Lusaka weather by month

The best time to visit Lusaka is May to July — 95/100 in June, 24°C and 0 rainy days. The best season is winter, June to August (93/100 on average).

The worst month is January at 60/100 — hot, soaked, clean air. See January →

Updated September 2026 · climate normals from ERA5 reanalysis

Planning the wider trip? Best time to visit Zambia →

Lusaka🇿🇲 Zambia · Zambia, Zimbabwe & Malawi · City95
  1. 60Jan
  2. 70Feb
  3. 78Mar
  4. 88Apr
  5. 94May
  6. 95Jun
  7. 93Jul
  8. 91Aug
  9. 86Sep
  10. 82Oct
  11. 75Nov
  12. 69Dec

Best season: June to August (93/100 on average) · worst January (60/100)

Days
24°C
Nights
10°C
Wet days
0
Sun
10 h
Humidity
57%
Daylight
11 h
Lusaka, Zambia
Photo: Floating Rabbit · Pexels

Lusaka, month by month

Comfort score out of 100 for the kind of trip Lusaka is best for, the average high, rainy days and hours of sun a day from the climate normals, and how busy it tends to be.

MonthScoreTierHighRainSunCrowdsOn
Jan60C27°C25 d9 hQuiet1
Feb70B28°C21 d10 hQuiet1
Mar78B27°C17 d10 hBusy2
Apr88A26°C7 d10 hBusy2
May94S25°C1 d10 hBusy2
Jun95S24°C0 d10 hBusy1
Jul93S23°C0 d10 hPeak3
Aug91S27°C0 d11 hBusy2
Sep86A30°C0 d11 hShoulder2
Oct82A32°C2 d11 hBusy3
Nov75B31°C15 d11 hShoulder1
Dec69C29°C21 d10 hQuiet1

What's on in Lusaka through the year

Festivals, natural spectacles, holidays and the seasons to watch out for — curated and sourced. The month pages carry the detail.

March
  • Easter weekend20 Mar – 26 Apr (usually)Holiday
April
  • Lower Zambezi camp season1 Apr – 15 Nov (usually)Opening
May
  • Africa Freedom Day25 MayHoliday
July
  • Agricultural Show29 Jul – 3 AugFestival
  • Heroes and Unity Days6–7 JulHoliday
September
  • Jacaranda season10 Sep – 31 Oct (usually)Nature
October
  • Independence Day21–27 Oct (usually)Holiday
December
  • Rainy-season flooding1 Dec – 31 Mar (usually)Hazard

Everything on in Lusaka through the year →

Crowds in Lusaka in June

How busy the place itself is — school and mass holidays, the months an editor tagged, and how sought-after the weather makes them. Never part of the comfort score.

Busyschool holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it, one of its best months for weather(estimated)

JFMAMJJASOND

Peak crowdsBusyShoulder seasonQuiet

Traveller notes on Lusaka

What people who have been say about the place — the year-round notes first, then month by month.

Forum posters describe May as the point where Zambia's rains, which can linger into early May in some years, finally taper off into the country's long, dry cool season. Posters preparing for a May safari trip elsewhere in Zambia are commonly advised to layer up, with June specifically flagged by posters as the heart of the region's cold season and daytime temperatures in parts of the country dropping as low as 13C even at midday - a useful marker for how quickly May's mild warmth gives way to genuinely cool conditions just afterward. Posters generally recommend a fleece or warm layer for early mornings even in May, alongside lighter clothing for the still-warm midday sun around Lusaka itself.
Tripadvisor community · May · 1 month ago · Read more on Tripadvisor ↗
Forum posters describe November as the point when Zambia's rains typically begin, arriving as shorter afternoon storms rather than the days-on-end deluges of an Amazon-style wet season, though the exact pattern varies year to year. Posters discussing safari-focused parts of the country note that heavy November storms can make black-cotton-soil roads impassable, with some remote camps beginning to close for the season by mid-month - a consideration more relevant to safari areas like South Luangwa and Lower Zambezi than to Lusaka itself. Posters describe Lusaka's own city attractions - the national museum, Kabwata cultural village, Munda Wanga gardens, a weekend curio market and the Arcades shopping mall - as workable regardless of the rains starting. Posters generally rate November as warm with rains just getting underway for Lusaka, more of a logistical factor for remote safari camps than for the city itself.
Tripadvisor community · November · 1 month ago · Read more on Tripadvisor ↗

Add your own note from Lusaka's card on the map.