Petrozavodsk weather in January

In January, Petrozavodsk sees average daytime highs of -6°C and overnight lows near -12°C, with 32 mm of precipitation across 8.8 wet days and about 5.9 hours of daylight. It is the 12th-warmest and 11th-wettest month of the year here.

Highs ease over the month, from about -6°C in the first days to -7°C by the end. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 5% of the time in January, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 5 hours at the start of January to 7 hours by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, January is Petrozavodsk's 10th-clearest and 4th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Petrozavodsk's year-round climate.

Daytime high
-6°
12th warmest
Overnight low
-12°
2nd coldest
Precipitation
32 mm
8.8 wet days
Daylight
5 h 48 min
9:58 AM – 3:45 PM
Cloud cover
89%
10th clearest
Wind
13 km/h
4th windiest
Solar energy
0.22 kWh/m²
Travel score
0.0
out of 10

Petrozavodsk is capital city of the Republic of Karelia in north-western Russia.

Density
2,068/km²
people per km²
Founded
1703

Air quality: WHO Ambient Air Quality Database. Density & description: Wikidata (CC0), GeoNames.

Temperature in January

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Highs ease over the month, from about -6°C in the first days to -7°C by the end.

A typical January day in Petrozavodsk reaches about -6°C in the afternoon and slips back to -12°C overnight — a 5°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between -16°C and 1°C. Set against its neighbours, January runs about 3°C cooler than December and about 1°C cooler than February.

-30°-20°-10°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
1-6-10
2-6-11
3-6-11
4-6-11
5-6-11
6-6-11
7-6-11
8-6-11
9-6-11
10-6-11
11-6-11
12-6-11
13-6-11
14-6-11
15-6-11
16-6-11
17-6-11
18-6-11
19-6-11
20-6-12
21-6-12
22-7-12
23-7-12
24-7-12
25-7-13
26-7-13
27-7-13
28-7-13
29-7-13
30-7-13
31-7-13

How January really feels in Petrozavodsk

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.

Petrozavodsk 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-6° / -12°328.8115.90.0
Feb-6° / -12°278.29.98.40.0
Mar-0° / -7°338.89.511.30.0
Apr / -2°3794.914.30.9
May14° / 5510.91.317.23.7
Jun18° / 6812.10195.5
Jul21° / 13°8614018.25.8
Aug19° / 11°8813.4015.65.4
Sep13° / 5811.6012.63.5
Oct / 5511.52.89.60.6
Nov-0° / -4°491186.70.0
Dec-4° / -8°4111.411.950.0

Cloud cover in January

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 5% of the time in January.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 4% of January, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 91%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
1991
2991
3991
4892
5892
6892
7892
8892
9892
10892
11892
12991
13991
14991
151090
161090
171090
18991
19991
20991
21991
22991
23991
24991
25991
26991
27991
28991
29892
30892
31892

Chance of precipitation in January

Any precipitationSnow

Petrozavodsk gets around 32 mm of rain and snow over 8.8 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 30% and peaks near 32% on the wettest days, and about 11 days bring snow.

0%10%20%30%40%50%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
13238
23237
33237
43137
53137
63037
73036
83036
92936
102937
112937
122937
132937
142937
152937
162937
172937
182937
192937
202936
212936
222936
232936
242936
252936
262936
272936
282936
292936
302937
312937

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 13 km/h in January.

Across January, daily wind ranges from about 13 km/h on the calmest days to 14 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

05101520151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
114light breeze
214light breeze
314light breeze
414light breeze
514light breeze
614light breeze
714light breeze
814light breeze
914light breeze
1014light breeze
1114light breeze
1214light breeze
1314light breeze
1413light breeze
1513light breeze
1613light breeze
1713light breeze
1813light breeze
1913light breeze
2013light breeze
2113light breeze
2213light breeze
2313light breeze
2413light breeze
2513light breeze
2613light breeze
2713light breeze
2813light breeze
2913light breeze
3013light breeze
3113light breeze

Sunrise & sunset in January

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 5 hours at the start of January to 7 hours by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 120 minutes over January. Sunrise moves from 10:16 AM to 9:26 AM, and sunset from 3:15 PM to 4:26 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
15.010:163:15
25.010:163:17
35.110:153:18
45.110:143:20
55.110:133:22
65.210:123:24
75.210:113:25
85.310:103:27
95.310:093:29
105.410:083:32
115.510:063:34
125.510:053:36
135.610:033:38
145.610:023:41
155.710:003:43
165.89:583:45
175.99:573:48
185.99:553:50
196.09:533:53
206.19:513:56
216.29:493:58
226.29:474:01
236.39:454:04
246.49:424:06
256.59:404:09
266.69:384:12
276.69:364:15
286.79:334:17
296.89:314:20
306.99:294:23
317.09:264:26

Solar energy in January

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in January, about 0.22 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 0.1 kWh/m² to a high of 5.43 kWh/m² in June across the year — January's 0.22 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

00.511.52151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
10.1Dim
20.1Dim
30.1Dim
40.1Dim
50.1Dim
60.1Dim
70.1Dim
80.1Dim
90.2Dim
100.2Dim
110.2Dim
120.2Dim
130.2Dim
140.2Dim
150.2Dim
160.2Dim
170.2Dim
180.2Dim
190.3Dim
200.3Dim
210.3Dim
220.3Dim
230.3Dim
240.3Dim
250.3Dim
260.3Dim
270.4Dim
280.4Dim
290.4Dim
300.4Dim
310.4Dim
Planning a trip in January

Is January a good time to visit Petrozavodsk?

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

0.0
Sightseeing
8th-best month of the year
0.0
Beach & pool
6th-best month of the year

January is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Petrozavodsk.

What to pack for Petrozavodsk in January

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

In January, Petrozavodsk sees daytime highs around -6°C and nights near -12°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 Petrozavodsk in January

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in January peaks around 0. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Petrozavodsk peaks around July 11 at about 5 (moderate) — a little sun protection helps at midday. It bottoms out near December 17 at about 0 (low).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 4 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLowModerateLowJul 11UV 5Dec 17UV 0
UV index (midday)Level
Jan0Low
Feb1Low
Mar1Low
Apr3Moderate
May4Moderate
Jun5Moderate
Jul5Moderate
Aug4Moderate
Sep2Moderate
Oct1Low
Nov0Low
Dec0Low
Location & terrain

Where is Petrozavodsk?

Petrozavodsk sits at 61.8°N, 34.3°E, 73 m above sea level, in Russia. The nearest listed city is Kondopoga, 47 km away.

Topography around Petrozavodsk

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Petrozavodsk has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 125 m around an average of 85 m above sea level; within 16 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 250 m; within 80 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 294 m.

The land around Petrozavodsk is covered by artificial surfaces (54%) and trees (29%) within 3 km, trees (64%) and water (23%) within 16 km, and trees (63%) and water (32%) within 80 km.

3 km
125 m
16 km
250 m
80 km
294 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaceswaterwetland
January weather nearby: Kondopoga 47 km · Podporozh’ye 98 km · Lodeynoye Pole 125 km · Medvezh’yegorsk 126 km · Sortavala 192 km · Segezha 218 km · Volkhov 234 km · Priozërsk 239 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 Petrozavodsk (61.7849°, 34.3469°, elevation 73 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).