Riobamba weather in January

In January, Riobamba sees average daytime highs of 14°C and overnight lows near 4°C, with 134 mm of precipitation across 21.7 wet days and about 12.1 hours of daylight. It is the 3rd-warmest and 6th-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 14°C through the month. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 2% of the time in January, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 12 h 06 min at the start of January to 12 h 06 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, January is Riobamba's 5th-clearest and 8th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Riobamba's year-round climate.

Daytime high
14°
3rd warmest
Overnight low
9th coldest
Precipitation
134 mm
21.7 wet days
Daylight
12 h 06 min
6:21 AM – 6:27 PM
Cloud cover
80%
5th clearest
Wind
5 km/h
8th windiest
Solar energy
5.52 kWh/m²
Travel score
2.9
out of 10

Riobamba is city in Ecuador, capital of the Chimborazo Province.

Density
6,573/km²
people per km²
Founded
1534

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 14°C through the month.

A typical January day in Riobamba reaches about 14°C in the afternoon and slips back to 4°C overnight — a 10°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 12°C and 16°C. Set against its neighbours, January runs on par with December and on par with February.

10°15°20°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
1144
2144
3144
4144
5144
6144
7144
8144
9144
10144
11144
12144
13144
14144
15144
16144
17144
18144
19144
20144
21144
22144
23144
24144
25144
26144
27144
28144
29144
30145
31145

How January really feels in Riobamba

Once humidity and wind are folded in, January averages 0 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
0
heat index over the day's high
Days feeling ≤ C
0
wind chill below the day's low

January sits comfortably in between — no days that feel dangerously hot or drop to a hard freeze once humidity and wind are folded in.

Riobamba weather by month

How January compares with the rest of the year at a glance. January is the 3rd-warmest and 6th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan14° / 13421.712.12.9
Feb14° / 15722.712.12.6
Mar14° / 20527.6122.3
Apr14° / 17726.4122.4
May14° / 11522.211.92.8
Jun13° / 7416.911.93.1
Jul13° / 4912.411.93.5
Aug14° / 298.111.94.2
Sep15° / 4912.2124.1
Oct14° / 11421.9123.0
Nov14° / 14223.512.12.6
Dec14° / 13723.312.12.8

Cloud cover in January

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 2% of the time in January.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 10% of January, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 88%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
11486
21486
31486
41486
51486
61486
71486
81486
91387
101387
111288
121288
131387
141288
151288
161288
171189
181189
191189
201189
211189
221189
231090
241090
251090
261090
271090
281090
291090
301090
311090

Chance of precipitation in January

Any precipitation

Riobamba gets around 134 mm of rain and snow over 21.7 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 71% and peaks near 72% on the wettest days, and about 0 day brings snow.

0%20%40%60%80%151015202531
Rain chance (%)
170
269
369
469
569
669
770
870
971
1071
1172
1272
1372
1472
1572
1672
1772
1872
1972
2072
2172
2271
2371
2471
2571
2671
2771
2871
2971
3072
3172

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 5 km/h in January.

Across January, daily wind ranges from about 5 km/h on the calmest days to 6 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

0246810151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
15calm
25calm
35calm
45calm
55calm
65calm
75calm
85calm
95calm
105calm
115calm
125calm
135calm
145calm
155calm
165calm
175calm
185calm
195calm
205calm
215calm
225calm
236calm
246calm
256calm
266calm
276calm
286calm
296calm
306calm
316calm

Sunrise & sunset in January

DaylightNight

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

Days grow by about 0 minutes over January. Sunrise moves from 6:15 AM to 6:26 AM, and sunset from 6:21 PM to 6:30 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
112.16:156:21
212.16:156:21
312.16:166:22
412.16:166:22
512.16:176:22
612.16:176:23
712.16:186:23
812.16:186:24
912.16:196:24
1012.16:196:24
1112.16:196:25
1212.16:206:25
1312.16:206:25
1412.16:216:26
1512.16:216:26
1612.16:216:27
1712.16:226:27
1812.16:226:27
1912.16:226:27
2012.16:236:28
2112.16:236:28
2212.16:236:28
2312.16:246:29
2412.16:246:29
2512.16:246:29
2612.16:256:29
2712.16:256:29
2812.16:256:30
2912.16:256:30
3012.16:266:30
3112.16:266:30

Solar energy in January

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in January, about 5.52 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 5.06 kWh/m² to a high of 6.16 kWh/m² in September across the year — January's 5.52 kWh/m² falls in the middle.

0246151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
15.5Bright
25.5Bright
35.5Bright
45.5Bright
55.5Bright
65.5Bright
75.5Bright
85.5Bright
95.5Bright
105.5Bright
115.5Bright
125.5Bright
135.5Bright
145.5Bright
155.5Bright
165.5Bright
175.5Bright
185.5Bright
195.5Bright
205.5Bright
215.5Bright
225.5Bright
235.5Bright
245.6Bright
255.6Bright
265.6Bright
275.6Bright
285.6Bright
295.6Bright
305.6Bright
315.6Bright
Planning a trip in January

Is January a good time to visit Riobamba?

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

2.9
Sightseeing
6th-best month of the year
Beach & pool
never really warm enough

January is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Riobamba.

What to pack for Riobamba in January

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

In January, Riobamba sees daytime highs around 14°C and nights near 4°C. Pack rain gear. Worth having: a warm layer and sun protection. About 22 days see rain.

rain geara warm layersun protection

UV index in Riobamba in January

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in January peaks around 18 (very high — sun protection essential). The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Riobamba peaks around February 19 at about 19 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near July 15 at about 13 (extreme).

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

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecExtremeFeb 19UV 19Jul 15UV 13
UV index (midday)Level
Jan18Extreme
Feb19Extreme
Mar19Extreme
Apr16Extreme
May15Extreme
Jun13Extreme
Jul13Extreme
Aug14Extreme
Sep15Extreme
Oct16Extreme
Nov14Extreme
Dec14Extreme

Air quality in Riobamba 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 Riobamba is worst in September — around 21 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 1.7× the cleanest month (July, 13 µg/m³).

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

0102030JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModerateSep 1921 µg/m³Jul 1113 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan19Moderate
Feb21Moderate
Mar21Moderate
Apr19Moderate
May16Moderate
Jun13Moderate
Jul13Moderate
Aug17Moderate
Sep21Moderate
Oct20Moderate
Nov21Moderate
Dec18Moderate
Location & terrain

Where is Riobamba?

Riobamba sits at 1.7°S, 78.7°W, 2,777 m above sea level, in Ecuador. The nearest listed city is Guamote, 31 km away.

Topography around Riobamba

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Riobamba has significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 288 m around an average of 2,786 m above sea level; within 16 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,033 m; within 80 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 6,236 m.

The land around Riobamba is covered by artificial surfaces (62%) and cropland (23%) within 3 km, cropland (56%) within 16 km, and trees (48%) and grassland (32%) within 80 km.

3 km
288 m
16 km
2,033 m
80 km
6,236 m
treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrain
January weather nearby: Guamote 31 km · Guaranda 39 km · Pelileo 39 km · Banos 40 km · Ambato 46 km · Montalvo 71 km · Puyo 75 km · Pujilí 79 km

Ecuador travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 2
Exercise Increased Caution
Power plugs
Type A / B
120 V · 60 Hz
Prices
≈ 43% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$7,125
2025
Happiness
6.1 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
70%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
45.7
per 100k, 2023
Road deaths
20.1
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
Upper middle
World Bank
English
Low
EF EPI 466
Religion
Roman Catholic 68%Protestant 19%none 8%other 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 Riobamba (-1.6651°, -78.6589°, elevation 2,777 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).