Dartford weather in January

In January, Dartford sees average daytime highs of 7°C and overnight lows near 3°C, with 51 mm of precipitation across 10.8 wet days and about 8.1 hours of daylight. It is the 12th-warmest and 7th-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 Dartford's 11th-clearest and 1st-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Dartford's year-round climate.

Daytime high
12th warmest
Overnight low
2nd coldest
Precipitation
51 mm
10.8 wet days
Daylight
8 h 06 min
8:06 AM – 4:11 PM
Cloud cover
73%
11th clearest
Wind
17 km/h
1st windiest
Solar energy
0.81 kWh/m²
Travel score
1.0
out of 10

Dartford is town in the county of Kent, England, United Kingdom.

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 Dartford 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)
173
273
373
473
583
683
783
883
983
1083
1183
1283
1383
1483
1583
1673
1773
1873
1973
2073
2173
2273
2373
2473
2573
2673
2773
2873
2973
3073
3173

How January really feels in Dartford

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.

Dartford weather by month

How January compares with the rest of the year at a glance. January is the 12th-warmest and 7th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan / 5110.80.78.11.0
Feb / 439.219.61.2
Mar10° / 409.70.611.52.3
Apr13° / 4610.80.113.53.5
May16° / 5010015.34.9
Jun19° / 12°539.7016.36.0
Jul21° / 14°5310.2015.96.4
Aug21° / 14°609.9014.46.4
Sep18° / 12°458.7012.45.9
Oct15° / 5610.5010.44.2
Nov11° / 5810.70.18.62.4
Dec / 56110.87.71.2

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 72%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
13070
23070
33070
43070
53070
62971
72971
82971
93070
103070
113070
123070
132971
142971
152971
162971
172971
182872
192872
202872
212773
222773
232773
242773
252773
262674
272674
282674
292773
302773
312872

Chance of precipitation in January

Any precipitationSnow

Dartford gets around 51 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 38% 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 (%)
1372
2372
3373
4383
5383
6383
7383
8383
9383
10383
11373
12373
13373
14362
15362
16352
17352
18352
19342
20342
21332
22332
23332
24322
25322
26323
27323
28313
29313
30313
31323

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 17 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
1617light breeze
1717light breeze
1817light 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 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 8:12 AM to 7:49 AM, and sunset from 3:53 PM to 4:36 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
17.78:123:53
27.78:123:54
37.78:123:55
47.78:113:56
57.88:113:57
67.88:113:58
77.88:113:59
87.88:104:00
97.98:104:02
107.98:094:03
117.98:094:04
128.08:084:06
138.08:084:07
148.08:074:08
158.18:064:10
168.18:064:11
178.18:054:13
188.28:044:14
198.28:034:16
208.38:024:17
218.38:014:19
228.38:004:20
238.47:594:22
248.47:584:24
258.57:574:25
268.57:564:27
278.67:554:29
288.67:534:30
298.77:524:32
308.77:514:34
318.87:494:36

Solar energy in January

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in January, about 0.81 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 0.66 kWh/m² to a high of 5.47 kWh/m² in June across the year — January's 0.81 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

00.511.52151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
10.7Dim
20.7Dim
30.7Dim
40.7Dim
50.7Dim
60.7Dim
70.7Dim
80.7Dim
90.7Dim
100.7Dim
110.7Dim
120.8Dim
130.8Dim
140.8Dim
150.8Dim
160.8Dim
170.8Dim
180.8Dim
190.8Dim
200.9Dim
210.9Dim
220.9Dim
230.9Dim
240.9Dim
251.0Dim
261.0Dim
271.0Dim
281.0Dim
291.1Dim
301.1Dim
311.1Dim
Planning a trip in January

Is January a good time to visit Dartford?

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 Dartford.

What to pack for Dartford in January

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

In January, Dartford sees daytime highs around 7°C and nights near 3°C. Pack a warm layer. Worth having: a heavy coat and rain gear. About 11 days see rain.

a warm layera heavy coatrain gear

Sea temperature near Dartford 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 at the nearest coast (about 64 km away) 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 Dartford 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 Dartford peaks around August 10 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.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLowModerateHighModerateLowAug 10UV 6Jan 1UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan1Low
Feb1Low
Mar3Moderate
Apr3Moderate
May6High
Jun6High
Jul6High
Aug6High
Sep4Moderate
Oct2Moderate
Nov1Low
Dec1Low
Location & terrain

Where is Dartford?

Dartford sits at 51.4°N, 0.2°E, 8 m above sea level, in United Kingdom. The nearest listed city is Bexley, 5.0 km away.

Topography around Dartford

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Dartford has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 71 m around an average of 22 m above sea level; within 16 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 249 m; within 80 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 303 m.

The land around Dartford is covered by artificial surfaces (37%), trees (30%) and grassland (25%) within 3 km, trees (28%), artificial surfaces (28%) and grassland (24%) within 16 km, and grassland (27%), cropland (26%) and trees (24%) within 80 km.

3 km
71 m
16 km
249 m
80 km
303 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaceswater
January weather nearby: Bexley 5.0 km · Swanley 6.0 km · Swanscombe 7.0 km · Welling 8.0 km · Longfield 8.0 km · South Ockendon 8.0 km · Grays 8.0 km · Abbey Wood 9.0 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 Dartford (51.4466°, 0.2142°, elevation 8 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).