Ashgabat in Winter
In winter (December, January and February), Ashgabat sees average daytime highs around 10°C and overnight lows near 1°C, with 95 mm of precipitation over about 19 wet days across the season. It is the coldest season of the year and the 2nd-wettest season.
Over the season highs climb from about 11°C in early December to 13°C by late February. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 45% of the time across winter, and the air most often feels dry.
Winter is Ashgabat's 3rd-best season to visit on our travel score. For the whole year in context, see Ashgabat's year-round climate.
- Avg daytime high
- 10°C
- coldest season of the year
- Avg overnight low
- 1°C
- Precipitation
- 95 mm
- 19 wet days
- Avg wind
- 8 km/h
- Travel score
- 2.6
- 3rd-best season
- Months
- Dec · Jan · Feb
Temperature in Ashgabat in Winter
Over the season highs climb from about 11°C in early December to 13°C by late February.
A typical winter day in Ashgabat reaches about 10°C and drops to 1°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is February, the coolest January.
How winter really feels in Ashgabat
Once humidity and wind are folded in, winter brings about 0 days that feel above 32°C and 74 that feel at or below 0°C.
The story in winter is cold — wind chill drags the overnight "feels like" below the raw low.
Ashgabat weather by month
How the three winter months (December, January and February) compare with the rest of the year — the season's months are highlighted.
| Month | High / Low (°C) | Rainfall (mm) | Wet days | Snow days | Daylight (hours) | Travel score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 9° / 1° | 30 | 6.2 | 2.5 | 9.7 | 2.2 |
| Feb | 11° / 2° | 43 | 8.1 | 2.7 | 10.5 | 3.0 |
| Mar | 17° / 7° | 61 | 10.2 | 0.8 | 11.7 | 5.4 |
| Apr | 23° / 12° | 46 | 8 | 0 | 13 | 7.1 |
| May | 30° / 18° | 23 | 4.4 | 0 | 14 | 6.0 |
| Jun | 35° / 23° | 4 | 1.3 | 0 | 14.6 | 3.2 |
| Jul | 37° / 25° | 2 | 0.3 | 0 | 14.4 | 1.8 |
| Aug | 36° / 24° | 2 | 0.3 | 0 | 13.5 | 2.7 |
| Sep | 31° / 19° | 3 | 0.6 | 0 | 12.3 | 6.1 |
| Oct | 24° / 12° | 10 | 2.7 | 0 | 11 | 8.6 |
| Nov | 16° / 6° | 25 | 5 | 0.5 | 9.9 | 5.6 |
| Dec | 10° / 2° | 22 | 5.1 | 1.4 | 9.4 | 2.7 |
Cloud cover in Winter
The sky is clear or mostly clear about 45% of the time across winter.
Chance of precipitation in Winter
Ashgabat gets around 95 mm of rain and snow over 19 wet days across winter. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.
Humidity in Winter
Most of winter feels dry — the stacked bands show each day's mix of comfort levels, read off the dew point.
Wind in Winter
Winds average 8 km/h across winter.
Sunrise & sunset in Winter
Daylight runs from about 9 h 36 min in early December to 11 hours by late February. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.
Solar energy in Winter
Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day across winter, about 2.7 kWh/m².
Hazard calendar for Ashgabat
None of Ashgabat's seasonal hazards peak in winter. The full-year calendar below shows when the rainy season, cyclone risk and dust haze do.
Ashgabat sees seasonal dust haze (April–September), heaviest in July.
Is winter a good time to visit Ashgabat?
Our two travel scores rate winter for general sightseeing and for beach or pool weather — 0 (poor) to 10 (ideal), averaged across the three months.
winter is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Ashgabat.
What to pack for Ashgabat in Winter
From winter's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.
In winter, Ashgabat sees daytime highs around 10°C and nights near 1°C. Pack a warm layer. Worth having: rain gear. About 19 days see rain.
UV index in Ashgabat in Winter
Clear-sky midday UV across winter averages around 3. 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.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UV index (midday) | 2 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 9 | 10 | 8 | 7 | 5 | 3 | 2 |
| Level | Moderate | Moderate | High | High | Very high | Very high | Very high | Very high | High | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate |
| UV index (midday) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 2 | Moderate |
| Feb | 4 | Moderate |
| Mar | 5 | High |
| Apr | 6 | High |
| May | 7 | Very high |
| Jun | 9 | Very high |
| Jul | 10 | Very high |
| Aug | 8 | Very high |
| Sep | 7 | High |
| Oct | 5 | Moderate |
| Nov | 3 | Moderate |
| Dec | 2 | Moderate |
Air quality in Ashgabat in Winter
Average fine-particle pollution (PM2.5) through the year — so you can see where winter 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.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | 14 | 18 | 25 | 25 | 23 | 22 | 26 | 24 | 28 | 24 | 20 | 15 |
| Level | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate |
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 14 | Moderate |
| Feb | 18 | Moderate |
| Mar | 25 | Moderate |
| Apr | 25 | Moderate |
| May | 23 | Moderate |
| Jun | 22 | Moderate |
| Jul | 26 | Moderate |
| Aug | 24 | Moderate |
| Sep | 28 | Moderate |
| Oct | 24 | Moderate |
| Nov | 20 | Moderate |
| Dec | 15 | Moderate |
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.
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.
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
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.