Niagara-on-the-Lake weather in January

In January, Niagara-on-the-Lake sees average daytime highs of 0°C and overnight lows near -5°C, with 77 mm of precipitation across 13.2 wet days and about 9.2 hours of daylight. It is the 11th-warmest and 10th-wettest month of the year here.

Highs ease over the month, from about 1°C in the first days to -1°C by the end. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 5% of the time in January, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 8 h 48 min at the start of January to 9 h 36 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, January is Niagara-on-the-Lake's 12th-clearest and 1st-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Niagara-on-the-Lake's year-round climate.

Daytime high
11th warmest
Overnight low
-5°
2nd coldest
Precipitation
77 mm
13.2 wet days
Daylight
9 h 06 min
7:52 AM – 5:00 PM
Cloud cover
84%
12th clearest
Wind
22 km/h
1st windiest
Solar energy
1.59 kWh/m²
Travel score
0.0
out of 10

Niagara-on-the-Lake is town in Niagara Region, Ontario, Canada.

Density
132/km²
people per km²
Founded
1781

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

Temperature in January

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Highs ease over the month, from about 1°C in the first days to -1°C by the end.

A typical January day in Niagara-on-the-Lake reaches about 0°C in the afternoon and slips back to -5°C overnight — a 5°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between -7°C and 6°C. Set against its neighbours, January runs about 3°C cooler than December and on par with February.

-15°-10°-5°10°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
11-3
21-3
31-3
41-4
51-4
61-4
71-4
81-4
91-4
100-4
110-5
120-5
130-5
140-5
150-5
160-5
170-5
180-6
190-6
20-1-6
21-1-6
22-1-6
23-1-6
24-1-6
25-1-6
26-1-6
27-1-6
28-1-6
29-1-6
30-1-6
31-1-6

How January really feels in Niagara-on-the-Lake

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
28 feel bitter (≤ -10°C)

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

Niagara-on-the-Lake weather by month

How January compares with the rest of the year at a glance. January is the 11th-warmest and 10th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan / -5°7713.211.39.20.0
Feb-0° / -6°609.87.810.20.0
Mar / -2°7310.54.911.60.0
Apr / 9611.61.713.21.6
May14° / 8211.5014.54.2
Jun21° / 16°9210.9015.16.3
Jul24° / 20°9210.5014.97.0
Aug24° / 19°7910.2013.87.1
Sep21° / 16°8910012.36.5
Oct14° / 10°9412.70.110.84.0
Nov / 8412.22.69.51.3
Dec / -1°8113.28.48.90.0

Cloud cover in January

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 5% of the time in January, the cloudiest month of the year.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 7% of January, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 88%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
11288
21288
31189
41189
51090
61090
71090
81090
91090
101090
111090
121090
131189
141189
151090
161090
171090
181090
191288
201288
211288
221288
231288
241387
251387
261387
271585
281585
291585
301684
311684

Chance of precipitation in January

Any precipitationSnow

Niagara-on-the-Lake gets around 77 mm of rain and snow over 13.2 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 42% and peaks near 48% on the wettest days, and about 11 days bring snow. The odds ease toward the end of the month.

0%20%40%60%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
14633
24633
34733
44734
54734
64735
74836
84836
94837
104737
114738
124638
134538
144438
154338
164338
174237
184137
194037
203937
213937
223836
233836
243736
253735
263635
273634
283633
293633
303532
313532

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 22 km/h in January, the windiest month of the year.

Across January, daily wind ranges from about 20 km/h on the calmest days to 22 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

0510152025151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
122breezy
222breezy
322breezy
422breezy
522breezy
622breezy
722breezy
822breezy
922breezy
1022breezy
1122breezy
1222breezy
1322breezy
1422breezy
1522breezy
1622breezy
1721breezy
1821breezy
1921breezy
2021breezy
2121breezy
2221breezy
2321breezy
2421breezy
2521breezy
2621breezy
2721breezy
2821breezy
2920breezy
3020breezy
3120breezy

Sunrise & sunset in January

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 8 h 48 min at the start of January to 9 h 36 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 48 minutes over January. Sunrise moves from 7:54 AM to 7:41 AM, and sunset from 4:45 PM to 5:18 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
18.87:544:45
28.97:544:46
38.97:544:47
48.97:544:47
58.97:544:48
68.97:544:49
78.97:544:50
89.07:544:51
99.07:544:52
109.07:544:53
119.07:534:54
129.07:534:55
139.17:534:56
149.17:534:57
159.17:524:58
169.17:525:00
179.27:515:01
189.27:515:02
199.27:505:03
209.27:505:04
219.37:495:05
229.37:485:07
239.37:485:08
249.47:475:09
259.47:465:10
269.47:465:12
279.57:455:13
289.57:445:14
299.57:435:15
309.67:425:17
319.67:415:18

Solar energy in January

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in January, about 1.59 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 1.28 kWh/m² to a high of 6.35 kWh/m² in June across the year — January's 1.59 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

0123151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
11.3Dim
21.3Dim
31.3Dim
41.3Dim
51.4Dim
61.4Dim
71.4Dim
81.4Dim
91.4Dim
101.4Dim
111.5Dim
121.5Dim
131.5Dim
141.5Dim
151.6Dim
161.6Dim
171.6Dim
181.6Dim
191.7Dim
201.7Dim
211.7Dim
221.8Dim
231.8Dim
241.8Dim
251.8Dim
261.9Dim
271.9Dim
281.9Dim
292.0Dim
302.0Moderate
312.0Moderate
Planning a trip in January

Is January a good time to visit Niagara-on-the-Lake?

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

0.0
Sightseeing
9th-best month of the year
0.0
Beach & pool
7th-best month of the year

January is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Niagara-on-the-Lake.

What to pack for Niagara-on-the-Lake in January

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

In January, Niagara-on-the-Lake sees daytime highs around 0°C and nights near -5°C. Pack a warm layer and a heavy coat. Worth having: rain gear and a windbreaker. About 13 days see rain.

a warm layera heavy coatrain geara windbreaker

Sea temperature near Niagara-on-the-Lake in January

The nearest coast averages about 4°C in January — the other half of the beach question. The full-year curve and swim-comfort zones are below.

The sea at the nearest coast (about 14 km away) is warmest in August at about 22°C and coldest in February near 3°C.

It's comfortable for a long swim from Jul 17 to Sep 6 — about 1.7 months when the water holds above 20°C.

0°10°20°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbracingcoolrefreshingwarmcomfortable to swim
Sea temperature (°C)Comfort
Jan4Bracing
Feb3Bracing
Mar3Bracing
Apr4Bracing
May7Bracing
Jun15Bracing
Jul20Refreshing
Aug22Refreshing
Sep19Cool
Oct13Bracing
Nov8Bracing
Dec5Bracing

UV index in Niagara-on-the-Lake 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 Niagara-on-the-Lake peaks around June 19 at about 8 (very high) — sunscreen and a hat are worth it in the middle of the day. It bottoms out near December 21 at about 1 (low).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 8 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLowModerateHighVery highHighModerateLowJun 19UV 8Dec 21UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan1Low
Feb2Moderate
Mar4Moderate
Apr5High
May6High
Jun8Very high
Jul7Very high
Aug6High
Sep5High
Oct3Moderate
Nov2Low
Dec1Low

Air quality in Niagara-on-the-Lake 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 Niagara-on-the-Lake is worst in May — around 21 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 2.2× the cleanest month (November, 10 µg/m³).

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

0102030JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecGoodModerateGoodMay 2021 µg/m³Nov 2310 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan11Good
Feb14Moderate
Mar17Moderate
Apr18Moderate
May21Moderate
Jun20Moderate
Jul20Moderate
Aug17Moderate
Sep16Moderate
Oct11Good
Nov10Good
Dec10Good
Location & terrain

Where is Niagara-on-the-Lake?

Niagara-on-the-Lake sits at 43.3°N, 79.1°W, 85 m above sea level, in Canada. The nearest listed city is St. Catharines, 16 km away.

Topography around Niagara-on-the-Lake

How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Niagara-on-the-Lake.

Within 3 km, the terrain around Niagara-on-the-Lake has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 40 m around an average of 82 m above sea level; within 16 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 146 m; within 80 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 540 m.

The land around Niagara-on-the-Lake is covered by water (47%) within 3 km, water (52%) within 16 km, and water (42%) and trees (24%) within 80 km.

3 km
40 m
16 km
146 m
80 km
540 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaceswater
January weather nearby: St. Catharines 16 km · Niagara Falls 17 km · Thorold 18 km · Niagara Falls 18 km · Grand Island 27 km · North Tonawanda 30 km · Welland 33 km · Lockport 33 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 Niagara-on-the-Lake (43.2565°, -79.0853°, elevation 85 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).