Bedford weather in January

In January, Bedford sees average daytime highs of 32°F and overnight lows near 17°F, with 3.1 in of precipitation across 9.4 wet days and about 9.2 hours of daylight. It is the 12th-warmest and 11th-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 32°F through the month. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 33% of the time in January, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 8 h 54 min at the start of January to 9 h 36 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, January is Bedford's 4th-clearest and 3rd-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Bedford's year-round climate.

Daytime high
32°
12th warmest
Overnight low
17°
1st coldest
Precipitation
3.1 in
9.4 wet days
Daylight
9 h 12 min
7:20 AM – 4:30 PM
Cloud cover
58%
4th clearest
Wind
8 mph
3rd windiest
Solar energy
1.96 kWh/m²
Travel score
0.0
out of 10

Bedford is town in Hillsborough County, New Hampshire, United States.

Founded
1750

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 32°F through the month.

A typical January day in Bedford reaches about 32°F in the afternoon and slips back to 17°F overnight — a 15°F spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 18°F and 46°F. Set against its neighbours, January runs about 5°F cooler than December and about 3°F cooler than February.

20°40°151015202531
Avg high (°F)Avg low (°F)
13420
23419
33319
43319
53319
63319
73318
83318
93318
103218
113217
123217
133217
143217
153217
163216
173116
183116
193116
203116
213116
223116
233116
243116
253116
263116
273216
283216
293216
303216
313216

How January really feels in Bedford

Once humidity and wind are folded in, January averages 0 days that feel above 90°F and 31 that feel at or below 32°F — the comfort signal a plain temperature reading hides.

Days feeling ≥ 90°F
0
heat index over the day's high
Days feeling ≤ 32°F
31
31 feel bitter (≤ 14°F)

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

Bedford weather by month

How January compares with the rest of the year at a glance. January is the 12th-warmest and 11th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°F)Rainfall (inches)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan32° / 17°3.19.46.79.20.0
Feb35° / 18°3.08.76.410.20.0
Mar43° / 27°3.910.75.711.60.6
Apr56° / 38°3.710.51.713.13.6
May67° / 48°3.110.60.114.45.9
Jun76° / 57°3.611.6015.16.4
Jul82° / 63°3.510.4014.86.2
Aug80° / 61°3.49.7013.86.6
Sep72° / 53°3.48.4012.36.9
Oct60° / 42°4.09.40.410.84.8
Nov48° / 33°3.49.41.79.51.7
Dec37° / 23°4.110.25.98.90.0

Cloud cover in January

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 33% 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 51%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
14951
24852
34852
44852
54852
64852
74753
84852
94852
104753
114753
124852
134852
144852
154951
164951
174951
184951
195050
205050
215050
225149
235149
245149
255149
265248
275248
285149
295149
305149
315149

Chance of precipitation in January

Any precipitationSnow

Bedford gets around 3.1 in of rain and snow over 9.4 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 30% and peaks near 32% on the wettest days, and about 7 days bring snow.

0%10%20%30%40%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
13220
23220
33221
43221
53221
63222
73222
83222
93223
103223
113223
123223
133224
143224
153224
163224
173123
183123
193023
203022
212922
222922
232922
242821
252821
262821
272720
282720
292720
302720
312720

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 8 mph in January.

Across January, daily wind ranges from about 8 mph on the calmest days to 8 mph at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

0246810151015202531
Wind speed (mph)Feels
18light breeze
28light breeze
38light breeze
48light breeze
58light breeze
68light breeze
78light breeze
88light breeze
98light breeze
108light breeze
118light breeze
128light breeze
138light breeze
148light breeze
158light breeze
168light breeze
178light breeze
188light breeze
198light breeze
208light breeze
218light breeze
228light breeze
238light breeze
248light breeze
258light breeze
268light breeze
278light breeze
288light breeze
298light breeze
308light breeze
318light breeze

Sunrise & sunset in January

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 8 h 54 min at the start of January to 9 h 36 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 42 minutes over January. Sunrise moves from 7:23 AM to 7:10 AM, and sunset from 4:16 PM to 4:49 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
18.97:234:16
28.97:234:16
38.97:234:17
48.97:234:18
58.97:234:19
69.07:234:20
79.07:234:21
89.07:234:22
99.07:234:23
109.07:224:24
119.07:224:25
129.17:224:26
139.17:224:27
149.17:214:28
159.17:214:29
169.27:204:30
179.27:204:31
189.27:204:33
199.27:194:34
209.37:184:35
219.37:184:36
229.37:174:37
239.47:174:38
249.47:164:40
259.47:154:41
269.57:144:42
279.57:144:43
289.57:134:45
299.67:124:46
309.67:114:47
319.67:104:49

Solar energy in January

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in January, about 1.96 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 1.56 kWh/m² to a high of 5.86 kWh/m² in July across the year — January's 1.96 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

0123151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
11.6Dim
21.6Dim
31.7Dim
41.7Dim
51.7Dim
61.7Dim
71.7Dim
81.7Dim
91.8Dim
101.8Dim
111.8Dim
121.8Dim
131.8Dim
141.9Dim
151.9Dim
161.9Dim
171.9Dim
182.0Dim
192.0Moderate
202.0Moderate
212.1Moderate
222.1Moderate
232.2Moderate
242.2Moderate
252.2Moderate
262.3Moderate
272.3Moderate
282.3Moderate
292.4Moderate
302.4Moderate
312.4Moderate
Planning a trip in January

Hazard calendar for Bedford

In seasonPeak

None of Bedford's seasonal hazards are active in January. The full-year calendar below shows when the rainy season, cyclone risk and dust haze do peak.

Bedford sits in the Atlantic hurricane belt; the season peaks August–October.

Atlantic hurricane
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec

Is January a good time to visit Bedford?

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

0.0
Sightseeing
10th-best month of the year
0.0
Beach & pool
9th-best month of the year

January is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Bedford.

What to pack for Bedford in January

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

In January, Bedford sees daytime highs around 32°F and nights near 17°F. Pack a warm layer and a heavy coat. Worth having: rain gear. About 9 days see rain.

a warm layera heavy coatrain gear

UV index in Bedford 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 Bedford peaks around July 10 at about 7 (very high) — sunscreen and a hat are worth it in the middle of the day. It bottoms out near December 23 at about 1 (low).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 8 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLowModerateHighVery highHighHighModerateLowJul 10UV 7Dec 23UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan1Low
Feb3Moderate
Mar4Moderate
Apr5High
May7Very high
Jun7High
Jul7Very high
Aug5Moderate
Sep6High
Oct3Moderate
Nov2Moderate
Dec1Low

Air quality in Bedford in January

GoodModeratePoorUnhealthyVery unhealthy

Average fine-particle pollution (PM2.5) through the year — so you can see where January falls, not just the annual average.

Air quality in Bedford is worst in July — around 16 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 2.0× the cleanest month (November, 8 µg/m³).

Modeled monthly averages (CAMS reanalysis, 2015–2024).

01020JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecGoodModerateGoodJul 1715 µg/m³Nov 188 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan9Good
Feb13Moderate
Mar13Moderate
Apr13Moderate
May14Moderate
Jun13Moderate
Jul16Moderate
Aug14Moderate
Sep11Good
Oct9Good
Nov8Good
Dec9Good
Location & terrain

Where is Bedford?

Bedford sits at 42.9°N, 71.5°W, 305 ft above sea level, in United States. The nearest listed city is Manchester, 4.3 mi away.

Topography around Bedford

How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 2, 10 and 50 miles of Bedford.

Within 2 miles, the terrain around Bedford has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 400 ft around an average of 331 ft above sea level; within 10 miles, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,237 ft; within 50 miles, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 3,176 ft.

The land around Bedford is covered by trees (80%) within 2 miles, trees (80%) within 10 miles, and trees (84%) within 50 miles.

2 miles
400 ft
10 miles
1,237 ft
50 miles
3,176 ft
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaceswaterwetland
January weather nearby: Manchester 4.3 mi · Merrimack 5.6 mi · Derry 11 mi · Derry Village 11 mi · Nashua 13 mi · Concord 18 mi · Salem 19 mi · East Concord 21 mi

United States travel facts

Power plugs
Type A / B
120 V · 60 Hz
Prices
≈ 100% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$90,027
2025
Happiness
6.8 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
98%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
5.8
per 100k, 2023
Road deaths
12.7
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
High
World Bank
Religion
Protestant 47%unaffiliated 23%Roman Catholic 21%Jewish 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 Bedford (42.9465°, -71.5159°, elevation 305 ft), 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. Tropical-cyclone seasons are the published climatological basin seasons (NOAA National Hurricane Center / regional warning centres). UV index is derived from CAMS (Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service) clear-sky UV data — contains modified Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service information. Monthly air-quality (PM2.5) seasonality is from the CAMS EAC4 reanalysis (Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service), scaled to the WHO annual mean where available. Topography is sampled from the Copernicus DEM GLO-90 elevation model (© ESA/Airbus) and ESA WorldCover 2021 land cover (CC BY 4.0).