Moscow weather in January

In January, Moscow sees average daytime highs of 36°F and overnight lows near 26°F, with 3.1 in of precipitation across 13.7 wet days and about 8.8 hours of daylight. It is the 11th-warmest and 3rd-wettest month of the year here.

Highs climb over the month, from about 35°F in the first days to 38°F by the end. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 19% of the time in January, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 8 h 24 min at the start of January to 9 h 18 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, January is Moscow's 11th-clearest and 4th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Moscow's year-round climate.

Daytime high
36°
11th warmest
Overnight low
26°
2nd coldest
Precipitation
3.1 in
13.7 wet days
Daylight
8 h 42 min
7:35 AM – 4:19 PM
Cloud cover
71%
11th clearest
Wind
6 mph
4th windiest
Solar energy
1.45 kWh/m²
Travel score
0.0
out of 10

Moscow is city in Latah County, Idaho, USA.

Density
1,411/km²
people per km²
Founded
1871

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

Temperature in January

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Highs climb over the month, from about 35°F in the first days to 38°F by the end.

A typical January day in Moscow reaches about 36°F in the afternoon and slips back to 26°F overnight — a 10°F spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 27°F and 45°F. Set against its neighbours, January runs on par with December and about 5°F cooler than February.

10°20°30°40°50°151015202531
Avg high (°F)Avg low (°F)
13525
23525
33525
43525
53525
63525
73525
83525
93525
103526
113526
123626
133626
143626
153626
163626
173626
183726
193726
203727
213727
223727
233727
243727
253727
263827
273827
283827
293827
303827
313828

How January really feels in Moscow

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.

Moscow weather by month

How January compares with the rest of the year at a glance. January is the 11th-warmest and 3rd-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°F)Rainfall (inches)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan36° / 26°3.113.78.78.80.0
Feb41° / 28°2.411.56.3100.1
Mar49° / 33°2.8134.311.61.9
Apr57° / 38°2.211.21.113.33.8
May65° / 45°2.19.60.214.86.0
Jun72° / 51°1.36.10.115.67.3
Jul83° / 58°0.42.4015.37.3
Aug83° / 57°0.52.30147.3
Sep73° / 50°0.84.2012.48.0
Oct59° / 40°2.190.410.64.7
Nov44° / 31°3.213.14.89.20.8
Dec36° / 26°3.314.19.78.40.0

Cloud cover in January

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 19% of the time in January.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 13% of January, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 68%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
13169
23070
33070
43070
53070
63070
73070
83070
92971
102971
112971
122971
133169
143169
153169
163268
173268
183367
193367
203466
213466
223466
233466
243466
253466
263565
273565
283565
293565
303565
313565

Chance of precipitation in January

Any precipitationSnow

Moscow gets around 3.1 in of rain and snow over 13.7 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 44% and peaks near 48% on the wettest days, and about 9 days bring snow. The odds ease toward the end of the month.

0%20%40%60%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
14732
24732
34732
44831
54831
64830
74830
84730
94730
104730
114730
124730
134730
144630
154630
164530
174530
184430
194329
204229
214228
224128
234128
244127
254127
264026
274025
284025
293924
303923
313923

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 8 h 24 min at the start of January to 9 h 18 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 7:39 AM to 7:23 AM, and sunset from 4:03 PM to 4:40 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
18.47:394:03
28.47:394:04
38.47:394:05
48.57:394:06
58.57:394:07
68.57:394:08
78.57:394:09
88.57:384:10
98.67:384:11
108.67:384:12
118.67:374:13
128.67:374:15
138.77:374:16
148.77:364:17
158.77:364:18
168.77:354:19
178.87:354:21
188.87:344:22
198.87:334:23
208.97:334:25
218.97:324:26
228.97:314:27
239.07:304:29
249.07:294:30
259.07:294:31
269.17:284:33
279.17:274:34
289.27:264:36
299.27:254:37
309.27:244:39
319.37:234:40

Solar energy in January

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in January, about 1.45 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 1.22 kWh/m² to a high of 7.69 kWh/m² in July across the year — January's 1.45 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

00.511.522.5151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
11.3Dim
21.3Dim
31.3Dim
41.3Dim
51.3Dim
61.3Dim
71.3Dim
81.3Dim
91.3Dim
101.3Dim
111.4Dim
121.4Dim
131.4Dim
141.4Dim
151.4Dim
161.4Dim
171.5Dim
181.5Dim
191.5Dim
201.5Dim
211.6Dim
221.6Dim
231.6Dim
241.7Dim
251.7Dim
261.7Dim
271.8Dim
281.8Dim
291.8Dim
301.9Dim
311.9Dim
Planning a trip in January

Is January a good time to visit Moscow?

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
8th-best month of the year

January is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Moscow.

What to pack for Moscow in January

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

In January, Moscow sees daytime highs around 36°F and nights near 26°F. Pack a warm layer and a heavy coat. Worth having: rain gear. About 14 days see rain.

a warm layera heavy coatrain gear

UV index in Moscow 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 Moscow peaks around July 16 at about 8 (very high) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 16 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 16UV 8Dec 16UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan1Low
Feb2Low
Mar4Moderate
Apr5Moderate
May7High
Jun6High
Jul9Very high
Aug6High
Sep5Moderate
Oct3Moderate
Nov1Low
Dec1Low

Air quality in Moscow 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 Moscow is worst in August — around 27 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 3.6× the cleanest month (December, 8 µg/m³).

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

0102030JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecGoodModerateGoodModerateGoodAug 1627 µg/m³Dec 238 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan8Good
Feb9Good
Mar14Moderate
Apr15Moderate
May11Good
Jun10Good
Jul25Moderate
Aug27Moderate
Sep25Moderate
Oct18Moderate
Nov17Moderate
Dec8Good
Location & terrain

Where is Moscow?

Moscow sits at 46.7°N, 117.0°W, 2,579 ft above sea level, in United States. The nearest listed city is Pullman, 8.7 mi away.

Topography around Moscow

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

Within 2 miles, the terrain around Moscow has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 276 ft around an average of 2,628 ft above sea level; within 10 miles, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,674 ft; within 50 miles, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 5,820 ft.

The land around Moscow is covered by cropland (36%), grassland (24%) and artificial surfaces (22%) within 2 miles, cropland (60%) within 10 miles, and cropland (36%), grassland (32%) and trees (31%) within 50 miles.

2 miles
276 ft
10 miles
2,674 ft
50 miles
5,820 ft
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater
January weather nearby: Pullman 8.7 mi · Lewiston 22 mi · Lewiston Orchards 24 mi · Opportunity 65 mi · Spokane Valley 66 mi · Coeur d'Alene 66 mi · Spokane 67 mi · Post Falls 68 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 Moscow (46.7324°, -117.0002°, elevation 2,579 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).