Ashgabat weather in January

In January, Ashgabat sees average daytime highs of 9°C and overnight lows near 1°C, with 30 mm of precipitation across 6.2 wet days and about 9.7 hours of daylight. It is the 12th-warmest and 4th-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 9°C through the month. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 45% of the time in January, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 9 h 24 min at the start of January to 10 hours by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, January is Ashgabat's 9th-clearest and 12th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Ashgabat's year-round climate.

Daytime high
12th warmest
Overnight low
1st coldest
Precipitation
30 mm
6.2 wet days
Daylight
9 h 36 min
8:27 AM – 6:05 PM
Cloud cover
48%
9th clearest
Wind
7 km/h
12th windiest
Solar energy
2.56 kWh/m²
Travel score
2.2
out of 10

Ashgabat is capital city of Turkmenistan.

Air quality
Elevated
PM2.5 22.1 µg/m³ · 2019
Density
1,346/km²
people per km²
Founded
1881

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 9°C through the month.

A typical January day in Ashgabat reaches about 9°C in the afternoon and slips back to 1°C overnight — a 9°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 2°C and 17°C. Set against its neighbours, January runs about 1°C cooler than December and about 2°C cooler than February.

-5°10°15°20°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
1101
2101
3101
4101
591
691
791
891
991
1091
1191
1291
1391
1490
1590
1690
1790
1890
1990
2090
2190
2290
2390
2490
2590
2691
27101
28101
29101
30101
31101

How January really feels in Ashgabat

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.

Ashgabat 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 / 306.22.59.72.2
Feb11° / 438.12.710.53.0
Mar17° / 6110.20.811.75.4
Apr23° / 12°4680137.1
May30° / 18°234.40146.0
Jun35° / 23°41.3014.63.2
Jul37° / 25°20.3014.41.8
Aug36° / 24°20.3013.52.7
Sep31° / 19°30.6012.36.1
Oct24° / 12°102.70118.6
Nov16° / 2550.59.95.6
Dec10° / 225.11.49.42.7

Cloud cover in January

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 45% of the time in January.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 14% of January, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 41%. Skies tend to cloud over as the month goes on.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
16436
26436
36436
46436
56337
66337
76238
86238
96139
106139
116040
126040
135941
145941
155941
165842
175842
185842
195743
205743
215743
225743
235743
245743
255644
265743
275743
285743
295743
305743
315743

Chance of precipitation in January

Any precipitationSnow

Ashgabat gets around 30 mm of rain and snow over 6.2 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 21% and peaks near 28% on the wettest days, and about 3 days bring snow. The odds climb toward the end of the month.

0%10%20%30%40%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
1155
2165
3166
4166
5166
6166
7176
8177
9177
10187
11187
12187
13198
14198
15208
16208
17218
18219
19229
20229
21239
222310
232410
242410
252510
262511
272611
282611
292712
302712
312812

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, the calmest month.

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
298calm
308calm
318calm

Sunrise & sunset in January

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 9 h 24 min at the start of January to 10 hours by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 36 minutes over January. Sunrise moves from 8:27 AM to 8:19 AM, and sunset from 5:52 PM to 6:21 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
19.48:275:52
29.48:275:53
39.48:285:53
49.48:285:54
59.58:285:55
69.58:285:56
79.58:285:57
89.58:285:58
99.58:285:58
109.58:285:59
119.58:286:00
129.68:276:01
139.68:276:02
149.68:276:03
159.68:276:04
169.68:276:05
179.78:266:06
189.78:266:07
199.78:266:08
209.78:256:09
219.88:256:10
229.88:246:11
239.88:246:12
249.88:236:13
259.98:236:14
269.98:226:15
279.98:226:16
289.98:216:17
2910.08:206:19
3010.08:206:20
3110.08:196:21

Solar energy in January

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in January, about 2.56 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 2.24 kWh/m² to a high of 7.45 kWh/m² in July across the year — January's 2.56 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

0123151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
12.3Moderate
22.4Moderate
32.4Moderate
42.4Moderate
52.4Moderate
62.4Moderate
72.4Moderate
82.4Moderate
92.4Moderate
102.5Moderate
112.5Moderate
122.5Moderate
132.5Moderate
142.5Moderate
152.5Moderate
162.5Moderate
172.6Moderate
182.6Moderate
192.6Moderate
202.6Moderate
212.6Moderate
222.7Moderate
232.7Moderate
242.7Moderate
252.8Moderate
262.8Moderate
272.8Moderate
282.8Moderate
292.9Moderate
302.9Moderate
312.9Moderate
Planning a trip in January

Hazard calendar for Ashgabat

In seasonPeak

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

Ashgabat sees seasonal dust haze (April–September), heaviest in July.

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

Is January a good time to visit Ashgabat?

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

2.2
Sightseeing
11th-best month of the year
0.0
Beach & pool
12th-best month of the year

January is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Ashgabat.

What to pack for Ashgabat in January

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

In January, Ashgabat sees daytime highs around 9°C and nights near 1°C. Pack a warm layer. About 6 days see rain.

a warm layer

UV index in Ashgabat 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 Ashgabat peaks around July 14 at about 9 (very high) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near January 10 at about 2 (moderate).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 9 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModerateHighVery highHighModerateJul 14UV 9Jan 10UV 2
UV index (midday)Level
Jan2Moderate
Feb4Moderate
Mar5High
Apr6High
May7Very high
Jun9Very high
Jul10Very high
Aug8Very high
Sep7High
Oct5Moderate
Nov3Moderate
Dec2Moderate

Air quality in Ashgabat 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 Ashgabat is worst in September — around 28 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 2.0× the cleanest month (January, 14 µg/m³).

Seasonal pattern from CAMS reanalysis, scaled to Ashgabat's WHO annual average of 22.1 µg/m³.

0102030JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModerateSep 1628 µg/m³Jan 1014 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan14Moderate
Feb18Moderate
Mar25Moderate
Apr25Moderate
May23Moderate
Jun22Moderate
Jul26Moderate
Aug24Moderate
Sep28Moderate
Oct24Moderate
Nov20Moderate
Dec15Moderate
Location & terrain

Where is Ashgabat?

Ashgabat sits at 38.0°N, 58.4°E, 219 m above sea level, in Turkmenistan. The nearest listed city is Änew, 14 km away.

ShīrvānDargazQūchānBäherden

Topography around Ashgabat

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Ashgabat has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 108 m around an average of 225 m above sea level; within 16 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 875 m; within 80 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,887 m.

The land around Ashgabat is covered by artificial surfaces (79%) within 3 km, grassland (34%) and artificial surfaces (20%) within 16 km, and grassland (39%) and bare terrain (30%) within 80 km.

3 km
108 m
16 km
875 m
80 km
2,887 m
treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater
January weather nearby: Änew 14 km · Abadan 20 km · Arkadag 31 km · Gökdepe 44 km · Shīrvān 73 km · Dargaz 85 km · Qūchān 95 km · Bäherden 99 km

Turkmenistan travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 1
Exercise Normal Precautions
Power plugs
Type B / C / F
220 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 0% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$6,540
2025
Happiness
5.5 / 10
World Happiness, 2021
Safe drinking water
95%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
1
per 100k, 2015
Road deaths
13.5
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
Upper middle
World Bank
English
Low
EF EPI 456
Religion
Muslim 93%Christian 6%

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 Ashgabat (37.95°, 58.3833°, elevation 219 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).