Frankfurt weather in January

In January, Frankfurt sees average daytime highs of 4°C and overnight lows near -0°C, with 56 mm of precipitation across 11.7 wet days and about 8.3 hours of daylight. It is the 12th-warmest and 5th-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 4°C through the month. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 15% 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 Frankfurt's 10th-clearest and 1st-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Frankfurt's year-round climate.

Daytime high
12th warmest
Overnight low
-0°
1st coldest
Precipitation
56 mm
11.7 wet days
Daylight
8 h 18 min
8:26 AM – 4:43 PM
Cloud cover
74%
10th clearest
Wind
13 km/h
1st windiest
Solar energy
0.88 kWh/m²
Travel score
0.0
out of 10

Frankfurt is most populated city of Hesse, Germany.

Air quality
Elevated
PM2.5 20.8 µg/m³ · 2010
Density
2,618/km²
people per km²
Founded
~100 CE

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 4°C through the month.

A typical January day in Frankfurt reaches about 4°C in the afternoon and slips back to -0°C overnight — a 4°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between -2°C and 10°C. Set against its neighbours, January runs on par with December and about 2°C cooler than February.

-10°-5°10°15°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
140
240
340
440
540
640
740
840
940
1040
1140
1240
1340
1440
1540
1640
1740
1840
1940
2040
2140
2240
2340
2440
2540
2640
2740
2840
2940
3040
3140

How January really feels in Frankfurt

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.

Frankfurt weather by month

How January compares with the rest of the year at a glance. January is the 12th-warmest and 5th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan / -0°5611.72.68.30.0
Feb / 48102.79.70.4
Mar10° / 5411.3111.52.3
Apr15° / 449.60.113.54.6
May19° / 10°6310.5015.25.9
Jun23° / 13°559.9016.16.6
Jul25° / 15°6010.9015.76.7
Aug25° / 15°539.2014.37.0
Sep20° / 11°528.6012.46.3
Oct14° / 5410.50.110.54.0
Nov / 5811.10.78.81.4
Dec / 6813.93.17.90.1

Cloud cover in January

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 15% of the time in January.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 11% of January, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 74%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
12278
22377
32377
42377
52377
62377
72377
82377
92476
102476
112575
122674
132674
142674
152674
162773
172872
182872
192872
202872
212872
222872
232872
242872
252872
262872
272872
282773
292773
302773
312773

Chance of precipitation in January

Any precipitationSnow

Frankfurt gets around 56 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 38% and peaks near 45% on the wettest days, and about 3 days bring snow. The odds ease toward the end of the month.

0%20%40%60%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
14510
2459
3449
4449
5438
6428
7427
8417
9407
10397
11387
12387
13377
14367
15367
16358
17358
18358
19359
20359
21359
223510
233510
243511
253511
263511
273511
283511
293511
303411
313411

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 13 km/h in January, the windiest month of the year.

Across January, daily wind ranges from about 12 km/h on the calmest days to 13 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

051015151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
113light breeze
213light breeze
313light breeze
413light breeze
513light breeze
613light breeze
713light breeze
813light breeze
913light breeze
1013light breeze
1113light breeze
1212light breeze
1312light breeze
1412light breeze
1512light breeze
1612light breeze
1712light breeze
1812light breeze
1912light breeze
2012light breeze
2112light breeze
2212light breeze
2312light breeze
2412light breeze
2512light breeze
2612light breeze
2712light breeze
2812light breeze
2912light breeze
3012light breeze
3112light breeze

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 8:31 AM to 8:11 AM, and sunset from 4:26 PM to 5:07 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
17.98:314:26
27.98:314:27
37.98:314:28
48.08:314:29
58.08:314:30
68.08:314:31
78.08:304:32
88.18:304:33
98.18:304:34
108.18:294:35
118.18:294:37
128.28:284:38
138.28:284:39
148.28:274:41
158.38:264:42
168.38:264:43
178.38:254:45
188.48:244:46
198.48:244:48
208.48:234:49
218.58:224:51
228.58:214:52
238.68:204:54
248.68:194:55
258.68:184:57
268.78:174:58
278.78:165:00
288.88:145:02
298.88:135:03
308.98:125:05
318.98:115:07

Solar energy in January

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in January, about 0.88 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 0.66 kWh/m² to a high of 5.57 kWh/m² in June across the year — January's 0.88 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

00.511.52151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
10.7Dim
20.7Dim
30.7Dim
40.7Dim
50.7Dim
60.7Dim
70.7Dim
80.8Dim
90.8Dim
100.8Dim
110.8Dim
120.8Dim
130.8Dim
140.8Dim
150.9Dim
160.9Dim
170.9Dim
180.9Dim
190.9Dim
200.9Dim
211.0Dim
221.0Dim
231.0Dim
241.0Dim
251.1Dim
261.1Dim
271.1Dim
281.1Dim
291.1Dim
301.2Dim
311.2Dim
Planning a trip in January

Is January a good time to visit Frankfurt?

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

0.0
Sightseeing
12th-best month of the year
0.0
Beach & pool
8th-best month of the year

January is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Frankfurt.

What to pack for Frankfurt in January

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

In January, Frankfurt sees daytime highs around 4°C and nights near -0°C. Pack a warm layer. Worth having: a heavy coat and rain gear. About 12 days see rain.

a warm layera heavy coatrain gear

UV index in Frankfurt 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 Frankfurt peaks around July 15 at about 7 (high) — sunscreen and a hat are worth it in the middle of the day. 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 7 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLowModerateHighModerateLowJul 15UV 7Dec 22UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan1Low
Feb2Low
Mar3Moderate
Apr4Moderate
May6High
Jun6High
Jul7Very high
Aug6High
Sep4Moderate
Oct3Moderate
Nov1Low
Dec1Low

Air quality in Frankfurt 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 Frankfurt is worst in April — around 27 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 1.8× the cleanest month (November, 15 µg/m³).

Seasonal pattern from CAMS reanalysis, scaled to Frankfurt's WHO annual average of 20.8 µg/m³.

0102030JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModerateApr 1626 µg/m³Nov 2115 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan18Moderate
Feb18Moderate
Mar24Moderate
Apr27Moderate
May24Moderate
Jun26Moderate
Jul22Moderate
Aug22Moderate
Sep21Moderate
Oct17Moderate
Nov15Moderate
Dec16Moderate
Location & terrain

Where is Frankfurt?

Frankfurt sits at 50.1°N, 8.7°E, 113 m above sea level, in Germany. The nearest listed city is Gallus, 4.0 km away.

Topography around Frankfurt

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Frankfurt has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 73 m around an average of 115 m above sea level; within 16 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 371 m; within 80 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 850 m.

The land around Frankfurt is covered by artificial surfaces (61%) and trees (31%) within 3 km, trees (46%) and artificial surfaces (24%) within 16 km, and trees (52%) and cropland (22%) within 80 km.

3 km
73 m
16 km
371 m
80 km
850 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaceswater
January weather nearby: Gallus 4.0 km · Niederrad 5.0 km · Offenbach 6.0 km · Neu-Isenburg 8.0 km · Bad Vilbel 8.0 km · Eschborn 9.0 km · Mühlheim am Main 11 km · Dreieich 11 km

Germany travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 2
Exercise Increased Caution
Power plugs
Type C / F
230 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 80% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$60,496
2025
Happiness
6.9 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
100%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
0.9
per 100k, 2023
Road deaths
3.8
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
High
World Bank
English
Very high
EF EPI 615
Religion
none 44%Roman Catholic 25%Protestant 23%other 5%

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 Frankfurt (50.1155°, 8.6842°, 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. 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).