Balaka weather in January

In January, Balaka sees average daytime highs of 28°C and overnight lows near 21°C, with 279 mm of rain across 25.3 wet days and about 12.8 hours of daylight. It is the 6th-warmest and 1st-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 8% of the time in January, and the air most often feels oppressive.

Daylight stretches from about 12 h 54 min at the start of January to 12 h 42 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, January is Balaka's 12th-clearest and 11th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Balaka's year-round climate.

Daytime high
28°
6th warmest
Overnight low
21°
10th coldest
Rainfall
279 mm
25.3 wet days
Daylight
12 h 48 min
5:26 AM – 6:13 PM
Cloud cover
80%
12th clearest
Wind
6 km/h
11th windiest
Solar energy
5.35 kWh/m²
Travel score
3.7
out of 10

Balaka is city in Malawi.

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 Balaka 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 31°C. Set against its neighbours, January runs about 2°C cooler than December and on par with February.

20°25°30°35°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
12922
22922
32922
42922
52922
62922
72922
82922
92922
102821
112821
122821
132821
142821
152821
162821
172821
182821
192821
202821
212821
222821
232821
242821
252821
262821
272821
282821
292821
302821
312821

How January really feels in Balaka

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.

Balaka weather by month

How January compares with the rest of the year at a glance. January is the 6th-warmest and 1st-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan28° / 21°27925.312.83.7
Feb28° / 21°19019.112.54.2
Mar29° / 21°12216.312.14.9
Apr28° / 19°255.311.77.2
May27° / 17°5111.38.4
Jun25° / 15°20.811.18.8
Jul24° / 14°30.911.28.9
Aug27° / 16°20.511.58.6
Sep30° / 18°20.511.96.8
Oct32° / 21°152.312.35.2
Nov32° / 22°598.312.74.1
Dec30° / 22°16720.512.93.7

Cloud cover in January

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 8% of the time in January, the cloudiest month of the year.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 12% of January, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 80%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
12476
22476
32476
42377
52377
62278
72179
82179
92080
102080
111882
121882
131882
141882
151882
161882
171783
181783
191783
201783
211783
221882
231882
241882
251783
261882
271981
281981
291981
302179
312278

Chance of precipitation in January

Any precipitation

Balaka gets around 279 mm of rain over 25.3 wet days in January, the wettest month. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Day to day, the chance of measurable rain averages around 80% and peaks near 82% on the wettest days.

0%20%40%60%80%151015202531
Rain chance (%)
176
277
377
477
578
678
779
880
980
1081
1181
1281
1381
1481
1581
1681
1782
1882
1982
2082
2182
2282
2382
2482
2582
2682
2781
2881
2980
3080
3179

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 50% of days. Sticky, muggy-or-worse air turns up on roughly 96% of them.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Humid (%)Muggy (%)Oppressive (%)
145244
245145
345145
445145
545145
655045
755046
854946
954947
1044847
1144847
1244848
1344848
1444749
1544749
1644650
1744650
1844551
1934552
2034453
2134354
2234354
2334255
2434255
2534255
2634156
2734156
2834156
2934057
3034156
3134156

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 6 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
236calm
246calm
256calm
266calm
276calm
286calm
296calm
306calm
316calm

Sunrise & sunset in January

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 12 h 54 min at the start of January to 12 h 42 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days shrink by about 12 minutes over January. Sunrise moves from 5:17 AM to 5:33 AM, and sunset from 6:10 PM to 6:14 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
112.95:176:10
212.95:186:10
312.95:186:10
412.95:196:11
512.95:196:11
612.95:206:11
712.95:206:11
812.85:216:12
912.85:226:12
1012.85:226:12
1112.85:236:13
1212.85:236:13
1312.85:246:13
1412.85:246:13
1512.85:256:13
1612.85:266:13
1712.85:266:14
1812.85:276:14
1912.85:276:14
2012.85:286:14
2112.85:286:14
2212.85:296:14
2312.75:296:14
2412.75:306:14
2512.75:306:14
2612.75:316:14
2712.75:316:14
2812.75:326:14
2912.75:326:14
3012.75:336:14
3112.75:336:14

Solar energy in January

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in January, about 5.35 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 4.41 kWh/m² to a high of 6.71 kWh/m² in October across the year — January's 5.35 kWh/m² falls in the middle.

0246151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
15.6Bright
25.5Bright
35.5Bright
45.5Bright
55.5Bright
65.5Bright
75.5Bright
85.4Bright
95.4Bright
105.4Bright
115.4Bright
125.4Bright
135.4Bright
145.4Bright
155.4Bright
165.4Bright
175.4Bright
185.4Bright
195.4Bright
205.4Bright
215.4Bright
225.4Bright
235.4Bright
245.4Bright
255.4Bright
265.4Bright
275.4Bright
285.4Bright
295.4Bright
305.4Bright
315.4Bright
Planning a trip in January

Hazard calendar for Balaka

In seasonPeak

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

Balaka's monsoon runs December–February, when most of the year's rain falls.

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

Is January a good time to visit Balaka?

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

3.7
Sightseeing
11th-best month of the year
4.5
Beach & pool
12th-best month of the year

January is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Balaka.

What to pack for Balaka in January

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

In January, Balaka sees daytime highs around 28°C and nights near 21°C. Pack light clothes and rain gear. Worth having: sun protection. About 25 days see rain.

light clothesrain gearsun protection

UV index in Balaka in January

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in January peaks around 16 (very high — sun protection essential). The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Balaka peaks around January 18 at about 15 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near June 19 at about 8 (very high).

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

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecExtremeVery highExtremeJan 18UV 15Jun 19UV 8
UV index (midday)Level
Jan16Extreme
Feb15Extreme
Mar15Extreme
Apr12Extreme
May9Very high
Jun8Very high
Jul9Very high
Aug10Very high
Sep11Extreme
Oct13Extreme
Nov13Extreme
Dec14Extreme

Air quality in Balaka 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 Balaka is worst in August — around 46 µg/m³ PM2.5 (poor), about 3.3× the cleanest month (December, 14 µg/m³).

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

0204060JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModeratePoorModerateAug 1746 µg/m³Dec 2014 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan15Moderate
Feb19Moderate
Mar22Moderate
Apr25Moderate
May32Moderate
Jun36Poor
Jul41Poor
Aug46Poor
Sep42Poor
Oct28Moderate
Nov17Moderate
Dec14Moderate
Location & terrain

Where is Balaka?

Balaka sits at 15.0°S, 35.0°E, 633 m above sea level, in Malawi. The nearest listed city is Liwonde, 31 km away.

ZombaMangochiUlonguéMwanzaBlantyreDedza

Topography around Balaka

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Balaka has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 80 m around an average of 636 m above sea level; within 16 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 327 m; within 80 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,811 m.

The land around Balaka is covered by cropland (57%) and artificial surfaces (23%) within 3 km, cropland (65%) within 16 km, and cropland (48%) and shrubs (24%) within 80 km.

3 km
80 m
16 km
327 m
80 km
1,811 m
treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaceswaterwetland
January weather nearby: Liwonde 31 km · Ntcheu 39 km · Zomba 60 km · Mangochi 65 km · Ulongué 70 km · Mwanza 83 km · Blantyre 90 km · Dedza 95 km

Malawi travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 2
Exercise Increased Caution
Power plugs
Type G
230 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 53% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$672
2025
Happiness
3.3 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
18%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
1.8
per 100k, 2012
Road deaths
33.4
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
Low
World Bank
English
Low
EF EPI 465
Religion
Protestant 34%other Christian 27%Roman Catholic 17%Muslim 14%

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 Balaka (-14.9793°, 34.9558°, elevation 633 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).