Littleton weather in January

In January, Littleton sees average daytime highs of 40°F and overnight lows near 14°F, with 0.9 in of precipitation across 5.3 wet days and about 9.5 hours of daylight. It is the 11th-warmest and 11th-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 51% of the time in January, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 9 h 12 min at the start of January to 9 h 54 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, January is Littleton's 5th-clearest and 4th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Littleton's year-round climate.

Daytime high
40°
11th warmest
Overnight low
14°
2nd coldest
Precipitation
0.9 in
5.3 wet days
Daylight
9 h 30 min
7:25 AM – 4:54 PM
Cloud cover
43%
5th clearest
Wind
5 mph
4th windiest
Solar energy
2.91 kWh/m²
Travel score
0.0
out of 10

Littleton is city in and seat of Arapahoe County, Colorado, United States.

Density
1,290/km²
people per km²
Founded
1890

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 Littleton reaches about 40°F in the afternoon and slips back to 14°F overnight — a 26°F spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 26°F and 52°F. Set against its neighbours, January runs on par with December and about 2°F cooler than February.

20°40°60°151015202531
Avg high (°F)Avg low (°F)
13813
23813
33813
43813
53913
63913
73913
83913
93913
103914
113914
124014
134014
144014
154014
164014
174014
184014
194015
204015
214015
224015
234015
244015
254015
264015
274015
284015
294015
304015
314015

How January really feels in Littleton

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.

Littleton weather by month

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

MonthHigh / Low (°F)Rainfall (inches)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan40° / 14°0.95.35.49.50.0
Feb42° / 16°0.95.75.810.40.3
Mar50° / 23°2.07.86.511.72.4
Apr56° / 29°3.0106.2133.7
May66° / 40°3.512.51.714.15.6
Jun77° / 49°2.39.7014.76.9
Jul83° / 55°2.29.9014.56.1
Aug81° / 54°1.99.4013.66.8
Sep74° / 46°1.56.40.612.37.6
Oct61° / 34°1.76.32.810.95.9
Nov48° / 23°1.25.95.29.82.2
Dec39° / 14°0.94.859.30.0

Cloud cover in January

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 51% of the time in January.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 17% of January, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 32%. Skies tend to cloud over as the month goes on.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
17030
27030
37030
47030
57030
67030
76931
86931
96931
106931
116931
126931
136931
146931
157030
166931
176931
186931
196832
206832
216832
226733
236634
246733
256634
266535
276535
286535
296535
306436
316436

Chance of precipitation in January

Any precipitationSnow

Littleton gets around 0.9 in of rain and snow over 5.3 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 16% and peaks near 20% on the wettest days, and about 5 days bring snow.

0%10%20%30%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
11616
21616
31616
41616
51616
61616
71616
81616
91516
101516
111516
121516
131516
141516
151516
161515
171515
181515
191516
201516
211616
221617
231717
241718
251818
261818
271919
281919
291920
302020
312021

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 5 mph in January.

Across January, daily wind ranges from about 5 mph on the calmest days to 5 mph at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

0246810151015202531
Wind speed (mph)Feels
15calm
25calm
35calm
45calm
55calm
65calm
75calm
85calm
95calm
105calm
115calm
125calm
135calm
145calm
155calm
165calm
175calm
185calm
195calm
205calm
215calm
225calm
235calm
245calm
255calm
265calm
275calm
285calm
295calm
305calm
315calm

Sunrise & sunset in January

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 9 h 12 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 42 minutes over January. Sunrise moves from 7:26 AM to 7:16 AM, and sunset from 4:41 PM to 5:11 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
19.27:264:41
29.37:264:41
39.37:264:42
49.37:264:43
59.37:264:44
69.37:264:45
79.37:264:45
89.37:264:46
99.47:264:47
109.47:264:48
119.47:264:49
129.47:264:50
139.47:264:51
149.47:254:52
159.57:254:53
169.57:254:54
179.57:244:55
189.57:244:56
199.67:244:57
209.67:234:58
219.67:234:59
229.67:225:00
239.77:225:02
249.77:215:03
259.77:205:04
269.87:205:05
279.87:195:06
289.87:185:07
299.87:185:08
309.97:175:09
319.97:165:11

Solar energy in January

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in January, about 2.91 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 2.59 kWh/m² to a high of 7.45 kWh/m² in June across the year — January's 2.91 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

01234151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
12.7Moderate
22.7Moderate
32.7Moderate
42.7Moderate
52.7Moderate
62.7Moderate
72.8Moderate
82.8Moderate
92.8Moderate
102.8Moderate
112.8Moderate
122.8Moderate
132.9Moderate
142.9Moderate
152.9Moderate
162.9Moderate
172.9Moderate
183.0Moderate
193.0Moderate
203.0Moderate
213.0Moderate
223.1Moderate
233.1Moderate
243.1Moderate
253.2Moderate
263.2Moderate
273.2Moderate
283.3Moderate
293.3Moderate
303.3Moderate
313.4Moderate
Planning a trip in January

Is January a good time to visit Littleton?

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

0.0
Sightseeing
11th-best month of the year
0.0
Beach & pool
9th-best month of the year

January is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Littleton.

What to pack for Littleton in January

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

In January, Littleton sees daytime highs around 40°F and nights near 14°F. Pack a warm layer and a heavy coat. About 5 days see rain.

a warm layera heavy coat

UV index in Littleton 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 Littleton peaks around July 14 at about 11 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 22 at about 2 (moderate).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 10 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModerateHighVery highExtremeVery highHighModerateJul 14UV 11Dec 22UV 2
UV index (midday)Level
Jan2Moderate
Feb4Moderate
Mar7High
Apr7High
May8Very high
Jun11Extreme
Jul11Extreme
Aug10Extreme
Sep8Very high
Oct6High
Nov4Moderate
Dec2Moderate

Air quality in Littleton 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 Littleton is worst in August — around 21 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 1.6× the cleanest month (May, 13 µg/m³).

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

0102030JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModerateAug 1620 µg/m³May 1113 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan17Moderate
Feb15Moderate
Mar16Moderate
Apr13Moderate
May13Moderate
Jun14Moderate
Jul14Moderate
Aug21Moderate
Sep13Moderate
Oct15Moderate
Nov15Moderate
Dec16Moderate
Location & terrain

Where is Littleton?

Littleton sits at 39.6°N, 105.0°W, 5,351 ft above sea level, in United States. The nearest listed city is Englewood, 3.1 mi away.

Topography around Littleton

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

Within 2 miles, the terrain around Littleton has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 276 ft around an average of 5,400 ft above sea level; within 10 miles, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,641 ft; within 50 miles, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 9,449 ft.

The land around Littleton is covered by artificial surfaces (46%) and trees (33%) within 2 miles, artificial surfaces (41%), grassland (33%) and trees (22%) within 10 miles, and grassland (46%) and trees (34%) within 50 miles.

2 miles
276 ft
10 miles
2,641 ft
50 miles
9,449 ft
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwatermoss and lichen
January weather nearby: Englewood 3.1 mi · Columbine 3.1 mi · Greenwood Village 3.7 mi · Southglenn 3.7 mi · Highlands Ranch 5.0 mi · Ken Caryl 5.6 mi · Castlewood 6.2 mi · Dakota Ridge 6.8 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 Littleton (39.6133°, -105.0166°, elevation 5,351 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).