Ely weather in January

In January, Ely sees average daytime highs of 7°C and overnight lows near 3°C, with 51 mm of precipitation across 11.5 wet days and about 8 hours of daylight. It is the 12th-warmest and 9th-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 30 min at the start of January to 8 h 42 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, January is Ely's 11th-clearest and 1st-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Ely's year-round climate.

Daytime high
12th warmest
Overnight low
2nd coldest
Precipitation
51 mm
11.5 wet days
Daylight
7 h 54 min
8:10 AM – 4:07 PM
Cloud cover
73%
11th clearest
Wind
18 km/h
1st windiest
Solar energy
0.74 kWh/m²
Travel score
0.9
out of 10

Ely is city and civil parish in Cambridgeshire, 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 7°C through the month.

A typical January day in Ely reaches about 7°C in the afternoon and slips back to 3°C overnight — a 5°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 3°C and 12°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
1972
2072
2172
2272
2372
2472
2572
2672
2772
2872
2972
3072
3172

How January really feels in Ely

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.

Ely weather by month

How January compares with the rest of the year at a glance. January is the 12th-warmest and 9th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan / 5111.50.780.9
Feb / 399.51.29.51.2
Mar10° / 43100.711.52.3
Apr13° / 4610.60.113.63.6
May16° / 5210.1015.45.0
Jun19° / 11°6010.5016.55.8
Jul22° / 13°5711.2016.16.3
Aug21° / 13°6210.8014.56.2
Sep18° / 11°519.3012.45.8
Oct15° / 5810.8010.34.1
Nov10° / 5511.10.28.52.3
Dec / 5310.90.77.51.1

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 15% of January, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 70%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
13070
23070
33070
43070
52971
63070
73070
83070
93169
103169
113169
123169
133268
143268
153268
163169
173169
183169
193268
203268
213169
223169
233070
243070
253070
263070
273070
283070
293169
303070
313070

Chance of precipitation in January

Any precipitationSnow

Ely gets around 51 mm of rain and snow over 11.5 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 37% and peaks near 39% on the wettest days, and about 1 day brings snow.

0%10%20%30%40%50%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
1373
2373
3373
4383
5382
6382
7392
8392
9392
10392
11392
12382
13382
14382
15372
16372
17373
18373
19363
20363
21363
22363
23363
24353
25353
26353
27353
28353
29343
30343
31344

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 30 min at the start of January to 8 h 42 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 8:17 AM to 7:53 AM, and sunset from 3:48 PM to 4:32 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
17.58:173:48
27.58:173:49
37.68:163:50
47.68:163:51
57.68:163:52
67.68:163:53
77.68:153:54
87.78:153:55
97.78:143:57
107.78:143:58
117.88:133:59
127.88:134:01
137.88:124:02
147.98:114:04
157.98:114:05
167.98:104:07
178.08:094:08
188.08:084:10
198.18:074:11
208.18:064:13
218.28:054:14
228.28:044:16
238.28:034:18
248.38:024:20
258.38:014:21
268.47:594:23
278.47:584:25
288.57:574:26
298.57:564:28
308.67:544:30
318.77:534:32

Solar energy in January

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in January, about 0.74 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 0.59 kWh/m² to a high of 5.12 kWh/m² in June across the year — January's 0.74 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

00.511.52151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
10.6Dim
20.6Dim
30.6Dim
40.6Dim
50.6Dim
60.6Dim
70.6Dim
80.6Dim
90.7Dim
100.7Dim
110.7Dim
120.7Dim
130.7Dim
140.7Dim
150.7Dim
160.7Dim
170.8Dim
180.8Dim
190.8Dim
200.8Dim
210.8Dim
220.8Dim
230.9Dim
240.9Dim
250.9Dim
260.9Dim
270.9Dim
281.0Dim
291.0Dim
301.0Dim
311.0Dim
Planning a trip in January

Is January a good time to visit Ely?

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

0.9
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 Ely.

What to pack for Ely in January

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

In January, Ely 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 Ely in January

The nearest coast averages about 6°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 53 km away) is warmest in August at about 18°C and coldest in February near 5°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
Jan6Bracing
Feb5Bracing
Mar6Bracing
Apr8Bracing
May11Bracing
Jun14Bracing
Jul17Cool
Aug18Cool
Sep16Cool
Oct13Bracing
Nov10Bracing
Dec7Bracing

UV index in Ely 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 Ely 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 December 21 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 6Dec 21UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan1Low
Feb1Low
Mar3Moderate
Apr3Moderate
May6High
Jun6High
Jul6High
Aug6High
Sep4Moderate
Oct2Moderate
Nov1Low
Dec1Low
Location & terrain

Where is Ely?

Ely sits at 52.4°N, 0.3°E, 21 m above sea level, in United Kingdom. The nearest listed city is Newmarket, 20 km away.

Topography around Ely

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Ely has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 34 m around an average of 7 m above sea level; within 16 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 46 m; within 80 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 265 m.

The land around Ely is covered by cropland (52%) and grassland (22%) within 3 km, cropland (69%) and grassland (21%) within 16 km, and cropland (60%) within 80 km.

3 km
34 m
16 km
46 m
80 km
265 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaceswaterwetland
January weather nearby: Newmarket 20 km · March 21 km · Saint Ives 24 km · Cambridge 24 km · Wisbech 30 km · Primrose Place 31 km · Huntingdon 31 km · Thetford 33 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 Ely (52.3996°, 0.262°, elevation 21 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).