Esquimalt weather in January

In January, Esquimalt sees average daytime highs of 7°C and overnight lows near 3°C, with 162 mm of precipitation across 17.4 wet days and about 8.6 hours of daylight. It is the 11th-warmest and 2nd-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 7°C through the month. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 17% of the time in January, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 8 h 12 min at the start of January to 9 h 06 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, January is Esquimalt's 11th-clearest and 3rd-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Esquimalt's year-round climate.

Daytime high
11th warmest
Overnight low
1st coldest
Precipitation
162 mm
17.4 wet days
Daylight
8 h 30 min
8:07 AM – 4:39 PM
Cloud cover
74%
11th clearest
Wind
10 km/h
3rd windiest
Solar energy
1.03 kWh/m²
Travel score
0.6
out of 10

Esquimalt is municipality at the southern tip of Vancouver Island, in British Columbia, Canada.

Density
2,494/km²
people per km²
Founded
1912

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 7°C through the month.

A typical January day in Esquimalt reaches about 7°C in the afternoon and slips back to 3°C overnight — a 3°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 3°C and 10°C. Set against its neighbours, January runs on par with December and about 1°C cooler than February.

-5°10°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
163
263
363
463
563
663
763
863
963
1063
1163
1263
1363
1463
1573
1673
1773
1873
1973
2074
2174
2274
2374
2474
2574
2674
2774
2874
2974
3074
3174

Esquimalt weather by month

How January compares with the rest of the year at a glance. January is the 11th-warmest and 2nd-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan / 16217.42.28.60.6
Feb / 97131.89.91.0
Mar / 10715111.61.7
Apr12° / 6711.20.113.43.0
May15° / 428.30154.8
Jun18° / 11°275.6015.86.2
Jul20° / 13°143.1015.57.8
Aug21° / 13°223.2014.17.8
Sep18° / 12°437.1012.46.3
Oct13° / 10712.7010.63.4
Nov / 167170.791.4
Dec / 15716.72.48.20.6

Cloud cover in January

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 17% of the time in January.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 9% of January, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 74%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
12674
22674
32674
42773
52773
62773
72773
82773
92971
102872
112872
122872
132773
142773
152773
162773
172773
182773
192674
202674
212674
222575
232575
242575
252575
262476
272575
282575
292575
302674
312674

Chance of precipitation in January

Any precipitationSnow

Esquimalt gets around 162 mm of rain and snow over 17.4 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 55% and peaks near 58% on the wettest days, and about 2 days bring snow.

0%20%40%60%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
1589
2589
3589
4589
5589
6579
7579
8579
9579
10569
11569
12569
13568
14568
15558
16557
17557
18547
19546
20546
21546
22546
23555
24555
25545
26545
27545
28535
29525
30525
31515

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 10 km/h in January.

Across January, daily wind ranges from about 10 km/h on the calmest days to 11 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

051015151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
111calm
211calm
311calm
411calm
511calm
611calm
711calm
811calm
911calm
1011calm
1111calm
1211calm
1310calm
1410calm
1510calm
1610calm
1710calm
1810calm
1910calm
2010calm
2110calm
2210calm
2310calm
2410calm
2510calm
2610calm
2710calm
2810calm
2910calm
3010calm
3110calm

Sunrise & sunset in January

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 8 h 12 min at the start of January to 9 h 06 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 54 minutes over January. Sunrise moves from 8:12 AM to 7:53 AM, and sunset from 4:22 PM to 5:00 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
18.28:124:22
28.28:124:23
38.28:124:24
48.28:124:25
58.28:124:26
68.38:114:27
78.38:114:28
88.38:114:29
98.38:114:30
108.38:104:31
118.48:104:32
128.48:094:33
138.48:094:35
148.58:084:36
158.58:084:37
168.58:074:39
178.68:074:40
188.68:064:41
198.68:054:43
208.78:044:44
218.78:044:45
228.78:034:47
238.88:024:48
248.88:014:50
258.98:004:51
268.97:594:53
278.97:584:54
289.07:574:56
299.07:564:57
309.17:554:59
319.17:535:00

Solar energy in January

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in January, about 1.03 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 0.86 kWh/m² to a high of 6.7 kWh/m² in July across the year — January's 1.03 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

00.511.52151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
10.9Dim
20.9Dim
30.9Dim
40.9Dim
50.9Dim
60.9Dim
70.9Dim
80.9Dim
90.9Dim
100.9Dim
111.0Dim
121.0Dim
131.0Dim
141.0Dim
151.0Dim
161.0Dim
171.1Dim
181.1Dim
191.1Dim
201.1Dim
211.1Dim
221.1Dim
231.2Dim
241.2Dim
251.2Dim
261.2Dim
271.3Dim
281.3Dim
291.3Dim
301.4Dim
311.4Dim
Planning a trip in January

Hazard calendar for Esquimalt

In seasonPeak

In January, Esquimalt sits inside its rainy season season. The full year is below, with each hazard's peak months called out.

Esquimalt's rainy season runs October–March, when most of the year's rain falls.

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

Is January a good time to visit Esquimalt?

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

0.6
Sightseeing
11th-best month of the year
0.0
Beach & pool
8th-best month of the year

January is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Esquimalt.

What to pack for Esquimalt in January

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

In January, Esquimalt sees daytime highs around 7°C and nights near 3°C. Pack a warm layer and rain gear. Worth having: a heavy coat. About 17 days see rain.

a warm layerrain geara heavy coat

Sea temperature near Esquimalt in January

The nearest coast averages about 8°C in January — the other half of the beach question. The full-year curve and swim-comfort zones are below.

The sea offshore is warmest in August at about 12°C and coldest in January near 8°C.

The water stays below 20°C all year — cool enough that most swimmers want a wetsuit.

6°8°10°12°14°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbracing
Sea temperature (°C)Comfort
Jan8Bracing
Feb8Bracing
Mar8Bracing
Apr9Bracing
May10Bracing
Jun11Bracing
Jul12Bracing
Aug12Bracing
Sep11Bracing
Oct10Bracing
Nov9Bracing
Dec9Bracing

UV index in Esquimalt 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 Esquimalt peaks around July 18 at about 8 (very high) — sunscreen and a hat are worth it in the middle of the day. It bottoms out near December 18 at about 1 (low).

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

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLowModerateHighVery highHighModerateLowJul 18UV 8Dec 18UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan1Low
Feb1Low
Mar4Moderate
Apr5Moderate
May7High
Jun6High
Jul8Very high
Aug6High
Sep4Moderate
Oct3Moderate
Nov1Low
Dec1Low

Air quality in Esquimalt 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 Esquimalt is worst in October — around 16 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 3.7× the cleanest month (December, 4 µg/m³).

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

01020JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecGoodModerateGoodOct 1815 µg/m³Dec 225 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan6Good
Feb6Good
Mar9Good
Apr9Good
May9Good
Jun8Good
Jul8Good
Aug12Moderate
Sep10Good
Oct16Moderate
Nov12Good
Dec4Good
Location & terrain

Where is Esquimalt?

Esquimalt sits at 48.4°N, 123.4°W, 38 m above sea level, in Canada. The nearest listed city is Victoria-Downtown, 4.0 km away.

Topography around Esquimalt

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Esquimalt has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 73 m around an average of 11 m above sea level; within 16 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 640 m; within 80 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,356 m.

The land around Esquimalt is covered by water (41%), artificial surfaces (27%) and trees (25%) within 3 km, water (52%) and trees (37%) within 16 km, and trees (48%) and water (43%) within 80 km.

3 km
73 m
16 km
640 m
80 km
2,356 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater
January weather nearby: Victoria-Downtown 4.0 km · Carey 4.0 km · Victoria 4.0 km · Colwood 5.0 km · Langford 7.0 km · Oak Bay 8.0 km · Gordon Head 9.0 km · Saanich 13 km

Canada travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 1
Exercise Normal Precautions
Power plugs
Type A / B
120 V · 60 Hz
Prices
≈ 83% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$55,698
2025
Happiness
6.7 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
97%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
2
per 100k, 2023
Road deaths
5.3
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
High
World Bank
Religion
Christian 53%none 35%Muslim 5%Hindu 2%

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 Esquimalt (48.4357°, -123.4117°, elevation 38 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. Sea temperatures are the NOAA OISST v2.1 1991–2020 monthly climatology (public domain), sampled at the nearest ocean point. 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).