Karachayevsk weather in January

In January, Karachayevsk sees average daytime highs of 1°C and overnight lows near -9°C, with 49 mm of precipitation across 8.7 wet days and about 9.1 hours of daylight. It is the 12th-warmest and 11th-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 1°C through the month. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 31% of the time in January, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 8 h 48 min at the start of January to 9 h 36 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, January is Karachayevsk's 7th-clearest and 2nd-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Karachayevsk's year-round climate.

Daytime high
12th warmest
Overnight low
-9°
1st coldest
Precipitation
49 mm
8.7 wet days
Daylight
9 h 06 min
7:49 AM – 4:54 PM
Cloud cover
60%
7th clearest
Wind
6 km/h
2nd windiest
Solar energy
1.99 kWh/m²
Travel score
0.0
out of 10

Karachayevsk is town in the Karachay-Cherkess Republic, Russia.

Density
1,711/km²
people per km²
Founded
1927

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 1°C through the month.

A typical January day in Karachayevsk reaches about 1°C in the afternoon and slips back to -9°C overnight — a 10°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between -5°C and 6°C. Set against its neighbours, January runs about 2°C cooler than December and about 1°C cooler than February.

-20°-10°10°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
11-8
21-8
31-8
41-9
51-9
61-9
71-9
81-9
91-9
101-9
111-9
121-9
131-9
141-9
151-10
161-10
171-10
181-10
190-10
200-10
210-10
220-10
230-10
240-9
250-9
261-9
271-9
281-9
291-9
301-9
311-9

How January really feels in Karachayevsk

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.

Karachayevsk weather by month

How January compares with the rest of the year at a glance. January is the 12th-warmest and 11th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan / -9°498.79.19.10.0
Feb / -8°508.48.210.20.0
Mar / -4°10013.410.911.60.3
Apr11° / -1°12415.65.813.22.2
May16° / 17820.50.814.53.7
Jun19° / 20820.9015.24.6
Jul21° / 10°17719.4014.95.3
Aug22° / 10°15117.3013.85.7
Sep18° / 11512.90.112.35.7
Oct14° / 8610.6210.84.0
Nov / -4°548.35.19.51.0
Dec / -8°497.86.98.80.0

Cloud cover in January

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 31% of the time in January.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 12% of January, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 56%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
14456
24357
34357
44456
54357
64357
74357
84357
94456
104555
114555
124555
134654
144654
154654
164654
174654
184753
194654
204555
214456
224456
234456
244357
254357
264357
274258
284159
294060
304060
314159

Chance of precipitation in January

Any precipitationSnow

Karachayevsk gets around 49 mm of rain and snow over 8.7 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 28% and peaks near 30% on the wettest days, and about 9 days bring snow.

0%10%20%30%40%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
12626
22626
32726
42726
52727
62727
72828
82828
92828
102828
112828
122828
132828
142828
152728
162728
172729
182729
192829
202829
212829
222830
232830
242830
252931
262931
272932
283032
293032
303032
313032

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
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 8 h 48 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 48 minutes over January. Sunrise moves from 7:52 AM to 7:39 AM, and sunset from 4:39 PM to 5:13 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
18.87:524:39
28.87:524:40
38.87:524:41
48.87:524:42
58.87:524:42
68.97:524:43
78.97:524:44
88.97:524:45
98.97:524:46
108.97:514:47
119.07:514:48
129.07:514:49
139.07:514:51
149.07:504:52
159.07:504:53
169.17:494:54
179.17:494:55
189.17:484:56
199.27:484:57
209.27:474:59
219.27:475:00
229.37:465:01
239.37:455:02
249.37:455:04
259.37:445:05
269.47:435:06
279.47:425:07
289.57:415:09
299.57:415:10
309.57:405:11
319.67:395:13

Solar energy in January

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in January, about 1.99 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 1.67 kWh/m² to a high of 5.88 kWh/m² in July across the year — January's 1.99 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

0123151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
11.7Dim
21.7Dim
31.7Dim
41.8Dim
51.8Dim
61.8Dim
71.8Dim
81.8Dim
91.8Dim
101.9Dim
111.9Dim
121.9Dim
131.9Dim
141.9Dim
152.0Dim
162.0Dim
172.0Moderate
182.0Moderate
192.1Moderate
202.1Moderate
212.1Moderate
222.1Moderate
232.2Moderate
242.2Moderate
252.2Moderate
262.2Moderate
272.3Moderate
282.3Moderate
292.3Moderate
302.4Moderate
312.4Moderate
Planning a trip in January

Hazard calendar for Karachayevsk

In seasonPeak

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

Karachayevsk's rainy season runs March–September, when most of the year's rain falls.

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

Is January a good time to visit Karachayevsk?

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 Karachayevsk.

What to pack for Karachayevsk in January

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

In January, Karachayevsk sees daytime highs around 1°C and nights near -9°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 Karachayevsk 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 Karachayevsk peaks around July 11 at about 10 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near January 12 at about 2 (low).

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

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLowModerateVery highExtremeVery highModerateLowJul 11UV 10Jan 12UV 2
UV index (midday)Level
Jan2Low
Feb3Moderate
Mar3Moderate
Apr7Very high
May8Very high
Jun10Very high
Jul10Extreme
Aug9Very high
Sep7Very high
Oct4Moderate
Nov2Moderate
Dec2Low
Location & terrain

Where is Karachayevsk?

Karachayevsk sits at 43.8°N, 41.9°E, 924 m above sea level, in Russia. The nearest listed city is Zelenchukskaya, 28 km away.

Topography around Karachayevsk

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Karachayevsk has large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 731 m around an average of 1,031 m above sea level; within 16 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,299 m; within 80 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 5,246 m.

The land around Karachayevsk is covered by trees (70%) within 3 km, trees (54%) and grassland (39%) within 16 km, and grassland (42%) and trees (31%) within 80 km.

3 km
731 m
16 km
1,299 m
80 km
5,246 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainsnow and icewatermoss and lichen
January weather nearby: Zelenchukskaya 28 km · Ust’-Dzheguta 35 km · Cherkessk 51 km · Uchkeken 52 km · Kislovodsk 67 km · Suvorovskaya 76 km · Otradnaya 76 km · Yessentuki 82 km

Russia travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 4
Do Not Travel
Power plugs
Type C / F
230 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 32% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$17,547
2025
Happiness
5.8 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
76%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
6.8
per 100k, 2021
Road deaths
12
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
High
World Bank
English
Moderate
EF EPI 521
Religion
other 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 Karachayevsk (43.7723°, 41.9137°, elevation 924 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. Topography is sampled from the Copernicus DEM GLO-90 elevation model (© ESA/Airbus) and ESA WorldCover 2021 land cover (CC BY 4.0).