Heidelberg weather in January

In January, Heidelberg sees average daytime highs of 4°C and overnight lows near -1°C, with 80 mm of precipitation across 13.1 wet days and about 8.4 hours of daylight. It is the 12th-warmest and 2nd-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 17% of the time in January, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 8 hours at the start of January to 9 hours by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, January is Heidelberg's 10th-clearest and 1st-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Heidelberg's year-round climate.

Daytime high
12th warmest
Overnight low
-1°
1st coldest
Precipitation
80 mm
13.1 wet days
Daylight
8 h 24 min
8:23 AM – 4:46 PM
Cloud cover
73%
10th clearest
Wind
12 km/h
1st windiest
Solar energy
0.94 kWh/m²
Travel score
0.0
out of 10

Heidelberg is large city in Baden-Württemberg, Germany.

Air quality
Excellent
PM10 14.2 µg/m³ · 2019
Density
1,317/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 4°C through the month.

A typical January day in Heidelberg reaches about 4°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 -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°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
140
240
340
440
540
640
740
840
94-1
104-1
114-1
124-1
134-1
144-1
154-1
164-1
174-1
184-1
194-1
204-1
214-1
224-1
234-1
244-1
254-1
264-1
274-1
284-1
294-1
304-1
314-1

How January really feels in Heidelberg

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.

Heidelberg weather by month

How January compares with the rest of the year at a glance. January is the 12th-warmest and 2nd-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan / -1°8013.13.88.40.0
Feb / -0°6611.149.80.3
Mar10° / 7512.51.411.52.2
Apr15° / 5411.10.113.44.3
May19° / 10°7912.7015.15.6
Jun22° / 13°68120166.3
Jul24° / 15°7312.3015.66.6
Aug24° / 14°6110.1014.26.9
Sep20° / 11°6610012.46.1
Oct14° / 7212.20.110.53.8
Nov / 7612.11.18.91.2
Dec / 9515.13.680.0

Cloud cover in January

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 17% 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 73%. Skies tend to open up as the month goes on.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
12377
22476
32476
42476
52377
62476
72476
82575
92575
102575
112773
122773
132773
142872
152872
162971
172872
182872
192971
202971
212872
222872
232872
242872
252872
262872
272872
282773
292872
302872
312872

Chance of precipitation in January

Any precipitationSnow

Heidelberg gets around 80 mm of rain and snow over 13.1 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 42% and peaks near 49% on the wettest days, and about 4 days bring snow. The odds ease toward the end of the month.

0%20%40%60%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
14912
24912
34911
44811
54811
64710
74610
84510
9449
10449
11439
12429
134110
144110
154010
164011
173911
183912
193913
203913
213914
223915
234015
244016
254016
264016
274017
284017
294017
303917
313916

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, the windiest month of the year.

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
712calm
812calm
912calm
1012calm
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 hours at the start of January to 9 hours by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 60 minutes over January. Sunrise moves from 8:28 AM to 8:08 AM, and sunset from 4:29 PM to 5:09 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
18.08:284:29
28.08:284:30
38.18:284:31
48.18:284:32
58.18:274:33
68.18:274:34
78.18:274:35
88.28:274:36
98.28:264:37
108.28:264:39
118.28:264:40
128.38:254:41
138.38:254:42
148.38:244:44
158.48:234:45
168.48:234:46
178.48:224:48
188.58:214:49
198.58:214:50
208.58:204:52
218.68:194:53
228.68:184:55
238.78:174:56
248.78:164:58
258.78:154:59
268.88:145:01
278.88:135:03
288.98:125:04
298.98:115:06
309.08:095:07
319.08:085:09

Solar energy in January

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in January, about 0.94 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 0.71 kWh/m² to a high of 5.59 kWh/m² in June across the year — January's 0.94 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

00.511.52151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
10.7Dim
20.7Dim
30.8Dim
40.8Dim
50.8Dim
60.8Dim
70.8Dim
80.8Dim
90.8Dim
100.8Dim
110.9Dim
120.9Dim
130.9Dim
140.9Dim
150.9Dim
160.9Dim
171.0Dim
181.0Dim
191.0Dim
201.0Dim
211.0Dim
221.1Dim
231.1Dim
241.1Dim
251.1Dim
261.1Dim
271.2Dim
281.2Dim
291.2Dim
301.2Dim
311.3Dim
Planning a trip in January

Is January a good time to visit Heidelberg?

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

0.0
Sightseeing
11th-best month of the year
0.0
Beach & pool
8th-best month of the year

January is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Heidelberg.

What to pack for Heidelberg in January

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

In January, Heidelberg sees daytime highs around 4°C and nights near -1°C. Pack a warm layer. Worth having: a heavy coat and rain gear. About 13 days see rain.

a warm layera heavy coatrain gear

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

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLowModerateHighHighModerateLowJul 15UV 7Jan 1UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan1Low
Feb2Low
Mar3Moderate
Apr4Moderate
May6High
Jun7High
Jul7Very high
Aug6High
Sep4Moderate
Oct3Moderate
Nov1Low
Dec1Low
Location & terrain

Where is Heidelberg?

Heidelberg sits at 49.4°N, 8.7°E, 115 m above sea level, in Germany. The nearest listed city is Leimen, 7.0 km away.

Topography around Heidelberg

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Heidelberg has significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 486 m around an average of 203 m above sea level; within 16 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 515 m; within 80 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 915 m.

The land around Heidelberg is covered by trees (54%) and artificial surfaces (32%) within 3 km, trees (50%) and cropland (20%) within 16 km, and trees (48%) and cropland (27%) within 80 km.

3 km
486 m
16 km
515 m
80 km
915 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaceswater
January weather nearby: Leimen 7.0 km · Schwetzingen 8.0 km · Wiesloch 13 km · Hockenheim 14 km · Weinheim 16 km · Viernheim 17 km · Mannheim 19 km · Ludwigshafen am Rhein 19 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 Heidelberg (49.4077°, 8.6908°, elevation 115 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).