León weather in January

In January, León sees average daytime highs of 32°C and overnight lows near 24°C, with 4 mm of rain across 0.8 wet days and about 11.4 hours of daylight. It is the 4th-warmest and 11th-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 32°C through the month. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 73% of the time in January, and the air most often feels muggy.

Daylight stretches from about 11 h 18 min at the start of January to 11 h 24 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, January is León's 3rd-clearest and 3rd-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see León's year-round climate.

Daytime high
32°
4th warmest
Overnight low
24°
3rd coldest
Rainfall
4 mm
0.8 wet days
Daylight
11 h 18 min
6:17 AM – 5:37 PM
Cloud cover
28%
3rd clearest
Wind
12 km/h
3rd windiest
Solar energy
5.62 kWh/m²
Travel score
5.5
out of 10

León is colonial city and capital of the León Department, Nicaragua.

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 32°C through the month.

A typical January day in León reaches about 32°C in the afternoon and slips back to 24°C overnight — a 8°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 30°C and 33°C. Set against its neighbours, January runs on par with December and on par with February.

20°25°30°35°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
13124
23124
33124
43124
53124
63124
73124
83124
93124
103124
113124
123124
133124
143224
153224
163224
173224
183224
193224
203224
213224
223224
233224
243224
253224
263224
273224
283224
293224
303224
313224

How January really feels in León

Once humidity and wind are folded in, January averages 31 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
31
heat index over the day's high
Days feeling ≤ C
0
wind chill below the day's low

The story in January is heat — humidity pushes the afternoon "feels like" well above the raw temperature.

León weather by month

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

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan32° / 24°40.811.45.5
Feb32° / 24°20.711.65.2
Mar33° / 25°61.511.94.7
Apr33° / 26°387.812.34.0
May31° / 25°28121.312.63.1
Jun31° / 25°27822.912.73.1
Jul32° / 25°14916.512.73.5
Aug31° / 25°23122.812.43.1
Sep30° / 24°37027.412.12.9
Oct29° / 24°40925.811.73.3
Nov30° / 24°11512.611.44.6
Dec31° / 24°82.311.35.6

Cloud cover in January

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 73% of the time in January.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 17% of January, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 9%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
18911
28812
38812
48911
58911
68911
78911
88911
98911
109010
119010
129010
139010
149010
159010
16919
17919
18919
19919
20928
21928
22928
23928
24928
25928
26928
27928
28928
29928
30919
31928

Chance of precipitation in January

Any precipitation

León gets around 4 mm of rain over 0.8 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 2% and peaks near 5% on the wettest days.

0%10%20%30%151015202531
Rain chance (%)
15
24
34
44
54
64
74
84
93
103
113
123
132
142
152
162
172
182
192
201
211
221
231
241
251
262
272
282
292
302
312

Humidity in January

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

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

By dew point, January lands in the muggy band about 54% of days. Sticky, muggy-or-worse air turns up on roughly 65% of them.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Dry (%)Comfortable (%)Humid (%)Muggy (%)Oppressive (%)
103216016
203226015
304235815
404245814
504255714
604265713
705275513
805285413
905295412
1005295412
1105305312
1205315311
1305325211
1406325111
1506325111
1606335110
1706335110
1806335110
190633529
200633529
210633529
220633538
230633538
240533548
250533548
260533557
270533557
280534547
290534547
300434557
311435537

Wind in January

Winds average 12 km/h in January.

Across January, daily wind ranges from about 11 km/h on the calmest days to 13 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

051015151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
111calm
211calm
311calm
411calm
511calm
612calm
712calm
812calm
912calm
1012calm
1112calm
1212calm
1312calm
1412calm
1512calm
1612calm
1712light breeze
1812light breeze
1912light breeze
2012light breeze
2112light breeze
2212light breeze
2312light breeze
2412light breeze
2512light breeze
2612light breeze
2712light breeze
2812light breeze
2912light breeze
3013light breeze
3113light breeze

Sunrise & sunset in January

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 11 h 18 min at the start of January to 11 h 24 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 6 minutes over January. Sunrise moves from 6:12 AM to 6:17 AM, and sunset from 5:29 PM to 5:44 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
111.36:125:29
211.36:135:30
311.36:135:30
411.36:135:31
511.36:145:31
611.36:145:32
711.36:145:32
811.36:155:33
911.36:155:33
1011.36:155:34
1111.36:155:34
1211.36:165:35
1311.36:165:35
1411.36:165:36
1511.36:165:37
1611.36:175:37
1711.36:175:38
1811.46:175:38
1911.46:175:39
2011.46:175:39
2111.46:175:40
2211.46:175:40
2311.46:175:41
2411.46:175:41
2511.46:175:42
2611.46:185:42
2711.46:185:43
2811.46:185:43
2911.46:175:43
3011.46:175:44
3111.46:175:44

Solar energy in January

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in January, about 5.62 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 5.09 kWh/m² to a high of 6.9 kWh/m² in April across the year — January's 5.62 kWh/m² falls in the middle.

0246151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
15.5Bright
25.5Bright
35.5Bright
45.5Bright
55.5Bright
65.5Bright
75.5Bright
85.5Bright
95.5Bright
105.5Bright
115.5Bright
125.6Bright
135.6Bright
145.6Bright
155.6Bright
165.6Bright
175.6Bright
185.7Bright
195.7Bright
205.7Bright
215.7Bright
225.7Bright
235.7Bright
245.8Bright
255.8Bright
265.8Bright
275.8Bright
285.8Bright
295.9Bright
305.9Bright
315.9Bright
Planning a trip in January

Hazard calendar for León

In seasonPeak

None of León's seasonal hazards are active in January. The full-year calendar below shows when the rainy season, cyclone risk and dust haze do peak.

León sits in the Atlantic hurricane belt; the season peaks August–October.

León's monsoon runs August–October, when most of the year's rain falls.

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

Is January a good time to visit León?

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

5.5
Sightseeing
2nd-best month of the year
8.4
Beach & pool
1st-best month of the year

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

What to pack for León in January

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

In January, León sees daytime highs around 32°C and nights near 24°C. Pack light clothes. Worth having: sun protection.

light clothessun protection

Sea temperature near León in January

The nearest coast averages about 28°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 28 km away) is warmest in August at about 30°C and coldest in February near 27°C.

The water stays above 20°C all year — warm enough for a swim any month.

26°28°30°32°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecwarmtropicalcomfortable to swim
Sea temperature (°C)Comfort
Jan28Warm
Feb27Warm
Mar28Warm
Apr29Tropical
May29Tropical
Jun29Tropical
Jul29Tropical
Aug30Tropical
Sep30Tropical
Oct29Tropical
Nov29Tropical
Dec28Tropical

UV index in León in January

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in January peaks around 11 (very high — sun protection essential). The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in León peaks around March 21 at about 13 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 13 at about 9 (very high).

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

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecExtremeVery highMar 21UV 13Dec 13UV 9
UV index (midday)Level
Jan11Extreme
Feb13Extreme
Mar14Extreme
Apr13Extreme
May12Extreme
Jun13Extreme
Jul12Extreme
Aug12Extreme
Sep12Extreme
Oct11Extreme
Nov10Very high
Dec9Very high

Air quality in León 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 León is worst in April — around 35 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 3.2× the cleanest month (January, 11 µg/m³).

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

010203040JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecGoodModerateApr 2234 µg/m³Jan 1511 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan11Good
Feb13Moderate
Mar19Moderate
Apr35Moderate
May33Moderate
Jun24Moderate
Jul26Moderate
Aug22Moderate
Sep19Moderate
Oct18Moderate
Nov17Moderate
Dec12Moderate
Location & terrain

Where is León?

León sits at 12.4°N, 86.9°W, 102 m above sea level, in Nicaragua. The nearest listed city is Chichigalpa, 22 km away.

CorintoChinandegaNagaroteEl ViejoMateareCiudad Sandino

Topography around León

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around León has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 92 m around an average of 100 m above sea level; within 16 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 341 m; within 80 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,751 m.

The land around León is covered by trees (39%) and artificial surfaces (34%) within 3 km, trees (39%), grassland (30%) and cropland (26%) within 16 km, and water (34%), trees (31%) and grassland (23%) within 80 km.

3 km
92 m
16 km
341 m
80 km
1,751 m
treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaceswatermangroves
January weather nearby: Chichigalpa 22 km · La Paz Centro 24 km · Corinto 32 km · Chinandega 35 km · Nagarote 39 km · El Viejo 40 km · Mateare 54 km · Ciudad Sandino 66 km

Nicaragua travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 3
Reconsider Travel
Power plugs
Type A / B
120 V · 60 Hz
Prices
≈ 34% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$3,173
2025
Happiness
6.3 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Homicide rate
11.3
per 100k, 2021
Road deaths
16.9
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
Lower middle
World Bank
English
Moderate
EF EPI 512
Religion
Roman Catholic 45%Protestant 39%none 14%other 1%

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 León (12.4353°, -86.8786°, elevation 102 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). 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. 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).