Melksham weather in January

In January, Melksham sees average daytime highs of 7°C and overnight lows near 3°C, with 72 mm of precipitation across 12.8 wet days and about 8.2 hours of daylight. It is the 12th-warmest and 5th-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 14% 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 Melksham's 11th-clearest and 1st-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Melksham's year-round climate.

Daytime high
12th warmest
Overnight low
2nd coldest
Precipitation
72 mm
12.8 wet days
Daylight
8 h 06 min
8:15 AM – 4:21 PM
Cloud cover
74%
11th clearest
Wind
18 km/h
1st windiest
Solar energy
0.81 kWh/m²
Travel score
1.0
out of 10

Melksham is town on the River Avon in Wiltshire, 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 Melksham 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 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
383
483
583
683
783
883
983
1083
1183
1283
1383
1483
1583
1683
1783
1883
1983
2073
2173
2273
2372
2472
2572
2672
2772
2872
2972
3072
3172

How January really feels in Melksham

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.

Melksham 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 / 7212.80.68.21.0
Feb / 56110.89.61.2
Mar10° / 5610.90.511.52.2
Apr13° / 6311.80.213.53.3
May16° / 6511.4015.34.6
Jun18° / 11°6111.2016.35.6
Jul21° / 13°6411.2015.96.1
Aug20° / 13°7411.6014.45.9
Sep18° / 10°579.8012.45.6
Oct14° / 7612010.43.8
Nov10° / 7612.50.18.62.2
Dec / 7611.90.57.71.2

Cloud cover in January

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 14% of the time in January.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 14% of January, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 72%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
13070
23070
33070
43070
53070
63070
73070
83070
93070
103070
113070
123070
133070
143070
153070
163070
172971
182971
192971
202872
212872
222773
232773
242773
252674
262674
272674
282674
292575
302674
312674

Chance of precipitation in January

Any precipitationSnow

Melksham gets around 72 mm of rain and snow over 12.8 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 41% and peaks near 44% on the wettest days, and about 1 day brings snow.

0%10%20%30%40%50%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
1402
2412
3412
4422
5422
6432
7432
8432
9442
10442
11442
12442
13442
14442
15442
16432
17432
18422
19422
20412
21412
22402
23402
24392
25393
26383
27383
28373
29373
30374
31374

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
1918light 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 8:21 AM to 7:58 AM, and sunset from 4:03 PM to 4:45 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
17.78:214:03
27.78:214:04
37.78:214:05
47.88:204:06
57.88:204:07
67.88:204:08
77.88:204:09
87.88:194:10
97.98:194:11
107.98:184:13
117.98:184:14
128.08:174:15
138.08:174:17
148.08:164:18
158.18:154:20
168.18:154:21
178.18:144:22
188.28:134:24
198.28:124:26
208.38:114:27
218.38:104:29
228.38:094:30
238.48:084:32
248.48:074:33
258.58:064:35
268.58:054:37
278.68:044:38
288.68:024:40
298.78:014:42
308.78:004:44
318.87:584:45

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 0.67 kWh/m² to a high of 5.22 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
110.8Dim
120.8Dim
130.8Dim
140.8Dim
150.8Dim
160.8Dim
170.8Dim
180.8Dim
190.9Dim
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 Melksham?

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 Melksham.

What to pack for Melksham in January

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

In January, Melksham sees daytime highs around 7°C and nights near 3°C. Pack a warm layer. Worth having: a heavy coat and rain gear. About 13 days see rain.

a warm layera heavy coatrain gear

Sea temperature near Melksham 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 51 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
Jun15Cool
Jul18Cool
Aug18Cool
Sep17Cool
Oct15Bracing
Nov12Bracing
Dec9Bracing

UV index in Melksham 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 Melksham peaks around August 13 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 13UV 6Jan 1UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan1Low
Feb1Low
Mar3Moderate
Apr4Moderate
May6High
Jun6High
Jul6High
Aug7High
Sep4Moderate
Oct2Moderate
Nov1Low
Dec1Low
Location & terrain

Where is Melksham?

Melksham sits at 51.4°N, 2.1°W, 41 m above sea level, in United Kingdom. The nearest listed city is Neston, 6.0 km away.

Topography around Melksham

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Melksham has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 71 m around an average of 42 m above sea level; within 16 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 244 m; within 80 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 578 m.

The land around Melksham is covered by grassland (45%) and cropland (27%) within 3 km, grassland (49%) and cropland (26%) within 16 km, and grassland (44%) and cropland (28%) within 80 km.

3 km
71 m
16 km
244 m
80 km
578 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaceswater
January weather nearby: Neston 6.0 km · Trowbridge 8.0 km · Chippenham 10 km · Devizes 10 km · Calne 12 km · Westbury 13 km · Bath 15 km · Warminster 19 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 Melksham (51.3728°, -2.14°, elevation 41 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).