Climate averages 1991–2020
Ulan Bator weather
in January.
A freezing month with very little precipitation: the coolest and the driest of the year.
Long-term climate patterns, not a forecast for a particular trip.
January is a freezing month in Ulan Bator: daytime highs average -12.4°C and nights cool to about -24.8°C. By daytime temperature it is the coolest month of the year.
Expect about 1.5 mm of precipitation on fewer than one day, which makes January a month with very little precipitation (the driest month of the year). Daylight, from sunrise to sunset, lasts about 8 h 52 min on an average January day.
The nearest other city in this atlas is Darhan (189 km away). In January its highs average -12.9°C, about as warm as Ulan Bator, with 1.6 mm of precipitation.
Among the 3 cities listed in Mongolia, Ulan Bator ranks 2nd of 3 for the warmest January highs and 2nd of 3 for the driest January (precipitation, lowest first). The mean January high of those 3 cities is -12.3°C; Ulan Bator is 0.1°C cooler than that mean.
From January to February, average highs rise by 4.9°C to -7.4°C, and monthly precipitation rises from 1.5 mm to 2.8 mm.
The annual picture
January in context
Monthly precipitation
Average total · mmAverages from hourly ERA5 reanalysis data. Actual weather varies from year to year. How these numbers are calculated
Every month, side by side
Ulan Bator climate table
| Month | Average highHigh / low | Average low | Precipitation mm/month | Wet days ≥1 mm/day | Daylight hours/dayDaylight h/day |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January, selected | -12.4°C-24.8°C | -24.8°C | 1.5 | 0.5 | 8.99 h |
| February | -7.4°C-21.2°C | -21.2°C | 2.8 | 1.2 | 10.210 h |
| March | 0.9°C-11.9°C | -11.9°C | 7.3 | 2.2 | 11.912 h |
| April | 8.8°C-3.6°C | -3.6°C | 16 | 4.3 | 13.614 h |
| May | 15.8°C1.7°C | 1.7°C | 34 | 6.7 | 15.115 h |
| June | 21.4°C8.4°C | 8.4°C | 55 | 9.5 | 16.016 h |
| July | 23.7°C11.9°C | 11.9°C | 66 | 11.2 | 15.616 h |
| August | 21.7°C9.8°C | 9.8°C | 68 | 10.7 | 14.314 h |
| September | 15.6°C3.0°C | 3.0°C | 39 | 7.2 | 12.613 h |
| October | 6.5°C-4.1°C | -4.1°C | 15 | 3.8 | 10.911 h |
| November | -3.7°C-13.5°C | -13.5°C | 6.1 | 2.1 | 9.39 h |
| December | -10.8°C-20.9°C | -20.9°C | 2.1 | 0.9 | 8.58 h |
Precipitation (rain or snow, as water) is the average of the 30 separate monthly totals. A wet day is a local calendar day with at least 1 mm of precipitation. Daylight is the calculated sunrise-to-sunset length, not measured sunshine.
Compare places
January in nearby cities
- Darhan in JanuaryMongolia · 189 kmHigh -12.9°C · Low -24.8°C · 1.6 mm precipitation
- Erdenet in JanuaryMongolia · 241 kmHigh -11.6°C · Low -21.7°C · 1.4 mm precipitation
- Ulan-Ude in JanuaryRussia · 439 kmHigh -15.9°C · Low -27.2°C · 2.7 mm precipitation
- Irkutsk in JanuaryRussia · 522 kmHigh -13.8°C · Low -22.9°C · 5.5 mm precipitation
- Angarsk in JanuaryRussia · 559 kmHigh -15.0°C · Low -24.8°C · 4.2 mm precipitation
- Usol’ye-Sibirskoye in JanuaryRussia · 585 kmHigh -15.7°C · Low -24.8°C · 4.2 mm precipitation
- Chita in JanuaryRussia · 659 kmHigh -17.2°C · Low -28.9°C · 1.3 mm precipitation
- Bayan Nur in JanuaryChina · 798 kmHigh -2.9°C · Low -14.0°C · 0.8 mm precipitation
Read the numbers correctly
Climate, not a promise.
These patterns help compare months. They cannot tell you the weather on a specific day of your trip.
Sources, method and limitsHow these numbers are made (what the highs, lows and rain days mean, the sources and the model cell used for Ulan Bator) is explained once on the Ulan Bator year overview and on the Sources, method and limits page.