Leuven weather in January

In January, Leuven sees average daytime highs of 6°C and overnight lows near 2°C, with 62 mm of precipitation across 11.8 wet days and about 8.2 hours of daylight. It is the 12th-warmest and 5th-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 6°C through the month. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 15% of the time in January, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 7 h 48 min at the start of January to 8 h 48 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, January is Leuven's 9th-clearest and 1st-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Leuven's year-round climate.

Daytime high
12th warmest
Overnight low
2nd coldest
Precipitation
62 mm
11.8 wet days
Daylight
8 h 12 min
8:45 AM – 4:56 PM
Cloud cover
74%
9th clearest
Wind
16 km/h
1st windiest
Solar energy
0.81 kWh/m²
Travel score
0.4
out of 10

Leuven is town in Leuven municipality, Belgium.

Air quality: WHO Ambient Air Quality Database. Density & description: Wikidata (CC0), GeoNames.

Temperature in January

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 6°C through the month.

A typical January day in Leuven reaches about 6°C in the afternoon and slips back to 2°C overnight — a 4°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 0°C and 11°C. Set against its neighbours, January runs on par with December and about 1°C cooler than February.

-5°10°15°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
162
262
362
462
562
662
762
862
962
1062
1162
1262
1362
1462
1562
1662
1762
1862
1962
2062
2162
2262
2361
2461
2561
2661
2761
2861
2961
3061
3161

How January really feels in Leuven

Once humidity and wind are folded in, January averages 0 days that feel above 32°C and 31 that feel at or below 0°C — the comfort signal a plain temperature reading hides.

Days feeling ≥ 32°C
0
heat index over the day's high
Days feeling ≤ C
31
wind chill below the day's low

The story in January is cold — wind chill drags the overnight "feels like" below the raw low.

Leuven weather by month

How January compares with the rest of the year at a glance. January is the 12th-warmest and 5th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan / 6211.81.18.20.4
Feb / 5610.91.39.70.8
Mar11° / 5511.80.711.52.4
Apr15° / 4610.7013.54.2
May18° / 5912.2015.35.4
Jun21° / 12°6711.3016.26.0
Jul23° / 14°7212.5015.86.4
Aug23° / 14°7312014.36.4
Sep19° / 11°5310.4012.45.9
Oct15° / 5811.1010.44.2
Nov10° / 6211.60.38.72.0
Dec / 7212.91.37.80.6

Cloud cover in January

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 15% of the time in January.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 11% of January, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 74%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
12476
22476
32575
42674
52674
62674
72872
82872
92872
102872
112872
122971
132971
142872
152872
162872
172872
182872
192773
202773
212773
222575
232575
242476
252377
262377
272377
282377
292377
302278
312278

Chance of precipitation in January

Any precipitationSnow

Leuven gets around 62 mm of rain and snow over 11.8 wet days in January. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Day to day, the chance of measurable precipitation averages around 39% and peaks near 42% on the wettest days, and about 1 day brings snow.

0%10%20%30%40%50%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
1423
2423
3413
4413
5413
6413
7413
8413
9403
10403
11403
12393
13393
14393
15393
16383
17383
18383
19373
20373
21374
22374
23374
24374
25374
26375
27365
28365
29375
30375
31375

Humidity in January

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

Most of January feels dry — the stacked bands show each day's mix of comfort levels, read off the dew point.

By dew point, January lands in the dry band about 100% of days. It rarely turns muggy — the humid and sticky bands barely register.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Dry (%)
1100
2100
3100
4100
5100
6100
7100
8100
9100
10100
11100
12100
13100
14100
15100
16100
17100
18100
19100
20100
21100
22100
23100
24100
25100
26100
27100
28100
29100
30100
31100

Wind in January

Winds average 16 km/h in January, the windiest month of the year.

Across January, daily wind ranges from about 15 km/h on the calmest days to 17 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

05101520151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
116light breeze
216light breeze
317light breeze
417light breeze
517light breeze
617light breeze
717light breeze
817light breeze
917light breeze
1017light breeze
1116light breeze
1216light breeze
1316light breeze
1416light breeze
1516light breeze
1616light breeze
1716light breeze
1816light breeze
1916light breeze
2016light breeze
2116light breeze
2216light breeze
2316light breeze
2416light breeze
2515light breeze
2615light breeze
2715light breeze
2815light breeze
2915light breeze
3015light breeze
3115light breeze

Sunrise & sunset in January

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 7 h 48 min at the start of January to 8 h 48 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 60 minutes over January. Sunrise moves from 8:51 AM to 8:29 AM, and sunset from 4:38 PM to 5:20 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
17.88:514:38
27.88:514:39
37.88:514:40
47.88:514:41
57.98:504:42
67.98:504:43
77.98:504:44
87.98:494:45
98.08:494:47
108.08:494:48
118.08:484:49
128.08:484:50
138.18:474:52
148.18:464:53
158.18:464:54
168.28:454:56
178.28:444:57
188.38:444:59
198.38:435:00
208.38:425:02
218.48:415:03
228.48:405:05
238.58:395:07
248.58:385:08
258.68:375:10
268.68:365:11
278.68:345:13
288.78:335:15
298.78:325:16
308.88:315:18
318.88:295:20

Solar energy in January

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in January, about 0.81 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 0.63 kWh/m² to a high of 5.28 kWh/m² in June across the year — January's 0.81 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

00.511.52151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
10.6Dim
20.7Dim
30.7Dim
40.7Dim
50.7Dim
60.7Dim
70.7Dim
80.7Dim
90.7Dim
100.7Dim
110.7Dim
120.8Dim
130.8Dim
140.8Dim
150.8Dim
160.8Dim
170.8Dim
180.8Dim
190.8Dim
200.9Dim
210.9Dim
220.9Dim
230.9Dim
240.9Dim
250.9Dim
261.0Dim
271.0Dim
281.0Dim
291.0Dim
301.1Dim
311.1Dim
Planning a trip in January

Is January a good time to visit Leuven?

Our two travel scores rate January for general sightseeing and for beach or pool weather — 0 (poor) to 10 (ideal).

0.4
Sightseeing
12th-best month of the year
0.0
Beach & pool
8th-best month of the year

January is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Leuven.

What to pack for Leuven in January

From January's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.

In January, Leuven sees daytime highs around 6°C and nights near 2°C. Pack a warm layer. Worth having: a heavy coat and rain gear. About 12 days see rain.

a warm layera heavy coatrain gear

UV index in Leuven in January

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in January peaks around 1. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Leuven peaks around July 12 at about 6 (high) — sunscreen and a hat are worth it in the middle of the day. It bottoms out near December 22 at about 1 (low).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 7 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLowModerateHighModerateLowJul 12UV 6Dec 22UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan1Low
Feb1Low
Mar3Moderate
Apr4Moderate
May6High
Jun6High
Jul6High
Aug6High
Sep4Moderate
Oct2Moderate
Nov1Low
Dec1Low

Air quality in Leuven in January

GoodModeratePoorUnhealthyVery unhealthy

Average fine-particle pollution (PM2.5) through the year — so you can see where January falls, not just the annual average.

Air quality in Leuven is worst in April — around 18 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), and holds fairly steady the rest of the year.

Modeled monthly averages (CAMS reanalysis, 2015–2024).

01020JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModerateGoodApr 1317 µg/m³Dec 1511 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan13Moderate
Feb13Moderate
Mar17Moderate
Apr18Moderate
May16Moderate
Jun15Moderate
Jul14Moderate
Aug15Moderate
Sep15Moderate
Oct13Moderate
Nov12Moderate
Dec11Good
Location & terrain

Where is Leuven?

Leuven sits at 50.9°N, 4.7°E, 28 m above sea level, in Belgium. The nearest listed city is Heverlee, 2.0 km away.

Aarschot

Topography around Leuven

How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Leuven.

Within 3 km, the terrain around Leuven has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 84 m around an average of 40 m above sea level; within 16 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 138 m; within 80 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 457 m.

The land around Leuven is covered by artificial surfaces (41%) and trees (37%) within 3 km, trees (37%), cropland (29%) and grassland (21%) within 16 km, and cropland (32%), trees (31%) and grassland (24%) within 80 km.

3 km
84 m
16 km
138 m
80 km
457 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaceswater
January weather nearby: Heverlee 2.0 km · Blauwput 2.0 km · Kessel-Lo 3.0 km · Herent 4.0 km · Rotselaar 8.0 km · Kortenberg 11 km · Tervuren 15 km · Aarschot 15 km

Belgium travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 2
Exercise Increased Caution
Power plugs
Type C / E
230 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 81% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$60,750
2025
Happiness
6.9 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
100%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
1.1
per 100k, 2021
Road deaths
5.8
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
High
World Bank
English
Very high
EF EPI 608
Religion
Roman Catholic 57%nonbeliever/agnostic 20%atheist 9%Muslim 7%

Sources: World Bank, US State Department, World Happiness Report, WHO/UNICEF, EF EPI, CIA World Factbook.

Data sources

Temperature, precipitation, cloud, humidity, wind and solar figures are a 1991–2020 climatology for Leuven (50.8796°, 4.7009°, elevation 28 m), computed from hourly ERA5 reanalysis — contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information. Sun figures are astronomical calculations, not observations. City data © GeoNames, CC BY 4.0. Map outlines from Natural Earth (public domain); interactive map © Google. UV index is derived from CAMS (Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service) clear-sky UV data — contains modified Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service information. Monthly air-quality (PM2.5) seasonality is from the CAMS EAC4 reanalysis (Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service), scaled to the WHO annual mean where available. Topography is sampled from the Copernicus DEM GLO-90 elevation model (© ESA/Airbus) and ESA WorldCover 2021 land cover (CC BY 4.0).