Sochi weather in January

In January, Sochi sees average daytime highs of 8°C and overnight lows near 5°C, with 145 mm of precipitation across 15 wet days and about 9.1 hours of daylight. It is the 11th-warmest and 2nd-wettest month of the year here.

Highs ease over the month, from about 9°C in the first days to 8°C by the end. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 19% 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 Sochi's 12th-clearest and 1st-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Sochi's year-round climate.

Daytime high
11th warmest
Overnight low
2nd coldest
Precipitation
145 mm
15 wet days
Daylight
9 h 06 min
7:58 AM – 5:03 PM
Cloud cover
70%
12th clearest
Wind
12 km/h
1st windiest
Solar energy
1.51 kWh/m²
Travel score
1.4
out of 10

Sochi is city in Krasnodar Krai, Russia.

Density
1,853/km²
people per km²
Founded
1838

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 9°C in the first days to 8°C by the end.

A typical January day in Sochi reaches about 8°C in the afternoon and slips back to 5°C overnight — a 3°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 4°C and 13°C. Set against its neighbours, January runs about 2°C cooler than December and on par with February.

-5°10°15°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
1106
296
396
496
596
696
796
896
996
1096
1196
1296
1395
1485
1585
1685
1785
1885
1985
2085
2185
2285
2385
2485
2585
2685
2785
2885
2985
3085
3185

Sochi weather by month

How January compares with the rest of the year at a glance. January is the 11th-warmest and 2nd-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan / 145155.69.11.4
Feb / 10811.94.810.21.4
Mar10° / 11213.62.911.62.2
Apr14° / 10°8710.70.413.24.0
May19° / 14°8110.1014.56.1
Jun23° / 19°729.5015.27.3
Jul26° / 22°809.9014.97.4
Aug26° / 23°669.3013.87.4
Sep23° / 20°1129.7012.37.3
Oct19° / 16°13410.7010.86.2
Nov14° / 11°13110.919.54.2
Dec11° / 14614.22.88.82.3

Cloud cover in January

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 19% 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 69%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
13169
23169
33169
43070
53070
63070
73070
83070
93070
103169
113169
123169
133169
143268
153268
163367
173367
183367
193367
203268
213268
223169
233169
243169
253070
263070
273070
282971
292971
303070
313070

Chance of precipitation in January

Any precipitationSnow

Sochi gets around 145 mm of rain and snow over 15 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 48% and peaks near 51% on the wettest days, and about 6 days bring snow.

0%20%40%60%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
15111
25011
35011
45011
55011
65012
74912
84912
94913
104813
114814
124814
134815
144716
154716
164717
174718
184719
194619
204620
214721
224722
234723
244823
254824
264924
274925
284925
294925
304924
314824

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 12 km/h in January, the windiest month of the year.

Across January, daily wind ranges from about 12 km/h on the calmest days to 13 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

05101520151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
112light breeze
212light breeze
312light breeze
412light breeze
512light breeze
612light breeze
712calm
812calm
912calm
1012calm
1112calm
1212calm
1312calm
1412light breeze
1512light breeze
1612light breeze
1712light breeze
1812light breeze
1912light breeze
2012light 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 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 8:00 AM to 7:47 AM, and sunset from 4:48 PM to 5:22 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
18.88:004:48
28.88:004:49
38.88:004:50
48.88:004:51
58.98:004:52
68.98:004:53
78.98:004:54
88.98:004:55
98.98:004:56
109.08:004:57
119.07:594:58
129.07:594:59
139.07:595:00
149.07:585:01
159.17:585:02
169.17:585:03
179.17:575:04
189.17:575:06
199.27:565:07
209.27:565:08
219.27:555:09
229.37:545:10
239.37:545:12
249.37:535:13
259.47:525:14
269.47:515:15
279.47:515:17
289.57:505:18
299.57:495:19
309.57:485:21
319.67:475:22

Solar energy in January

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in January, about 1.51 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 1.32 kWh/m² to a high of 6.44 kWh/m² in June across the year — January's 1.51 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

00.511.522.5151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
11.3Dim
21.3Dim
31.3Dim
41.3Dim
51.3Dim
61.4Dim
71.4Dim
81.4Dim
91.4Dim
101.4Dim
111.4Dim
121.5Dim
131.5Dim
141.5Dim
151.5Dim
161.5Dim
171.6Dim
181.6Dim
191.6Dim
201.6Dim
211.6Dim
221.6Dim
231.7Dim
241.7Dim
251.7Dim
261.7Dim
271.7Dim
281.8Dim
291.8Dim
301.8Dim
311.9Dim
Planning a trip in January

Is January a good time to visit Sochi?

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

1.4
Sightseeing
11th-best month of the year
0.0
Beach & pool
9th-best month of the year

January is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Sochi.

What to pack for Sochi in January

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

In January, Sochi sees daytime highs around 8°C and nights near 5°C. Pack a warm layer and rain gear. About 15 days see rain.

a warm layerrain gear

Sea temperature near Sochi in January

The nearest coast averages about 10°C in January — the other half of the beach question. The full-year curve and swim-comfort zones are below.

The sea offshore is warmest in August at about 26°C and coldest in February near 9°C.

It's comfortable for a long swim from Jun 6 to Oct 18 — about 4.4 months when the water holds above 20°C.

10°20°30°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbracingcoolrefreshingwarmtropicalcomfortable to swim
Sea temperature (°C)Comfort
Jan10Bracing
Feb9Bracing
Mar9Bracing
Apr12Bracing
May17Cool
Jun22Refreshing
Jul25Warm
Aug26Warm
Sep24Warm
Oct20Refreshing
Nov16Cool
Dec13Bracing

UV index in Sochi 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 Sochi peaks around July 17 at about 8 (very high) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near January 1 at about 1 (low).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 7 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLowModerateHighVery highHighModerateLowJul 17UV 8Jan 1UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan1Low
Feb2Low
Mar2Moderate
Apr6High
May6High
Jun8Very high
Jul8Very high
Aug8Very high
Sep6High
Oct3Moderate
Nov2Low
Dec1Low
Location & terrain

Where is Sochi?

Sochi sits at 43.6°N, 39.7°E, 28 m above sea level, in Russia. The nearest listed city is Dagomys, 9.0 km away.

Topography around Sochi

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Sochi has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 207 m around an average of 43 m above sea level; within 16 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,008 m; within 80 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 3,254 m.

The land around Sochi is covered by artificial surfaces (37%), trees (32%) and water (29%) within 3 km, water (49%) and trees (46%) within 16 km, and trees (56%) and water (33%) within 80 km.

3 km
207 m
16 km
1,008 m
80 km
3,254 m
treesgrasslandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater
January weather nearby: Dagomys 9.0 km · Khosta 15 km · Kudepsta 18 km · Adler 25 km · Lazarevskoye 47 km · Tuapse 76 km · Khadyzhensk 93 km · Apsheronsk 96 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 Sochi (43.597°, 39.7248°, elevation 28 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).