Scarborough weather in January

In January, Scarborough sees average daytime highs of 7°C and overnight lows near 3°C, with 66 mm of precipitation across 13.9 wet days and about 7.7 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 16% of the time in January, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 7 h 12 min at the start of January to 8 h 24 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, January is Scarborough's 11th-clearest and 1st-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Scarborough's year-round climate.

Daytime high
12th warmest
Overnight low
2nd coldest
Precipitation
66 mm
13.9 wet days
Daylight
7 h 36 min
8:22 AM – 4:00 PM
Cloud cover
72%
11th clearest
Wind
25 km/h
1st windiest
Solar energy
0.67 kWh/m²
Travel score
0.6
out of 10

Scarborough is town and civil parish in North Yorkshire, 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 Scarborough reaches about 7°C in the afternoon and slips back to 3°C overnight — a 3°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 3°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)
173
273
373
473
573
673
773
873
973
1073
1173
1273
1373
1473
1573
1673
1773
1873
1973
2063
2163
2263
2363
2463
2563
2663
2763
2863
2963
3063
3163

How January really feels in Scarborough

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.

Scarborough 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 / 6613.91.67.70.6
Feb / 5511.829.30.7
Mar / 5211.51.411.51.3
Apr10° / 5511.50.413.72.0
May12° / 5110.5015.73.2
Jun15° / 11°6811.9016.84.3
Jul18° / 13°6611.9016.45.4
Aug18° / 13°7212.4014.75.4
Sep16° / 11°6411.3012.54.5
Oct13° / 7413.2010.23.1
Nov / 7913.90.48.21.7
Dec / 7213.41.17.20.8

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 16% of January, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 68%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
13268
23367
33367
43268
53268
63268
73268
83268
93268
103268
113268
123367
133268
143268
153169
163169
173169
183169
193169
203169
213169
223169
233169
243169
253169
263268
273169
283169
293169
303169
313268

Chance of precipitation in January

Any precipitationSnow

Scarborough gets around 66 mm of rain and snow over 13.9 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 45% and peaks near 48% on the wettest days, and about 2 days bring snow. The odds ease toward the end of the month.

0%20%40%60%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
1476
2476
3476
4486
5486
6485
7485
8475
9475
10474
11474
12474
13474
14464
15464
16464
17455
18455
19455
20445
21445
22446
23436
24436
25426
26426
27416
28416
29417
30407
31407

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

Across January, daily wind ranges from about 24 km/h on the calmest days to 25 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

0102030151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
125breezy
225breezy
325breezy
425breezy
525breezy
625breezy
725breezy
825breezy
925breezy
1025breezy
1125breezy
1225breezy
1325breezy
1425breezy
1525breezy
1624breezy
1724breezy
1824breezy
1924breezy
2024breezy
2124breezy
2224breezy
2324breezy
2424breezy
2524breezy
2624breezy
2724breezy
2824breezy
2924breezy
3024breezy
3124breezy

Sunrise & sunset in January

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 7 h 12 min at the start of January to 8 h 24 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 8:30 AM to 8:03 AM, and sunset from 3:39 PM to 4:27 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
17.28:303:39
27.28:303:40
37.28:303:41
47.28:303:43
57.28:293:44
67.38:293:45
77.38:293:46
87.38:283:48
97.48:283:49
107.48:273:50
117.48:263:52
127.58:263:53
137.58:253:55
147.58:243:56
157.68:233:58
167.68:224:00
177.78:214:01
187.78:204:03
197.88:194:05
207.88:184:06
217.98:174:08
227.98:164:10
238.08:154:12
248.08:134:14
258.18:124:15
268.18:114:17
278.28:094:19
288.28:084:21
298.38:064:23
308.38:054:25
318.48:034:27

Solar energy in January

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in January, about 0.67 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 0.51 kWh/m² to a high of 5.3 kWh/m² in June across the year — January's 0.67 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

00.511.52151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
10.5Dim
20.5Dim
30.5Dim
40.5Dim
50.5Dim
60.6Dim
70.6Dim
80.6Dim
90.6Dim
100.6Dim
110.6Dim
120.6Dim
130.6Dim
140.6Dim
150.7Dim
160.7Dim
170.7Dim
180.7Dim
190.7Dim
200.7Dim
210.8Dim
220.8Dim
230.8Dim
240.8Dim
250.8Dim
260.8Dim
270.9Dim
280.9Dim
290.9Dim
300.9Dim
311.0Dim
Planning a trip in January

Is January a good time to visit Scarborough?

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

0.6
Sightseeing
12th-best month of the year
0.0
Beach & pool
6th-best month of the year

January is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Scarborough.

What to pack for Scarborough in January

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

In January, Scarborough sees daytime highs around 7°C and nights near 3°C. Pack a warm layer. Worth having: a heavy coat, rain gear and a windbreaker. About 14 days see rain.

a warm layera heavy coatrain geara windbreaker

Sea temperature near Scarborough 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 offshore is warmest in August at about 15°C and coldest in March near 7°C.

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

5°10°15°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbracingcool
Sea temperature (°C)Comfort
Jan7Bracing
Feb7Bracing
Mar7Bracing
Apr7Bracing
May9Bracing
Jun12Bracing
Jul15Bracing
Aug15Cool
Sep14Bracing
Oct12Bracing
Nov10Bracing
Dec9Bracing

UV index in Scarborough 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 Scarborough peaks around August 11 at about 6 (high) — a little sun protection helps at midday. It bottoms out near December 20 at about 0 (low).

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

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLowModerateHighModerateLowAug 11UV 6Dec 20UV 0
UV index (midday)Level
Jan1Low
Feb1Low
Mar2Moderate
Apr3Moderate
May5Moderate
Jun5High
Jul6High
Aug6High
Sep4Moderate
Oct2Low
Nov1Low
Dec0Low
Location & terrain

Where is Scarborough?

Scarborough sits at 54.3°N, 0.4°W, 48 m above sea level, in United Kingdom. The nearest listed city is Bridlington, 26 km away.

Topography around Scarborough

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Scarborough has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 182 m around an average of 45 m above sea level; within 16 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 273 m; within 80 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 461 m.

The land around Scarborough is covered by water (37%) and trees (21%) within 3 km, water (43%) and cropland (23%) within 16 km, and cropland (35%), water (33%) and grassland (22%) within 80 km.

3 km
182 m
16 km
273 m
80 km
461 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaceswater
January weather nearby: Bridlington 26 km · Beverley 48 km · Guisborough 51 km · Redcar 57 km · York 57 km · Kingston upon Hull 60 km · Brough 62 km · Middlesbrough 63 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 Scarborough (54.2797°, -0.4044°, elevation 48 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).