Palu weather in January

In January, Palu sees average daytime highs of 28°C and overnight lows near 21°C, with 259 mm of rain across 27.9 wet days and about 12 hours of daylight. It is the 9th-warmest and 11th-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 28°C through the month. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 0% of the time in January, and the air most often feels oppressive.

Daylight stretches from about 12 h 06 min at the start of January to 12 hours by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, January is Palu's 11th-clearest and 2nd-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Palu's year-round climate.

Daytime high
28°
9th warmest
Overnight low
21°
4th coldest
Rainfall
259 mm
27.9 wet days
Daylight
12 hours
6:08 AM – 6:11 PM
Cloud cover
94%
11th clearest
Wind
4 km/h
2nd windiest
Solar energy
4.53 kWh/m²
Travel score
3.5
out of 10

Palu is administrative city in Donggala Regency, Indonesia.

Founded
1978

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 28°C through the month.

A typical January day in Palu reaches about 28°C in the afternoon and slips back to 21°C overnight — a 7°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 26°C and 29°C. Set against its neighbours, January runs on par with December and on par with February.

15°20°25°30°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
12821
22821
32821
42821
52821
62821
72821
82821
92821
102821
112821
122821
132821
142821
152821
162821
172821
182821
192821
202821
212821
222821
232821
242821
252821
262821
272821
282821
292821
302821
312821

Palu weather by month

How January compares with the rest of the year at a glance. January is the 9th-warmest and 11th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan28° / 21°25927.9123.5
Feb28° / 21°24425123.6
Mar28° / 21°28928.3123.5
Apr28° / 21°31327.8123.4
May28° / 21°34028.8123.4
Jun27° / 21°33228.311.93.5
Jul27° / 21°33128.4123.6
Aug28° / 21°31428.1123.7
Sep28° / 21°33528.2123.5
Oct28° / 21°34229.1123.4
Nov28° / 21°32128.6123.3
Dec28° / 21°26427.512.13.5

Cloud cover in January

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 0% of the time in January.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 2% of January, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 98%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
1199
2199
3199
4199
5199
6199
7199
8298
9298
10298
11298
12298
13298
14298
15298
16298
17298
18298
19298
20298
21298
22298
23298
24298
25298
26298
27298
28298
29298
30298
31298

Chance of precipitation in January

Any precipitation

Palu gets around 259 mm of rain over 27.9 wet days in January. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Day to day, the chance of measurable rain averages around 90% and peaks near 90% on the wettest days.

0%20%40%60%80%100%151015202531
Rain chance (%)
190
290
390
490
590
690
790
890
990
1090
1190
1290
1390
1490
1590
1690
1790
1890
1990
2090
2190
2290
2390
2490
2590
2690
2790
2890
2990
3090
3190

Humidity in January

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

Most of January feels oppressive — the stacked bands show each day's mix of comfort levels, read off the dew point.

By dew point, January lands in the oppressive band about 73% of days. Sticky, muggy-or-worse air turns up on roughly 100% of them.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Muggy (%)Oppressive (%)
12773
22773
32773
42773
52773
62773
72773
82773
92674
102674
112674
122674
132674
142674
152773
162773
172773
182773
192773
202773
212773
222773
232773
242773
252773
262674
272674
282674
292575
302575
312575

Wind in January

Winds average 4 km/h in January.

Across January, daily wind ranges from about 3 km/h on the calmest days to 4 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

0246810151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
14calm
24calm
34calm
44calm
54calm
64calm
74calm
84calm
94calm
104calm
114calm
124calm
134calm
144calm
154calm
164calm
174calm
184calm
194calm
204calm
214calm
224calm
234calm
244calm
254calm
264calm
273calm
283calm
293calm
303calm
313calm

Sunrise & sunset in January

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 12 h 06 min at the start of January to 12 hours by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days shrink by about 6 minutes over January. Sunrise moves from 6:02 AM to 6:13 AM, and sunset from 6:05 PM to 6:15 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
112.16:026:05
212.16:036:06
312.16:036:06
412.16:036:07
512.16:046:07
612.16:046:07
712.16:056:08
812.16:056:08
912.06:066:09
1012.06:066:09
1112.06:066:09
1212.06:076:10
1312.06:076:10
1412.06:086:11
1512.06:086:11
1612.06:086:11
1712.06:096:12
1812.06:096:12
1912.06:096:12
2012.06:106:12
2112.06:106:13
2212.06:106:13
2312.06:116:13
2412.06:116:14
2512.06:116:14
2612.06:126:14
2712.06:126:14
2812.06:126:14
2912.06:126:15
3012.06:126:15
3112.06:136:15

Solar energy in January

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in January, about 4.53 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 4.25 kWh/m² to a high of 5.26 kWh/m² in September across the year — January's 4.53 kWh/m² falls in the middle.

024151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
14.4Bright
24.4Bright
34.4Bright
44.4Bright
54.5Bright
64.5Bright
74.5Bright
84.5Bright
94.5Bright
104.5Bright
114.5Bright
124.5Bright
134.5Bright
144.5Bright
154.5Bright
164.5Bright
174.5Bright
184.5Bright
194.5Bright
204.5Bright
214.5Bright
224.5Bright
234.5Bright
244.5Bright
254.5Bright
264.5Bright
274.5Bright
284.5Bright
294.5Bright
304.5Bright
314.5Bright
Planning a trip in January

Is January a good time to visit Palu?

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

3.5
Sightseeing
4th-best month of the year
3.8
Beach & pool
6th-best month of the year

January is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Palu.

What to pack for Palu in January

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

In January, Palu sees daytime highs around 28°C and nights near 21°C. Pack light clothes and rain gear. Worth having: sun protection. About 28 days see rain.

light clothesrain gearsun protection

Sea temperature near Palu in January

The nearest coast averages about 29°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 42 km away) is warmest in May at about 30°C and coldest in February near 29°C.

The water stays above 20°C all year — warm enough for a swim any month.

28°30°32°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecwarmtropicalcomfortable to swim
Sea temperature (°C)Comfort
Jan29Tropical
Feb29Tropical
Mar29Tropical
Apr29Tropical
May30Tropical
Jun30Tropical
Jul29Tropical
Aug29Tropical
Sep29Tropical
Oct29Tropical
Nov29Tropical
Dec29Tropical

UV index in Palu in January

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in January peaks around 14 (very high — sun protection essential). The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Palu peaks around February 20 at about 16 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near June 18 at about 11 (extreme).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — every month of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecExtremeFeb 20UV 16Jun 18UV 11
UV index (midday)Level
Jan14Extreme
Feb16Extreme
Mar16Extreme
Apr14Extreme
May12Extreme
Jun11Extreme
Jul12Extreme
Aug13Extreme
Sep13Extreme
Oct13Extreme
Nov13Extreme
Dec12Extreme
Location & terrain

Where is Palu?

Palu sits at 0.9°S, 119.9°E, 9 m above sea level, in Indonesia. The nearest listed city is Poso, 112 km away.

PolewaliBontangBungkuSamarinda

Topography around Palu

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Palu has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 96 m around an average of 29 m above sea level; within 16 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,194 m; within 80 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,505 m.

The land around Palu is covered by artificial surfaces (78%) within 3 km, trees (56%) and grassland (23%) within 16 km, and trees (56%) and water (40%) within 80 km.

3 km
96 m
16 km
2,194 m
80 km
2,505 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater
January weather nearby: Poso 112 km · Masamba 190 km · Rantepao 229 km · Palopo 235 km · Polewali 287 km · Bontang 289 km · Bungku 296 km · Samarinda 307 km

Indonesia travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 2
Exercise Increased Caution
Power plugs
Type C / F
230 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 29% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$5,060
2025
Happiness
5.6 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
30%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
0.3
per 100k, 2022
Road deaths
11.3
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
Upper middle
World Bank
English
Low
EF EPI 471
Religion
Muslim 87%Protestant 8%Roman Catholic 3%Hindu 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 Palu (-0.9083°, 119.8708°, elevation 9 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. Topography is sampled from the Copernicus DEM GLO-90 elevation model (© ESA/Airbus) and ESA WorldCover 2021 land cover (CC BY 4.0).