Whistler weather in January

In January, Whistler sees average daytime highs of -3°C and overnight lows near -8°C, with 350 mm of precipitation across 19.2 wet days and about 8.3 hours of daylight. It is the 11th-warmest and 2nd-wettest month of the year here.

Highs climb over the month, from about -4°C in the first days to -2°C by the end. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 14% of the time in January, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 7 h 54 min at the start of January to 8 h 54 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, January is Whistler's 10th-clearest and 4th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Whistler's year-round climate.

Daytime high
-3°
11th warmest
Overnight low
-8°
2nd coldest
Precipitation
350 mm
19.2 wet days
Daylight
8 h 18 min
8:12 AM – 4:30 PM
Cloud cover
79%
10th clearest
Wind
4 km/h
4th windiest
Solar energy
1.03 kWh/m²
Travel score
0.0
out of 10

Whistler is town in British Columbia, Canada.

Air quality
Excellent
PM2.5 5 µg/m³ · 2019
Density
36/km²
people per km²
Founded
1914

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

Temperature in January

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Highs climb over the month, from about -4°C in the first days to -2°C by the end.

A typical January day in Whistler reaches about -3°C in the afternoon and slips back to -8°C overnight — a 5°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between -9°C and 2°C. Set against its neighbours, January runs about 1°C warmer than December and about 2°C cooler than February.

-20°-15°-10°-5°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
1-4-8
2-4-8
3-4-8
4-4-8
5-4-8
6-4-8
7-4-8
8-3-8
9-3-8
10-3-8
11-3-8
12-3-8
13-3-7
14-3-7
15-3-7
16-3-7
17-3-7
18-3-7
19-3-7
20-3-7
21-2-7
22-2-7
23-2-7
24-2-7
25-2-7
26-2-7
27-2-7
28-2-7
29-2-7
30-2-7
31-2-7

How January really feels in Whistler

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.

Whistler 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-3° / -8°35019.219.88.30.0
Feb-1° / -7°21515.315.99.70.0
Mar / -5°29119.919.911.50.0
Apr / -3°16916.415.413.50.1
May / 12515.87.515.21.6
Jun13° / 12216.92.116.13.0
Jul17° / 8010.80.115.75.6
Aug18° / 8510.30.114.35.7
Sep13° / 13511.81.912.43.6
Oct / -1°27317.312.310.50.5
Nov-1° / -6°39119.818.98.80.0
Dec-4° / -8°34219.119.77.90.0

Cloud cover in January

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 14% of the time in January.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 7% of January, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 79%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
12278
22179
32179
42179
52179
62179
72179
82179
92080
102080
112080
122080
132080
142080
152080
162080
172179
182179
192080
202080
212080
222080
232080
242080
252080
262080
272080
282179
292278
302278
312278

Chance of precipitation in January

Any precipitationSnow

Whistler gets around 350 mm of rain and snow over 19.2 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 61% and peaks near 65% on the wettest days, and about 20 days bring snow. The odds ease toward the end of the month.

0%20%40%60%80%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
16466
26567
36567
46567
56567
66567
76467
86467
96466
106466
116366
126365
136365
146264
156263
166163
176062
186061
195961
205961
215961
225961
235961
245961
256061
265961
275961
285961
295961
305961
315860

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 4 km/h in January.

Across January, daily wind ranges from about 4 km/h on the calmest days to 4 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

0246810151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
14calm
24calm
34calm
44calm
54calm
64calm
74calm
84calm
94calm
104calm
114calm
124calm
134calm
144calm
154calm
164calm
174calm
184calm
194calm
204calm
214calm
224calm
234calm
244calm
254calm
264calm
274calm
284calm
294calm
304calm
314calm

Sunrise & sunset in January

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 7 h 54 min at the start of January to 8 h 54 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 8:18 AM to 7:57 AM, and sunset from 4:12 PM to 4:53 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
17.98:184:12
27.98:184:13
37.98:184:14
48.08:174:15
58.08:174:16
68.08:174:17
78.08:174:18
88.08:174:20
98.18:164:21
108.18:164:22
118.18:154:23
128.28:154:24
138.28:144:26
148.28:144:27
158.38:134:28
168.38:124:30
178.38:124:31
188.48:114:33
198.48:104:34
208.48:094:36
218.58:084:37
228.58:074:39
238.68:064:40
248.68:054:42
258.68:044:43
268.78:034:45
278.78:024:47
288.88:014:48
298.88:004:50
308.97:594:51
318.97:574:53

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 0.85 kWh/m² to a high of 5.98 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
110.9Dim
121.0Dim
131.0Dim
141.0Dim
151.0Dim
161.0Dim
171.0Dim
181.1Dim
191.1Dim
201.1Dim
211.1Dim
221.1Dim
231.2Dim
241.2Dim
251.2Dim
261.3Dim
271.3Dim
281.3Dim
291.4Dim
301.4Dim
311.4Dim
Planning a trip in January

Hazard calendar for Whistler

In seasonPeak

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

Whistler'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 Whistler?

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

0.0
Sightseeing
8th-best month of the year
0.0
Beach & pool
5th-best month of the year

January is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Whistler.

What to pack for Whistler in January

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

In January, Whistler sees daytime highs around -3°C and nights near -8°C. Pack a warm layer, a heavy coat and rain gear. About 19 days see rain.

a warm layera heavy coatrain gear

UV index in Whistler 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 Whistler peaks around July 17 at about 8 (very high) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. 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.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLowModerateVery highHighModerateLowJul 17UV 8Dec 18UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan1Low
Feb1Low
Mar4Moderate
Apr5Moderate
May8Very high
Jun7High
Jul9Very high
Aug7High
Sep4Moderate
Oct3Moderate
Nov1Low
Dec1Low
Location & terrain

Where is Whistler?

Whistler sits at 50.1°N, 123.0°W, 0 m above sea level, in Canada. The nearest listed city is Squamish, 49 km away.

Topography around Whistler

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Whistler has large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 852 m around an average of 826 m above sea level; within 16 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,493 m; within 80 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,912 m.

The land around Whistler is covered by trees (79%) within 3 km, trees (70%) within 16 km, and trees (62%) within 80 km.

3 km
852 m
16 km
2,493 m
80 km
2,912 m
treesgrasslandartificial surfacesbare terrainsnow and icewatermoss and lichen
January weather nearby: Squamish 49 km · Central Lonsdale 89 km · West Vancouver 89 km · North Vancouver 90 km · Lower Lonsdale 90 km · Westwood Plateau 91 km · Hastings-Sunrise 93 km · Coquitlam 94 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 Whistler (50.1182°, -122.954°, elevation 0 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).