Heating Degree Days in South Africa
South Africa: Heating Degree Days was 1,439 in 2024. ▼ Falling
Heating Degree Days in South Africa, 1960–2024
Source: World Bank, Climate Change Knowledge Portal. https://climateknowledgeportal.worldbank.org.
Analysis
The most recent figure for heating degree days in South Africa is 1,439, measured in 2024.
That represents a change of down 12.8% on the previous year and down 13.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, heating degree days in South Africa peaked at 2,302 in 1968 and was at its lowest, 1,255, in 2019.
That places South Africa 74th out of 189 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 65 years of available data.
Heating Degree Days in South Africa, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 1,956 | — |
| 1961 | 1,913 | -2.2% |
| 1962 | 1,776 | -7.2% |
| 1963 | 1,959 | +10.3% |
| 1964 | 2,130 | +8.7% |
| 1965 | 2,039 | -4.3% |
| 1966 | 1,795 | -11.9% |
| 1967 | 2,063 | +14.9% |
| 1968 | 2,302 | +11.6% |
| 1969 | 1,937 | -15.9% |
| 1970 | 1,935 | -0.1% |
| 1971 | 1,984 | +2.5% |
| 1972 | 1,901 | -4.2% |
| 1973 | 1,933 | +1.7% |
| 1974 | 2,134 | +10.4% |
| 1975 | 2,040 | -4.4% |
| 1976 | 2,130 | +4.4% |
| 1977 | 1,924 | -9.7% |
| 1978 | 1,974 | +2.6% |
| 1979 | 1,899 | -3.8% |
| 1980 | 1,815 | -4.4% |
| 1981 | 2,094 | +15.4% |
| 1982 | 1,842 | -12.1% |
| 1983 | 1,763 | -4.3% |
| 1984 | 1,844 | +4.6% |
| 1985 | 1,697 | -8.0% |
| 1986 | 1,667 | -1.8% |
| 1987 | 1,764 | +5.8% |
| 1988 | 1,916 | +8.7% |
| 1989 | 1,933 | +0.9% |
| 1990 | 1,881 | -2.7% |
| 1991 | 1,834 | -2.5% |
| 1992 | 1,778 | -3.0% |
| 1993 | 1,622 | -8.8% |
| 1994 | 1,915 | +18.1% |
| 1995 | 1,884 | -1.6% |
| 1996 | 2,128 | +13.0% |
| 1997 | 1,949 | -8.4% |
| 1998 | 1,681 | -13.7% |
| 1999 | 1,577 | -6.2% |
| 2000 | 1,864 | +18.2% |
| 2001 | 1,777 | -4.7% |
| 2002 | 1,806 | +1.6% |
| 2003 | 1,801 | -0.3% |
| 2004 | 1,694 | -5.9% |
| 2005 | 1,601 | -5.5% |
| 2006 | 1,921 | +20.0% |
| 2007 | 1,780 | -7.3% |
| 2008 | 1,729 | -2.9% |
| 2009 | 1,748 | +1.1% |
| 2010 | 1,564 | -10.5% |
| 2011 | 1,979 | +26.5% |
| 2012 | 1,855 | -6.3% |
| 2013 | 1,771 | -4.5% |
| 2014 | 1,667 | -5.9% |
| 2015 | 1,444 | -13.4% |
| 2016 | 1,480 | +2.5% |
| 2017 | 1,512 | +2.1% |
| 2018 | 1,619 | +7.1% |
| 2019 | 1,255 | -22.5% |
| 2020 | 1,656 | +32.0% |
| 2021 | 1,630 | -1.6% |
| 2022 | 1,574 | -3.5% |
| 2023 | 1,651 | +4.9% |
| 2024 | 1,439 | -12.8% |
South Africa compared with similar countries
- South Africa's 1,439 is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 201.25, 7.2× the median. (57 countries reporting)
- South Africa's 1,439 is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 6.78, 212.3× the median. (45 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 1,987 | 1,776 | 2,302 | 10 |
| 1970s | 1,985 | 1,899 | 2,134 | 10 |
| 1980s | 1,834 | 1,667 | 2,094 | 10 |
| 1990s | 1,825 | 1,577 | 2,128 | 10 |
| 2000s | 1,772 | 1,601 | 1,921 | 10 |
| 2010s | 1,615 | 1,255 | 1,979 | 10 |
| 2020s | 1,590 | 1,439 | 1,656 | 5 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
More environment data for South Africa
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly 5.46 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly 8.52 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.275 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 1.05 °C (2025)
- Wood-based panels — Production, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 2.59 % change on previous year (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per unit 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per capita 0 Mt CO2e per person (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), annual growth rate 0.2953 % change on previous year (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is heating degree days in South Africa?
- Heating degree days in South Africa was 1,439 in 2024, according to World Bank, Climate Change Knowledge Portal. https://climateknowledgeportal.worldbank.org.
- What is the highest heating degree days recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 2,302 in 1968.
- What is the lowest heating degree days recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 1,255 in 2019.
- How does South Africa rank for heating degree days?
- South Africa ranks 74th out of 189 countries with data for 2024.
- Is heating degree days rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is down 13.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this South Africa data come from?
- The figures come from World Bank, Climate Change Knowledge Portal. https://climateknowledgeportal.worldbank.org, published as part of Heating Degree Days. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 65 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
A heating degree day (HDD) is a measurement designed to track energy use. It is the number of degrees that a day's average temperature is below 18°C (65°F). Daily degree days are accumulated to obtain annual values.