Pekanbaru weather in January

In January, Pekanbaru sees average daytime highs of 31°C and overnight lows near 23°C, with 209 mm of rain across 24.1 wet days and about 12 hours of daylight. It is the 11th-warmest and 6th-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 31°C through the month. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 1% of the time in January, and the air most often feels oppressive.

Daylight stretches from about 12 hours at the start of January to 12 hours by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, January is Pekanbaru's 10th-clearest and 4th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Pekanbaru's year-round climate.

Daytime high
31°
11th warmest
Overnight low
23°
2nd coldest
Rainfall
209 mm
24.1 wet days
Daylight
12 hours
6:24 AM – 6:23 PM
Cloud cover
89%
10th clearest
Wind
5 km/h
4th windiest
Solar energy
4.29 kWh/m²
Travel score
2.9
out of 10

Pekanbaru is city in Riau Province, Indonesia.

Density
1,847/km²
people per km²
Founded
1784

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 31°C through the month.

A typical January day in Pekanbaru reaches about 31°C in the afternoon and slips back to 23°C overnight — a 7°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 29°C and 32°C. Set against its neighbours, January runs on par with December and on par with February.

20°25°30°35°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
13123
23123
33123
43123
53123
63123
73123
83123
93123
103123
113123
123123
133123
143123
153123
163123
173123
183123
193123
203123
213123
223123
233123
243123
253123
263123
273123
283123
293123
303123
313123

How January really feels in Pekanbaru

Once humidity and wind are folded in, January averages 31 days that feel above 32°C and 0 that feel at or below 0°C — the comfort signal a plain temperature reading hides.

Days feeling ≥ 32°C
31
heat index over the day's high
Days feeling ≤ C
0
wind chill below the day's low

The story in January is heat — humidity pushes the afternoon "feels like" well above the raw temperature.

Pekanbaru weather by month

How January compares with the rest of the year at a glance. January is the 11th-warmest and 6th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan31° / 23°20924.1122.9
Feb31° / 24°15721.1122.8
Mar32° / 24°21326.1122.4
Apr32° / 24°23327.9122.2
May32° / 24°19124.9122.4
Jun32° / 24°13119.6122.9
Jul32° / 24°12419.1123.1
Aug32° / 24°15722.1122.8
Sep32° / 23°19523.8122.6
Oct32° / 24°24127122.4
Nov31° / 24°29827.9122.4
Dec31° / 24°26326.8122.7

Cloud cover in January

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 1% of the time in January.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 5% of January, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 93%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
1694
2694
3694
4694
5694
6694
7793
8793
9793
10793
11793
12793
13793
14793
15694
16694
17793
18793
19793
20793
21793
22793
23793
24793
25793
26793
27793
28793
29793
30793
31793

Chance of precipitation in January

Any precipitation

Pekanbaru gets around 209 mm of rain over 24.1 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 78% and peaks near 81% on the wettest days.

0%20%40%60%80%151015202531
Rain chance (%)
181
281
380
480
579
679
779
879
978
1078
1178
1278
1378
1478
1578
1677
1777
1877
1977
2077
2177
2277
2377
2477
2577
2677
2777
2877
2977
3077
3177

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 57% of days. Sticky, muggy-or-worse air turns up on roughly 100% of them.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Muggy (%)Oppressive (%)Miserable (%)
105446
205545
305644
405644
505743
605743
705743
815643
915742
1015742
1115742
1215742
1315742
1415742
1515742
1615742
1715643
1815643
1915643
2015643
2115643
2205743
2305743
2405743
2505743
2605743
2705743
2805743
2905842
3005842
3105842

Wind in January

Winds average 5 km/h in January.

Across January, daily wind ranges from about 5 km/h on the calmest days to 5 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

0246810151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
15calm
25calm
35calm
45calm
55calm
65calm
75calm
85calm
95calm
105calm
115calm
125calm
135calm
145calm
155calm
165calm
175calm
185calm
195calm
205calm
215calm
225calm
235calm
245calm
255calm
265calm
275calm
285calm
295calm
305calm
315calm

Sunrise & sunset in January

DaylightNight

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

Days grow by about 0 minutes over January. Sunrise moves from 6:18 AM to 6:28 AM, and sunset from 6:17 PM to 6:27 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
112.06:186:17
212.06:196:17
312.06:196:17
412.06:206:18
512.06:206:18
612.06:206:19
712.06:216:19
812.06:216:20
912.06:226:20
1012.06:226:20
1112.06:226:21
1212.06:236:21
1312.06:236:22
1412.06:246:22
1512.06:246:22
1612.06:246:23
1712.06:256:23
1812.06:256:23
1912.06:256:24
2012.06:266:24
2112.06:266:24
2212.06:266:25
2312.06:266:25
2412.06:276:25
2512.06:276:26
2612.06:276:26
2712.06:276:26
2812.06:286:26
2912.06:286:26
3012.06:286:27
3112.06:286:27

Solar energy in January

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in January, about 4.29 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 3.97 kWh/m² to a high of 5.03 kWh/m² in September across the year — January's 4.29 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

012345151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
14.1Bright
24.1Bright
34.1Bright
44.1Bright
54.2Bright
64.2Bright
74.2Bright
84.2Bright
94.2Bright
104.3Bright
114.3Bright
124.3Bright
134.3Bright
144.3Bright
154.3Bright
164.3Bright
174.3Bright
184.3Bright
194.4Bright
204.4Bright
214.4Bright
224.4Bright
234.4Bright
244.4Bright
254.4Bright
264.4Bright
274.4Bright
284.4Bright
294.4Bright
304.4Bright
314.5Bright
Planning a trip in January

Is January a good time to visit Pekanbaru?

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

2.9
Sightseeing
2nd-best month of the year
4.3
Beach & pool
5th-best month of the year

January is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Pekanbaru.

What to pack for Pekanbaru in January

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

In January, Pekanbaru sees daytime highs around 31°C and nights near 23°C. Pack light clothes and rain gear. About 24 days see rain.

light clothesrain gear

UV index in Pekanbaru in January

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in January peaks around 13 (very high — sun protection essential). The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Pekanbaru peaks around February 18 at about 15 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near June 23 at about 10 (very high).

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

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecExtremeVery highExtremeFeb 18UV 15Jun 23UV 10
UV index (midday)Level
Jan13Extreme
Feb15Extreme
Mar14Extreme
Apr13Extreme
May11Extreme
Jun10Very high
Jul10Very high
Aug12Extreme
Sep13Extreme
Oct14Extreme
Nov10Extreme
Dec11Extreme

Air quality in Pekanbaru 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 Pekanbaru is worst in September — around 50 µg/m³ PM2.5 (poor), about 2.2× the cleanest month (December, 23 µg/m³).

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

0204060JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModeratePoorModerateSep 1549 µg/m³Dec 1723 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan25Moderate
Feb32Moderate
Mar34Moderate
Apr30Moderate
May28Moderate
Jun29Moderate
Jul33Moderate
Aug43Poor
Sep50Poor
Oct42Poor
Nov25Moderate
Dec23Moderate
Location & terrain

Where is Pekanbaru?

Pekanbaru sits at 0.5°N, 101.4°E, 19 m above sea level, in Indonesia. The nearest listed city is Balai Pungut, 63 km away.

Topography around Pekanbaru

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Pekanbaru has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 24 m around an average of 14 m above sea level; within 16 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 80 m; within 80 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 667 m.

The land around Pekanbaru is covered by artificial surfaces (82%) within 3 km, trees (73%) within 16 km, and trees (95%) within 80 km.

3 km
24 m
16 km
80 m
80 km
667 m
treesshrubsgrasslandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater
January weather nearby: Balai Pungut 63 km · Payakumbuh 121 km · Dumai 128 km · Sijunjung 145 km · Bukittinggi 150 km · Padangpanjang 158 km · Solok 170 km · Pariaman 194 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 Pekanbaru (0.5167°, 101.4417°, elevation 19 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).