Canterbury weather in January

In January, Canterbury sees average daytime highs of 7°C and overnight lows near 3°C, with 57 mm of precipitation across 11.9 wet days and about 8.2 hours of daylight. It is the 12th-warmest and 5th-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 16% of the time in January, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 7 h 42 min at the start of January to 8 h 48 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, January is Canterbury's 11th-clearest and 1st-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Canterbury's year-round climate.

Daytime high
12th warmest
Overnight low
2nd coldest
Precipitation
57 mm
11.9 wet days
Daylight
8 h 06 min
8:01 AM – 4:09 PM
Cloud cover
72%
11th clearest
Wind
20 km/h
1st windiest
Solar energy
0.88 kWh/m²
Travel score
1.0
out of 10

Canterbury is cathedral city in Kent, England.

Density
757/km²
people per km²

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 Canterbury reaches about 7°C in the afternoon and slips back to 3°C overnight — a 4°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 on par with February.

-5°10°15°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
174
274
374
474
584
684
784
884
984
1084
1184
1284
1384
1474
1574
1674
1774
1873
1973
2073
2173
2273
2373
2473
2573
2673
2773
2873
2973
3073
3173

How January really feels in Canterbury

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.

Canterbury weather by month

How January compares with the rest of the year at a glance. January is the 12th-warmest and 5th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan / 5711.90.88.21.0
Feb / 479.81.19.61.1
Mar10° / 43100.411.52.1
Apr12° / 4710.6013.53.3
May15° / 549.9015.34.7
Jun18° / 12°5510016.35.8
Jul21° / 14°5611015.96.3
Aug21° / 15°6310014.46.4
Sep18° / 12°519.8012.45.8
Oct15° / 10°6611.4010.44.1
Nov11° / 6611.80.18.62.3
Dec / 65120.97.71.2

Cloud cover in January

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 16% of the time in January.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 13% of January, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 71%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
13070
23070
33070
43070
52971
62872
72971
82971
92971
103070
113070
123070
133070
143070
153070
163070
173169
183169
193070
203070
213070
222971
232971
242971
252872
262872
272872
282773
292674
302674
312674

Chance of precipitation in January

Any precipitationSnow

Canterbury gets around 57 mm of rain and snow over 11.9 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 38% and peaks near 41% on the wettest days, and about 1 day brings snow. The odds ease toward the end of the month.

0%10%20%30%40%50%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
1414
2414
3414
4414
5414
6414
7413
8413
9403
10403
11393
12393
13382
14372
15372
16362
17362
18362
19362
20362
21362
22362
23352
24352
25352
26353
27353
28353
29353
30353
31353

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

Across January, daily wind ranges from about 19 km/h on the calmest days to 20 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

0510152025151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
120breezy
220breezy
320breezy
420breezy
520breezy
620breezy
720breezy
820breezy
920breezy
1020breezy
1120breezy
1220breezy
1320breezy
1420breezy
1520breezy
1620breezy
1720light breeze
1820light breeze
1920light breeze
2020light breeze
2120light breeze
2219light breeze
2319light breeze
2419light breeze
2519light breeze
2619light breeze
2719light breeze
2819light breeze
2919light breeze
3019light breeze
3119light breeze

Sunrise & sunset in January

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 7 h 42 min at the start of January to 8 h 48 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 66 minutes over January. Sunrise moves from 8:07 AM to 7:45 AM, and sunset from 3:50 PM to 4:33 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
17.78:073:50
27.78:073:51
37.88:073:52
47.88:073:53
57.88:073:54
67.88:073:56
77.88:063:57
87.98:063:58
97.98:063:59
107.98:054:00
118.08:054:02
128.08:044:03
138.08:034:04
148.08:034:06
158.18:024:07
168.18:014:09
178.28:014:10
188.28:004:12
198.27:594:13
208.37:584:15
218.37:574:16
228.47:564:18
238.47:554:19
248.57:544:21
258.57:534:23
268.57:524:24
278.67:504:26
288.67:494:28
298.77:484:29
308.77:474:31
318.87:454:33

Solar energy in January

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in January, about 0.88 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 0.7 kWh/m² to a high of 6 kWh/m² in June across the year — January's 0.88 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

00.511.52151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
10.7Dim
20.7Dim
30.7Dim
40.7Dim
50.7Dim
60.8Dim
70.8Dim
80.8Dim
90.8Dim
100.8Dim
110.8Dim
120.8Dim
130.8Dim
140.8Dim
150.8Dim
160.9Dim
170.9Dim
180.9Dim
190.9Dim
200.9Dim
210.9Dim
221.0Dim
231.0Dim
241.0Dim
251.0Dim
261.1Dim
271.1Dim
281.1Dim
291.1Dim
301.2Dim
311.2Dim
Planning a trip in January

Is January a good time to visit Canterbury?

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
8th-best month of the year

January is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Canterbury.

What to pack for Canterbury in January

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

In January, Canterbury sees daytime highs around 7°C and nights near 3°C. Pack a warm layer. Worth having: a heavy coat and rain gear. About 12 days see rain.

a warm layera heavy coatrain gear

Sea temperature near Canterbury in January

The nearest coast averages about 8°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 18°C and coldest in February near 7°C.

The water stays below 20°C all year — cool enough that most swimmers want a wetsuit.

5°10°15°20°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbracingcoolrefreshing
Sea temperature (°C)Comfort
Jan8Bracing
Feb7Bracing
Mar7Bracing
Apr9Bracing
May12Bracing
Jun15Bracing
Jul17Cool
Aug18Cool
Sep17Cool
Oct15Bracing
Nov12Bracing
Dec9Bracing

UV index in Canterbury 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 Canterbury peaks around June 22 at about 6 (high) — sunscreen and a hat are worth it in the middle of the day. 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 6 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLowModerateHighModerateLowJun 22UV 6Jan 1UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan1Low
Feb1Low
Mar3Moderate
Apr3Moderate
May6High
Jun6High
Jul6High
Aug6High
Sep4Moderate
Oct2Moderate
Nov1Low
Dec1Low
Location & terrain

Where is Canterbury?

Canterbury sits at 51.3°N, 1.1°E, 19 m above sea level, in United Kingdom. The nearest listed city is Whitstable, 10 km away.

Topography around Canterbury

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Canterbury has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 90 m around an average of 40 m above sea level; within 16 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 197 m; within 80 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 329 m.

The land around Canterbury is covered by trees (41%) and grassland (24%) within 3 km, cropland (33%), trees (25%) and grassland (23%) within 16 km, and water (49%) within 80 km.

3 km
90 m
16 km
197 m
80 km
329 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaceswaterwetland
January weather nearby: Whitstable 10 km · Herne Bay 11 km · Faversham 14 km · Ashford 21 km · Folkestone 23 km · Deal 23 km · Dover 24 km · Margate 24 km

United Kingdom travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 2
Exercise Increased Caution
Power plugs
Type D / G / M
230 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 89% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$57,602
2025
Happiness
6.7 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
100%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
1.1
per 100k, 2021
Road deaths
3.2
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
High
World Bank
Religion
Christian 60%none 26%Muslim 4%other 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 Canterbury (51.279°, 1.0799°, elevation 19 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).