Otepää weather in January

In January, Otepää sees average daytime highs of -3°C and overnight lows near -7°C, with 45 mm of precipitation across 11.3 wet days and about 6.9 hours of daylight. It is the 12th-warmest and 9th-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near -3°C through the month. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 7% of the time in January, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 6 h 12 min at the start of January to 7 h 48 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, January is Otepää's 11th-clearest and 2nd-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Otepää's year-round climate.

Daytime high
-3°
12th warmest
Overnight low
-7°
2nd coldest
Precipitation
45 mm
11.3 wet days
Daylight
6 h 48 min
8:58 AM – 3:48 PM
Cloud cover
86%
11th clearest
Wind
15 km/h
2nd windiest
Solar energy
0.37 kWh/m²
Travel score
0.0
out of 10

Otepää is town in Estonia.

Density
348/km²
people per km²

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 -3°C through the month.

A typical January day in Otepää reaches about -3°C in the afternoon and slips back to -7°C overnight — a 4°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between -11°C and 3°C. Set against its neighbours, January runs about 2°C cooler than December and on par with February.

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

How January really feels in Otepää

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
31 feel bitter (≤ -10°C)

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

Otepää weather by month

How January compares with the rest of the year at a glance. January is the 12th-warmest and 9th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan-3° / -7°4511.3106.90.0
Feb-2° / -8°409.58.68.90.0
Mar / -4°4010.1711.40.0
Apr10° / 42102142.3
May16° / 6010.90.216.44.9
Jun20° / 11°8813.3017.75.6
Jul22° / 13°7613017.26.1
Aug21° / 12°8313.1015.15.9
Sep16° / 5510.8012.54.5
Oct / 6612.31.19.91.6
Nov / -1°5511.44.97.60.0
Dec-1° / -4°4711.68.76.30.0

Cloud cover in January

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 7% of the time in January.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 6% of January, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 87%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
11288
21288
31387
41387
51387
61288
71189
81387
91387
101387
111387
121387
131387
141387
151387
161387
171387
181288
191288
201288
211288
221288
231387
241387
251387
261387
271387
281387
291585
301585
311585

Chance of precipitation in January

Any precipitationSnow

Otepää gets around 45 mm of rain and snow over 11.3 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 36% and peaks near 41% on the wettest days, and about 10 days bring snow. The odds ease toward the end of the month.

0%10%20%30%40%50%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
14133
24133
34133
44133
54033
64033
74033
83933
93933
103833
113833
123733
133632
143532
153532
163431
173431
183331
193331
203331
213331
223331
233331
243332
253432
263432
273433
283533
293533
303534
313534

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 15 km/h in January.

Across January, daily wind ranges from about 15 km/h on the calmest days to 16 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

05101520151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
116light breeze
216light breeze
316light breeze
416light breeze
516light breeze
616light breeze
716light breeze
816light breeze
916light breeze
1016light breeze
1116light breeze
1216light breeze
1316light breeze
1416light breeze
1516light breeze
1616light breeze
1716light breeze
1816light breeze
1915light breeze
2015light breeze
2115light breeze
2215light breeze
2315light breeze
2415light breeze
2515light breeze
2615light breeze
2715light breeze
2815light breeze
2915light breeze
3015light breeze
3115light breeze

Sunrise & sunset in January

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 6 h 12 min at the start of January to 7 h 48 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 96 minutes over January. Sunrise moves from 9:10 AM to 8:34 AM, and sunset from 3:25 PM to 4:21 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
16.29:103:25
26.39:093:26
36.39:093:27
46.39:093:28
56.49:083:30
66.49:083:31
76.49:073:33
86.59:063:34
96.59:053:36
106.59:053:38
116.69:043:39
126.69:033:41
136.79:023:43
146.79:013:45
156.88:593:47
166.88:583:48
176.98:573:50
186.98:563:52
197.08:543:54
207.18:533:57
217.18:513:59
227.28:504:01
237.28:484:03
247.38:464:05
257.48:454:07
267.48:434:09
277.58:414:12
287.68:404:14
297.68:384:16
307.78:364:19
317.88:344:21

Solar energy in January

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in January, about 0.37 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 0.23 kWh/m² to a high of 5.44 kWh/m² in June across the year — January's 0.37 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

00.511.52151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
10.3Dim
20.3Dim
30.3Dim
40.3Dim
50.3Dim
60.3Dim
70.3Dim
80.3Dim
90.3Dim
100.3Dim
110.3Dim
120.3Dim
130.3Dim
140.3Dim
150.3Dim
160.4Dim
170.4Dim
180.4Dim
190.4Dim
200.4Dim
210.4Dim
220.4Dim
230.5Dim
240.5Dim
250.5Dim
260.5Dim
270.5Dim
280.6Dim
290.6Dim
300.6Dim
310.6Dim
Planning a trip in January

Is January a good time to visit Otepää?

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
8th-best month of the year

January is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Otepää.

What to pack for Otepää in January

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

In January, Otepää sees daytime highs around -3°C and nights near -7°C. Pack a warm layer and a heavy coat. Worth having: rain gear. About 11 days see rain.

a warm layera heavy coatrain gear

UV index in Otepää in January

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in January peaks around 0. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Otepää peaks around June 21 at about 6 (high) — a little sun protection helps at midday. It bottoms out near December 17 at about 0 (low).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 5 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLowModerateHighModerateLowJun 21UV 6Dec 17UV 0
UV index (midday)Level
Jan0Low
Feb1Low
Mar2Low
Apr3Moderate
May4Moderate
Jun6High
Jul5High
Aug5Moderate
Sep3Moderate
Oct1Low
Nov0Low
Dec0Low
Location & terrain

Where is Otepää?

Otepää sits at 58.1°N, 26.5°E, 0 m above sea level, in Estonia. The nearest listed city is Tartu, 38 km away.

TartuValgaViljandiValmieraPskovPärnu

Topography around Otepää

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Otepää has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 108 m around an average of 135 m above sea level; within 16 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 176 m; within 80 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 309 m.

The land around Otepää is covered by trees (55%) and grassland (31%) within 3 km, trees (63%) and grassland (21%) within 16 km, and trees (60%) within 80 km.

3 km
108 m
16 km
176 m
80 km
309 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaceswaterwetland
January weather nearby: Tartu 38 km · Valga 41 km · Viljandi 63 km · Valmiera 86 km · Cēsis 110 km · Pskov 112 km · Pärnu 123 km · Madona 135 km

Estonia travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 1
Exercise Normal Precautions
Power plugs
Type C / F
230 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 66% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$34,418
2025
Happiness
6.4 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
99%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
1.5
per 100k, 2023
Road deaths
4.5
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
High
World Bank
English
High
EF EPI 561
Religion
none 58%Orthodox 17%Protestant 9%other 3%

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 Otepää (58.0583°, 26.4967°, 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).