Margate weather in January

In January, Margate sees average daytime highs of 8°C and overnight lows near 5°C, with 67 mm of precipitation across 13.4 wet days and about 8.2 hours of daylight. It is the 11th-warmest and 4th-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 8°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 Margate's 12th-clearest and 1st-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Margate's year-round climate.

Daytime high
11th warmest
Overnight low
2nd coldest
Precipitation
67 mm
13.4 wet days
Daylight
8 h 06 min
8:01 AM – 4:07 PM
Cloud cover
72%
12th clearest
Wind
30 km/h
1st windiest
Solar energy
0.85 kWh/m²
Travel score
1.1
out of 10

Margate is town in Kent, 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 8°C through the month.

A typical January day in Margate reaches about 8°C in the afternoon and slips back to 5°C overnight — a 2°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 4°C and 11°C. Set against its neighbours, January runs about 1°C cooler than December and on par with February.

10°15°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
186
286
386
486
586
686
786
886
986
1086
1186
1286
1386
1486
1586
1686
1785
1885
1985
2085
2175
2275
2375
2475
2575
2675
2775
2875
2975
3075
3175

How January really feels in Margate

Once humidity and wind are folded in, January averages 0 days that feel above 32°C and 4 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
4
wind chill below the day's low

The story in January is cold — wind chill drags the overnight "feels like" below the raw low.

Margate weather by month

How January compares with the rest of the year at a glance. January is the 11th-warmest and 4th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan / 6713.40.68.21.1
Feb / 5411.20.99.60.9
Mar / 439.70.311.51.4
Apr10° / 398.9013.52.3
May13° / 11°479.2015.33.6
Jun16° / 13°489.4016.34.9
Jul18° / 16°5210015.96.0
Aug19° / 17°619.6014.46.1
Sep17° / 15°6010.8012.45.4
Oct15° / 12°8213.3010.43.9
Nov11° / 8314.70.18.62.4
Dec / 7914.10.67.71.5

Cloud cover in January

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 16% of the time in January, the cloudiest month of the year.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 14% of January, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 70%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
12971
23070
33070
43070
53070
62971
73070
83169
93169
103169
113268
123268
133268
143268
153169
163169
173169
183169
193169
203169
213169
223070
232971
242971
252971
262872
272872
282872
292872
302872
312773

Chance of precipitation in January

Any precipitationSnow

Margate gets around 67 mm of rain and snow over 13.4 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 43% and peaks near 47% on the wettest days, and about 1 day brings snow.

0%20%40%60%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
1473
2473
3463
4463
5463
6453
7453
8453
9443
10442
11432
12432
13422
14422
15422
16412
17412
18412
19411
20421
21422
22422
23422
24422
25422
26422
27422
28412
29412
30412
31413

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

Across January, daily wind ranges from about 29 km/h on the calmest days to 31 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

0102030151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
131windy
231windy
331windy
431windy
531windy
631windy
731windy
831windy
931windy
1031windy
1131windy
1231windy
1330windy
1430windy
1530windy
1630windy
1730windy
1830windy
1930windy
2030windy
2130windy
2229windy
2329windy
2429windy
2529windy
2629windy
2729windy
2829windy
2929windy
3029windy
3129windy

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 7:44 AM, and sunset from 3:49 PM to 4:31 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
17.78:073:49
27.78:073:50
37.78:063:51
47.88:063:52
57.88:063:53
67.88:063:54
77.88:063:55
87.88:053:56
97.98:053:57
107.98:043:59
117.98:044:00
128.08:034:01
138.08:034:03
148.08:024:04
158.18:014:05
168.18:014:07
178.18:004:08
188.27:594:10
198.27:584:11
208.37:574:13
218.37:564:14
228.37:554:16
238.47:544:18
248.47:534:19
258.57:524:21
268.57:514:23
278.67:504:24
288.67:484:26
298.77:474:28
308.77:464:29
318.87:444:31

Solar energy in January

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in January, about 0.85 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 0.67 kWh/m² to a high of 5.98 kWh/m² in June across the year — January's 0.85 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
90.8Dim
100.8Dim
110.8Dim
120.8Dim
130.8Dim
140.8Dim
150.8Dim
160.8Dim
170.8Dim
180.9Dim
190.9Dim
200.9Dim
210.9Dim
220.9Dim
231.0Dim
241.0Dim
251.0Dim
261.0Dim
271.1Dim
281.1Dim
291.1Dim
301.1Dim
311.2Dim
Planning a trip in January

Is January a good time to visit Margate?

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

1.1
Sightseeing
11th-best month of the year
0.0
Beach & pool
7th-best month of the year

January is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Margate.

What to pack for Margate in January

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

In January, Margate sees daytime highs around 8°C and nights near 5°C. Pack a warm layer and a windbreaker. Worth having: a heavy coat and rain gear. About 13 days see rain.

a warm layera windbreakera heavy coatrain gear

Sea temperature near Margate 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
May11Bracing
Jun14Bracing
Jul17Cool
Aug18Cool
Sep17Cool
Oct15Cool
Nov13Bracing
Dec10Bracing

UV index in Margate 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 Margate 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 Margate?

Margate sits at 51.4°N, 1.4°E, 24 m above sea level, in United Kingdom. The nearest listed city is Saint Peters, 3.0 km away.

Topography around Margate

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Margate has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 55 m around an average of 21 m above sea level; within 16 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 60 m; within 80 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 311 m.

The land around Margate is covered by water (32%), artificial surfaces (25%) and cropland (24%) within 3 km, water (72%) within 16 km, and water (54%) within 80 km.

3 km
55 m
16 km
60 m
80 km
311 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater
January weather nearby: Saint Peters 3.0 km · Broadstairs 5.0 km · Ramsgate 6.0 km · Deal 18 km · Herne Bay 18 km · Canterbury 24 km · Whitstable 25 km · Dover 29 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 Margate (51.3813°, 1.3862°, 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).