Mackinac Island weather in January

In January, Mackinac Island sees average daytime highs of 24°F and overnight lows near 14°F, with 1.9 in of precipitation across 9.9 wet days and about 8.9 hours of daylight. It is the 12th-warmest and 11th-wettest month of the year here.

Highs ease over the month, from about 27°F in the first days to 22°F by the end. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 8% of the time in January, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 8 h 30 min at the start of January to 9 h 24 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, January is Mackinac Island's 11th-clearest and 4th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Mackinac Island's year-round climate.

Daytime high: 24°; 12th warmest
Overnight low: 14°; 2nd coldest
Precipitation: 1.9 in; 9.9 wet days
Daylight: 8 h 48 min; 8:22 AM – 5:13 PM
Cloud cover: 81%; 11th clearest
Wind: 11 mph; 4th windiest
Solar energy: 1.57 kWh/m²
Travel score: 0.0; out of 10

Mackinac Island is city located on Mackinac Island in Michigan.

Founded: 1671

Air quality: WHO Ambient Air Quality Database. Density & description: Wikidata (CC0), GeoNames.

← December Mackinac Island year-round climate February →Best places to visit in January

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

Temperature in January

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Highs ease over the month, from about 27°F in the first days to 22°F by the end.

A typical January day in Mackinac Island reaches about 24°F in the afternoon and slips back to 14°F overnight — a 10°F spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 9°F and 36°F. Set against its neighbours, January runs about 8°F cooler than December and on par with February.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Avg high (°F)	28	27	27	26	26	26	26	25	25	25	25	24	24	24	24	24	23	23	23	23	23	23	22	22	22	22	22	22	22	22	22
Avg low (°F)	19	18	18	17	17	17	16	16	15	15	15	14	14	14	13	13	13	13	12	12	12	12	12	12	12	12	12	12	12	12	12

	Avg high (°F)	Avg low (°F)
1	28	19
2	27	18
3	27	18
4	26	17
5	26	17
6	26	17
7	26	16
8	25	16
9	25	15
10	25	15
11	25	15
12	24	14
13	24	14
14	24	14
15	24	13
16	24	13
17	23	13
18	23	13
19	23	12
20	23	12
21	23	12
22	23	12
23	22	12
24	22	12
25	22	12
26	22	12
27	22	12
28	22	12
29	22	12
30	22	12
31	22	12

How January really feels in Mackinac Island

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

heat index over the day's high

Days feeling ≤ 32°F

31 feel bitter (≤ 14°F)

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

Mackinac Island 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.

Month	High / Low (°F)	Rainfall (inches)	Wet days	Snow days	Daylight (hours)	Travel score
Jan	24° / 14°	1.9	9.9	10.9	8.9	0.0
Feb	24° / 13°	1.6	7.4	7.3	10.1	0.0
Mar	33° / 21°	2.0	8.4	6.1	11.6	0.0
Apr	44° / 32°	2.9	9.7	3.2	13.3	0.9
May	56° / 43°	2.9	10.2	0.3	14.7	3.7
Jun	68° / 55°	3.0	10	0	15.5	6.3
Jul	74° / 62°	3.3	10.9	0	15.2	6.9
Aug	73° / 62°	3.4	10	0	13.9	6.9
Sep	66° / 55°	3.5	11.4	0	12.3	5.9
Oct	54° / 44°	3.7	13.5	0.2	10.7	3.0
Nov	42° / 34°	2.6	11.6	5.7	9.3	0.5
Dec	32° / 24°	2.3	11.3	11.3	8.5	0.0

Cloud cover in January

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 8% of the time in January.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 8% of January, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 85%. Skies tend to open up as the month goes on.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Clearer (%)	12	12	12	12	12	12	12	12	12	13	13	13	13	14	14	14	14	14	15	16	16	17	17	17	19	20	20	20	21	22	22
Cloudier (%)	88	88	88	88	88	88	88	88	88	87	87	87	87	86	86	86	86	86	85	84	84	83	83	83	81	80	80	80	79	78	78

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	12	88
2	12	88
3	12	88
4	12	88
5	12	88
6	12	88
7	12	88
8	12	88
9	12	88
10	13	87
11	13	87
12	13	87
13	13	87
14	14	86
15	14	86
16	14	86
17	14	86
18	14	86
19	15	85
20	16	84
21	16	84
22	17	83
23	17	83
24	17	83
25	19	81
26	20	80
27	20	80
28	20	80
29	21	79
30	22	78
31	22	78

Chance of precipitation in January

Any precipitationSnow

Mackinac Island gets around 1.9 in of rain and snow over 9.9 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 32% and peaks near 34% on the wettest days, and about 11 days bring snow.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Rain chance (%)	33	33	33	33	33	33	33	33	33	33	33	34	34	34	34	34	34	33	33	33	32	32	31	31	30	30	30	29	29	28	28
Snow chance (%)	38	38	38	38	38	38	38	38	38	38	38	37	37	37	36	36	35	35	34	34	34	33	33	32	32	31	31	30	30	30	29

	Rain chance (%)	Snow chance (%)
1	33	38
2	33	38
3	33	38
4	33	38
5	33	38
6	33	38
7	33	38
8	33	38
9	33	38
10	33	38
11	33	38
12	34	37
13	34	37
14	34	37
15	34	36
16	34	36
17	34	35
18	33	35
19	33	34
20	33	34
21	32	34
22	32	33
23	31	33
24	31	32
25	30	32
26	30	31
27	30	31
28	29	30
29	29	30
30	28	30
31	28	29

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.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Dry (%)	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100

	Dry (%)
1	100
2	100
3	100
4	100
5	100
6	100
7	100
8	100
9	100
10	100
11	100
12	100
13	100
14	100
15	100
16	100
17	100
18	100
19	100
20	100
21	100
22	100
23	100
24	100
25	100
26	100
27	100
28	100
29	100
30	100
31	100

Wind in January

Winds average 11 mph in January.

Across January, daily wind ranges from about 10 mph on the calmest days to 12 mph at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Wind speed (mph)	12	12	12	12	12	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	10	10	10	10	10	10
Feels	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze

	Wind speed (mph)	Feels
1	12	light breeze
2	12	light breeze
3	12	light breeze
4	12	light breeze
5	12	light breeze
6	11	light breeze
7	11	light breeze
8	11	light breeze
9	11	light breeze
10	11	light breeze
11	11	light breeze
12	11	light breeze
13	11	light breeze
14	11	light breeze
15	11	light breeze
16	11	light breeze
17	11	light breeze
18	11	light breeze
19	11	light breeze
20	11	light breeze
21	11	light breeze
22	11	light breeze
23	11	light breeze
24	11	light breeze
25	11	light breeze
26	10	light breeze
27	10	light breeze
28	10	light breeze
29	10	light breeze
30	10	light breeze
31	10	light breeze

Sunrise & sunset in January

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 8 h 30 min at the start of January to 9 h 24 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 54 minutes over January. Sunrise moves from 8:26 AM to 8:11 AM, and sunset from 4:57 PM to 5:33 PM.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Daylight (h)	8.5	8.5	8.6	8.6	8.6	8.6	8.6	8.6	8.7	8.7	8.7	8.7	8.8	8.8	8.8	8.8	8.9	8.9	8.9	9.0	9.0	9.0	9.1	9.1	9.1	9.2	9.2	9.3	9.3	9.3	9.4
Sunrise (AM)	8:26	8:26	8:26	8:26	8:26	8:26	8:26	8:25	8:25	8:25	8:25	8:24	8:24	8:23	8:23	8:22	8:22	8:21	8:21	8:20	8:19	8:19	8:18	8:17	8:16	8:15	8:14	8:14	8:13	8:12	8:11
Sunset (PM)	4:57	4:58	4:59	5:00	5:01	5:02	5:03	5:04	5:05	5:06	5:07	5:08	5:09	5:11	5:12	5:13	5:14	5:16	5:17	5:18	5:19	5:21	5:22	5:23	5:25	5:26	5:27	5:29	5:30	5:32	5:33

	Daylight (h)	Sunrise (AM)	Sunset (PM)
1	8.5	8:26	4:57
2	8.5	8:26	4:58
3	8.6	8:26	4:59
4	8.6	8:26	5:00
5	8.6	8:26	5:01
6	8.6	8:26	5:02
7	8.6	8:26	5:03
8	8.6	8:25	5:04
9	8.7	8:25	5:05
10	8.7	8:25	5:06
11	8.7	8:25	5:07
12	8.7	8:24	5:08
13	8.8	8:24	5:09
14	8.8	8:23	5:11
15	8.8	8:23	5:12
16	8.8	8:22	5:13
17	8.9	8:22	5:14
18	8.9	8:21	5:16
19	8.9	8:21	5:17
20	9.0	8:20	5:18
21	9.0	8:19	5:19
22	9.0	8:19	5:21
23	9.1	8:18	5:22
24	9.1	8:17	5:23
25	9.1	8:16	5:25
26	9.2	8:15	5:26
27	9.2	8:14	5:27
28	9.3	8:14	5:29
29	9.3	8:13	5:30
30	9.3	8:12	5:32
31	9.4	8:11	5:33

Solar energy in January

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in January, about 1.57 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 1.15 kWh/m² to a high of 6.61 kWh/m² in June across the year — January's 1.57 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Solar energy (kWh/m²)	1.3	1.3	1.3	1.3	1.3	1.3	1.4	1.4	1.4	1.4	1.4	1.4	1.5	1.5	1.5	1.6	1.6	1.6	1.6	1.7	1.7	1.7	1.8	1.8	1.9	1.9	1.9	2.0	2.0	2.0	2.1
Level	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate

	Solar energy (kWh/m²)	Level
1	1.3	Dim
2	1.3	Dim
3	1.3	Dim
4	1.3	Dim
5	1.3	Dim
6	1.3	Dim
7	1.4	Dim
8	1.4	Dim
9	1.4	Dim
10	1.4	Dim
11	1.4	Dim
12	1.4	Dim
13	1.5	Dim
14	1.5	Dim
15	1.5	Dim
16	1.6	Dim
17	1.6	Dim
18	1.6	Dim
19	1.6	Dim
20	1.7	Dim
21	1.7	Dim
22	1.7	Dim
23	1.8	Dim
24	1.8	Dim
25	1.9	Dim
26	1.9	Dim
27	1.9	Dim
28	2.0	Dim
29	2.0	Moderate
30	2.0	Moderate
31	2.1	Moderate

Planning a trip in January

Is January a good time to visit Mackinac Island?

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

0.0

Sightseeing

9th-best month of the year

0.0

Beach & pool

7th-best month of the year

January is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Mackinac Island.

What to pack for Mackinac Island in January

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

In January, Mackinac Island sees daytime highs around 24°F and nights near 14°F. Pack a warm layer and a heavy coat. Worth having: rain gear. About 10 days see rain.

a warm layera heavy coatrain gear

Sea temperature near Mackinac Island in January

The nearest coast averages about 35°F 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 66°F and coldest in February near 34°F.

The water stays below 68°F all year — cool enough that most swimmers want a wetsuit.

	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Sea temperature (°F)	35	34	34	36	41	52	62	66	61	53	44	38
Comfort	Bracing	Bracing	Bracing	Bracing	Bracing	Bracing	Cool	Cool	Cool	Bracing	Bracing	Bracing

	Sea temperature (°F)	Comfort
Jan	35	Bracing
Feb	34	Bracing
Mar	34	Bracing
Apr	36	Bracing
May	41	Bracing
Jun	52	Bracing
Jul	62	Cool
Aug	66	Cool
Sep	61	Cool
Oct	53	Bracing
Nov	44	Bracing
Dec	38	Bracing

UV index in Mackinac Island 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 Mackinac Island peaks around June 19 at about 8 (very high) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near January 1 at about 1 (low).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 7 months of the year.

	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
UV index (midday)	1	2	3	5	7	8	8	7	5	3	2	1
Level	Low	Low	Moderate	Moderate	High	Very high	Very high	High	Moderate	Moderate	Low	Low

	UV index (midday)	Level
Jan	1	Low
Feb	2	Low
Mar	3	Moderate
Apr	5	Moderate
May	7	High
Jun	8	Very high
Jul	8	Very high
Aug	7	High
Sep	5	Moderate
Oct	3	Moderate
Nov	2	Low
Dec	1	Low

Location & terrain

Where is Mackinac Island?

Mackinac Island sits at 45.8°N, 84.6°W, 0 ft above sea level, in United States. The nearest listed city is Sault Ste. Marie, 47 mi away.

Topography around Mackinac Island

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

Within 2 miles, the terrain around Mackinac Island has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 351 ft around an average of 614 ft above sea level; within 10 miles, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 351 ft; within 50 miles, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,037 ft.

The land around Mackinac Island is covered by water (72%) and trees (24%) within 2 miles, water (75%) and trees (22%) within 10 miles, and trees (48%) and water (44%) within 50 miles.

2 miles

351 ft

water 72%

10 miles

351 ft

water 75%

50 miles

1,037 ft

trees 48%

treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaceswater

← December Mackinac Island year-round climate February →Best places to visit in January

January weather nearby: Sault Ste. Marie 47 mi · Sault Ste. Marie 48 mi · Traverse City 89 mi · Marquette 141 mi · Midland 155 mi · Mount Pleasant 156 mi · Bay City 160 mi · Saginaw Township North 168 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

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 Mackinac Island (45.8492°, -84.6189°, elevation 0 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. 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).

	Avg high (°F)	Avg low (°F)
1	28	19
2	27	18
3	27	18
4	26	17
5	26	17
6	26	17
7	26	16
8	25	16
9	25	15
10	25	15
11	25	15
12	24	14
13	24	14
14	24	14
15	24	13
16	24	13
17	23	13
18	23	13
19	23	12
20	23	12
21	23	12
22	23	12
23	22	12
24	22	12
25	22	12
26	22	12
27	22	12
28	22	12
29	22	12
30	22	12
31	22	12

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	12	88
2	12	88
3	12	88
4	12	88
5	12	88
6	12	88
7	12	88
8	12	88
9	12	88
10	13	87
11	13	87
12	13	87
13	13	87
14	14	86
15	14	86
16	14	86
17	14	86
18	14	86
19	15	85
20	16	84
21	16	84
22	17	83
23	17	83
24	17	83
25	19	81
26	20	80
27	20	80
28	20	80
29	21	79
30	22	78
31	22	78

	Rain chance (%)	Snow chance (%)
1	33	38
2	33	38
3	33	38
4	33	38
5	33	38
6	33	38
7	33	38
8	33	38
9	33	38
10	33	38
11	33	38
12	34	37
13	34	37
14	34	37
15	34	36
16	34	36
17	34	35
18	33	35
19	33	34
20	33	34
21	32	34
22	32	33
23	31	33
24	31	32
25	30	32
26	30	31
27	30	31
28	29	30
29	29	30
30	28	30
31	28	29

	Dry (%)
1	100
2	100
3	100
4	100
5	100
6	100
7	100
8	100
9	100
10	100
11	100
12	100
13	100
14	100
15	100
16	100
17	100
18	100
19	100
20	100
21	100
22	100
23	100
24	100
25	100
26	100
27	100
28	100
29	100
30	100
31	100

	Avg high (°F)	Avg low (°F)
1	28	19
2	27	18
3	27	18
4	26	17
5	26	17
6	26	17
7	26	16
8	25	16
9	25	15
10	25	15
11	25	15
12	24	14
13	24	14
14	24	14
15	24	13
16	24	13
17	23	13
18	23	13
19	23	12
20	23	12
21	23	12
22	23	12
23	22	12
24	22	12
25	22	12
26	22	12
27	22	12
28	22	12
29	22	12
30	22	12
31	22	12

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	12	88
2	12	88
3	12	88
4	12	88
5	12	88
6	12	88
7	12	88
8	12	88
9	12	88
10	13	87
11	13	87
12	13	87
13	13	87
14	14	86
15	14	86
16	14	86
17	14	86
18	14	86
19	15	85
20	16	84
21	16	84
22	17	83
23	17	83
24	17	83
25	19	81
26	20	80
27	20	80
28	20	80
29	21	79
30	22	78
31	22	78

	Rain chance (%)	Snow chance (%)
1	33	38
2	33	38
3	33	38
4	33	38
5	33	38
6	33	38
7	33	38
8	33	38
9	33	38
10	33	38
11	33	38
12	34	37
13	34	37
14	34	37
15	34	36
16	34	36
17	34	35
18	33	35
19	33	34
20	33	34
21	32	34
22	32	33
23	31	33
24	31	32
25	30	32
26	30	31
27	30	31
28	29	30
29	29	30
30	28	30
31	28	29

	Dry (%)
1	100
2	100
3	100
4	100
5	100
6	100
7	100
8	100
9	100
10	100
11	100
12	100
13	100
14	100
15	100
16	100
17	100
18	100
19	100
20	100
21	100
22	100
23	100
24	100
25	100
26	100
27	100
28	100
29	100
30	100
31	100

	Avg high (°F)	Avg low (°F)
1	28	19
2	27	18
3	27	18
4	26	17
5	26	17
6	26	17
7	26	16
8	25	16
9	25	15
10	25	15
11	25	15
12	24	14
13	24	14
14	24	14
15	24	13
16	24	13
17	23	13
18	23	13
19	23	12
20	23	12
21	23	12
22	23	12
23	22	12
24	22	12
25	22	12
26	22	12
27	22	12
28	22	12
29	22	12
30	22	12
31	22	12

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	12	88
2	12	88
3	12	88
4	12	88
5	12	88
6	12	88
7	12	88
8	12	88
9	12	88
10	13	87
11	13	87
12	13	87
13	13	87
14	14	86
15	14	86
16	14	86
17	14	86
18	14	86
19	15	85
20	16	84
21	16	84
22	17	83
23	17	83
24	17	83
25	19	81
26	20	80
27	20	80
28	20	80
29	21	79
30	22	78
31	22	78

	Rain chance (%)	Snow chance (%)
1	33	38
2	33	38
3	33	38
4	33	38
5	33	38
6	33	38
7	33	38
8	33	38
9	33	38
10	33	38
11	33	38
12	34	37
13	34	37
14	34	37
15	34	36
16	34	36
17	34	35
18	33	35
19	33	34
20	33	34
21	32	34
22	32	33
23	31	33
24	31	32
25	30	32
26	30	31
27	30	31
28	29	30
29	29	30
30	28	30
31	28	29

	Dry (%)
1	100
2	100
3	100
4	100
5	100
6	100
7	100
8	100
9	100
10	100
11	100
12	100
13	100
14	100
15	100
16	100
17	100
18	100
19	100
20	100
21	100
22	100
23	100
24	100
25	100
26	100
27	100
28	100
29	100
30	100
31	100