Ottawa weather in January
In January, Ottawa has daytime highs averaging -4.5 °C, nights around -14 °C, with 11 wet days. Figures are 1991–2020 climate normals.
- -4.5°C Average high
- -13.6°C Average low
- 11days Wet days
- 73mm Rainfall
- 9.1h Daylight
Daily temperatures through January
How January develops
Averages for the first, middle and last part of the month, from daily 1991–2020 normals. Chance of rain is the share of years in which that calendar day recorded more than 1 mm.
| Days | Avg high | Avg low | Chance of rain |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1–10 January | -3.8 °C | -12.0 °C | 38 % |
| 11–20 January | -4.3 °C | -13.7 °C | 36 % |
| 21–31 January | -5.3 °C | -14.9 °C | 31 % |
- Average highs fall from -3.8 °C early in January to -5.3 °C by the end of it.
- Rain is most likely over days 1–10 of January (38 % of days) and least likely over days 21–31 (31 %).
What to expect
| Measure | Typical January | Share of the month |
|---|---|---|
| Days above 25 °C | 0 of 31 | 0 % |
| Days above 30 °C | 0 of 31 | 0 % |
| Days below 0 °C | 30 of 31 | 96 % |
| Days with more than 1 mm rain | 11 of 31 | 35 % |
Conditions in January
| Measure | Average |
|---|---|
| Mean temperature | -9.4 °C |
| Record high (1991–2020) | 13 °C |
| Record low (1991–2020) | -33 °C |
| Relative humidity | 76 % |
| Wind speed | 17 km/h |
| Cloud cover | 72 % |
Where Ottawa ranks in January
| Ranking | Position | Value |
|---|---|---|
| The coolest places in North America in January | 13thof 50 | -4.5 °C |
January compared with the months around it
| Month | Avg high | Rainfall | Cloud |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | -4.5 °C | 73 mm | 72 % |
| February | -2.8 °C | 58 mm | 67 % |
| March | 2.8 °C | 71 mm | 65 % |
| November | 5.8 °C | 83 mm | 74 % |
| December | -0.7 °C | 79 mm | 78 % |
See all twelve months for Ottawa
- January is the 12th warmest month here.
- It is the 3rd driest month of the year.
- It ranks 10th for least cloud cover.
- Days last about 9.1 hours from sunrise to sunset.
- It rains on 11 of 31 days — 35 % of the month.
- Nights are about 9.1 °C cooler than the middle of the day.
- The hottest January day on record since 1991 reached 13 °C, 18 °C above the usual daytime high.
Nearby destinations in January
| Destination | Avg high | Wet days |
|---|---|---|
| Ottawa | -4.5 °C | 11 |
| Laval | -5.0 °C | 10 |
| Montréal | -6.1 °C | 11 |
| Longueuil | -4.8 °C | 11 |
QuestionsJanuary in Ottawa, answered
How warm is Ottawa in January?
Daily highs average -4.5 °C and nights fall to about -14 °C, a spread of 9.1 °C between afternoon and dawn. That makes January the 12th warmest month of the year here.
Does it rain much in Ottawa in January?
January averages 73 mm of rain, spread over about 11 of the 31 days — 35 % of the month. Cloud cover averages 72 % of the sky.
How long are the days in January?
Ottawa averages 9.1 hours between sunrise and sunset in January. Day length is computed from latitude and date, so it is exact rather than modelled — but it says nothing about how much of that time is sunny.
Data sources and method
- ERA5 / ERA5-Land reanalysis — Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S), ECMWF. Copernicus Licence
- Open-Meteo — Open-Meteo.com. CC BY 4.0
- NOAA OISST v2.1 — NOAA Physical Sciences Laboratory. Public domain
- GeoNames — GeoNames.org. CC BY 4.0
- Normal period
- 1991–2020
- Dataset version
- era5-1991-2020-scores1.1
- Last processed
Measured values come from ERA5 reanalysis and are reproduced unchanged. Calculated by us: daylight hours, beach and comfort scores, monthly rankings, threshold day counts, chance of a wet day by date, ten-day averages within the month. Full formulas are on the methodology page.
Contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information 2026. Neither the European Commission nor ECMWF is responsible for any use that may be made of the Copernicus information or data it contains.