Seaside weather in January

In January, Seaside sees average daytime highs of 56°F and overnight lows near 44°F, with 4.2 in of rain across 9.1 wet days and about 9.8 hours of daylight. It is the 11th-warmest and 2nd-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 56°F through the month. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 36% of the time in January, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 9 h 30 min at the start of January to 10 h 06 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, January is Seaside's 11th-clearest and 6th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Seaside's year-round climate.

Daytime high
56°
11th warmest
Overnight low
44°
2nd coldest
Rainfall
4.2 in
9.1 wet days
Daylight
9 h 48 min
7:24 AM – 5:09 PM
Cloud cover
55%
11th clearest
Wind
5 mph
6th windiest
Solar energy
2.74 kWh/m²
Travel score
4.0
out of 10

Seaside is city in Monterey County, California, United States.

Density
1,360/km²
people per km²
Founded
1954

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 56°F through the month.

A typical January day in Seaside reaches about 56°F in the afternoon and slips back to 44°F overnight — a 13°F spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 50°F and 63°F. Set against its neighbours, January runs on par with December and on par with February.

30°40°50°60°70°151015202531
Avg high (°F)Avg low (°F)
15643
25643
35643
45643
55643
65643
75643
85643
95644
105644
115644
125644
135644
145644
155644
165644
175644
185644
195644
205644
215644
225644
235644
245644
255644
265644
275644
285744
295744
305744
315744

Seaside weather by month

How January compares with the rest of the year at a glance. January is the 11th-warmest and 2nd-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°F)Rainfall (inches)Wet daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan56° / 44°4.29.19.84.0
Feb57° / 44°4.29.610.64.0
Mar58° / 45°3.39.111.74.5
Apr59° / 46°1.55.512.95.3
May62° / 48°0.62.913.96.6
Jun66° / 50°0.10.614.58.1
Jul70° / 53°0.00.214.28.7
Aug71° / 54°0.10.213.48.8
Sep70° / 53°0.10.612.28.7
Oct67° / 51°0.92.511.17.9
Nov61° / 46°1.95.8105.7
Dec56° / 43°3.88.59.54.0

Cloud cover in January

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 36% 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 51%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
14852
24753
34753
44654
54654
64654
74654
84753
94753
104852
114951
124951
135050
145050
155050
165050
175149
185149
195149
205149
215149
225149
235050
245149
255050
265050
275050
285050
295050
305050
315050

Chance of precipitation in January

Any precipitation

Seaside gets around 4.2 in of rain over 9.1 wet days in January. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Day to day, the chance of measurable rain averages around 29% and peaks near 32% on the wettest days.

0%10%20%30%40%151015202531
Rain chance (%)
128
228
328
428
528
628
728
828
927
1028
1128
1228
1328
1429
1529
1630
1730
1831
1931
2031
2131
2232
2331
2431
2531
2631
2730
2830
2930
3030
3130

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 (%)Comfortable (%)
1991
2991
3991
4991
5991
6991
7991
81000
91000
101000
111000
121000
131000
141000
151000
161000
171000
181000
191000
201000
211000
221000
231000
241000
251000
261000
271000
281000
291000
301000
311000

Wind in January

Winds average 5 mph in January.

Across January, daily wind ranges from about 5 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
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 30 min at the start of January to 10 h 06 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 36 minutes over January. Sunrise moves from 7:24 AM to 7:17 AM, and sunset from 4:57 PM to 5:25 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
19.57:244:57
29.57:254:57
39.67:254:58
49.67:254:59
59.67:255:00
69.67:255:00
79.67:255:01
89.67:255:02
99.67:255:03
109.67:255:04
119.77:255:05
129.77:255:06
139.77:255:07
149.77:245:07
159.77:245:08
169.87:245:09
179.87:245:10
189.87:235:11
199.87:235:12
209.87:235:13
219.97:225:14
229.97:225:15
239.97:225:16
249.97:215:17
2510.07:215:18
2610.07:205:19
2710.07:195:20
2810.07:195:21
2910.17:185:22
3010.17:185:23
3110.17:175:25

Solar energy in January

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in January, about 2.74 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 2.53 kWh/m² to a high of 8.03 kWh/m² in June across the year — January's 2.74 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

01234151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
12.6Moderate
22.6Moderate
32.6Moderate
42.6Moderate
52.6Moderate
62.6Moderate
72.6Moderate
82.6Moderate
92.6Moderate
102.6Moderate
112.6Moderate
122.7Moderate
132.7Moderate
142.7Moderate
152.7Moderate
162.7Moderate
172.8Moderate
182.8Moderate
192.8Moderate
202.8Moderate
212.9Moderate
222.9Moderate
232.9Moderate
242.9Moderate
253.0Moderate
263.0Moderate
273.0Moderate
283.1Moderate
293.1Moderate
303.1Moderate
313.2Moderate
Planning a trip in January

Hazard calendar for Seaside

In seasonPeak

In January, Seaside sits inside its rainy season season. The full year is below, with each hazard's peak months called out.

Seaside's rainy season runs December–March, when most of the year's rain falls.

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

Is January a good time to visit Seaside?

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

4.0
Sightseeing
10th-best month of the year
0.0
Beach & pool
10th-best month of the year

January is a reasonable time to visit Seaside for sightseeing.

What to pack for Seaside in January

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

In January, Seaside sees daytime highs around 56°F and nights near 44°F. Worth packing: a warm layer and rain gear. About 9 days see rain.

a warm layerrain gear

Sea temperature near Seaside in January

The nearest coast averages about 55°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 September at about 58°F and coldest in April near 54°F.

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

52°54°56°58°60°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbracingcool
Sea temperature (°F)Comfort
Jan55Bracing
Feb55Bracing
Mar55Bracing
Apr54Bracing
May54Bracing
Jun55Bracing
Jul57Bracing
Aug58Bracing
Sep58Bracing
Oct58Bracing
Nov57Bracing
Dec55Bracing

UV index in Seaside in January

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in January peaks around 3. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Seaside peaks around June 23 at about 10 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 13 at about 2 (moderate).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 9 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModerateHighVery highExtremeVery highHighModerateJun 23UV 10Dec 13UV 2
UV index (midday)Level
Jan3Moderate
Feb4Moderate
Mar5Moderate
Apr7High
May8Very high
Jun10Extreme
Jul10Extreme
Aug10Very high
Sep6High
Oct5High
Nov2Moderate
Dec2Moderate

Air quality in Seaside 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 Seaside is worst in August — around 22 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 4.2× the cleanest month (June, 5 µg/m³).

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

0102030JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecGoodModerateGoodAug 1920 µg/m³Jun 135 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan7Good
Feb8Good
Mar8Good
Apr7Good
May6Good
Jun5Good
Jul8Good
Aug22Moderate
Sep15Moderate
Oct12Moderate
Nov8Good
Dec7Good
Location & terrain

Where is Seaside?

Seaside sits at 36.6°N, 121.9°W, 23 ft above sea level, in United States. The nearest listed city is Monterey, 2.5 mi away.

Topography around Seaside

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

Within 2 miles, the terrain around Seaside has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 417 ft around an average of 89 ft above sea level; within 10 miles, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,218 ft; within 50 miles, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 5,883 ft.

The land around Seaside is covered by artificial surfaces (39%) and water (36%) within 2 miles, water (39%) and trees (31%) within 10 miles, and water (33%), trees (28%) and grassland (27%) within 50 miles.

2 miles
417 ft
10 miles
2,218 ft
50 miles
5,883 ft
treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater
January weather nearby: Monterey 2.5 mi · Pacific Grove 3.7 mi · Marina 5.6 mi · Salinas 12 mi · Prunedale 15 mi · Watsonville 21 mi · Big Sur 24 mi · Live Oak 27 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 Seaside (36.6111°, -121.8516°, elevation 23 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. 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).