Richmond weather in January

In January, Richmond sees average daytime highs of 43°F and overnight lows near 28°F, with 3.7 in of precipitation across 10.3 wet days and about 9.7 hours of daylight. It is the 12th-warmest and 8th-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 43°F through the month. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 24% of the time in January, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 9 h 24 min at the start of January to 10 hours by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, January is Richmond's 10th-clearest and 1st-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Richmond's year-round climate.

Daytime high
43°
12th warmest
Overnight low
28°
1st coldest
Precipitation
3.7 in
10.3 wet days
Daylight
9 h 42 min
7:57 AM – 5:36 PM
Cloud cover
68%
10th clearest
Wind
7 mph
1st windiest
Solar energy
2.14 kWh/m²
Travel score
0.5
out of 10

Richmond is city in and the county seat of Madison County, Kentucky, United States.

Density
559/km²
people per km²
Founded
1798

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 43°F through the month.

A typical January day in Richmond reaches about 43°F in the afternoon and slips back to 28°F overnight — a 15°F spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 28°F and 59°F. Set against its neighbours, January runs about 3°F cooler than December and about 4°F cooler than February.

20°40°60°151015202531
Avg high (°F)Avg low (°F)
14531
24430
34430
44430
54430
64430
74430
84429
94429
104429
114329
124329
134328
144328
154328
164328
174228
184228
194227
204227
214227
224227
234227
244327
254327
264327
274328
284328
294428
304428
314428

How January really feels in Richmond

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.

Richmond weather by month

How January compares with the rest of the year at a glance. January is the 12th-warmest and 8th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°F)Rainfall (inches)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan43° / 28°3.710.339.70.5
Feb47° / 31°3.810.52.710.51.5
Mar56° / 38°4.512.31.611.73.7
Apr67° / 48°4.611.90.212.95.8
May75° / 57°4.613.20146.2
Jun83° / 65°4.213014.65.5
Jul86° / 69°4.212.9014.34.8
Aug85° / 67°3.110.4013.55.3
Sep79° / 60°3.68.2012.36.9
Oct68° / 48°3.28.50.1116.6
Nov56° / 39°3.58.80.5103.8
Dec47° / 32°4.2112.19.41.4

Cloud cover in January

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 24% of the time in January.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 10% of January, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 66%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
13367
23367
33367
43367
53268
63268
73268
83169
93169
103169
113367
123268
133268
143268
153367
163367
173367
183466
193565
203565
213664
223664
233664
243664
253763
263763
273763
283763
293763
303763
313763

Chance of precipitation in January

Any precipitationSnow

Richmond gets around 3.7 in of rain and snow over 10.3 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 34% and peaks near 36% on the wettest days, and about 3 days bring snow.

0%10%20%30%40%50%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
1348
2348
3348
4358
5358
6359
7369
8369
9369
10369
113610
123610
133610
143511
153511
163511
173511
183411
193411
203311
213311
223211
233211
243211
253211
263211
273311
283311
293311
303411
313411

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 (%)
1973
2973
3973
4973
5973
6982
7982
8982
9982
10982
11982
12991
13991
14991
15991
16991
17991
18991
191000
201000
211000
221000
231000
24991
25991
26991
27991
28991
29991
30991
31991

Wind in January

Winds average 7 mph in January, the windiest month of the year.

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 24 min at the start of January to 10 hours by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 36 minutes over January. Sunrise moves from 7:57 AM to 7:49 AM, and sunset from 5:23 PM to 5:52 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
19.47:575:23
29.47:585:24
39.47:585:25
49.57:585:25
59.57:585:26
69.57:585:27
79.57:585:28
89.57:585:29
99.57:585:30
109.57:585:31
119.67:585:31
129.67:585:32
139.67:575:33
149.67:575:34
159.67:575:35
169.77:575:36
179.77:565:37
189.77:565:38
199.77:565:39
209.77:555:40
219.87:555:41
229.87:555:42
239.87:545:43
249.87:545:44
259.97:535:45
269.97:525:46
279.97:525:48
2810.07:515:49
2910.07:515:50
3010.07:505:51
3110.07:495:52

Solar energy in January

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in January, about 2.14 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 1.83 kWh/m² to a high of 6.13 kWh/m² in June across the year — January's 2.14 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

0123151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
11.9Dim
21.9Dim
31.9Dim
41.9Dim
51.9Dim
61.9Dim
71.9Dim
81.9Dim
92.0Dim
102.0Dim
112.0Moderate
122.0Moderate
132.0Moderate
142.1Moderate
152.1Moderate
162.1Moderate
172.1Moderate
182.2Moderate
192.2Moderate
202.2Moderate
212.3Moderate
222.3Moderate
232.3Moderate
242.4Moderate
252.4Moderate
262.4Moderate
272.4Moderate
282.5Moderate
292.5Moderate
302.5Moderate
312.5Moderate
Planning a trip in January

Is January a good time to visit Richmond?

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

0.5
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 Richmond.

What to pack for Richmond in January

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

In January, Richmond sees daytime highs around 43°F and nights near 28°F. Pack a warm layer and a heavy coat. Worth having: rain gear. About 10 days see rain.

a warm layera heavy coatrain gear

UV index in Richmond 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 Richmond peaks around June 23 at about 9 (very high) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 23 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 highHighModerateJun 23UV 9Dec 23UV 2
UV index (midday)Level
Jan2Moderate
Feb3Moderate
Mar5High
Apr6High
May8Very high
Jun9Very high
Jul9Very high
Aug8Very high
Sep6High
Oct4Moderate
Nov3Moderate
Dec2Moderate

Air quality in Richmond 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 Richmond is worst in July — around 18 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 3.1× the cleanest month (December, 6 µg/m³).

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

01020JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecGoodModerateGoodJul 1517 µg/m³Dec 136 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan7Good
Feb8Good
Mar9Good
Apr10Good
May13Moderate
Jun15Moderate
Jul18Moderate
Aug14Moderate
Sep10Good
Oct6Good
Nov6Good
Dec6Good
Location & terrain

Where is Richmond?

Richmond sits at 37.7°N, 84.3°W, 948 ft above sea level, in United States. The nearest listed city is Nicholasville, 18 mi away.

Topography around Richmond

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

Within 2 miles, the terrain around Richmond has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 217 ft around an average of 935 ft above sea level; within 10 miles, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 607 ft; within 50 miles, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,240 ft.

The land around Richmond is covered by grassland (40%), artificial surfaces (30%) and trees (26%) within 2 miles, grassland (59%) and trees (36%) within 10 miles, and trees (57%) and grassland (34%) within 50 miles.

2 miles
217 ft
10 miles
607 ft
50 miles
1,240 ft
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrain
January weather nearby: Nicholasville 18 mi · Winchester 18 mi · Lexington 19 mi · Lexington-Fayette 23 mi · Danville 27 mi · Georgetown 35 mi · Frankfort 44 mi · Shelbyville 60 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 Richmond (37.7479°, -84.2947°, elevation 948 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).