Vientiane weather in January

In January, Vientiane sees average daytime highs of 29°C and overnight lows near 17°C, with 11 mm of rain across 1.7 wet days and about 11 hours of daylight. It is the 11th-warmest and 11th-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 29°C through the month. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 65% of the time in January, and the air most often feels humid.

Daylight stretches from about 10 h 54 min at the start of January to 11 h 12 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, January is Vientiane's 3rd-clearest and 3rd-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Vientiane's year-round climate.

Daytime high
29°
11th warmest
Overnight low
17°
1st coldest
Rainfall
11 mm
1.7 wet days
Daylight
11 hours
6:48 AM – 5:50 PM
Cloud cover
33%
3rd clearest
Wind
6 km/h
3rd windiest
Solar energy
4.68 kWh/m²
Travel score
6.9
out of 10

Vientiane is capital of Laos.

Air quality
High
PM2.5 25.8 µg/m³ · 2019
Density
215/km²
people per km²
Founded
1560

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 29°C through the month.

A typical January day in Vientiane reaches about 29°C in the afternoon and slips back to 17°C overnight — a 12°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 25°C and 33°C. Set against its neighbours, January runs on par with December and about 2°C cooler than February.

10°15°20°25°30°35°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
12817
22817
32917
42917
52917
62917
72917
82917
92917
102917
112917
122917
132917
142917
152917
162917
172917
182917
192917
202917
212917
222917
232917
242917
252917
262917
272917
282917
293017
303017
313018

How January really feels in Vientiane

Once humidity and wind are folded in, January averages 0 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
0
heat index over the day's high
Days feeling ≤ C
0
wind chill below the day's low

January sits comfortably in between — no days that feel dangerously hot or drop to a hard freeze once humidity and wind are folded in.

Vientiane weather by month

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

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan29° / 17°111.7116.9
Feb31° / 19°152.211.45.4
Mar34° / 22°366.211.93.5
Apr35° / 25°7511.912.42.4
May33° / 25°26223.412.82.2
Jun32° / 26°31625.113.12.2
Jul32° / 26°37226.5132.4
Aug31° / 25°40127.512.62.4
Sep32° / 25°30024.712.12.7
Oct31° / 24°10111.911.64.2
Nov30° / 21°22311.25.8
Dec29° / 18°81.210.97.2

Cloud cover in January

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 65% of the time in January.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 14% of January, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 21%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
17822
27822
37723
47723
57723
67624
77624
87624
97624
107624
117624
127723
137723
147723
157822
167921
177921
188020
198020
208119
218218
228218
238218
248218
258317
268317
278317
288317
298416
308317
318416

Chance of precipitation in January

Any precipitation

Vientiane gets around 11 mm of rain over 1.7 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 6% and peaks near 6% on the wettest days.

0%10%20%30%151015202531
Rain chance (%)
16
26
36
46
56
66
76
86
96
106
116
126
136
146
156
166
176
186
196
205
215
225
235
245
255
265
275
285
295
305
315

Humidity in January

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

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

By dew point, January lands in the humid band about 35% of days. Sticky, muggy-or-worse air turns up on roughly 27% of them.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Dry (%)Comfortable (%)Humid (%)Muggy (%)Oppressive (%)
1142534242
2132635243
3122635243
4122635243
5122635243
6122635243
7112635243
8122635243
9122635243
10122635243
11122635243
12122635243
13122635243
14122635234
15122635234
16122635233
17122635233
18122636233
19122636233
20122536243
21122536243
22122536243
23122536243
24122536243
25122536253
26122436253
27122435253
28132335263
29132334264
30132334264
31142334264

Wind in January

Winds average 6 km/h in January.

Across January, daily wind ranges from about 6 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
16calm
26calm
36calm
46calm
56calm
66calm
76calm
86calm
96calm
106calm
116calm
126calm
136calm
146calm
156calm
166calm
176calm
186calm
196calm
206calm
216calm
226calm
237calm
247calm
257calm
267calm
277calm
287calm
297calm
307calm
317calm

Sunrise & sunset in January

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 10 h 54 min at the start of January to 11 h 12 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 18 minutes over January. Sunrise moves from 6:45 AM to 6:47 AM, and sunset from 5:41 PM to 5:59 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
110.96:455:41
210.96:455:42
310.96:455:42
411.06:465:43
511.06:465:43
611.06:465:44
711.06:465:44
811.06:475:45
911.06:475:46
1011.06:475:46
1111.06:475:47
1211.06:475:47
1311.06:485:48
1411.06:485:49
1511.06:485:49
1611.06:485:50
1711.06:485:50
1811.06:485:51
1911.16:485:52
2011.16:485:52
2111.16:485:53
2211.16:485:53
2311.16:485:54
2411.16:485:55
2511.16:485:55
2611.16:485:56
2711.16:485:56
2811.26:485:57
2911.26:485:57
3011.26:475:58
3111.26:475:59

Solar energy in January

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in January, about 4.68 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 4.17 kWh/m² to a high of 6.03 kWh/m² in April across the year — January's 4.68 kWh/m² falls in the middle.

024151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
14.5Bright
24.5Bright
34.5Bright
44.5Bright
54.5Bright
64.5Bright
74.6Bright
84.6Bright
94.6Bright
104.6Bright
114.6Bright
124.6Bright
134.6Bright
144.7Bright
154.7Bright
164.7Bright
174.7Bright
184.7Bright
194.7Bright
204.7Bright
214.8Bright
224.8Bright
234.8Bright
244.8Bright
254.8Bright
264.8Bright
274.9Bright
284.9Bright
294.9Bright
304.9Bright
315.0Bright
Planning a trip in January

Hazard calendar for Vientiane

In seasonPeak

In January, Vientiane sits inside its pacific typhoon season. The full year is below, with each hazard's peak months called out.

Vientiane sits in the Pacific typhoon belt; the season peaks July–October.

Vientiane's monsoon runs May–September, when most of the year's rain falls.

Pacific typhoon
Monsoon
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec

Is January a good time to visit Vientiane?

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

6.9
Sightseeing
2nd-best month of the year
8.8
Beach & pool
2nd-best month of the year

January is a reasonable time to visit Vientiane for sightseeing. The water and warmth also suit a beach or pool day.

What to pack for Vientiane in January

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

In January, Vientiane sees daytime highs around 29°C and nights near 17°C. Pack light clothes. Worth having: sun protection.

light clothessun protection

UV index in Vientiane in January

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in January peaks around 8 (very high — sun protection essential). The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Vientiane peaks around August 11 at about 13 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 15 at about 7 (very high).

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

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecVery highExtremeVery highAug 11UV 13Dec 15UV 7
UV index (midday)Level
Jan8Very high
Feb10Very high
Mar12Extreme
Apr10Extreme
May11Extreme
Jun13Extreme
Jul13Extreme
Aug13Extreme
Sep11Extreme
Oct10Extreme
Nov8Very high
Dec7Very high

Air quality in Vientiane 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 Vientiane is worst in March — around 56 µg/m³ PM2.5 (unhealthy), about 3.4× the cleanest month (July, 16 µg/m³).

Seasonal pattern from CAMS reanalysis, scaled to Vientiane's WHO annual average of 25.8 µg/m³.

0204060JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModeratePoorPoorModerateMar 2355 µg/m³Jul 2116 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan23Moderate
Feb32Moderate
Mar56Unhealthy
Apr53Poor
May23Moderate
Jun17Moderate
Jul16Moderate
Aug17Moderate
Sep17Moderate
Oct19Moderate
Nov18Moderate
Dec19Moderate
Location & terrain

Where is Vientiane?

Vientiane sits at 18.0°N, 102.6°E, 174 m above sea level, in Laos. The nearest listed city is Tha Bo, 13 km away.

Kut ChapPhon CharoenUdon ThaniBan DungNa Klang

Topography around Vientiane

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Vientiane has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 33 m around an average of 171 m above sea level; within 16 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 74 m; within 80 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,487 m.

The land around Vientiane is covered by artificial surfaces (53%) within 3 km, cropland (36%) and trees (34%) within 16 km, and trees (57%) and cropland (34%) within 80 km.

3 km
33 m
16 km
74 m
80 km
1,487 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater
January weather nearby: Tha Bo 13 km · Nong Khai 18 km · Nam Som 49 km · Kut Chap 60 km · Phon Charoen 60 km · Udon Thani 64 km · Ban Dung 76 km · Na Klang 85 km

Laos travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 2
Exercise Increased Caution
Power plugs
Type A / B / C / E / F
230 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 23% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$2,325
2025
Happiness
5.5 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
35%
of population, 2024
Road deaths
17.9
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
Lower middle
World Bank
English
Low
EF EPI 461
Religion
Buddhist 65%none 31%other/not stated 2%Christian 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 Vientiane (17.9667°, 102.6°, elevation 174 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. Tropical-cyclone seasons are the published climatological basin seasons (NOAA National Hurricane Center / regional warning centres). 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).