Chorley weather in January

In January, Chorley sees average daytime highs of 6°C and overnight lows near 2°C, with 103 mm of precipitation across 16.3 wet days and about 7.8 hours of daylight. It is the 12th-warmest and 5th-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 6°C through the month. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 12% of the time in January, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 7 h 18 min at the start of January to 8 h 30 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, January is Chorley's 11th-clearest and 1st-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Chorley's year-round climate.

Daytime high
12th warmest
Overnight low
2nd coldest
Precipitation
103 mm
16.3 wet days
Daylight
7 h 42 min
8:28 AM – 4:12 PM
Cloud cover
76%
11th clearest
Wind
18 km/h
1st windiest
Solar energy
0.63 kWh/m²
Travel score
0.5
out of 10

Chorley is town in Lancashire, England.

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 6°C through the month.

A typical January day in Chorley reaches about 6°C in the afternoon and slips back to 2°C overnight — a 4°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 2°C and 10°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)
162
262
362
462
572
672
772
872
972
1072
1172
1272
1372
1472
1572
1672
1772
1872
1962
2062
2162
2262
2362
2462
2562
2662
2762
2862
2962
3062
3162

How January really feels in Chorley

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.

Chorley 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 / 10316.32.37.80.5
Feb / 89142.49.40.7
Mar / 8413.81.611.51.5
Apr12° / 7513.60.513.72.7
May15° / 8013.6015.63.9
Jun17° / 10°9114.3016.74.7
Jul19° / 12°9915.9016.35.1
Aug18° / 12°10816.4014.64.9
Sep16° / 10°9113.6012.54.4
Oct13° / 10815.40.110.33.0
Nov / 10716.40.58.31.5
Dec / 11916.21.67.30.7

Cloud cover in January

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 12% of the time in January.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 12% of January, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 76%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
12674
22575
32476
42476
52476
62476
72575
82476
92476
102476
112476
122476
132377
142476
152476
162476
172476
182476
192476
202476
212377
222377
232377
242278
252377
262377
272377
282377
292377
302377
312377

Chance of precipitation in January

Any precipitationSnow

Chorley gets around 103 mm of rain and snow over 16.3 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 52% and peaks near 56% on the wettest days, and about 2 days bring snow.

0%20%40%60%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
1537
2537
3537
4546
5546
6556
7556
8566
9566
10566
11566
12567
13557
14557
15547
16537
17538
18528
19528
20518
21508
22508
23508
24498
25498
26498
27499
28499
29499
30499
31499

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

Across January, daily wind ranges from about 17 km/h on the calmest days to 18 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

05101520151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
118light breeze
218light breeze
318light breeze
418light breeze
518light breeze
618light breeze
718light breeze
818light breeze
918light breeze
1018light breeze
1118light breeze
1218light breeze
1318light breeze
1418light breeze
1518light breeze
1618light breeze
1718light breeze
1818light breeze
1917light breeze
2017light breeze
2117light breeze
2217light breeze
2317light breeze
2417light breeze
2517light breeze
2617light breeze
2717light breeze
2817light breeze
2917light breeze
3017light breeze
3117light breeze

Sunrise & sunset in January

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 7 h 18 min at the start of January to 8 h 30 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 72 minutes over January. Sunrise moves from 8:35 AM to 8:09 AM, and sunset from 3:52 PM to 4:38 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
17.38:353:52
27.38:353:53
37.38:353:54
47.38:353:55
57.48:343:56
67.48:343:58
77.48:343:59
87.48:334:00
97.58:334:01
107.58:324:03
117.58:324:04
127.68:314:06
137.68:304:07
147.78:294:09
157.78:294:10
167.78:284:12
177.88:274:13
187.88:264:15
197.98:254:17
207.98:244:18
218.08:234:20
228.08:224:22
238.18:204:24
248.18:194:25
258.28:184:27
268.28:164:29
278.38:154:31
288.38:144:33
298.48:124:35
308.48:114:36
318.58:094:38

Solar energy in January

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in January, about 0.63 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 0.49 kWh/m² to a high of 5.07 kWh/m² in June across the year — January's 0.63 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

00.511.52151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
10.5Dim
20.5Dim
30.5Dim
40.5Dim
50.5Dim
60.5Dim
70.5Dim
80.5Dim
90.6Dim
100.6Dim
110.6Dim
120.6Dim
130.6Dim
140.6Dim
150.6Dim
160.6Dim
170.6Dim
180.7Dim
190.7Dim
200.7Dim
210.7Dim
220.7Dim
230.7Dim
240.8Dim
250.8Dim
260.8Dim
270.8Dim
280.8Dim
290.9Dim
300.9Dim
310.9Dim
Planning a trip in January

Is January a good time to visit Chorley?

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

0.5
Sightseeing
12th-best month of the year
0.0
Beach & pool
7th-best month of the year

January is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Chorley.

What to pack for Chorley in January

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

In January, Chorley sees daytime highs around 6°C and nights near 2°C. Pack a warm layer and rain gear. Worth having: a heavy coat. About 16 days see rain.

a warm layerrain geara heavy coat

Sea temperature near Chorley in January

The nearest coast averages about 7°C in January — the other half of the beach question. The full-year curve and swim-comfort zones are below.

The sea at the nearest coast (about 34 km away) is warmest in August at about 17°C and coldest in February near 6°C.

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

5°10°15°20°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbracingcool
Sea temperature (°C)Comfort
Jan7Bracing
Feb6Bracing
Mar7Bracing
Apr9Bracing
May11Bracing
Jun14Bracing
Jul16Cool
Aug17Cool
Sep16Cool
Oct14Bracing
Nov11Bracing
Dec9Bracing

UV index in Chorley 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 Chorley peaks around August 12 at about 6 (high) — a little sun protection helps at midday. 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.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLowModerateHighModerateLowAug 12UV 6Jan 1UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan1Low
Feb1Low
Mar3Moderate
Apr3Moderate
May6High
Jun5High
Jul5High
Aug6High
Sep4Moderate
Oct2Low
Nov1Low
Dec1Low
Location & terrain

Where is Chorley?

Chorley sits at 53.6°N, 2.6°W, 105 m above sea level, in United Kingdom. The nearest listed city is Horwich, 7.0 km away.

Topography around Chorley

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Chorley has significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 255 m around an average of 109 m above sea level; within 16 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 454 m; within 80 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 733 m.

The land around Chorley is covered by trees (38%), grassland (37%) and artificial surfaces (21%) within 3 km, grassland (45%) and trees (27%) within 16 km, and grassland (53%) within 80 km.

3 km
255 m
16 km
454 m
80 km
733 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaceswater
January weather nearby: Horwich 7.0 km · Leyland 7.0 km · Darwen 11 km · Wigan 12 km · Westhoughton 13 km · Hindley 13 km · Preston 14 km · Blackburn 14 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 Chorley (53.65°, -2.6167°, elevation 105 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).