Podgorica weather in January

In January, Podgorica sees average daytime highs of 7°C and overnight lows near -0°C, with 180 mm of precipitation across 12.1 wet days and about 9.2 hours of daylight. It is the 12th-warmest and 6th-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 7°C through the month. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 36% 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 42 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, January is Podgorica's 7th-clearest and 4th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Podgorica's year-round climate.

Daytime high
12th warmest
Overnight low
-0°
1st coldest
Precipitation
180 mm
12.1 wet days
Daylight
9 h 12 min
7:16 AM – 4:29 PM
Cloud cover
58%
7th clearest
Wind
6 km/h
4th windiest
Solar energy
1.74 kWh/m²
Travel score
0.8
out of 10

Podgorica is capital city of Montenegro.

Air quality
Moderate
PM10 40.3 µg/m³ · 2018
Density
197/km²
people per km²
Founded
1946

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 7°C through the month.

A typical January day in Podgorica reaches about 7°C in the afternoon and slips back to -0°C overnight — a 7°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 2°C and 11°C. Set against its neighbours, January runs about 1°C cooler than December and about 1°C cooler than February.

-10°-5°10°15°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
170
270
370
470
570
670
770
870
970
1070
1170
1270
1370
1470
1570
1670
1770
1870
1970
2070
2170
2270
2370
2470
2570
2670
2770
287-1
297-1
307-1
317-1

How January really feels in Podgorica

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
wind chill below the day's low

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

Podgorica weather by month

How January compares with the rest of the year at a glance. January is the 12th-warmest and 6th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan / -0°18012.14.29.20.8
Feb / 19311.64.210.31.3
Mar12° / 18912.22.911.63.0
Apr16° / 15812.40.713.14.6
May20° / 11°12112.3014.46.1
Jun25° / 15°679.70157.2
Jul28° / 17°436.9014.87.3
Aug28° / 17°415.9013.77.2
Sep23° / 13°1648.7012.37.2
Oct18° / 212100.110.85.9
Nov13° / 28612.80.69.63.3
Dec / 27113.538.91.2

Cloud cover in January

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 36% of the time in January.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 10% of January, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 54%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
14654
24654
34654
44654
54654
64654
74654
84753
94753
104753
114654
124654
134654
144654
154654
164753
174654
184654
194654
204654
214654
224654
234654
244555
254555
264555
274456
284456
294456
304456
314456

Chance of precipitation in January

Any precipitationSnow

Podgorica gets around 180 mm of rain and snow over 12.1 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 39% and peaks near 42% on the wettest days, and about 4 days bring snow.

0%10%20%30%40%50%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
14012
24012
33912
43912
53811
63711
73711
83711
93611
103611
113611
123712
133712
143812
153812
163913
173913
184013
194014
204114
214115
224115
234215
244216
254216
264216
274116
284116
294116
304117
314117

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 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
17calm
27calm
37calm
47calm
57calm
67calm
77calm
86calm
96calm
106calm
116calm
126calm
136calm
146calm
156calm
166calm
176calm
186calm
196calm
206calm
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 42 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 48 minutes over January. Sunrise moves from 7:18 AM to 7:06 AM, and sunset from 4:14 PM to 4:47 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
18.97:184:14
29.07:184:15
39.07:184:16
49.07:184:17
59.07:184:18
69.07:184:19
79.07:184:19
89.07:184:20
99.17:184:21
109.17:184:22
119.17:174:23
129.17:174:24
139.17:174:25
149.27:174:26
159.27:164:28
169.27:164:29
179.27:154:30
189.37:154:31
199.37:144:32
209.37:144:33
219.47:134:34
229.47:134:36
239.47:124:37
249.47:114:38
259.57:114:39
269.57:104:40
279.57:094:42
289.67:084:43
299.67:084:44
309.67:074:45
319.77:064:47

Solar energy in January

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in January, about 1.74 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 1.43 kWh/m² to a high of 6.5 kWh/m² in July across the year — January's 1.74 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

0123151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
11.5Dim
21.5Dim
31.5Dim
41.5Dim
51.6Dim
61.6Dim
71.6Dim
81.6Dim
91.6Dim
101.6Dim
111.6Dim
121.7Dim
131.7Dim
141.7Dim
151.7Dim
161.7Dim
171.8Dim
181.8Dim
191.8Dim
201.8Dim
211.8Dim
221.8Dim
231.9Dim
241.9Dim
251.9Dim
261.9Dim
271.9Dim
282.0Dim
292.0Dim
302.0Moderate
312.0Moderate
Planning a trip in January

Is January a good time to visit Podgorica?

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

0.8
Sightseeing
12th-best month of the year
0.0
Beach & pool
10th-best month of the year

January is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Podgorica.

What to pack for Podgorica in January

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

In January, Podgorica sees daytime highs around 7°C and nights near -0°C. Pack a warm layer. Worth having: a heavy coat and rain gear. About 12 days see rain.

a warm layera heavy coatrain gear

Sea temperature near Podgorica in January

The nearest coast averages about 14°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 36 km away) is warmest in August at about 25°C and coldest in February near 13°C.

It's comfortable for a long swim from May 24 to Oct 31 — about 5.3 months when the water holds above 20°C.

10°15°20°25°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbracingcoolrefreshingwarmcomfortable to swim
Sea temperature (°C)Comfort
Jan14Bracing
Feb13Bracing
Mar14Bracing
Apr15Cool
May19Cool
Jun23Refreshing
Jul25Warm
Aug25Warm
Sep23Refreshing
Oct21Refreshing
Nov19Cool
Dec16Cool

UV index in Podgorica 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 Podgorica peaks around July 17 at about 9 (very high) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 21 at about 1 (low).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 8 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLowModerateHighVery highModerateLowJul 17UV 9Dec 21UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan1Low
Feb3Moderate
Mar5High
Apr7High
May7High
Jun9Very high
Jul9Very high
Aug9Very high
Sep6High
Oct4Moderate
Nov2Low
Dec1Low
Location & terrain

Where is Podgorica?

Podgorica sits at 42.4°N, 19.3°E, 49 m above sea level, in Montenegro. The nearest listed city is Cetinje, 29 km away.

CetinjeBečićiBudvaKotorBarNikšićShkodërPerast

Topography around Podgorica

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Podgorica has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 179 m around an average of 59 m above sea level; within 16 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,224 m; within 80 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,619 m.

The land around Podgorica is covered by artificial surfaces (49%) and trees (24%) within 3 km, trees (43%) and grassland (25%) within 16 km, and trees (50%), grassland (24%) and water (20%) within 80 km.

3 km
179 m
16 km
1,224 m
80 km
2,619 m
treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwaterwetland
January weather nearby: Cetinje 29 km · Bečići 37 km · Budva 39 km · Kotor 41 km · Bar 41 km · Nikšić 45 km · Shkodër 46 km · Perast 47 km

Montenegro travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 1
Exercise Normal Precautions
Power plugs
Type C / F
230 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 42% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$14,817
2025
Happiness
6.1 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
86%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
0.8
per 100k, 2023
Road deaths
7.6
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
Upper middle
World Bank
Religion
Orthodox 72%Muslim 19%Catholic 3%other 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 Podgorica (42.4412°, 19.2631°, elevation 49 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).