Ponferrada weather in January

In January, Ponferrada sees average daytime highs of 7°C and overnight lows near 1°C, with 79 mm of precipitation across 10.8 wet days and about 9.2 hours of daylight. It is the 12th-warmest and 4th-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 7°C through the month. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 23% of the time in January, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 8 h 54 min at the start of January to 9 h 42 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, January is Ponferrada's 10th-clearest and 8th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Ponferrada's year-round climate.

Daytime high
12th warmest
Overnight low
1st coldest
Precipitation
79 mm
10.8 wet days
Daylight
9 h 12 min
9:00 AM – 6:12 PM
Cloud cover
68%
10th clearest
Wind
7 km/h
8th windiest
Solar energy
1.74 kWh/m²
Travel score
1.0
out of 10

Ponferrada is municipal capital of Ponferrada and capital of El Bierzo comarca, Léon, Spain.

Air quality
Good
PM10 18 µg/m³ · 2019

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 7°C through the month.

A typical January day in Ponferrada reaches about 7°C in the afternoon and slips back to 1°C overnight — a 7°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 3°C and 11°C. Set against its neighbours, January runs on par with December and about 1°C cooler than February.

-5°10°15°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
171
271
371
471
571
671
771
871
971
1071
1171
1271
1371
1471
1571
1671
1771
1871
1971
2071
2171
2271
2371
2471
2571
2671
2771
2881
2981
3081
3181

How January really feels in Ponferrada

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
wind chill below the day's low

The story in January is cold — wind chill drags the overnight "feels like" below the raw low.

Ponferrada 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 daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan / 7910.84.19.21.0
Feb / 599410.31.7
Mar12° / 69112.911.63.0
Apr14° / 73131.613.13.6
May17° / 6912.20.114.45.2
Jun22° / 10°417.6015.17.1
Jul25° / 13°265.2014.88.0
Aug25° / 12°295.3013.78.0
Sep21° / 10°417.2012.37.1
Oct16° / 8410.90.110.84.7
Nov10° / 8111.81.29.62.3
Dec / 84112.58.91.2

Cloud cover in January

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 23% of the time in January.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 9% of January, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 68%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
13070
23169
33169
43268
53268
63169
73070
83070
93070
103070
113268
123268
133169
143169
153169
163070
173169
183268
193268
203268
213268
223268
233268
243367
253367
263367
273367
283367
293367
303367
313367

Chance of precipitation in January

Any precipitationSnow

Ponferrada gets around 79 mm of rain and snow over 10.8 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 35% and peaks near 39% on the wettest days, and about 4 days bring snow.

0%10%20%30%40%50%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
13910
23910
33910
43811
53811
63711
73711
83612
93612
103613
113613
123614
133514
143515
153515
163515
173515
183515
193415
203415
213415
223415
233415
243415
253415
263415
273315
283316
293316
303316
313416

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 7 km/h in January.

Across January, daily wind ranges from about 7 km/h on the calmest days to 8 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

0246810151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
17calm
27calm
37calm
47calm
57calm
67calm
77calm
87calm
97calm
107calm
117calm
127calm
137calm
147calm
157calm
167calm
177calm
187calm
197calm
207calm
217calm
227calm
237calm
247calm
257calm
267calm
277calm
287calm
297calm
308calm
318calm

Sunrise & sunset in January

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 8 h 54 min at the start of January to 9 h 42 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 9:02 AM to 8:50 AM, and sunset from 5:57 PM to 6:30 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
18.99:025:57
28.99:025:58
39.09:025:59
49.09:026:00
59.09:026:01
69.09:026:02
79.09:026:03
89.09:026:03
99.09:026:04
109.19:016:05
119.19:016:06
129.19:016:07
139.19:016:09
149.29:006:10
159.29:006:11
169.29:006:12
179.28:596:13
189.38:596:14
199.38:586:15
209.38:586:16
219.38:576:18
229.48:566:19
239.48:566:20
249.48:556:21
259.58:546:22
269.58:546:24
279.58:536:25
289.68:526:26
299.68:516:27
309.68:506:29
319.78:506:30

Solar energy in January

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in January, about 1.74 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 1.45 kWh/m² to a high of 7.02 kWh/m² in July across the year — January's 1.74 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

0123151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
11.5Dim
21.5Dim
31.5Dim
41.5Dim
51.5Dim
61.5Dim
71.6Dim
81.6Dim
91.6Dim
101.6Dim
111.6Dim
121.6Dim
131.6Dim
141.7Dim
151.7Dim
161.7Dim
171.7Dim
181.8Dim
191.8Dim
201.8Dim
211.9Dim
221.9Dim
231.9Dim
241.9Dim
252.0Dim
262.0Moderate
272.0Moderate
282.1Moderate
292.1Moderate
302.1Moderate
312.2Moderate
Planning a trip in January

Is January a good time to visit Ponferrada?

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

1.0
Sightseeing
12th-best month of the year
0.0
Beach & pool
9th-best month of the year

January is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Ponferrada.

What to pack for Ponferrada in January

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

In January, Ponferrada sees daytime highs around 7°C and nights near 1°C. Pack a warm layer. Worth having: a heavy coat and rain gear. About 11 days see rain.

a warm layera heavy coatrain gear

UV index in Ponferrada 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 Ponferrada peaks around July 14 at about 9 (very high) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 20 at about 2 (low).

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

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLowModerateHighVery highHighModerateLowJul 14UV 9Dec 20UV 2
UV index (midday)Level
Jan2Low
Feb3Moderate
Mar5High
Apr7High
May7High
Jun9Very high
Jul9Very high
Aug9Very high
Sep6High
Oct5Moderate
Nov2Moderate
Dec2Low

Air quality in Ponferrada 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 Ponferrada is worst in July — around 19 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 2.5× the cleanest month (November, 7 µg/m³).

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

01020JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecGoodModerateGoodModerateGoodModerateGoodJul 1718 µg/m³Nov 228 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan10Good
Feb12Good
Mar14Moderate
Apr14Moderate
May9Good
Jun9Good
Jul19Moderate
Aug11Good
Sep11Good
Oct18Moderate
Nov7Good
Dec9Good
Location & terrain

Where is Ponferrada?

Ponferrada sits at 42.5°N, 6.6°W, 519 m above sea level, in Spain. The nearest listed city is Villafranca del Bierzo, 19 km away.

Topography around Ponferrada

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Ponferrada has significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 323 m around an average of 563 m above sea level; within 16 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,658 m; within 80 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,238 m.

The land around Ponferrada is covered by trees (36%), grassland (27%) and artificial surfaces (24%) within 3 km, trees (56%) and grassland (31%) within 16 km, and trees (48%) and grassland (41%) within 80 km.

3 km
323 m
16 km
1,658 m
80 km
2,238 m
treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaceswater
January weather nearby: Villafranca del Bierzo 19 km · Monforte de Lemos 75 km · San Andrés del Rabanedo 81 km · Bragança 83 km · León 84 km · Villaquilambre 86 km · Lugo 94 km · Benavente 97 km

Spain travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 2
Exercise Increased Caution
Power plugs
Type C / F
230 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 65% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$38,627
2025
Happiness
6.5 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
99%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
0.7
per 100k, 2023
Road deaths
3.9
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
High
World Bank
English
Moderate
EF EPI 540
Religion
Roman Catholic 58%atheist 16%agnostic 11%non-believer 11%

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 Ponferrada (42.5466°, -6.5962°, elevation 519 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).