Waterford weather in January

In January, Waterford sees average daytime highs of 8°C and overnight lows near 5°C, with 90 mm of precipitation across 13.9 wet days and about 8 hours of daylight. It is the 11th-warmest and 4th-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 8°C through the month. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 14% of the time in January, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 7 h 30 min at the start of January to 8 h 42 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, January is Waterford's 10th-clearest and 2nd-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Waterford's year-round climate.

Daytime high
11th warmest
Overnight low
2nd coldest
Precipitation
90 mm
13.9 wet days
Daylight
8 hours
8:39 AM – 4:37 PM
Cloud cover
74%
10th clearest
Wind
24 km/h
2nd windiest
Solar energy
0.78 kWh/m²
Travel score
1.4
out of 10

Waterford is city in Ireland.

Air quality
Moderate
PM2.5 10.5 µg/m³ · 2019
Density
1,445/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 8°C through the month.

A typical January day in Waterford reaches about 8°C in the afternoon and slips back to 5°C overnight — a 3°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 5°C and 11°C. Set against its neighbours, January runs on par with December and on par with February.

10°15°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
195
295
395
495
595
695
795
895
995
1095
1195
1295
1395
1495
1595
1695
1795
1885
1985
2085
2185
2285
2385
2485
2585
2685
2785
2885
2985
3085
3185

Waterford weather by month

How January compares with the rest of the year at a glance. January is the 11th-warmest and 4th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan / 9013.981.4
Feb / 6711.59.51.4
Mar / 6511.111.51.8
Apr11° / 6611.413.62.5
May13° / 6110.915.43.5
Jun15° / 12°6710.316.44.5
Jul17° / 13°6611.4165.1
Aug17° / 13°7510.914.55.2
Sep16° / 12°7011.112.44.6
Oct13° / 10°10513.810.33.4
Nov11° / 10614.38.52.3
Dec / 9613.77.61.6

Cloud cover in January

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 14% of the time in January.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 13% of January, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 73%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
13268
23268
33268
43070
53169
63169
73070
83070
93070
103070
112872
122872
132971
142872
152872
162773
172674
182575
192575
202476
212476
222476
232476
242476
252476
262476
272476
282575
292575
302575
312476

Chance of precipitation in January

Any precipitation

Waterford gets around 90 mm of rain and snow over 13.9 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 45% and peaks near 49% on the wettest days, and about 0 day brings snow. The odds ease toward the end of the month.

0%20%40%60%151015202531
Rain chance (%)
146
247
347
448
548
648
749
849
949
1049
1148
1248
1348
1447
1547
1646
1745
1845
1944
2043
2143
2242
2341
2441
2540
2640
2740
2840
2940
3040
3141

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 24 km/h in January.

Across January, daily wind ranges from about 23 km/h on the calmest days to 25 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

0102030151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
125breezy
225breezy
325breezy
425breezy
525breezy
625breezy
725breezy
825breezy
925breezy
1025breezy
1124breezy
1224breezy
1324breezy
1424breezy
1524breezy
1624breezy
1724breezy
1824breezy
1923breezy
2023breezy
2123breezy
2223breezy
2323breezy
2423breezy
2523breezy
2623breezy
2723breezy
2823breezy
2923breezy
3023breezy
3123breezy

Sunrise & sunset in January

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 7 h 30 min at the start of January to 8 h 42 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 72 minutes over January. Sunrise moves from 8:45 AM to 8:22 AM, and sunset from 4:18 PM to 5:02 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
17.58:454:18
27.68:454:19
37.68:454:20
47.68:454:21
57.68:454:22
67.68:444:23
77.78:444:24
87.78:444:26
97.78:434:27
107.88:434:28
117.88:424:30
127.88:424:31
137.98:414:32
147.98:404:34
157.98:404:35
168.08:394:37
178.08:384:38
188.08:374:40
198.18:364:41
208.18:354:43
218.28:344:45
228.28:334:46
238.38:324:48
248.38:314:50
258.48:304:51
268.48:284:53
278.58:274:55
288.58:264:57
298.68:244:58
308.68:235:00
318.78:225:02

Solar energy in January

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in January, about 0.78 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 0.61 kWh/m² to a high of 5.34 kWh/m² in June across the year — January's 0.78 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

00.511.52151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
10.6Dim
20.6Dim
30.6Dim
40.7Dim
50.7Dim
60.7Dim
70.7Dim
80.7Dim
90.7Dim
100.7Dim
110.7Dim
120.7Dim
130.7Dim
140.8Dim
150.8Dim
160.8Dim
170.8Dim
180.8Dim
190.8Dim
200.8Dim
210.8Dim
220.9Dim
230.9Dim
240.9Dim
250.9Dim
260.9Dim
271.0Dim
281.0Dim
291.0Dim
301.1Dim
311.1Dim
Planning a trip in January

Is January a good time to visit Waterford?

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

1.4
Sightseeing
11th-best month of the year
Beach & pool
never really warm enough

January is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Waterford.

What to pack for Waterford in January

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

In January, Waterford sees daytime highs around 8°C and nights near 5°C. Pack a warm layer. Worth having: rain gear and a windbreaker. About 14 days see rain.

a warm layerrain geara windbreaker

Sea temperature near Waterford in January

The nearest coast averages about 9°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 15 km away) is warmest in August at about 16°C and coldest in February near 9°C.

The water stays below 20°C all year — cool enough that most swimmers want a wetsuit.

10°15°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbracingcool
Sea temperature (°C)Comfort
Jan9Bracing
Feb9Bracing
Mar9Bracing
Apr10Bracing
May11Bracing
Jun14Bracing
Jul15Cool
Aug16Cool
Sep15Cool
Oct14Bracing
Nov12Bracing
Dec11Bracing

UV index in Waterford 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 Waterford peaks around August 13 at about 6 (high) — a little sun protection helps at midday. 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 6 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLowModerateHighModerateLowAug 13UV 6Jan 1UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan1Low
Feb1Low
Mar3Moderate
Apr4Moderate
May5High
Jun6High
Jul5High
Aug6High
Sep4Moderate
Oct2Moderate
Nov1Low
Dec1Low
Location & terrain

Where is Waterford?

Waterford sits at 52.3°N, 7.1°W, 10 m above sea level, in Ireland. The nearest listed city is Cluain Meala, 42 km away.

Cluain MealaKilkennyWexfordCarlowPortlaoiseDouglasCarrigalineCork

Topography around Waterford

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Waterford has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 93 m around an average of 30 m above sea level; within 16 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 298 m; within 80 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 906 m.

The land around Waterford is covered by grassland (41%), artificial surfaces (24%) and trees (22%) within 3 km, grassland (63%) within 16 km, and grassland (52%) and water (32%) within 80 km.

3 km
93 m
16 km
298 m
80 km
906 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaceswater
January weather nearby: Cluain Meala 42 km · Kilkenny 45 km · Wexford 45 km · Carlow 66 km · Portlaoise 87 km · Douglas 100 km · Carrigaline 101 km · Cork 101 km

Ireland travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 1
Exercise Normal Precautions
Power plugs
Type G
230 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 85% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$131,592
2025
Happiness
6.9 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
96%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
0.7
per 100k, 2023
Road deaths
3.1
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
High
World Bank
Religion
Roman Catholic 69%none 15%Protestant 4%Orthodox 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 Waterford (52.2583°, -7.1119°, elevation 10 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).