Carcassonne weather in January

In January, Carcassonne sees average daytime highs of 9°C and overnight lows near 3°C, with 81 mm of precipitation across 11.7 wet days and about 9.2 hours of daylight. It is the 12th-warmest and 3rd-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 9°C through the month. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 18% of the time in January, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 8 h 54 min at the start of January to 9 h 36 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, January is Carcassonne's 11th-clearest and 4th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Carcassonne's year-round climate.

Daytime high
12th warmest
Overnight low
1st coldest
Precipitation
81 mm
11.7 wet days
Daylight
9 h 06 min
8:26 AM – 5:34 PM
Cloud cover
71%
11th clearest
Wind
14 km/h
4th windiest
Solar energy
1.55 kWh/m²
Travel score
1.6
out of 10

Temperature in January

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 9°C through the month.

A typical January day in Carcassonne reaches about 9°C in the afternoon and slips back to 3°C overnight — a 6°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 4°C and 13°C. Set against its neighbours, January runs on par with December and about 1°C cooler than February.

-5°10°15°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
193
293
393
493
593
693
793
893
993
1093
1193
1293
1393
1493
1593
1693
1793
1893
1993
2093
2193
2293
2393
2493
2592
2692
2792
2892
2992
3092
3192

How January really feels in Carcassonne

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.

Carcassonne weather by month

How January compares with the rest of the year at a glance. January is the 12th-warmest and 3rd-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan / 8111.72.29.21.6
Feb10° / 6410.32.110.22.1
Mar13° / 6910.41.211.63.8
Apr16° / 8211.80.213.24.7
May20° / 11°7811.30.114.46.0
Jun24° / 14°537.6015.17.2
Jul26° / 16°377014.97.3
Aug27° / 16°417.5013.87.2
Sep23° / 13°537.7012.37.2
Oct18° / 10°679.4010.85.9
Nov13° / 8311.10.59.53.3
Dec10° / 7711.11.18.92.0

Cloud cover in January

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 18% of the time in January.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 12% of January, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 71%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
12971
22971
32971
42971
52971
62971
72971
83070
93169
103070
113070
122971
132971
142971
152971
162971
172971
182971
192971
202971
212971
222872
232872
242971
252971
262971
273070
283169
293169
303367
313367

Chance of precipitation in January

Any precipitationSnow

Carcassonne gets around 81 mm of rain and snow over 11.7 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 37% and peaks near 41% on the wettest days, and about 2 days bring snow.

0%10%20%30%40%50%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
1355
2365
3365
4355
5355
6355
7355
8355
9355
10355
11355
12355
13356
14366
15366
16376
17387
18387
19398
20398
21408
22409
23409
24419
254010
264010
274010
284010
294010
303910
313910

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 14 km/h in January.

Across January, daily wind ranges from about 14 km/h on the calmest days to 15 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

05101520151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
114light breeze
214light breeze
314light breeze
414light breeze
514light breeze
614light breeze
714light breeze
814light breeze
914light breeze
1014light breeze
1114light breeze
1214light breeze
1314light breeze
1414light breeze
1514light breeze
1614light breeze
1714light breeze
1814light 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 8 h 54 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 42 minutes over January. Sunrise moves from 8:28 AM to 8:15 AM, and sunset from 5:19 PM to 5:52 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
18.98:285:19
28.98:285:20
38.98:285:21
48.98:285:22
58.98:285:23
68.98:285:24
78.98:285:25
89.08:285:25
99.08:285:26
109.08:285:27
119.08:285:28
129.08:275:30
139.18:275:31
149.18:275:32
159.18:265:33
169.18:265:34
179.28:255:35
189.28:255:36
199.28:245:37
209.28:245:39
219.38:235:40
229.38:235:41
239.38:225:42
249.48:215:43
259.48:215:45
269.48:205:46
279.58:195:47
289.58:185:49
299.58:175:50
309.68:165:51
319.68:155:52

Solar energy in January

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in January, about 1.55 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 1.34 kWh/m² to a high of 6.31 kWh/m² in July across the year — January's 1.55 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

00.511.522.5151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
11.4Dim
21.4Dim
31.4Dim
41.4Dim
51.4Dim
61.4Dim
71.4Dim
81.4Dim
91.4Dim
101.4Dim
111.5Dim
121.5Dim
131.5Dim
141.5Dim
151.5Dim
161.5Dim
171.6Dim
181.6Dim
191.6Dim
201.6Dim
211.6Dim
221.6Dim
231.7Dim
241.7Dim
251.7Dim
261.8Dim
271.8Dim
281.8Dim
291.9Dim
301.9Dim
311.9Dim
Planning a trip in January

Is January a good time to visit Carcassonne?

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

1.6
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 Carcassonne.

What to pack for Carcassonne in January

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

In January, Carcassonne sees daytime highs around 9°C and nights near 3°C. Pack a warm layer. Worth having: rain gear. About 12 days see rain.

a warm layerrain gear

Sea temperature near Carcassonne in January

The nearest coast averages about 12°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 64 km away) is warmest in August at about 22°C and coldest in February near 12°C.

It's comfortable for a long swim from Jun 30 to Sep 19 — about 2.7 months when the water holds above 20°C.

10°15°20°25°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbracingcoolrefreshingwarmcomfortable to swim
Sea temperature (°C)Comfort
Jan12Bracing
Feb12Bracing
Mar12Bracing
Apr14Bracing
May16Cool
Jun19Cool
Jul21Refreshing
Aug22Refreshing
Sep20Refreshing
Oct18Cool
Nov16Cool
Dec14Bracing

UV index in Carcassonne 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 Carcassonne peaks around July 16 at about 9 (very high) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 22 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 highHighModerateLowJul 16UV 9Dec 22UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan1Low
Feb3Moderate
Mar4Moderate
Apr6High
May7High
Jun8Very high
Jul9Very high
Aug8Very high
Sep5High
Oct3Moderate
Nov2Low
Dec1Low

Air quality in Carcassonne 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 Carcassonne is worst in March — around 15 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), and holds fairly steady the rest of the year.

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

01020JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModerateGoodMar 2015 µg/m³Jul 2110 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan14Moderate
Feb13Moderate
Mar15Moderate
Apr15Moderate
May12Good
Jun12Good
Jul10Good
Aug10Good
Sep10Good
Oct11Good
Nov11Good
Dec13Moderate
Location & terrain

Where is Carcassonne?

Carcassonne sits at 43.2°N, 2.3°E, 113 m above sea level, in France. The nearest listed city is Castres, 44 km away.

Topography around Carcassonne

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Carcassonne has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 130 m around an average of 119 m above sea level; within 16 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 579 m; within 80 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,862 m.

The land around Carcassonne is covered by artificial surfaces (35%) and trees (25%) within 3 km, trees (43%) within 16 km, and trees (49%) and cropland (21%) within 80 km.

3 km
130 m
16 km
579 m
80 km
2,862 m
treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaceswater
January weather nearby: Castres 44 km · Narbonne 53 km · Pamiers 61 km · Béziers 71 km · Perpignan 73 km · Albi 81 km · Balma 81 km · Toulouse 85 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 Carcassonne (43.2165°, 2.3486°, elevation 113 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).