Climate averages 1991–2020
Milwaukee weather
in January.
A freezing month with moderate precipitation: the coolest and the 2nd driest of the year.
Long-term climate patterns, not a forecast for a particular trip.
January is a freezing month in Milwaukee: daytime highs average -2.1°C and nights cool to about -7.8°C. By daytime temperature it is the coolest month of the year.
Expect about 51 mm of precipitation on roughly 9 days, which makes January a month with moderate precipitation (the 2nd driest of the 12 months). Daylight, from sunrise to sunset, lasts about 9 h 24 min on an average January day.
The nearest other city in this atlas is Waukesha (27 km away). In January its highs average -2.2°C, about as warm as Milwaukee, with 46 mm of precipitation.
Among the 498 cities listed in the United States, Milwaukee ranks 482nd of 498 for the warmest January highs and joint 120th of 498 for the driest January (precipitation, lowest first). The mean January high of those 498 cities is 9.5°C; Milwaukee is 11.5°C cooler than that mean.
From January to February, average highs rise by 0.7°C to -1.3°C, and monthly precipitation falls from 51 mm to 48 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
Milwaukee climate table
| Month | Average highHigh / low | Average low | Precipitation mm/month | Wet days ≥1 mm/day | Daylight hours/dayDaylight h/day |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January, selected | -2.1°C-7.8°C | -7.8°C | 51 | 8.9 | 9.49 h |
| February | -1.3°C-7.3°C | -7.3°C | 48 | 7.1 | 10.510 h |
| March | 2.7°C-3.0°C | -3.0°C | 61 | 9.5 | 11.912 h |
| April | 7.9°C3.0°C | 3.0°C | 105 | 11.9 | 13.413 h |
| May | 14.4°C9.4°C | 9.4°C | 91 | 11.5 | 14.615 h |
| June | 21.0°C16.1°C | 16.1°C | 89 | 10.8 | 15.315 h |
| July | 24.9°C20.1°C | 20.1°C | 80 | 10.1 | 15.015 h |
| August | 24.4°C20.0°C | 20.0°C | 91 | 10.7 | 13.914 h |
| September | 20.8°C16.2°C | 16.2°C | 76 | 9.2 | 12.513 h |
| October | 14.0°C9.5°C | 9.5°C | 78 | 9.1 | 11.111 h |
| November | 6.8°C2.5°C | 2.5°C | 62 | 8.6 | 9.810 h |
| December | 1.1°C-3.5°C | -3.5°C | 55 | 8.5 | 9.19 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
- Waukesha in JanuaryUnited States · 27 kmHigh -2.2°C · Low -10.0°C · 46 mm precipitation
- Racine in JanuaryUnited States · 36 kmHigh -1.6°C · Low -6.8°C · 63 mm precipitation
- Kenosha in JanuaryUnited States · 51 kmHigh -1.4°C · Low -6.6°C · 68 mm precipitation
- Waukegan in JanuaryUnited States · 75 kmHigh -1.3°C · Low -6.5°C · 75 mm precipitation
- Arlington Heights in JanuaryUnited States · 106 kmHigh -1.1°C · Low -8.3°C · 53 mm precipitation
- Evanston in JanuaryUnited States · 112 kmHigh -1.0°C · Low -7.0°C · 58 mm precipitation
- Schaumburg in JanuaryUnited States · 113 kmHigh -1.1°C · Low -9.0°C · 53 mm precipitation
- Elgin in JanuaryUnited States · 116 kmHigh -1.2°C · Low -9.2°C · 52 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 Milwaukee) is explained once on the Milwaukee year overview and on the Sources, method and limits page.