The weather in Atlanta in January is highly variable, although it usually compares favorably to more northerly cities. The weather might be warm and sunny, or cloudy and bitingly cold, with significant variation from day to day and from year to year.
The average high temperature this month is around 50°F, with warmer days reaching into the 60s or even the 70s (and colder days staying below freezing). Snow and ice storms are a possibility, though not common.
→ When is the best time of year to visit Atlanta?
→ Weather in Atlanta in: February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November, December
January can still be a good month to visit Atlanta, as the city is a year-round destination with a wide variety of indoor attractions for colder days: museums, food halls, galleries, shopping and more. Even in winter, you can expect the most popular attractions to be crowded on weekends.
On warmer January days, the weather can be ideal for walks on the BeltLine or through the city’s neighborhoods, visits to Oakland Cemetery or the Botanical Garden, or for outdoor photography, or for hiking outside of the city.
If you venture further out of the city into the mountains of North Georgia, bear in mind that the weather there can be markedly more wintery than in Atlanta itself, and snow or ice may be present on the roads.
See also:
– January events in Atlanta
– Concerts in Atlanta
– Things to do in Atlanta
– Black heritage sites in Atlanta
The average daily high temperature in Atlanta in January is 51°F (11°C). The average daily low is 35°F (2°C).
Winter weather in Atlanta is highly variable, and the daily high can swing by 40°F over the course of less than a week, with very cold days giving way to spring-like weather (or vice versa).
In a typical January, a handful of days will see high temperatures over 60°F (16°C), although temperatures in the high sixties and even hitting 70°F (21°C) are feasible at this time of year.
Sunny weather is no guarantee of warmth, however. Some sunny days the temperature will barely rise above freezing, although more usually the temperature can rise by 10-15°F between the morning and the afternoon.
The daily high stays below 50°F (10°C) on roughly half of days in a usual January. Overnight lows can often fall below freezing, and frost is a possibility. Snow is rare, but when it comes, the city grinds to a halt!
Average humidity in Atlanta in January is 68%, but due to the lower typical temperatures at this time of year the weather should very seldom feel uncomfortably humid.
Sunshine in Atlanta in January averages 6 hours per day (average day length in January is 10.2 hours). Rain averages 4.5 inches during the month, with rain falling on an average of 11 days.
In a typical month, you can expect up to half of the days in January to be completely clear or sunny with a scattering of clouds throughout the day, although there is some year-to-year variability. In a worse year, a third of days might bring day-long sunny weather, and in a better year, closer to two thirds.
Around a week’s worth or so of days in each month are usually cloudy, sometimes coming in runs of two or more days together. Morning fog is also possible a few days a month.
The remaining days in the typical Atlanta January bring a mix of sunny and cloudy weather, with perhaps a sunny morning or afternoon and the rest of the day cloudy or overcast.
The average maximum UV index in January is 3.
In January, the sun rises at around 7:40am at the beginning of the month and at 7:35am at the end of the month. It begins to get light in the morning at 7:15am at the start of the month, and by 7:10am at the end.
The sun sets at around 5:40pm at the start of the month, and at around 6:05pm by its end. It gets dark by around 6:10pm at the beginning of the month, and by 6:35pm at its end.
The amount of full daylight in January averages around 10 hours 10 minutes per day, plus an additional 25-30 minutes of low light at the beginning and end of the day.
Things To Do In Atlanta In January
– Concerts
– Comedy shows
– Black history attractions
– Museums
– Art museums
– Nature sites and places to hike
– Historic cemeteries
– January events