Weather in Broome in January

A hard month. January is a hard month in Broome, and worth planning around. You should expect rain on 20 days of the month, which is more days wet than dry.

January ranks 9 of 12 in Broome: past the worst of the year but short of June, which is the month to book if the dates are open.

Rain on 20 of the month's 31 days, 7 of them heavy. At that frequency a wet-weather backup is not a contingency, it is the itinerary — book the indoor things first and treat the clear days as the bonus. Pack for heat management rather than style: shade, water, and a schedule that gives up on the middle of the day.

What the averages hide

Averages flatten a month, and this one hides a few things: 12 days clear 35 °C, so a serious heatwave is normal rather than notable. Across the twenty years measured, the hottest January day reached 43.6 °C and the coldest night fell to 22.1 °C, and the wettest single day dropped 263 mm — roughly 113% of the month's rain in one day.

January is moderately variable: 70 mm in the driest year against 829 mm in the wettest, around an average of 233 mm. Roughly two Januarys in three land near that average, and the third does something else entirely.

Wind is light at 11.4 km/h, so the temperature on the page is close to the temperature on your skin, and humidity is unremarkable at 73%.

How January sits in the year

Temperatures hold steady either side: 37.3 °C in December, 34 here, 33.5 in February. Nothing about the timing within the month matters much. Rain has already shifted: 6 days more than December had.

Daylight in January

January is at or near the longest days of Broome's year: 13.1 hours of daylight, holding steady all month. Evenings are the real gain — dinner outdoors still happens in full light.

Sea temperature

The sea sits at about 29.9 °C in January — warm enough that the water offers no relief from the heat. The sea peaks at 30.2 °C in March and bottoms out at 24.7 °C — water lags the air by a month or two, which is why the best swimming often comes after the best weather.

How busy it gets

Quiet. Few other visitors, cheaper rooms, and a real chance some seasonal operators are shut.

Crowd levels are estimated from climate desirability and school-holiday calendars, not from visitor numbers.

January in Broome versus nearby

If Broome is one option among several, the nearby comparison is worth making. Labuan Bajo is a better bet in January — 5.3 °C cooler, 8 days more rain. Darwin is a better bet in January — 4.1 °C cooler, 9 days more rain.

So: January is a compromise. June is 49 points better and is what Broome is actually like at its best — worth moving the trip for if that is possible, and worth adjusting expectations for if it is not.

Every month in Broome

See all twelve months in Broome, or where else to go in January.