Telluride weather in January

In January, Telluride sees average daytime highs of 28°F and overnight lows near 8°F, with 2.2 in of precipitation across 10 wet days and about 9.7 hours of daylight. It is the 12th-warmest and 7th-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 28°F through the month. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 40% 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 Telluride's 6th-clearest and 12th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Telluride's year-round climate.

Daytime high
28°
12th warmest
Overnight low
2nd coldest
Precipitation
2.2 in
10 wet days
Daylight
9 h 36 min
7:31 AM – 5:10 PM
Cloud cover
51%
6th clearest
Wind
4 mph
12th windiest
Solar energy
3.05 kWh/m²
Travel score
0.0
out of 10

Telluride is town and county seat of San Miguel County, Colorado, United States.

Density
1,255/km²
people per km²
Founded
1878

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 28°F through the month.

A typical January day in Telluride reaches about 28°F in the afternoon and slips back to 8°F overnight — a 20°F spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 18°F and 37°F. Set against its neighbours, January runs on par with December and about 2°F cooler than February.

20°40°151015202531
Avg high (°F)Avg low (°F)
1276
2276
3277
4277
5277
6277
7277
8287
9287
10287
11287
12287
13287
14288
15288
16288
17288
18288
19288
20288
21288
22288
23288
24288
25288
26288
27288
28288
29288
30288
31288

How January really feels in Telluride

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.

Telluride weather by month

How January compares with the rest of the year at a glance. January is the 12th-warmest and 7th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°F)Rainfall (inches)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan28° / 2.21010.79.70.0
Feb30° / 10°2.311.312.210.50.0
Mar36° / 16°2.511.71211.70.0
Apr40° / 21°3.011.711.1130.1
May50° / 27°2.110.25.9142.3
Jun63° / 35°1.36.50.614.66.1
Jul68° / 43°4.213.9014.45.9
Aug66° / 42°4.516013.55.4
Sep59° / 35°2.611.40.912.34.6
Oct48° / 24°2.19.86.3111.8
Nov36° / 11°1.98.18.39.90.0
Dec28° / 2.09.510.39.40.0

Cloud cover in January

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 40% of the time in January.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 15% of January, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 45%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
15644
25644
35644
45644
55644
65644
75644
85743
95743
105644
115644
125743
135743
145743
155743
165644
175644
185644
195644
205545
215545
225545
235545
245446
255446
265446
275446
285446
295347
305347
315347

Chance of precipitation in January

Any precipitationSnow

Telluride gets around 2.2 in of rain and snow over 10 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 35% on the wettest days, and about 11 days bring snow.

0%10%20%30%40%50%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
13033
23033
33033
43033
53033
63033
73032
83032
93032
103032
113032
123133
133133
143133
153133
163233
173234
183234
193334
203335
213335
223436
233436
243436
253537
263537
273537
283537
293538
303538
313538

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 4 mph in January, the calmest month.

Across January, daily wind ranges from about 4 mph on the calmest days to 4 mph at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

0246810151015202531
Wind speed (mph)Feels
14calm
24calm
34calm
44calm
54calm
64calm
74calm
84calm
94calm
104calm
114calm
124calm
134calm
144calm
154calm
164calm
174calm
184calm
194calm
204calm
214calm
224calm
234calm
244calm
254calm
264calm
274calm
284calm
294calm
304calm
314calm

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 7:32 AM to 7:24 AM, and sunset from 4:57 PM to 5:26 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
19.47:324:57
29.47:324:57
39.47:324:58
49.47:324:59
59.57:335:00
69.57:335:01
79.57:335:01
89.57:335:02
99.57:335:03
109.57:325:04
119.57:325:05
129.67:325:06
139.67:325:07
149.67:325:08
159.67:325:09
169.67:315:10
179.77:315:11
189.77:315:12
199.77:305:13
209.77:305:14
219.87:305:15
229.87:295:16
239.87:295:17
249.87:285:18
259.97:285:19
269.97:275:20
279.97:265:21
289.97:265:22
2910.07:255:23
3010.07:245:24
3110.07:245:26

Solar energy in January

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in January, about 3.05 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 2.75 kWh/m² to a high of 8.23 kWh/m² in June across the year — January's 3.05 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

01234151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
12.8Moderate
22.8Moderate
32.8Moderate
42.9Moderate
52.9Moderate
62.9Moderate
72.9Moderate
82.9Moderate
92.9Moderate
102.9Moderate
112.9Moderate
123.0Moderate
133.0Moderate
143.0Moderate
153.0Moderate
163.1Moderate
173.1Moderate
183.1Moderate
193.1Moderate
203.2Moderate
213.2Moderate
223.2Moderate
233.3Moderate
243.3Moderate
253.3Moderate
263.4Moderate
273.4Moderate
283.4Moderate
293.5Moderate
303.5Moderate
313.5Moderate
Planning a trip in January

Is January a good time to visit Telluride?

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

0.0
Sightseeing
8th-best month of the year
0.0
Beach & pool
6th-best month of the year

January is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Telluride.

What to pack for Telluride in January

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

In January, Telluride sees daytime highs around 28°F and nights near 8°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 Telluride 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 Telluride peaks around July 10 at about 12 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near January 1 at about 3 (moderate).

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

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModerateHighVery highExtremeVery highHighModerateJul 10UV 12Jan 1UV 3
UV index (midday)Level
Jan3Moderate
Feb4Moderate
Mar7High
Apr7High
May10Very high
Jun12Extreme
Jul12Extreme
Aug11Extreme
Sep8Very high
Oct6High
Nov4Moderate
Dec3Moderate
Location & terrain

Where is Telluride?

Telluride sits at 37.9°N, 107.8°W, 0 ft above sea level, in United States. The nearest listed city is Montrose, 37 mi away.

Topography around Telluride

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

Within 2 miles, the terrain around Telluride has large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 3,481 ft around an average of 10,089 ft above sea level; within 10 miles, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 6,365 ft; within 50 miles, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 8,862 ft.

The land around Telluride is covered by trees (80%) within 2 miles, trees (54%) within 10 miles, and trees (60%) and grassland (26%) within 50 miles.

2 miles
3,481 ft
10 miles
6,365 ft
50 miles
8,862 ft
treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainmoss and lichen
January weather nearby: Montrose 37 mi · Durango 46 mi · Farmington 86 mi · Clifton 87 mi · Grand Junction 88 mi · Aspen 102 mi · Moab 104 mi · Cañon City 144 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 Telluride (37.9375°, -107.8123°, 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. 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).