Middleton weather in January

In January, Middleton sees average daytime highs of 6°C and overnight lows near 2°C, with 88 mm of precipitation across 15 wet days and about 7.8 hours of daylight. It is the 12th-warmest and 5th-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 6°C through the month. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 13% of the time in January, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 7 h 18 min at the start of January to 8 h 30 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, January is Middleton's 11th-clearest and 1st-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Middleton's year-round climate.

Daytime high
12th warmest
Overnight low
2nd coldest
Precipitation
88 mm
15 wet days
Daylight
7 h 48 min
8:26 AM – 4:11 PM
Cloud cover
76%
11th clearest
Wind
17 km/h
1st windiest
Solar energy
0.63 kWh/m²
Travel score
0.5
out of 10

Middleton is town in Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale, Greater Manchester, 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 6°C through the month.

A typical January day in Middleton reaches about 6°C in the afternoon and slips back to 2°C overnight — a 5°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 2°C and 10°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)
162
262
362
462
562
662
772
872
972
1072
1172
1272
1372
1472
1572
1672
1772
1862
1962
2062
2162
2262
2362
2462
2562
2662
2762
2862
2962
3062
3162

How January really feels in Middleton

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.

Middleton 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 / 88151.87.80.5
Feb / 7713.32.19.40.8
Mar / 7413.11.311.51.7
Apr12° / 6612.90.513.72.8
May15° / 6912.8015.64.1
Jun17° / 10°8413.9016.74.9
Jul19° / 12°8415.2016.35.3
Aug19° / 12°8915.2014.65.2
Sep16° / 10°7612.4012.54.6
Oct13° / 9014.5010.33.1
Nov / 8815.30.28.31.6
Dec / 99151.57.30.7

Cloud cover in January

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 13% of the time in January.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 12% of January, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 75%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
12773
22773
32674
42674
52773
62773
72773
82674
92674
102674
112674
122674
132674
142674
152476
162476
172476
182476
192476
202476
212476
222476
232476
242476
252476
262476
272476
282575
292476
302476
312476

Chance of precipitation in January

Any precipitationSnow

Middleton gets around 88 mm of rain and snow over 15 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 48% and peaks near 51% on the wettest days, and about 2 days bring snow.

0%20%40%60%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
1496
2495
3495
4505
5505
6505
7515
8515
9515
10515
11515
12515
13516
14516
15506
16506
17497
18497
19487
20487
21477
22477
23467
24467
25467
26457
27457
28457
29457
30457
31457

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 17 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

05101520151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
117light breeze
217light breeze
317light breeze
417light breeze
517light breeze
617light breeze
717light breeze
817light breeze
917light breeze
1017light breeze
1117light breeze
1217light breeze
1317light breeze
1417light breeze
1517light 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 18 min at the start of January to 8 h 30 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 8:33 AM to 8:07 AM, and sunset from 3:51 PM to 4:37 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
17.38:333:51
27.38:333:52
37.38:333:53
47.48:323:54
57.48:323:55
67.48:323:56
77.48:313:58
87.58:313:59
97.58:314:00
107.58:304:02
117.68:294:03
127.68:294:05
137.68:284:06
147.78:274:08
157.78:264:09
167.88:264:11
177.88:254:12
187.88:244:14
197.98:234:16
207.98:224:17
218.08:214:19
228.08:194:21
238.18:184:22
248.18:174:24
258.28:164:26
268.28:144:28
278.38:134:30
288.38:124:31
298.48:104:33
308.48:094:35
318.58:074:37

Solar energy in January

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in January, about 0.63 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 0.49 kWh/m² to a high of 4.83 kWh/m² in June across the year — January's 0.63 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

00.511.52151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
10.5Dim
20.5Dim
30.5Dim
40.5Dim
50.5Dim
60.5Dim
70.5Dim
80.5Dim
90.6Dim
100.6Dim
110.6Dim
120.6Dim
130.6Dim
140.6Dim
150.6Dim
160.6Dim
170.6Dim
180.7Dim
190.7Dim
200.7Dim
210.7Dim
220.7Dim
230.7Dim
240.8Dim
250.8Dim
260.8Dim
270.8Dim
280.8Dim
290.9Dim
300.9Dim
310.9Dim
Planning a trip in January

Is January a good time to visit Middleton?

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

0.5
Sightseeing
12th-best month of the year
0.0
Beach & pool
7th-best month of the year

January is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Middleton.

What to pack for Middleton in January

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

In January, Middleton sees daytime highs around 6°C and nights near 2°C. Pack a warm layer and rain gear. Worth having: a heavy coat. About 15 days see rain.

a warm layerrain geara heavy coat

Sea temperature near Middleton in January

The nearest coast averages about 7°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 62 km away) is warmest in August at about 17°C and coldest in February near 6°C.

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

5°10°15°20°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbracingcool
Sea temperature (°C)Comfort
Jan7Bracing
Feb6Bracing
Mar7Bracing
Apr9Bracing
May11Bracing
Jun14Bracing
Jul16Cool
Aug17Cool
Sep16Cool
Oct14Bracing
Nov11Bracing
Dec9Bracing

UV index in Middleton 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 Middleton peaks around August 12 at about 6 (high) — a little sun protection helps at midday. 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 12UV 6Jan 1UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan1Low
Feb1Low
Mar3Moderate
Apr3Moderate
May6High
Jun5High
Jul5High
Aug6High
Sep4Moderate
Oct2Low
Nov1Low
Dec1Low
Location & terrain

Where is Middleton?

Middleton sits at 53.5°N, 2.2°W, 87 m above sea level, in United Kingdom. The nearest listed city is Chadderton, 4.0 km away.

Topography around Middleton

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Middleton has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 98 m around an average of 107 m above sea level; within 16 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 484 m; within 80 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 734 m.

The land around Middleton is covered by trees (38%), artificial surfaces (34%) and grassland (26%) within 3 km, grassland (39%), artificial surfaces (32%) and trees (28%) within 16 km, and grassland (53%) within 80 km.

3 km
98 m
16 km
484 m
80 km
734 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaceswater
January weather nearby: Chadderton 4.0 km · Heywood 5.0 km · Royton 5.0 km · Oldham 6.0 km · Failsworth 6.0 km · Prestwich 6.0 km · Whitefield 7.0 km · Manchester 8.0 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 Middleton (53.55°, -2.2°, elevation 87 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).