Hangzhou in Winter
In winter (December, January and February), Hangzhou sees average daytime highs around 10°C and overnight lows near 3°C, with 212 mm of precipitation over about 28 wet days across the season. It is the coldest season of the year and the driest season of the year.
Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 10°C. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 37% of the time across winter, and the air most often feels dry.
Winter is Hangzhou's weakest season of the year to visit on our travel score. For the whole year in context, see Hangzhou's year-round climate.
- Avg daytime high
- 10°C
- coldest season of the year
- Avg overnight low
- 3°C
- Precipitation
- 212 mm
- 28 wet days
- Avg wind
- 9 km/h
- Travel score
- 2.5
- weakest season of the year
- Months
- Dec · Jan · Feb
Temperature in Hangzhou in Winter
Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 10°C.
A typical winter day in Hangzhou reaches about 10°C and drops to 3°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is December, the coolest January.
How winter really feels in Hangzhou
Once humidity and wind are folded in, winter brings about 0 days that feel above 32°C and 30 that feel at or below 0°C.
The story in winter is cold — wind chill drags the overnight "feels like" below the raw low.
Hangzhou weather by month
How the three winter months (December, January and February) compare with the rest of the year — the season's months are highlighted.
| Month | High / Low (°C) | Rainfall (mm) | Wet days | Snow days | Daylight (hours) | Travel score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 9° / 2° | 80 | 10.4 | 1.6 | 10.3 | 1.7 |
| Feb | 11° / 4° | 73 | 9.9 | 1 | 10.9 | 2.7 |
| Mar | 16° / 8° | 119 | 13.5 | 0.2 | 11.8 | 4.4 |
| Apr | 22° / 13° | 131 | 12.1 | 0 | 12.7 | 6.0 |
| May | 27° / 18° | 157 | 12.2 | 0 | 13.5 | 6.1 |
| Jun | 29° / 22° | 303 | 16.2 | 0 | 13.9 | 4.5 |
| Jul | 34° / 26° | 173 | 12.9 | 0 | 13.8 | 2.8 |
| Aug | 33° / 26° | 141 | 14.8 | 0 | 13.1 | 3.0 |
| Sep | 29° / 22° | 98 | 10.1 | 0 | 12.2 | 5.6 |
| Oct | 24° / 16° | 59 | 6.3 | 0 | 11.3 | 7.4 |
| Nov | 18° / 10° | 65 | 8.5 | 0 | 10.5 | 5.9 |
| Dec | 12° / 4° | 59 | 7.5 | 0.4 | 10.1 | 3.2 |
Cloud cover in Winter
The sky is clear or mostly clear about 37% of the time across winter.
Chance of precipitation in Winter
Hangzhou gets around 212 mm of rain and snow over 28 wet days across winter. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.
Humidity in Winter
Most of winter feels dry — the stacked bands show each day's mix of comfort levels, read off the dew point.
Wind in Winter
Winds average 9 km/h across winter.
Sunrise & sunset in Winter
Daylight runs from about 10 h 12 min in early December to 11 h 18 min by late February. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.
Solar energy in Winter
Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day across winter, about 2.6 kWh/m².
Hazard calendar for Hangzhou
In winter, Hangzhou overlaps its pacific typhoon season. The full year is below, with each hazard's peak months called out.
Hangzhou sits in the Pacific typhoon belt; the season peaks July–October.
Hangzhou's rainy season runs May–August, when most of the year's rain falls.
Is winter a good time to visit Hangzhou?
Our two travel scores rate winter for general sightseeing and for beach or pool weather — 0 (poor) to 10 (ideal), averaged across the three months.
winter is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Hangzhou.
What to pack for Hangzhou in Winter
From winter's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.
In winter, Hangzhou sees daytime highs around 10°C and nights near 3°C. Pack a warm layer. Worth having: rain gear. About 28 days see rain.
Sea temperature near Hangzhou in Winter
The nearest coast averages about 9°C across winter — the other half of the beach question. The full-year curve and swim-comfort zones are below.
The sea at the nearest coast (about 45 km away) is warmest in August at about 29°C and coldest in February near 7°C.
It's comfortable for a long swim from May 22 to Oct 29 — about 5.3 months when the water holds above 20°C.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sea temperature (°C) | 8 | 7 | 10 | 14 | 19 | 24 | 27 | 29 | 26 | 22 | 17 | 12 |
| Comfort | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Cool | Refreshing | Warm | Tropical | Warm | Refreshing | Cool | Bracing |
| Sea temperature (°C) | Comfort | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 8 | Bracing |
| Feb | 7 | Bracing |
| Mar | 10 | Bracing |
| Apr | 14 | Bracing |
| May | 19 | Cool |
| Jun | 24 | Refreshing |
| Jul | 27 | Warm |
| Aug | 29 | Tropical |
| Sep | 26 | Warm |
| Oct | 22 | Refreshing |
| Nov | 17 | Cool |
| Dec | 12 | Bracing |
UV index in Hangzhou in Winter
Clear-sky midday UV across winter averages around 4 — enough to warrant sun protection. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.
Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Hangzhou peaks around July 20 at about 10 (very high) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near January 10 at about 3 (moderate).
The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — every month of the year.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UV index (midday) | 3 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 5 | 4 | 3 |
| Level | Moderate | High | High | Very high | Very high | Very high | Very high | Very high | Very high | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate |
| UV index (midday) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 3 | Moderate |
| Feb | 5 | High |
| Mar | 6 | High |
| Apr | 7 | Very high |
| May | 8 | Very high |
| Jun | 8 | Very high |
| Jul | 10 | Very high |
| Aug | 9 | Very high |
| Sep | 10 | Very high |
| Oct | 5 | Moderate |
| Nov | 4 | Moderate |
| Dec | 3 | Moderate |
Air quality in Hangzhou in Winter
Average fine-particle pollution (PM2.5) through the year — so you can see where winter falls, not just the annual average.
Air quality in Hangzhou is worst in December — around 39 µg/m³ PM2.5 (poor), about 2.2× the cleanest month (August, 18 µg/m³).
Seasonal pattern from CAMS reanalysis, scaled to Hangzhou's WHO annual average of 29.5 µg/m³.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | 39 | 37 | 36 | 32 | 27 | 24 | 19 | 18 | 23 | 27 | 33 | 39 |
| Level | Poor | Poor | Poor | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Poor |
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 39 | Poor |
| Feb | 37 | Poor |
| Mar | 36 | Poor |
| Apr | 32 | Moderate |
| May | 27 | Moderate |
| Jun | 24 | Moderate |
| Jul | 19 | Moderate |
| Aug | 18 | Moderate |
| Sep | 23 | Moderate |
| Oct | 27 | Moderate |
| Nov | 33 | Moderate |
| Dec | 39 | Poor |
Where is Hangzhou?
Hangzhou sits at 30.3°N, 120.2°E, 12 m above sea level, in China. The nearest listed city is Pingyao, 22 km away.
Topography around Hangzhou
How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Hangzhou.
Within 3 km, the terrain around Hangzhou has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 28 m around an average of 10 m above sea level; within 16 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 415 m; within 80 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,634 m.
The land around Hangzhou is covered by artificial surfaces (77%) within 3 km, artificial surfaces (48%) and trees (26%) within 16 km, and trees (51%) and cropland (22%) within 80 km.
China travel facts
- Travel advisory
- Level 2
- Exercise Increased Caution
- Power plugs
- Type A / I
- 220 V · 50 Hz
- Prices
- ≈ 47% of US
- price level, 2025
- GDP per capita
- $13,862
- 2025
- Happiness
- 6.1 / 10
- World Happiness, 2025
- Homicide rate
- 0.5
- per 100k, 2020
- Road deaths
- 17.4
- per 100k/yr, 2019
- Income group
- Upper middle
- World Bank
- English
- Low
- EF EPI 464
- Religion
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 Hangzhou (30.2936°, 120.1614°, elevation 12 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.