Frederick weather in January

In January, Frederick sees average daytime highs of 40°F and overnight lows near 26°F, with 3.1 in of precipitation across 8.7 wet days and about 9.5 hours of daylight. It is the 12th-warmest and 9th-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 40°F through the month. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 27% of the time in January, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 9 h 18 min at the start of January to 9 h 54 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, January is Frederick's 10th-clearest and 2nd-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Frederick's year-round climate.

Daytime high
40°
12th warmest
Overnight low
26°
1st coldest
Precipitation
3.1 in
8.7 wet days
Daylight
9 h 30 min
7:34 AM – 5:04 PM
Cloud cover
63%
10th clearest
Wind
7 mph
2nd windiest
Solar energy
2.17 kWh/m²
Travel score
0.0
out of 10

Frederick is city in Frederick County, Maryland, United States.

Density
1,156/km²
people per km²
Founded
1745

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 40°F through the month.

A typical January day in Frederick reaches about 40°F in the afternoon and slips back to 26°F overnight — a 14°F spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 27°F and 54°F. Set against its neighbours, January runs about 4°F cooler than December and about 3°F cooler than February.

20°40°60°151015202531
Avg high (°F)Avg low (°F)
14228
24228
34128
44128
54128
64128
74127
84127
94127
104027
114027
124027
134026
144026
154026
164026
174026
183925
193925
203925
213925
223925
233925
243925
254025
264025
274025
284025
294025
304025
314025

How January really feels in Frederick

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
wind chill below the day's low

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

Frederick weather by month

How January compares with the rest of the year at a glance. January is the 12th-warmest and 9th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°F)Rainfall (inches)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan40° / 26°3.18.73.39.50.0
Feb43° / 27°2.78.53.610.50.6
Mar52° / 35°3.810.22.511.72.8
Apr64° / 45°3.510.20.2135.6
May73° / 54°3.711.8014.16.4
Jun82° / 64°3.410.8014.75.8
Jul87° / 68°3.610.5014.54.8
Aug85° / 67°3.09.9013.55.4
Sep78° / 59°4.29.2012.36.9
Oct66° / 47°3.47.90116.3
Nov54° / 37°3.07.90.49.83.4
Dec44° / 30°3.48.82.29.30.8

Cloud cover in January

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 27% 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 58%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
14357
24357
34357
44357
54357
64258
74357
84258
94258
104258
114258
124258
134258
144258
154258
164258
174258
184159
194159
204159
214258
224258
234258
244258
254258
264357
274357
284357
294357
304357
314357

Chance of precipitation in January

Any precipitationSnow

Frederick gets around 3.1 in of rain and snow over 8.7 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 29% and peaks near 30% on the wettest days, and about 3 days bring snow.

0%10%20%30%40%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
1278
2288
3288
4289
5299
6299
7309
8309
93010
103010
113010
123010
133010
143011
153011
162911
172911
182911
192811
202812
212812
222712
232712
242712
252712
262712
272712
282813
292813
302813
312813

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 99% of days. It rarely turns muggy — the humid and sticky bands barely register.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Dry (%)Comfortable (%)Humid (%)
19910
29910
39910
49910
59811
69811
79811
89811
99811
109811
119811
129811
139811
149910
159910
169910
1710000
1810000
1910000
2010000
2110000
2210000
2310000
2410000
2510000
2610000
2710000
2810000
2910000
3010000
3110000

Wind in January

Winds average 7 mph in January.

Across January, daily wind ranges from about 7 mph on the calmest days to 7 mph at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

0246810151015202531
Wind speed (mph)Feels
17calm
27calm
37calm
47calm
57calm
67calm
77calm
87calm
97calm
107calm
117calm
127calm
137calm
147calm
157calm
167calm
177calm
187calm
197calm
207calm
217calm
227calm
237calm
247calm
257calm
267calm
277calm
287calm
297calm
307calm
317calm

Sunrise & sunset in January

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 9 h 18 min at the start of January to 9 h 54 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 36 minutes over January. Sunrise moves from 7:35 AM to 7:25 AM, and sunset from 4:51 PM to 5:21 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
19.37:354:51
29.37:354:51
39.37:354:52
49.37:354:53
59.37:354:54
69.37:354:55
79.37:354:56
89.47:354:56
99.47:354:57
109.47:354:58
119.47:354:59
129.47:355:00
139.47:355:01
149.57:345:02
159.57:345:03
169.57:345:04
179.57:335:05
189.67:335:06
199.67:335:07
209.67:325:08
219.67:325:09
229.77:315:11
239.77:315:12
249.77:305:13
259.77:295:14
269.87:295:15
279.87:285:16
289.87:285:17
299.97:275:18
309.97:265:20
319.97:255:21

Solar energy in January

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in January, about 2.17 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 1.86 kWh/m² to a high of 6.15 kWh/m² in June across the year — January's 2.17 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

0123151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
11.9Dim
21.9Dim
31.9Dim
41.9Dim
51.9Dim
61.9Dim
72.0Dim
82.0Dim
92.0Dim
102.0Moderate
112.0Moderate
122.0Moderate
132.1Moderate
142.1Moderate
152.1Moderate
162.1Moderate
172.2Moderate
182.2Moderate
192.2Moderate
202.3Moderate
212.3Moderate
222.3Moderate
232.3Moderate
242.4Moderate
252.4Moderate
262.4Moderate
272.5Moderate
282.5Moderate
292.5Moderate
302.6Moderate
312.6Moderate
Planning a trip in January

Is January a good time to visit Frederick?

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

0.0
Sightseeing
12th-best month of the year
0.0
Beach & pool
10th-best month of the year

January is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Frederick.

What to pack for Frederick in January

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

In January, Frederick sees daytime highs around 40°F and nights near 26°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 Frederick in January

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in January peaks around 2. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Frederick peaks around July 10 at about 9 (very high) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 20 at about 2 (low).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 9 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModerateHighVery highHighModerateLowJul 10UV 9Dec 20UV 2
UV index (midday)Level
Jan2Low
Feb3Moderate
Mar5Moderate
Apr6High
May8Very high
Jun9Very high
Jul9Very high
Aug7High
Sep6High
Oct3Moderate
Nov2Moderate
Dec2Low

Air quality in Frederick 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 Frederick is worst in July — around 17 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 2.1× the cleanest month (November, 8 µg/m³).

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

01020JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecGoodModerateGoodJul 1317 µg/m³Nov 138 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan10Good
Feb11Good
Mar12Moderate
Apr12Moderate
May15Moderate
Jun16Moderate
Jul17Moderate
Aug14Moderate
Sep12Good
Oct9Good
Nov8Good
Dec9Good
Location & terrain

Where is Frederick?

Frederick sits at 39.4°N, 77.4°W, 285 ft above sea level, in United States. The nearest listed city is Ballenger Creek, 3.1 mi away.

Topography around Frederick

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

Within 2 miles, the terrain around Frederick has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 482 ft around an average of 312 ft above sea level; within 10 miles, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,791 ft; within 50 miles, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,756 ft.

The land around Frederick is covered by artificial surfaces (41%), trees (28%) and grassland (23%) within 2 miles, trees (47%), grassland (25%) and cropland (22%) within 10 miles, and trees (59%) and grassland (20%) within 50 miles.

2 miles
482 ft
10 miles
1,791 ft
50 miles
2,756 ft
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater
January weather nearby: Ballenger Creek 3.1 mi · Damascus 14 mi · Germantown 18 mi · Montgomery Village 20 mi · Gaithersburg 22 mi · Leesburg 22 mi · Hagerstown 23 mi · Redland 24 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 Frederick (39.4143°, -77.4105°, elevation 285 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. 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).