Bishkek weather in January

In January, Bishkek sees average daytime highs of -4°C and overnight lows near -11°C, with 45 mm of precipitation across 9.4 wet days and about 9.2 hours of daylight. It is the 12th-warmest and 12th-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 32% of the time in January, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 8 h 54 min at the start of January to 9 h 36 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, January is Bishkek's 8th-clearest and 1st-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Bishkek's year-round climate.

Daytime high
-4°
12th warmest
Overnight low
-11°
1st coldest
Precipitation
45 mm
9.4 wet days
Daylight
9 h 12 min
8:36 AM – 5:46 PM
Cloud cover
59%
8th clearest
Wind
7 km/h
1st windiest
Solar energy
2.58 kWh/m²
Travel score
0.0
out of 10
Air quality
High
PM2.5 33.1 µg/m³ · 2019

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 Bishkek reaches about -4°C in the afternoon and slips back to -11°C overnight — a 7°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between -9°C and 2°C. Set against its neighbours, January runs about 2°C cooler than December and about 2°C cooler than February.

-20°-15°-10°-5°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
1-3-10
2-3-10
3-3-10
4-3-10
5-3-10
6-3-10
7-4-10
8-4-10
9-4-11
10-4-11
11-4-11
12-4-11
13-4-11
14-4-11
15-4-11
16-4-11
17-4-11
18-4-11
19-4-11
20-4-11
21-4-11
22-4-11
23-4-11
24-4-11
25-4-11
26-4-11
27-3-10
28-3-10
29-3-10
30-3-10
31-3-10

How January really feels in Bishkek

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
31 feel bitter (≤ -10°C)

The story in January is cold — wind chill drags the overnight "feels like" below the raw low.

Bishkek weather by month

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

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan-4° / -11°459.49.49.20.0
Feb-2° / -9°6110.59.910.20.0
Mar / -4°11315.410.111.60.3
Apr12° / 17316.88.913.12.6
May16° / 16718.96.714.44.1
Jun21° / 10°13821.21.315.14.8
Jul23° / 13°12820.20.114.85.5
Aug22° / 11°10017.40.413.85.9
Sep18° / 9016.13.912.35.1
Oct11° / 8111.46.810.82.8
Nov / -5°679.77.59.50.3
Dec-2° / -9°519.48.78.90.0

Cloud cover in January

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 32% 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 57%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
14654
24555
34555
44456
54456
64456
74357
84357
94357
104357
114357
124456
134456
144456
154456
164456
174456
184456
194456
204456
214456
224555
234555
244456
254456
264357
274258
284159
294159
304060
313862

Chance of precipitation in January

Any precipitationSnow

Bishkek gets around 45 mm of rain and snow over 9.4 wet days in January, the driest month. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Day to day, the chance of measurable precipitation averages around 31% and peaks near 33% on the wettest days, and about 9 days bring snow.

0%10%20%30%40%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
12828
22828
32928
42929
52929
63030
73030
83131
93131
103132
113232
123232
133232
143132
153132
163132
173132
183132
193132
203132
213132
223131
233131
243131
253131
263131
273231
283232
293332
303333
313333

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

Across January, daily wind ranges from about 7 km/h on the calmest days to 7 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

0246810151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
17calm
27calm
37calm
47calm
57calm
67calm
77calm
87calm
97calm
107calm
117calm
127calm
137calm
147calm
157calm
167calm
177calm
187calm
197calm
207calm
217calm
227calm
237calm
247calm
257calm
267calm
277calm
287calm
297calm
307calm
317calm

Sunrise & sunset in January

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 8 h 54 min at the start of January to 9 h 36 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 42 minutes over January. Sunrise moves from 8:38 AM to 8:26 AM, and sunset from 5:32 PM to 6:04 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
18.98:385:32
28.98:385:32
38.98:385:33
48.98:385:34
58.98:385:35
69.08:385:36
79.08:385:37
89.08:385:38
99.08:385:39
109.08:385:40
119.18:375:41
129.18:375:42
139.18:375:43
149.18:375:44
159.18:365:45
169.28:365:46
179.28:355:47
189.28:355:48
199.38:345:49
209.38:345:51
219.38:335:52
229.38:335:53
239.48:325:54
249.48:315:55
259.48:315:57
269.58:305:58
279.58:295:59
289.58:286:00
299.68:276:02
309.68:276:03
319.68:266:04

Solar energy in January

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in January, about 2.58 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 2.1 kWh/m² to a high of 6.63 kWh/m² in May across the year — January's 2.58 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

01234151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
12.2Moderate
22.2Moderate
32.3Moderate
42.3Moderate
52.3Moderate
62.3Moderate
72.3Moderate
82.4Moderate
92.4Moderate
102.4Moderate
112.4Moderate
122.5Moderate
132.5Moderate
142.5Moderate
152.5Moderate
162.6Moderate
172.6Moderate
182.6Moderate
192.7Moderate
202.7Moderate
212.7Moderate
222.7Moderate
232.8Moderate
242.8Moderate
252.8Moderate
262.9Moderate
272.9Moderate
282.9Moderate
293.0Moderate
303.0Moderate
313.0Moderate
Planning a trip in January

Is January a good time to visit Bishkek?

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

0.0
Sightseeing
10th-best month of the year
0.0
Beach & pool
8th-best month of the year

January is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Bishkek.

What to pack for Bishkek in January

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

In January, Bishkek sees daytime highs around -4°C and nights near -11°C. Pack a warm layer and a heavy coat. Worth having: rain gear. About 9 days see rain.

a warm layera heavy coatrain gear

UV index in Bishkek in January

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in January peaks around 2. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Bishkek peaks around May 20 at about 10 (very high) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 22 at about 2 (low).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 9 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModerateVery highHighModerateLowMay 20UV 10Dec 22UV 2
UV index (midday)Level
Jan2Low
Feb3Moderate
Mar5Moderate
Apr5High
May10Very high
Jun8Very high
Jul8Very high
Aug9Very high
Sep6High
Oct4Moderate
Nov3Moderate
Dec2Low

Air quality in Bishkek 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 Bishkek is worst in May — around 47 µg/m³ PM2.5 (poor), about 2.9× the cleanest month (December, 16 µg/m³).

Seasonal pattern from CAMS reanalysis, scaled to Bishkek's WHO annual average of 33.1 µg/m³.

0204060JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModeratePoorModerateMay 1346 µg/m³Dec 2017 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan18Moderate
Feb24Moderate
Mar39Poor
Apr45Poor
May47Poor
Jun42Poor
Jul40Poor
Aug36Poor
Sep37Poor
Oct32Moderate
Nov21Moderate
Dec16Moderate
Location & terrain

Where is Bishkek?

Bishkek sits at 42.9°N, 74.6°E, 767 m above sea level, in Kyrgyzstan. The nearest listed city is Lebedinovka, 7.0 km away.

TokmokKara-BaltaShuMerke

Topography around Bishkek

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Bishkek has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 118 m around an average of 765 m above sea level; within 16 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 855 m; within 80 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 4,311 m.

The land around Bishkek is covered by artificial surfaces (86%) within 3 km, cropland (46%) and artificial surfaces (28%) within 16 km, and grassland (55%) and cropland (29%) within 80 km.

3 km
118 m
16 km
855 m
80 km
4,311 m
treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainsnow and icewatermoss and lichen
January weather nearby: Lebedinovka 7.0 km · Kant 21 km · Belovodskoye 40 km · Ivanovka 40 km · Tokmok 58 km · Kara-Balta 61 km · Shu 106 km · Merke 114 km

Kyrgyzstan travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 1
Exercise Normal Precautions
Power plugs
Type C / F
220 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 33% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$3,081
2025
Happiness
6.0 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
74%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
1.7
per 100k, 2020
Road deaths
12.7
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
Lower middle
World Bank
English
Very low
EF EPI 443
Religion
Muslim 90%Christian 7%other 3%

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 Bishkek (42.87°, 74.59°, elevation 767 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).