Kingston weather in January

In January, Kingston sees average daytime highs of 34°F and overnight lows near 19°F, with 3.5 in of precipitation across 9 wet days and about 9.3 hours of daylight. It is the 12th-warmest and 11th-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 34°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 hours at the start of January to 9 h 42 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, January is Kingston's 7th-clearest and 4th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Kingston's year-round climate.

Daytime high
34°
12th warmest
Overnight low
19°
1st coldest
Precipitation
3.5 in
9 wet days
Daylight
9 h 18 min
7:27 AM – 4:43 PM
Cloud cover
63%
7th clearest
Wind
6 mph
4th windiest
Solar energy
1.93 kWh/m²
Travel score
0.0
out of 10

Kingston is city in and the county seat of Ulster County, New York, United States.

Density
1,031/km²
people per km²

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 34°F through the month.

A typical January day in Kingston reaches about 34°F in the afternoon and slips back to 19°F overnight — a 14°F spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 20°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)
13522
23522
33522
43521
53521
63521
73521
83420
93420
103420
113420
123419
133319
143319
153319
163319
173318
183318
193318
203318
213318
223318
233318
243318
253318
263318
273318
283318
293418
303418
313418

How January really feels in Kingston

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
29 feel bitter (≤ 14°F)

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

Kingston 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
Jan34° / 19°3.596.19.30.0
Feb36° / 20°2.98.45.710.30.0
Mar45° / 28°4.210.54.811.71.0
Apr58° / 39°4.010.91.313.14.1
May68° / 49°3.912.20.114.35.9
Jun77° / 58°4.312.50156.3
Jul82° / 64°3.811.4014.76.2
Aug80° / 62°4.010.7013.76.5
Sep73° / 55°4.39012.36.9
Oct60° / 44°4.79.30.310.95.0
Nov49° / 34°3.691.69.61.9
Dec38° / 25°4.210.15.690.0

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 15% of January, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 57%. Skies tend to open up as the month goes on.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
14159
24258
34258
44159
54258
64159
74159
84258
94258
104258
114258
124159
134159
144159
154159
164159
174258
184258
194258
204357
214258
224258
234258
244357
254357
264456
274555
284555
294555
304555
314654

Chance of precipitation in January

Any precipitationSnow

Kingston gets around 3.5 in of rain and snow over 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 29% and peaks near 33% on the wettest days, and about 6 days bring snow. The odds ease toward the end of the month.

0%10%20%30%40%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
13219
23219
33220
43320
53321
63321
73321
83321
93321
103222
113222
123222
133121
143121
153021
162921
172920
182820
192820
202719
212719
222619
232618
242518
252518
262518
272518
282518
292518
302518
312618

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 6 mph in January.

Across January, daily wind ranges from about 6 mph on the calmest days to 6 mph at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

0246810151015202531
Wind speed (mph)Feels
16calm
26calm
36calm
46calm
56calm
66calm
76calm
86calm
96calm
106calm
116calm
126calm
136calm
146calm
156calm
166calm
176calm
186calm
196calm
206calm
216calm
226calm
236calm
246calm
256calm
266calm
276calm
286calm
296calm
306calm
316calm

Sunrise & sunset in January

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 9 hours at the start of January to 9 h 42 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 7:29 AM to 7:18 AM, and sunset from 4:29 PM to 5:01 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
19.07:294:29
29.07:294:30
39.07:294:31
49.07:294:32
59.07:294:32
69.17:294:33
79.17:294:34
89.17:294:35
99.17:294:36
109.17:294:37
119.27:294:38
129.27:294:39
139.27:284:40
149.27:284:41
159.27:284:42
169.37:274:43
179.37:274:44
189.37:264:45
199.37:264:47
209.47:254:48
219.47:254:49
229.47:244:50
239.57:244:51
249.57:234:52
259.57:224:54
269.67:224:55
279.67:214:56
289.67:204:57
299.77:194:59
309.77:185:00
319.77:185:01

Solar energy in January

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in January, about 1.93 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 1.55 kWh/m² to a high of 5.96 kWh/m² in July across the year — January's 1.93 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

0123151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
11.6Dim
21.6Dim
31.6Dim
41.7Dim
51.7Dim
61.7Dim
71.7Dim
81.7Dim
91.7Dim
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
232.1Moderate
242.2Moderate
252.2Moderate
262.2Moderate
272.3Moderate
282.3Moderate
292.3Moderate
302.4Moderate
312.4Moderate
Planning a trip in January

Hazard calendar for Kingston

In seasonPeak

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

Kingston 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 Kingston?

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 Kingston.

What to pack for Kingston in January

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

In January, Kingston sees daytime highs around 34°F and nights near 19°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 Kingston 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 Kingston peaks around July 11 at about 8 (very high) — sunscreen and a hat are worth it in the middle of the day. It bottoms out near December 22 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 highHighModerateLowJul 11UV 8Dec 22UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan2Low
Feb3Moderate
Mar4Moderate
Apr5High
May7Very high
Jun8Very high
Jul8Very high
Aug5High
Sep6High
Oct3Moderate
Nov2Moderate
Dec1Low
Location & terrain

Where is Kingston?

Kingston sits at 41.9°N, 74.0°W, 197 ft above sea level, in United States. The nearest listed city is Poughkeepsie, 16 mi away.

Topography around Kingston

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

Within 2 miles, the terrain around Kingston has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 463 ft around an average of 177 ft above sea level; within 10 miles, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,417 ft; within 50 miles, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 4,370 ft.

The land around Kingston is covered by trees (62%) within 2 miles, trees (79%) within 10 miles, and trees (88%) within 50 miles.

2 miles
463 ft
10 miles
1,417 ft
50 miles
4,370 ft
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaceswaterwetland
January weather nearby: Poughkeepsie 16 mi · Newburgh 29 mi · Middletown 40 mi · Kiryas Joel 42 mi · Peekskill 44 mi · West Torrington 45 mi · Cortlandt Manor 45 mi · Torrington 46 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 Kingston (41.927°, -73.9974°, elevation 197 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. Topography is sampled from the Copernicus DEM GLO-90 elevation model (© ESA/Airbus) and ESA WorldCover 2021 land cover (CC BY 4.0).