Besançon weather in January

In January, Besançon sees average daytime highs of 6°C and overnight lows near 1°C, with 108 mm of precipitation across 13.6 wet days and about 8.7 hours of daylight. It is the 12th-warmest and 4th-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 6°C through the month. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 22% of the time in January, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 8 h 18 min at the start of January to 9 h 12 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, January is Besançon's 10th-clearest and 2nd-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Besançon's year-round climate.

Daytime high
12th warmest
Overnight low
1st coldest
Precipitation
108 mm
13.6 wet days
Daylight
8 h 42 min
8:25 AM – 5:05 PM
Cloud cover
68%
10th clearest
Wind
12 km/h
2nd windiest
Solar energy
1.17 kWh/m²
Travel score
0.3
out of 10

Besançon is commune in Doubs, France.

Air quality
Good
PM2.5 9.2 µg/m³ · 2019
Density
1,974/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 6°C through the month.

A typical January day in Besançon reaches about 6°C in the afternoon and slips back to 1°C overnight — a 5°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 0°C and 12°C. Set against its neighbours, January runs on par with December and about 1°C cooler than February.

-10°-5°10°15°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
161
261
361
461
561
661
761
861
961
1061
1161
1261
1361
1461
1561
1661
1761
1861
1961
2060
2160
2260
2360
2460
2560
2660
2760
2860
2960
3060
3160

How January really feels in Besançon

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.

Besançon weather by month

How January compares with the rest of the year at a glance. January is the 12th-warmest and 4th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan / 10813.63.98.70.3
Feb / 9512.44.29.90.9
Mar12° / 9512.9211.62.9
Apr16° / 8812.80.513.34.4
May19° / 10°11014.2014.85.5
Jun23° / 13°8512.6015.66.4
Jul26° / 15°7611.9015.36.6
Aug25° / 15°7910.60146.8
Sep21° / 12°9311.2012.46.2
Oct16° / 10512.40.110.64.5
Nov10° / 11513.71.89.11.9
Dec / 12415.23.88.30.5

Cloud cover in January

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 22% 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 68%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
12971
22971
32872
42872
52971
63070
73070
83169
93169
103169
113268
123268
133268
143367
153367
163466
173367
183367
193367
203466
213367
223367
233367
243367
253268
263268
273268
283367
293367
303268
313367

Chance of precipitation in January

Any precipitationSnow

Besançon gets around 108 mm of rain and snow over 13.6 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 44% and peaks near 47% on the wettest days, and about 4 days bring snow.

0%20%40%60%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
14713
24712
34712
44712
54711
64611
74611
84611
94511
104511
114511
124511
134512
144512
154412
164412
174413
184413
194413
204313
214313
224314
234314
244314
254314
264314
274315
284315
294315
304315
314316

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 12 km/h in January.

Across January, daily wind ranges from about 12 km/h on the calmest days to 12 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

051015151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
112light breeze
212light breeze
312light breeze
412light breeze
512light breeze
612light breeze
712light breeze
812light breeze
912light breeze
1012light breeze
1112calm
1212calm
1312calm
1412calm
1512calm
1612calm
1712calm
1812calm
1912calm
2012calm
2112calm
2212calm
2312calm
2412calm
2512calm
2612calm
2712calm
2812calm
2912calm
3012calm
3112calm

Sunrise & sunset in January

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 8 h 18 min at the start of January to 9 h 12 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 8:29 AM to 8:12 AM, and sunset from 4:49 PM to 5:26 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
18.38:294:49
28.48:294:50
38.48:294:51
48.48:294:52
58.48:294:53
68.48:294:54
78.48:294:55
88.58:284:56
98.58:284:57
108.58:284:58
118.58:274:59
128.68:275:00
138.68:275:02
148.68:265:03
158.68:265:04
168.78:255:05
178.78:245:07
188.78:245:08
198.88:235:09
208.88:225:11
218.88:225:12
228.98:215:13
238.98:205:15
249.08:195:16
259.08:185:18
269.08:175:19
279.18:165:21
289.18:155:22
299.28:145:23
309.28:135:25
319.28:125:26

Solar energy in January

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in January, about 1.17 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 0.96 kWh/m² to a high of 5.88 kWh/m² in June across the year — January's 1.17 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

00.511.522.5151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
11.0Dim
21.0Dim
31.0Dim
41.0Dim
51.0Dim
61.0Dim
71.0Dim
81.0Dim
91.1Dim
101.1Dim
111.1Dim
121.1Dim
131.1Dim
141.1Dim
151.1Dim
161.2Dim
171.2Dim
181.2Dim
191.2Dim
201.3Dim
211.3Dim
221.3Dim
231.3Dim
241.3Dim
251.4Dim
261.4Dim
271.4Dim
281.4Dim
291.5Dim
301.5Dim
311.5Dim
Planning a trip in January

Is January a good time to visit Besançon?

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

0.3
Sightseeing
12th-best month of the year
0.0
Beach & pool
10th-best month of the year

January is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Besançon.

What to pack for Besançon in January

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

In January, Besançon sees daytime highs around 6°C and nights near 1°C. Pack a warm layer. Worth having: a heavy coat and rain gear. About 14 days see rain.

a warm layera heavy coatrain gear

UV index in Besançon 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 Besançon peaks around July 14 at about 8 (very high) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near January 1 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 14UV 8Jan 1UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan1Low
Feb2Low
Mar4Moderate
Apr5High
May6High
Jun7Very high
Jul8Very high
Aug6High
Sep4Moderate
Oct3Moderate
Nov2Low
Dec1Low
Location & terrain

Where is Besançon?

Besançon sits at 47.2°N, 6.0°E, 300 m above sea level, in France. The nearest listed city is Vesoul, 43 km away.

Topography around Besançon

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Besançon has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 222 m around an average of 310 m above sea level; within 16 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 477 m; within 80 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,488 m.

The land around Besançon is covered by trees (46%) and artificial surfaces (42%) within 3 km, trees (57%) and grassland (23%) within 16 km, and trees (49%), grassland (28%) and cropland (20%) within 80 km.

3 km
222 m
16 km
477 m
80 km
1,488 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaceswater
January weather nearby: Vesoul 43 km · Dole 44 km · Pontarlier 46 km · La Chaux-de-Fonds 63 km · Montbéliard 65 km · Audincourt 68 km · Yverdon-les-Bains 70 km · Lons-le-Saunier 73 km

France travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 2
Exercise Increased Caution
Power plugs
Type C / E
230 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 77% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$48,986
2025
Happiness
6.6 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
100%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
1.3
per 100k, 2023
Road deaths
5.1
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
High
World Bank
English
Moderate
EF EPI 539
Religion
Roman Catholic 47%none 33%Muslim 4%Protestant 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 Besançon (47.2488°, 6.0182°, elevation 300 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).