Salzburg weather in December

In December, Salzburg sees average daytime highs of 2°C and overnight lows near -5°C, with 121 mm of precipitation across 15 wet days and about 8.3 hours of daylight. It is the 11th-warmest and 8th-wettest month of the year here.

Highs ease over the month, from about 3°C in the first days to 1°C by the end. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 25% of the time in December, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 8 h 30 min at the start of December to 8 h 12 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, December is Salzburg's 9th-clearest and 2nd-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Salzburg's year-round climate.

Daytime high
11th warmest
Overnight low
-5°
3rd coldest
Precipitation
121 mm
15 wet days
Daylight
8 h 12 min
7:57 AM – 4:10 PM
Cloud cover
66%
9th clearest
Wind
7 km/h
2nd windiest
Solar energy
1.05 kWh/m²
Travel score
0.0
out of 10
Air quality
Good
PM2.5 9.8 µg/m³ · 2019

Air quality: WHO Ambient Air Quality Database. Density & description: Wikidata (CC0), GeoNames.

Temperature in December

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Highs ease over the month, from about 3°C in the first days to 1°C by the end.

A typical December day in Salzburg reaches about 2°C in the afternoon and slips back to -5°C overnight — a 6°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between -3°C and 7°C. Set against its neighbours, December runs about 5°C cooler than November and on par with January.

-15°-10°-5°10°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
13-3
23-3
33-3
43-3
53-3
62-4
72-4
82-4
92-4
102-4
112-4
122-4
132-4
142-5
152-5
161-5
171-5
181-5
191-5
201-5
211-5
221-5
231-5
241-5
251-5
261-5
271-5
281-5
291-5
301-5
311-5

How December really feels in Salzburg

Once humidity and wind are folded in, December averages 0 days that feel above 32°C and 31 that feel at or below 0°C — the comfort signal a plain temperature reading hides.

Days feeling ≥ 32°C
0
heat index over the day's high
Days feeling ≤ C
31
wind chill below the day's low

The story in December is cold — wind chill drags the overnight "feels like" below the raw low.

Salzburg weather by month

How December compares with the rest of the year at a glance. December is the 11th-warmest and 8th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan / -6°11713.912.38.60.0
Feb / -5°10513.312.19.90.0
Mar / -2°14017.111.911.60.9
Apr12° / 12115.86.513.42.7
May17° / 19619.81.514.94.2
Jun20° / 11°215200.215.74.8
Jul22° / 12°21720.6015.45.1
Aug21° / 12°19318.3014.15.4
Sep17° / 16515.70.512.44.7
Oct13° / 12013.93.110.63.1
Nov / -1°10913.189.10.6
Dec / -5°1211512.48.30.0

Cloud cover in December

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 25% of the time in December.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 10% of December, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 65%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
13565
23565
33565
43565
53565
63565
73565
83664
93664
103565
113565
123565
133565
143565
153565
163565
173466
183466
193466
203466
213466
223466
233466
243466
253466
263565
273466
283466
293466
303466
313565

Chance of precipitation in December

Any precipitationSnow

Salzburg gets around 121 mm of rain and snow over 15 wet days in December. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Day to day, the chance of measurable precipitation averages around 49% and peaks near 51% on the wettest days, and about 12 days bring snow.

0%20%40%60%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
14333
24434
34435
44536
54636
64737
74738
84839
94840
104940
114941
125041
135042
145142
155142
165142
175142
185142
195042
205042
215042
225041
235042
245042
255042
265042
275042
284942
294942
304942
314942

Humidity in December

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

Most of December feels dry — the stacked bands show each day's mix of comfort levels, read off the dew point.

By dew point, December lands in the dry band about 100% of days. It rarely turns muggy — the humid and sticky bands barely register.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Dry (%)
1100
2100
3100
4100
5100
6100
7100
8100
9100
10100
11100
12100
13100
14100
15100
16100
17100
18100
19100
20100
21100
22100
23100
24100
25100
26100
27100
28100
29100
30100
31100

Wind in December

Winds average 7 km/h in December.

Across December, daily wind ranges from about 6 km/h on the calmest days to 7 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

0246810151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
16calm
26calm
36calm
46calm
56calm
66calm
76calm
86calm
96calm
107calm
117calm
127calm
137calm
147calm
157calm
167calm
177calm
187calm
197calm
207calm
217calm
227calm
237calm
247calm
257calm
267calm
277calm
287calm
297calm
307calm
317calm

Sunrise & sunset in December

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 8 h 30 min at the start of December to 8 h 12 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days shrink by about 18 minutes over December. Sunrise moves from 7:43 AM to 8:04 AM, and sunset from 4:12 PM to 4:18 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
18.57:434:12
28.57:444:12
38.47:454:11
48.47:464:11
58.47:484:11
68.47:494:11
78.37:504:10
88.37:514:10
98.37:524:10
108.37:534:10
118.37:534:10
128.37:544:10
138.27:554:10
148.27:564:10
158.27:574:10
168.27:574:10
178.27:584:11
188.27:594:11
198.27:594:11
208.28:004:12
218.28:014:12
228.28:014:13
238.28:024:13
248.28:024:14
258.28:024:14
268.28:034:15
278.28:034:15
288.28:034:16
298.28:034:17
308.28:034:18
318.28:044:18

Solar energy in December

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in December, about 1.05 kWh/m² — the year's lowest.

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 1.05 kWh/m² to a high of 5.38 kWh/m² in June across the year — December's 1.05 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

00.511.52151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
11.2Dim
21.2Dim
31.1Dim
41.1Dim
51.1Dim
61.1Dim
71.1Dim
81.1Dim
91.1Dim
101.1Dim
111.1Dim
121.1Dim
131.1Dim
141.1Dim
151.0Dim
161.0Dim
171.0Dim
181.0Dim
191.0Dim
201.0Dim
211.0Dim
221.0Dim
231.0Dim
241.0Dim
251.0Dim
261.0Dim
271.0Dim
281.0Dim
291.1Dim
301.1Dim
311.1Dim
Planning a trip in December

Is December a good time to visit Salzburg?

Our two travel scores rate December for general sightseeing and for beach or pool weather — 0 (poor) to 10 (ideal).

0.0
Sightseeing
10th-best month of the year
0.0
Beach & pool
8th-best month of the year

December is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Salzburg.

What to pack for Salzburg in December

From December's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.

In December, Salzburg sees daytime highs around 2°C and nights near -5°C. Pack a warm layer, a heavy coat and rain gear. About 15 days see rain.

a warm layera heavy coatrain gear

UV index in Salzburg in December

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in December peaks around 1. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Salzburg peaks around July 13 at about 8 (very high) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 22 at about 1 (low).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 8 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLowModerateHighVery highHighModerateLowJul 13UV 8Dec 22UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan1Low
Feb2Low
Mar5Moderate
Apr6High
May7High
Jun8Very high
Jul8Very high
Aug7Very high
Sep5High
Oct3Moderate
Nov2Low
Dec1Low
Location & terrain

Where is Salzburg?

Salzburg sits at 47.8°N, 13.0°E, 424 m above sea level, in Austria. The nearest listed city is Freilassing, 7.0 km away.

TraunreutSaalfelden am Steinernen MeerBurghausenHallstattZell am See

Topography around Salzburg

How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Salzburg.

Within 3 km, the terrain around Salzburg has significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 286 m around an average of 435 m above sea level; within 16 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,532 m; within 80 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 3,168 m.

The land around Salzburg is covered by artificial surfaces (41%) and trees (39%) within 3 km, trees (51%) and grassland (36%) within 16 km, and trees (50%) and grassland (29%) within 80 km.

3 km
286 m
16 km
1,532 m
80 km
3,168 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater
December weather nearby: Freilassing 7.0 km · Bad Reichenhall 15 km · Traunstein 31 km · Traunreut 38 km · Saalfelden am Steinernen Meer 44 km · Burghausen 44 km · Hallstatt 52 km · Zell am See 56 km

Austria travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 1
Exercise Normal Precautions
Power plugs
Type C / F
230 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 82% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$62,930
2025
Happiness
6.8 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
99%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
0.9
per 100k, 2023
Road deaths
4.9
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
High
World Bank
English
Very high
EF EPI 616
Religion
Roman Catholic 55%none 22%Muslim 8%other 5%

Sources: World Bank, US State Department, World Happiness Report, WHO/UNICEF, EF EPI, CIA World Factbook.

Data sources

Temperature, precipitation, cloud, humidity, wind and solar figures are a 1991–2020 climatology for Salzburg (47.7994°, 13.044°, elevation 424 m), computed from hourly ERA5 reanalysis — contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information. Sun figures are astronomical calculations, not observations. City data © GeoNames, CC BY 4.0. Map outlines from Natural Earth (public domain); interactive map © Google. UV index is derived from CAMS (Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service) clear-sky UV data — contains modified Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service information. Topography is sampled from the Copernicus DEM GLO-90 elevation model (© ESA/Airbus) and ESA WorldCover 2021 land cover (CC BY 4.0).