitation per year, spread over about 104 rainy days.
Is it sunny in Phola?
Phola gets on average 10.7 hours of sunshine per day, roughly 3,905 hours per year over 1940-2025.
What is the biggest single-day snowfall in Phola?
The heaviest 24-hour snowfall measured in Phola between 1940 and 2025 was 10 September 1981, with 8.6 cm.
Are there tropical nights in Phola?
Almost never: tropical nights (temperature staying above 20 °C) are virtually non-existent in Phola.
What was the most extreme apparent temperature in Phola?
In Phola, between 1940 and 2025, the highest apparent temperature reached 36.6 °C on 6 January 2016, and the lowest was -8.2 °C on 27 June 1964.
Compare Phola with another city
Pick a second city: its normals will be set against these, indicator by indicator.
Nearby cities
The climate around Phola