Santa Cruz weather in January

In January, Santa Cruz sees average daytime highs of 32°C and overnight lows near 23°C, with 32 mm of rain across 8 wet days and about 12.3 hours of daylight. It is the 3rd-warmest and 5th-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 32°C through the month. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 28% of the time in January, and the air most often feels muggy.

Daylight stretches from about 12 h 24 min at the start of January to 12 h 18 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, January is Santa Cruz's 9th-clearest and 8th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Santa Cruz's year-round climate.

Daytime high: 32°; 3rd warmest
Overnight low: 23°; 10th coldest
Rainfall: 32 mm; 8 wet days
Daylight: 12 h 18 min; 5:24 AM – 5:43 PM
Cloud cover: 59%; 9th clearest
Wind: 15 km/h; 8th windiest
Solar energy: 5.93 kWh/m²
Travel score: 4.1; out of 10

Santa Cruz is settlement in Brazil.

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

← December Santa Cruz year-round climate February →Best places to visit in January

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

Temperature in January

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 32°C through the month.

A typical January day in Santa Cruz reaches about 32°C in the afternoon and slips back to 23°C overnight — a 9°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 30°C and 34°C. Set against its neighbours, January runs on par with December and on par with February.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Avg high (°C)	32	32	32	32	32	32	32	32	32	32	32	32	32	32	32	32	32	32	32	32	32	32	32	32	32	32	32	32	32	32	32
Avg low (°C)	23	23	23	23	23	23	23	23	23	23	23	23	23	23	23	23	23	23	23	23	23	23	23	23	23	23	23	23	23	23	23

	Avg high (°C)	Avg low (°C)
1	32	23
2	32	23
3	32	23
4	32	23
5	32	23
6	32	23
7	32	23
8	32	23
9	32	23
10	32	23
11	32	23
12	32	23
13	32	23
14	32	23
15	32	23
16	32	23
17	32	23
18	32	23
19	32	23
20	32	23
21	32	23
22	32	23
23	32	23
24	32	23
25	32	23
26	32	23
27	32	23
28	32	23
29	32	23
30	32	23
31	32	23

How January really feels in Santa Cruz

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

Days feeling ≥ 32°C

heat index over the day's high

Days feeling ≤ 0°C

wind chill below the day's low

The story in January is heat — humidity pushes the afternoon "feels like" well above the raw temperature.

Santa Cruz weather by month

How January compares with the rest of the year at a glance. January is the 3rd-warmest and 5th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

Month	High / Low (°C)	Rainfall (mm)	Wet days	Daylight (hours)	Travel score
Jan	32° / 23°	32	8	12.3	4.1
Feb	32° / 23°	39	9.4	12.2	3.9
Mar	32° / 23°	61	12.5	12	3.8
Apr	31° / 23°	62	12.4	11.9	4.2
May	31° / 22°	39	7.4	11.7	5.0
Jun	29° / 21°	30	5.5	11.6	5.8
Jul	29° / 20°	22	4.1	11.7	6.2
Aug	30° / 20°	7	1.4	11.8	6.1
Sep	31° / 21°	3	0.9	12	5.6
Oct	32° / 21°	3	0.6	12.1	5.0
Nov	32° / 22°	4	0.8	12.3	4.8
Dec	32° / 22°	10	3	12.4	4.5

Cloud cover in January

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 28% of the time in January.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 24% of January, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 48%.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Clearer (%)	60	59	58	57	56	56	55	54	53	52	51	50	50	48	47	47	49	49	49	49	49	50	51	51	51	52	52	52	53	54	54
Cloudier (%)	40	41	42	43	44	44	45	46	47	48	49	50	50	52	53	53	51	51	51	51	51	50	49	49	49	48	48	48	47	46	46

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	60	40
2	59	41
3	58	42
4	57	43
5	56	44
6	56	44
7	55	45
8	54	46
9	53	47
10	52	48
11	51	49
12	50	50
13	50	50
14	48	52
15	47	53
16	47	53
17	49	51
18	49	51
19	49	51
20	49	51
21	49	51
22	50	50
23	51	49
24	51	49
25	51	49
26	52	48
27	52	48
28	52	48
29	53	47
30	54	46
31	54	46

Chance of precipitation in January

Any precipitation

Santa Cruz gets around 32 mm of rain over 8 wet days in January. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Day to day, the chance of measurable rain averages around 26% and peaks near 32% on the wettest days. The odds climb toward the end of the month.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Rain chance (%)	17	18	18	18	19	19	19	20	21	21	22	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	30	31	31	32	32	32	32	31	31	30	30	29	28

	Rain chance (%)
1	17
2	18
3	18
4	18
5	19
6	19
7	19
8	20
9	21
10	21
11	22
12	24
13	25
14	26
15	27
16	28
17	29
18	30
19	30
20	31
21	31
22	32
23	32
24	32
25	32
26	31
27	31
28	30
29	30
30	29
31	28

Humidity in January

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

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

By dew point, January lands in the muggy band about 68% of days. Sticky, muggy-or-worse air turns up on roughly 98% of them.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Humid (%)	3	3	3	3	3	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1
Muggy (%)	78	78	78	78	78	78	78	78	77	76	75	73	72	70	69	67	66	65	64	62	61	60	60	59	59	58	59	59	59	60	61
Oppressive (%)	19	19	19	19	19	20	20	20	21	22	23	25	26	28	29	31	33	34	35	37	38	39	39	40	40	41	40	40	40	39	38

	Humid (%)	Muggy (%)	Oppressive (%)
1	3	78	19
2	3	78	19
3	3	78	19
4	3	78	19
5	3	78	19
6	2	78	20
7	2	78	20
8	2	78	20
9	2	77	21
10	2	76	22
11	2	75	23
12	2	73	25
13	2	72	26
14	2	70	28
15	2	69	29
16	2	67	31
17	1	66	33
18	1	65	34
19	1	64	35
20	1	62	37
21	1	61	38
22	1	60	39
23	1	60	39
24	1	59	40
25	1	59	40
26	1	58	41
27	1	59	40
28	1	59	40
29	1	59	40
30	1	60	39
31	1	61	38

Wind in January

Winds average 15 km/h in January.

Across January, daily wind ranges from about 14 km/h on the calmest days to 16 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Wind speed (km/h)	16	15	15	15	15	15	15	15	15	15	15	15	15	15	15	14	14	14	14	14	14	14	14	14	14	14	14	14	14	14	14
Feels	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze

	Wind speed (km/h)	Feels
1	16	light breeze
2	15	light breeze
3	15	light breeze
4	15	light breeze
5	15	light breeze
6	15	light breeze
7	15	light breeze
8	15	light breeze
9	15	light breeze
10	15	light breeze
11	15	light breeze
12	15	light breeze
13	15	light breeze
14	15	light breeze
15	15	light breeze
16	14	light breeze
17	14	light breeze
18	14	light breeze
19	14	light breeze
20	14	light breeze
21	14	light breeze
22	14	light breeze
23	14	light breeze
24	14	light breeze
25	14	light breeze
26	14	light breeze
27	14	light breeze
28	14	light breeze
29	14	light breeze
30	14	light breeze
31	14	light breeze

Sunrise & sunset in January

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 12 h 24 min at the start of January to 12 h 18 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days shrink by about 6 minutes over January. Sunrise moves from 5:17 AM to 5:29 AM, and sunset from 5:38 PM to 5:46 PM.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Daylight (h)	12.4	12.4	12.4	12.4	12.4	12.3	12.3	12.3	12.3	12.3	12.3	12.3	12.3	12.3	12.3	12.3	12.3	12.3	12.3	12.3	12.3	12.3	12.3	12.3	12.3	12.3	12.3	12.3	12.3	12.3	12.3
Sunrise (AM)	5:17	5:17	5:18	5:18	5:19	5:19	5:19	5:20	5:20	5:21	5:21	5:22	5:22	5:23	5:23	5:24	5:24	5:24	5:25	5:25	5:26	5:26	5:26	5:27	5:27	5:28	5:28	5:28	5:29	5:29	5:29
Sunset (PM)	5:38	5:38	5:39	5:39	5:40	5:40	5:40	5:41	5:41	5:41	5:42	5:42	5:42	5:43	5:43	5:43	5:43	5:44	5:44	5:44	5:44	5:44	5:45	5:45	5:45	5:45	5:45	5:45	5:45	5:46	5:46

	Daylight (h)	Sunrise (AM)	Sunset (PM)
1	12.4	5:17	5:38
2	12.4	5:17	5:38
3	12.4	5:18	5:39
4	12.4	5:18	5:39
5	12.4	5:19	5:40
6	12.3	5:19	5:40
7	12.3	5:19	5:40
8	12.3	5:20	5:41
9	12.3	5:20	5:41
10	12.3	5:21	5:41
11	12.3	5:21	5:42
12	12.3	5:22	5:42
13	12.3	5:22	5:42
14	12.3	5:23	5:43
15	12.3	5:23	5:43
16	12.3	5:24	5:43
17	12.3	5:24	5:43
18	12.3	5:24	5:44
19	12.3	5:25	5:44
20	12.3	5:25	5:44
21	12.3	5:26	5:44
22	12.3	5:26	5:44
23	12.3	5:26	5:45
24	12.3	5:27	5:45
25	12.3	5:27	5:45
26	12.3	5:28	5:45
27	12.3	5:28	5:45
28	12.3	5:28	5:45
29	12.3	5:29	5:45
30	12.3	5:29	5:46
31	12.3	5:29	5:46

Solar energy in January

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in January, about 5.93 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 4.32 kWh/m² to a high of 6.44 kWh/m² in November across the year — January's 5.93 kWh/m² falls in the middle.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Solar energy (kWh/m²)	6.0	6.0	6.0	6.0	6.0	6.0	6.0	6.0	5.9	5.9	5.9	5.9	5.9	5.9	5.9	5.9	5.9	5.9	5.9	5.9	5.9	5.9	5.9	5.9	5.9	5.9	6.0	6.0	6.0	6.0	6.0
Level	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Intense	Intense

	Solar energy (kWh/m²)	Level
1	6.0	Intense
2	6.0	Intense
3	6.0	Intense
4	6.0	Intense
5	6.0	Bright
6	6.0	Bright
7	6.0	Bright
8	6.0	Bright
9	5.9	Bright
10	5.9	Bright
11	5.9	Bright
12	5.9	Bright
13	5.9	Bright
14	5.9	Bright
15	5.9	Bright
16	5.9	Bright
17	5.9	Bright
18	5.9	Bright
19	5.9	Bright
20	5.9	Bright
21	5.9	Bright
22	5.9	Bright
23	5.9	Bright
24	5.9	Bright
25	5.9	Bright
26	5.9	Bright
27	6.0	Bright
28	6.0	Bright
29	6.0	Bright
30	6.0	Intense
31	6.0	Intense

Planning a trip in January

Is January a good time to visit Santa Cruz?

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

4.1

Sightseeing

10th-best month of the year

6.7

Beach & pool

9th-best month of the year

January is a reasonable time to visit Santa Cruz for sightseeing. The water and warmth also suit a beach or pool day.

What to pack for Santa Cruz in January

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

In January, Santa Cruz sees daytime highs around 32°C and nights near 23°C. Pack light clothes. Worth having: rain gear and sun protection. About 8 days see rain.

light clothesrain gearsun protection

UV index in Santa Cruz in January

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in January peaks around 14 (very high — sun protection essential). The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Santa Cruz peaks around March 12 at about 15 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near July 15 at about 10 (very high).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — every month of the year.

	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
UV index (midday)	14	15	16	14	11	10	10	10	13	12	12	12
Level	Extreme	Extreme	Extreme	Extreme	Extreme	Extreme	Very high	Extreme	Extreme	Extreme	Extreme	Extreme

	UV index (midday)	Level
Jan	14	Extreme
Feb	15	Extreme
Mar	16	Extreme
Apr	14	Extreme
May	11	Extreme
Jun	10	Extreme
Jul	10	Very high
Aug	10	Extreme
Sep	13	Extreme
Oct	12	Extreme
Nov	12	Extreme
Dec	12	Extreme

Location & terrain

Where is Santa Cruz?

Santa Cruz sits at 6.2°S, 36.0°W, 230 m above sea level, in Brazil. The nearest listed city is Cuité, 32 km away.

Topography around Santa Cruz

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Santa Cruz has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 97 m around an average of 240 m above sea level; within 16 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 389 m; within 80 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 734 m.

The land around Santa Cruz is covered by grassland (57%) and shrubs (25%) within 3 km, shrubs (67%) and grassland (30%) within 16 km, and shrubs (62%) and grassland (35%) within 80 km.

3 km

97 m

grassland 57%

16 km

389 m

shrubs 67%

80 km

734 m

shrubs 62%

treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater

← December Santa Cruz year-round climate February →Best places to visit in January

January weather nearby: Cuité 32 km · São Paulo do Potengi 47 km · Picuí 48 km · Araruna 48 km · Lagoa Nova 52 km · Cacimba de Dentro 53 km · Currais Novos 55 km · Santo Antônio 61 km

Brazil travel facts

Travel advisory: Level 2; Exercise Increased Caution
Power plugs: Type C / N; 127 / 220 V · 60 Hz
Prices: ≈ 46% of US; price level, 2025
GDP per capita: $10,713; 2025
Happiness: 6.6 / 10; World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water: 89%; of population, 2024
Homicide rate: 19.3; per 100k, 2023
Road deaths: 16; per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group: Upper middle; World Bank
English: Low; EF EPI 482
Religion

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 Santa Cruz (-6.2294°, -36.0228°, elevation 230 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. Topography is sampled from the Copernicus DEM GLO-90 elevation model (© ESA/Airbus) and ESA WorldCover 2021 land cover (CC BY 4.0).

	Avg high (°C)	Avg low (°C)
1	32	23
2	32	23
3	32	23
4	32	23
5	32	23
6	32	23
7	32	23
8	32	23
9	32	23
10	32	23
11	32	23
12	32	23
13	32	23
14	32	23
15	32	23
16	32	23
17	32	23
18	32	23
19	32	23
20	32	23
21	32	23
22	32	23
23	32	23
24	32	23
25	32	23
26	32	23
27	32	23
28	32	23
29	32	23
30	32	23
31	32	23

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	60	40
2	59	41
3	58	42
4	57	43
5	56	44
6	56	44
7	55	45
8	54	46
9	53	47
10	52	48
11	51	49
12	50	50
13	50	50
14	48	52
15	47	53
16	47	53
17	49	51
18	49	51
19	49	51
20	49	51
21	49	51
22	50	50
23	51	49
24	51	49
25	51	49
26	52	48
27	52	48
28	52	48
29	53	47
30	54	46
31	54	46

	Rain chance (%)
1	17
2	18
3	18
4	18
5	19
6	19
7	19
8	20
9	21
10	21
11	22
12	24
13	25
14	26
15	27
16	28
17	29
18	30
19	30
20	31
21	31
22	32
23	32
24	32
25	32
26	31
27	31
28	30
29	30
30	29
31	28

	Humid (%)	Muggy (%)	Oppressive (%)
1	3	78	19
2	3	78	19
3	3	78	19
4	3	78	19
5	3	78	19
6	2	78	20
7	2	78	20
8	2	78	20
9	2	77	21
10	2	76	22
11	2	75	23
12	2	73	25
13	2	72	26
14	2	70	28
15	2	69	29
16	2	67	31
17	1	66	33
18	1	65	34
19	1	64	35
20	1	62	37
21	1	61	38
22	1	60	39
23	1	60	39
24	1	59	40
25	1	59	40
26	1	58	41
27	1	59	40
28	1	59	40
29	1	59	40
30	1	60	39
31	1	61	38

	Avg high (°C)	Avg low (°C)
1	32	23
2	32	23
3	32	23
4	32	23
5	32	23
6	32	23
7	32	23
8	32	23
9	32	23
10	32	23
11	32	23
12	32	23
13	32	23
14	32	23
15	32	23
16	32	23
17	32	23
18	32	23
19	32	23
20	32	23
21	32	23
22	32	23
23	32	23
24	32	23
25	32	23
26	32	23
27	32	23
28	32	23
29	32	23
30	32	23
31	32	23

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	60	40
2	59	41
3	58	42
4	57	43
5	56	44
6	56	44
7	55	45
8	54	46
9	53	47
10	52	48
11	51	49
12	50	50
13	50	50
14	48	52
15	47	53
16	47	53
17	49	51
18	49	51
19	49	51
20	49	51
21	49	51
22	50	50
23	51	49
24	51	49
25	51	49
26	52	48
27	52	48
28	52	48
29	53	47
30	54	46
31	54	46

	Rain chance (%)
1	17
2	18
3	18
4	18
5	19
6	19
7	19
8	20
9	21
10	21
11	22
12	24
13	25
14	26
15	27
16	28
17	29
18	30
19	30
20	31
21	31
22	32
23	32
24	32
25	32
26	31
27	31
28	30
29	30
30	29
31	28

	Humid (%)	Muggy (%)	Oppressive (%)
1	3	78	19
2	3	78	19
3	3	78	19
4	3	78	19
5	3	78	19
6	2	78	20
7	2	78	20
8	2	78	20
9	2	77	21
10	2	76	22
11	2	75	23
12	2	73	25
13	2	72	26
14	2	70	28
15	2	69	29
16	2	67	31
17	1	66	33
18	1	65	34
19	1	64	35
20	1	62	37
21	1	61	38
22	1	60	39
23	1	60	39
24	1	59	40
25	1	59	40
26	1	58	41
27	1	59	40
28	1	59	40
29	1	59	40
30	1	60	39
31	1	61	38

	Avg high (°C)	Avg low (°C)
1	32	23
2	32	23
3	32	23
4	32	23
5	32	23
6	32	23
7	32	23
8	32	23
9	32	23
10	32	23
11	32	23
12	32	23
13	32	23
14	32	23
15	32	23
16	32	23
17	32	23
18	32	23
19	32	23
20	32	23
21	32	23
22	32	23
23	32	23
24	32	23
25	32	23
26	32	23
27	32	23
28	32	23
29	32	23
30	32	23
31	32	23

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	60	40
2	59	41
3	58	42
4	57	43
5	56	44
6	56	44
7	55	45
8	54	46
9	53	47
10	52	48
11	51	49
12	50	50
13	50	50
14	48	52
15	47	53
16	47	53
17	49	51
18	49	51
19	49	51
20	49	51
21	49	51
22	50	50
23	51	49
24	51	49
25	51	49
26	52	48
27	52	48
28	52	48
29	53	47
30	54	46
31	54	46

	Rain chance (%)
1	17
2	18
3	18
4	18
5	19
6	19
7	19
8	20
9	21
10	21
11	22
12	24
13	25
14	26
15	27
16	28
17	29
18	30
19	30
20	31
21	31
22	32
23	32
24	32
25	32
26	31
27	31
28	30
29	30
30	29
31	28

	Humid (%)	Muggy (%)	Oppressive (%)
1	3	78	19
2	3	78	19
3	3	78	19
4	3	78	19
5	3	78	19
6	2	78	20
7	2	78	20
8	2	78	20
9	2	77	21
10	2	76	22
11	2	75	23
12	2	73	25
13	2	72	26
14	2	70	28
15	2	69	29
16	2	67	31
17	1	66	33
18	1	65	34
19	1	64	35
20	1	62	37
21	1	61	38
22	1	60	39
23	1	60	39
24	1	59	40
25	1	59	40
26	1	58	41
27	1	59	40
28	1	59	40
29	1	59	40
30	1	60	39
31	1	61	38