Derry weather in January

In January, Derry sees average daytime highs of 7°C and overnight lows near 3°C, with 87 mm of precipitation across 16.4 wet days and about 7.5 hours of daylight. It is the 12th-warmest and 6th-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 6% of the time in January, and the air most often feels dry.

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

Daytime high
12th warmest
Overnight low
2nd coldest
Precipitation
87 mm
16.4 wet days
Daylight
7 h 30 min
8:54 AM – 4:23 PM
Cloud cover
79%
7th clearest
Wind
18 km/h
1st windiest
Solar energy
0.57 kWh/m²
Travel score
0.8
out of 10

Derry is city in Northern Ireland.

Density
216/km²
people per km²
Founded
~501 CE

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 Derry 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
573
673
773
873
973
1073
1173
1273
1373
1473
1573
1673
1773
1873
1973
2073
2173
2273
2373
2473
2573
2673
2773
2873
2973
3073
3173

How January really feels in Derry

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.

Derry weather by month

How January compares with the rest of the year at a glance. January is the 12th-warmest and 6th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan / 8716.427.50.8
Feb / 7514.91.99.31.0
Mar / 7515.61.211.41.6
Apr11° / 7415.40.313.82.4
May14° / 7815.10.115.83.4
Jun16° / 10°8715.50174.1
Jul17° / 12°9316.8016.54.5
Aug17° / 12°9416.7014.74.5
Sep16° / 10°7514.2012.54.1
Oct13° / 8815.50.110.22.9
Nov10° / 9016.70.38.11.6
Dec / 9015.81.271.0

Cloud cover in January

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 6% 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 81%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
12179
22179
32179
42179
52080
62080
72080
82080
91981
101981
111981
121981
131981
141882
151882
161882
171882
181882
191882
201882
211882
221882
231882
241882
251981
261981
271981
281981
291981
301981
311981

Chance of precipitation in January

Any precipitationSnow

Derry gets around 87 mm of rain and snow over 16.4 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 54% and peaks near 55% on the wettest days, and about 2 days bring snow.

0%20%40%60%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
1546
2546
3546
4556
5556
6556
7556
8557
9557
10557
11557
12558
13558
14558
15558
16558
17548
18548
19547
20537
21537
22527
23527
24527
25517
26516
27516
28516
29526
30526
31526

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 18 km/h on the calmest days to 19 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

0510152025151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
118light breeze
218light breeze
318light breeze
419light breeze
519light breeze
619light breeze
719light breeze
819light breeze
919light breeze
1019light breeze
1119light breeze
1219light breeze
1319light breeze
1419light breeze
1519light breeze
1619light breeze
1718light breeze
1818light breeze
1918light breeze
2018light breeze
2118light breeze
2218light breeze
2318light breeze
2418light breeze
2518light breeze
2618light breeze
2718light breeze
2818light breeze
2918light breeze
3018light breeze
3118light breeze

Sunrise & sunset in January

DaylightNight

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

Days grow by about 78 minutes over January. Sunrise moves from 9:02 AM to 8:34 AM, and sunset from 4:02 PM to 4:51 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
17.09:024:02
27.09:024:03
37.09:024:05
47.19:024:06
57.19:014:07
67.19:014:08
77.19:014:09
87.29:004:11
97.28:594:12
107.28:594:14
117.38:584:15
127.38:574:17
137.48:574:18
147.48:564:20
157.48:554:22
167.58:544:23
177.58:534:25
187.68:524:27
197.68:514:28
207.78:504:30
217.78:484:32
227.88:474:34
237.88:464:36
247.98:444:38
257.98:434:39
268.08:424:41
278.18:404:43
288.18:394:45
298.28:374:47
308.28:354:49
318.38:344:51

Solar energy in January

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in January, about 0.57 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 0.42 kWh/m² to a high of 4.84 kWh/m² in May across the year — January's 0.57 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

00.511.52151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
10.4Dim
20.4Dim
30.5Dim
40.5Dim
50.5Dim
60.5Dim
70.5Dim
80.5Dim
90.5Dim
100.5Dim
110.5Dim
120.5Dim
130.5Dim
140.5Dim
150.6Dim
160.6Dim
170.6Dim
180.6Dim
190.6Dim
200.6Dim
210.6Dim
220.6Dim
230.7Dim
240.7Dim
250.7Dim
260.7Dim
270.7Dim
280.8Dim
290.8Dim
300.8Dim
310.8Dim
Planning a trip in January

Is January a good time to visit Derry?

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

0.8
Sightseeing
12th-best month of the year
Beach & pool
never really warm enough

January is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Derry.

What to pack for Derry in January

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

In January, Derry sees daytime highs around 7°C and nights near 3°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 Derry in January

The nearest coast averages about 9°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 42 km away) is warmest in August at about 15°C and coldest in February near 8°C.

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

10°15°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbracingcool
Sea temperature (°C)Comfort
Jan9Bracing
Feb8Bracing
Mar8Bracing
Apr9Bracing
May10Bracing
Jun12Bracing
Jul14Bracing
Aug15Bracing
Sep14Bracing
Oct13Bracing
Nov12Bracing
Dec10Bracing

UV index in Derry in January

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in January peaks around 0. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Derry peaks around July 13 at about 5 (high) — a little sun protection helps at midday. It bottoms out near January 1 at about 0 (low).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 6 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLowModerateHighModerateLowJul 13UV 5Jan 1UV 0
UV index (midday)Level
Jan0Low
Feb1Low
Mar2Moderate
Apr3Moderate
May5High
Jun5Moderate
Jul5High
Aug5Moderate
Sep3Moderate
Oct2Low
Nov1Low
Dec0Low
Location & terrain

Where is Derry?

Derry sits at 55.0°N, 7.3°W, 24 m above sea level, in United Kingdom. The nearest listed city is Londonderry County Borough, 0.0 km away.

BallymenaAntrimPortadownCraigavon

Topography around Derry

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Derry has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 188 m around an average of 46 m above sea level; within 16 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 481 m; within 80 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 706 m.

The land around Derry is covered by artificial surfaces (31%), grassland (29%) and trees (27%) within 3 km, grassland (65%) within 16 km, and grassland (56%) and water (34%) within 80 km.

3 km
188 m
16 km
481 m
80 km
706 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaceswater
January weather nearby: Londonderry County Borough 0.0 km · Letterkenny 28 km · Coleraine 44 km · Omagh 44 km · Ballymena 68 km · Antrim 77 km · Portadown 85 km · Craigavon 85 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 Derry (54.9981°, -7.3093°, elevation 24 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).