Red Deer weather in December

In December, Red Deer sees average daytime highs of -5°C and overnight lows near -13°C, with 15 mm of precipitation across 4.6 wet days and about 7.6 hours of daylight. It is the 11th-warmest and 11th-wettest month of the year here.

Highs ease over the month, from about -3°C in the first days to -6°C by the end. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 28% of the time in December, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 7 h 48 min at the start of December to 7 h 30 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, December is Red Deer's 5th-clearest and 3rd-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Red Deer's year-round climate.

Daytime high
-5°
11th warmest
Overnight low
-13°
3rd coldest
Precipitation
15 mm
4.6 wet days
Daylight
7 h 30 min
8:47 AM – 4:16 PM
Cloud cover
61%
5th clearest
Wind
11 km/h
3rd windiest
Solar energy
0.94 kWh/m²
Travel score
0.0
out of 10

Red Deer is city in Alberta, Canada.

Air quality
Good
PM2.5 7 µg/m³ · 2019
Density
963/km²
people per km²
Founded
1882

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 -6°C by the end.

A typical December day in Red Deer reaches about -5°C in the afternoon and slips back to -13°C overnight — a 9°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between -16°C and 4°C. Set against its neighbours, December runs about 5°C cooler than November and about 1°C warmer than January.

-30°-20°-10°10°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
1-3-12
2-3-12
3-3-12
4-4-12
5-4-12
6-4-12
7-4-12
8-4-13
9-4-13
10-4-13
11-4-13
12-4-13
13-4-13
14-4-13
15-4-13
16-4-13
17-5-13
18-5-13
19-5-13
20-5-13
21-5-13
22-5-14
23-5-14
24-5-14
25-6-14
26-6-14
27-6-14
28-6-15
29-6-15
30-6-15
31-6-15

How December really feels in Red Deer

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
31 feel bitter (≤ -10°C)

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

Red Deer weather by month

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

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan-6° / -15°174.95.880.0
Feb-3° / -13°113.34.29.50.0
Mar / -9°205.85.511.50.0
Apr / -2°337.23.913.62.1
May16° / 6310.31.815.44.7
Jun19° / 9114.2016.45.4
Jul22° / 10°8312.90166.3
Aug21° / 6710014.56.6
Sep17° / 4180.712.45.5
Oct / -1°245.82.610.32.1
Nov / -8°215.35.28.50.0
Dec-5° / -13°154.65.37.60.0

Cloud cover in December

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 28% of the time in December.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 17% of December, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 55%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
14753
24753
34753
44654
54654
64753
74654
84753
94654
104654
114654
124654
134654
144555
154456
164456
174456
184456
194555
204555
214555
224555
234357
244357
254357
264258
274258
284159
294159
304159
314060

Chance of precipitation in December

Any precipitationSnow

Red Deer gets around 15 mm of rain and snow over 4.6 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 15% and peaks near 16% on the wettest days, and about 5 days bring snow.

0%10%20%30%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
11516
21516
31416
41416
51416
61416
71416
81416
91416
101416
111416
121416
131416
141416
151417
161417
171517
181517
191517
201517
211517
221517
231517
241618
251618
261618
271518
281518
291518
301619
311619

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 11 km/h in December.

Across December, daily wind ranges from about 11 km/h on the calmest days to 12 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

051015151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
111calm
211calm
311calm
411calm
512calm
612calm
712calm
812calm
912calm
1012calm
1112calm
1212calm
1312calm
1412calm
1512calm
1612calm
1712calm
1812calm
1912calm
2011calm
2111calm
2211calm
2311calm
2411calm
2511calm
2611calm
2711calm
2811calm
2911calm
3011calm
3111calm

Sunrise & sunset in December

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 7 h 48 min at the start of December to 7 h 30 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 8:30 AM to 8:53 AM, and sunset from 4:20 PM to 4:24 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
17.88:304:20
27.88:324:19
37.88:334:18
47.78:344:18
57.78:364:17
67.78:374:17
77.68:384:17
87.68:394:16
97.68:404:16
107.68:414:16
117.68:424:16
127.58:434:16
137.58:444:16
147.58:454:16
157.58:464:16
167.58:474:16
177.58:474:16
187.58:484:16
197.58:494:17
207.58:494:17
217.58:504:17
227.58:504:18
237.58:514:18
247.58:514:19
257.58:524:20
267.58:524:20
277.58:524:21
287.58:524:22
297.58:534:22
307.58:534:23
317.58:534:24

Solar energy in December

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in December, about 0.94 kWh/m² — the year's lowest.

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 0.94 kWh/m² to a high of 6.41 kWh/m² in July across the year — December's 0.94 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

00.511.52151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
11.1Dim
21.0Dim
31.0Dim
41.0Dim
51.0Dim
61.0Dim
71.0Dim
81.0Dim
91.0Dim
100.9Dim
110.9Dim
120.9Dim
130.9Dim
140.9Dim
150.9Dim
160.9Dim
170.9Dim
180.9Dim
190.9Dim
200.9Dim
210.9Dim
220.9Dim
230.9Dim
240.9Dim
250.9Dim
260.9Dim
270.9Dim
280.9Dim
290.9Dim
301.0Dim
311.0Dim
Planning a trip in December

Is December a good time to visit Red Deer?

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

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

December is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Red Deer.

What to pack for Red Deer in December

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

In December, Red Deer sees daytime highs around -5°C and nights near -13°C. Pack a warm layer and a heavy coat. About 5 days see rain.

a warm layera heavy coat

UV index in Red Deer 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 Red Deer peaks around July 15 at about 7 (very high) — sunscreen and a hat are worth it in the middle of the day. It bottoms out near December 19 at about 1 (low).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 6 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLowModerateHighHighModerateLowJul 15UV 7Dec 19UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan1Low
Feb1Low
Mar3Moderate
Apr4Moderate
May5High
Jun6High
Jul7Very high
Aug5Moderate
Sep3Moderate
Oct2Moderate
Nov1Low
Dec1Low
Location & terrain

Where is Red Deer?

Red Deer sits at 52.3°N, 113.8°W, 856 m above sea level, in Canada. The nearest listed city is Sylvan Lake, 20 km away.

Topography around Red Deer

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Red Deer has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 60 m around an average of 877 m above sea level; within 16 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 247 m; within 80 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 546 m.

The land around Red Deer is covered by artificial surfaces (50%), trees (26%) and grassland (20%) within 3 km, cropland (48%) and grassland (30%) within 16 km, and cropland (44%) and grassland (39%) within 80 km.

3 km
60 m
16 km
247 m
80 km
546 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater
December weather nearby: Sylvan Lake 20 km · Camrose 106 km · Airdrie 109 km · Leduc 112 km · Coventry Hills 123 km · Evanston 125 km · Panorama Hills 125 km · Saddle Ridge 127 km

Canada travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 1
Exercise Normal Precautions
Power plugs
Type A / B
120 V · 60 Hz
Prices
≈ 83% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$55,698
2025
Happiness
6.7 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
97%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
2
per 100k, 2023
Road deaths
5.3
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
High
World Bank
Religion
Christian 53%none 35%Muslim 5%Hindu 2%

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 Red Deer (52.2668°, -113.802°, elevation 856 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).