Riyadh weather in January

In January, Riyadh sees average daytime highs of 20°C and overnight lows near 9°C, with 11 mm of rain across 2 wet days and about 10.6 hours of daylight. It is the 12th-warmest and 4th-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 20°C through the month. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 71% of the time in January, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 10 h 30 min at the start of January to 10 h 48 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, January is Riyadh's 11th-clearest and 8th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Riyadh's year-round climate.

Daytime high
20°
12th warmest
Overnight low
1st coldest
Rainfall
11 mm
2 wet days
Daylight
10 h 36 min
6:44 AM – 5:21 PM
Cloud cover
28%
11th clearest
Wind
13 km/h
8th windiest
Solar energy
4.37 kWh/m²
Travel score
8.1
out of 10

Riyadh is capital and largest city of Saudi Arabia.

Density
2,339/km²
people per km²
Founded
1746

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 20°C through the month.

A typical January day in Riyadh reaches about 20°C in the afternoon and slips back to 9°C overnight — a 12°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 15°C and 26°C. Set against its neighbours, January runs about 2°C cooler than December and about 3°C cooler than February.

10°20°30°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
1219
2219
3219
4209
5209
6209
7209
8209
9209
10209
11209
12209
13208
14208
15208
16208
17208
18208
19208
20208
21209
22209
23209
24209
25219
26219
27219
28219
29219
30219
31219

How January really feels in Riyadh

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

January sits comfortably in between — no days that feel dangerously hot or drop to a hard freeze once humidity and wind are folded in.

Riyadh weather by month

How January compares with the rest of the year at a glance. January is the 12th-warmest and 4th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan20° / 11210.68.1
Feb23° / 11°51.511.18.9
Mar28° / 15°111.911.87.9
Apr33° / 20°142.712.64.3
May39° / 25°20.613.20.9
Jun42° / 28°0013.50.0
Jul43° / 29°0013.40.0
Aug43° / 29°0012.90.0
Sep40° / 26°0012.20.4
Oct35° / 21°10.211.43.8
Nov27° / 15°112.110.88.0
Dec22° / 10°91.710.58.6

Cloud cover in January

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 71% 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 19%. Skies tend to open up as the month goes on.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
18218
28119
38020
48020
57822
67822
77822
87723
97723
107723
117723
127723
137822
147921
157921
168020
178020
188119
198218
208317
218317
228317
238416
248515
258515
268515
278614
288614
298614
308713
318713

Chance of precipitation in January

Any precipitation

Riyadh gets around 11 mm of rain over 2 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 6% and peaks near 8% on the wettest days.

0%10%20%30%151015202531
Rain chance (%)
15
25
36
46
56
67
77
87
98
108
118
128
138
148
158
168
177
187
197
207
216
226
236
246
255
265
275
285
295
305
315

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 98% of days. It rarely turns muggy — the humid and sticky bands barely register.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Dry (%)Comfortable (%)
1982
2982
3982
4973
5973
6973
7973
8973
9973
10973
11973
12982
13982
14982
15982
16982
17991
18991
19991
20991
21991
22991
23991
24991
25991
26991
27991
28982
29982
30982
31982

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
113light breeze
213light breeze
313light breeze
413light breeze
513light breeze
613light breeze
713light breeze
813light breeze
913light breeze
1013light breeze
1113light breeze
1213light breeze
1313light breeze
1413light breeze
1513light breeze
1613light breeze
1713light breeze
1813light breeze
1913light breeze
2013light breeze
2113light breeze
2213light breeze
2313light breeze
2414light breeze
2514light breeze
2614light breeze
2714light breeze
2814light breeze
2914light breeze
3014light breeze
3114light breeze

Sunrise & sunset in January

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 10 h 30 min at the start of January to 10 h 48 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 18 minutes over January. Sunrise moves from 6:41 AM to 6:41 AM, and sunset from 5:11 PM to 5:32 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
110.56:415:11
210.56:425:12
310.56:425:12
410.56:425:13
510.56:435:14
610.56:435:14
710.56:435:15
810.56:435:16
910.56:435:16
1010.66:435:17
1110.66:435:18
1210.66:445:18
1310.66:445:19
1410.66:445:20
1510.66:445:20
1610.66:445:21
1710.66:445:22
1810.66:445:23
1910.76:445:23
2010.76:435:24
2110.76:435:25
2210.76:435:25
2310.76:435:26
2410.76:435:27
2510.76:435:28
2610.86:425:28
2710.86:425:29
2810.86:425:30
2910.86:425:30
3010.86:415:31
3110.86:415:32

Solar energy in January

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in January, about 4.37 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 4.2 kWh/m² to a high of 7.73 kWh/m² in June across the year — January's 4.37 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

024151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
14.2Bright
24.2Bright
34.2Bright
44.2Bright
54.2Bright
64.2Bright
74.2Bright
84.2Bright
94.2Bright
104.2Bright
114.2Bright
124.3Bright
134.3Bright
144.3Bright
154.3Bright
164.3Bright
174.4Bright
184.4Bright
194.4Bright
204.4Bright
214.5Bright
224.5Bright
234.5Bright
244.6Bright
254.6Bright
264.7Bright
274.7Bright
284.7Bright
294.8Bright
304.8Bright
314.8Bright
Planning a trip in January

Hazard calendar for Riyadh

In seasonPeak

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

Riyadh sees seasonal dust haze (February–September), heaviest in May.

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

Is January a good time to visit Riyadh?

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

8.1
Sightseeing
3rd-best month of the year
4.5
Beach & pool
7th-best month of the year

January is one of the better times to visit Riyadh for general sightseeing.

What to pack for Riyadh in January

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

In January, Riyadh sees daytime highs around 20°C and nights near 9°C. Little to plan around — just the basics.

UV index in Riyadh in January

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in January peaks around 6 — enough to warrant sun protection. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Riyadh peaks around July 20 at about 11 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 15 at about 4 (moderate).

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

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecHighVery highVery highExtremeVery highModerateJul 20UV 11Dec 15UV 4
UV index (midday)Level
Jan6High
Feb7Very high
Mar9Very high
Apr7Very high
May10Extreme
Jun9Very high
Jul11Extreme
Aug11Extreme
Sep9Very high
Oct8Very high
Nov5Moderate
Dec3Moderate

Air quality in Riyadh 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 Riyadh is worst in March — around 93 µg/m³ PM2.5 (unhealthy), about 1.8× the cleanest month (October, 51 µg/m³).

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

0306090120JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecUnhealthyPoorUnhealthyMar 2192 µg/m³Oct 1352 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan68Unhealthy
Feb75Unhealthy
Mar93Unhealthy
Apr89Unhealthy
May85Unhealthy
Jun71Unhealthy
Jul70Unhealthy
Aug65Unhealthy
Sep54Poor
Oct51Poor
Nov59Unhealthy
Dec63Unhealthy
Location & terrain

Where is Riyadh?

Riyadh sits at 24.7°N, 46.7°E, 612 m above sea level, in Saudi Arabia. The nearest listed city is ‘Irqah, 11 km away.

Ḥawṭah Banī TamīmShaqraAd Dawādimī

Topography around Riyadh

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Riyadh has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 58 m around an average of 610 m above sea level; within 16 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 194 m; within 80 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 688 m.

The land around Riyadh is covered by artificial surfaces (86%) within 3 km, artificial surfaces (74%) and bare terrain (23%) within 16 km, and bare terrain (93%) within 80 km.

3 km
58 m
16 km
194 m
80 km
688 m
treescroplandartificial surfacesbare terrain
January weather nearby: ‘Irqah 11 km · Ad Dir‘īyah 20 km · Al Kharj 86 km · Ad Dilam 89 km · Rumāḩ 107 km · Ḥawṭah Banī Tamīm 133 km · Shaqra 160 km · Ad Dawādimī 236 km

Saudi Arabia travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 3
Reconsider Travel
Power plugs
Type G
230 V · 60 Hz
Prices
≈ 47% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$34,537
2025
Happiness
6.8 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Homicide rate
0.9
per 100k, 2019
Road deaths
35.9
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
High
World Bank
English
Very low
EF EPI 404

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 Riyadh (24.6877°, 46.7219°, elevation 612 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. 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).