Urumqi in Winter
In winter (December, January and February), Urumqi sees average daytime highs around -5°C and overnight lows near -14°C, with 32 mm of precipitation over about 9 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 -5°C. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 53% of the time across winter, and the air most often feels dry.
Winter is Urumqi's weakest season of the year to visit on our travel score. For the whole year in context, see Urumqi's year-round climate.
- Avg daytime high
- -5°C
- coldest season of the year
- Avg overnight low
- -14°C
- Precipitation
- 32 mm
- 9 wet days
- Avg wind
- 8 km/h
- Travel score
- 0.0
- weakest season of the year
- Months
- Dec · Jan · Feb
Temperature in Urumqi in Winter
Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around -5°C.
A typical winter day in Urumqi reaches about -5°C and drops to -14°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is February, the coolest January.
How winter really feels in Urumqi
Once humidity and wind are folded in, winter brings about 0 days that feel above 32°C and 90 that feel at or below 0°C.
The story in winter is cold — wind chill drags the overnight "feels like" below the raw low.
Urumqi 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 | -7° / -16° | 7 | 2.3 | 2.8 | 9.1 | 0.0 |
| Feb | -3° / -12° | 12 | 3 | 3.7 | 10.2 | 0.0 |
| Mar | 6° / -4° | 25 | 5.4 | 4.1 | 11.6 | 0.9 |
| Apr | 15° / 4° | 49 | 7.7 | 2.4 | 13.2 | 5.1 |
| May | 21° / 10° | 54 | 7.9 | 0.6 | 14.5 | 6.8 |
| Jun | 26° / 16° | 40 | 7 | 0 | 15.2 | 7.1 |
| Jul | 27° / 18° | 43 | 6.5 | 0 | 14.9 | 6.9 |
| Aug | 26° / 16° | 42 | 6.6 | 0 | 13.8 | 7.3 |
| Sep | 21° / 10° | 35 | 5.7 | 0.2 | 12.3 | 7.4 |
| Oct | 13° / 3° | 34 | 5.9 | 2.6 | 10.8 | 4.4 |
| Nov | 4° / -6° | 24 | 5.3 | 4.9 | 9.5 | 0.4 |
| Dec | -5° / -13° | 13 | 3.2 | 3.7 | 8.8 | 0.0 |
Cloud cover in Winter
The sky is clear or mostly clear about 53% of the time across winter.
Chance of precipitation in Winter
Urumqi gets around 32 mm of rain and snow over 9 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 8 km/h across winter.
Sunrise & sunset in Winter
Daylight runs from about 9 hours in early December to 10 h 48 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.
Is winter a good time to visit Urumqi?
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 Urumqi.
What to pack for Urumqi in Winter
From winter's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.
In winter, Urumqi sees daytime highs around -5°C and nights near -14°C. Pack a warm layer and a heavy coat. About 9 days see rain.
UV index in Urumqi in Winter
Clear-sky midday UV across winter averages around 2. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.
Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Urumqi peaks around July 19 at about 9 (very high) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near January 10 at about 1 (low).
The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 8 months of the year.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UV index (midday) | 1 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 7 | 7 | 9 | 8 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
| Level | Low | Moderate | Moderate | High | Very high | Very high | Very high | Very high | High | Moderate | Low | Low |
| UV index (midday) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 1 | Low |
| Feb | 3 | Moderate |
| Mar | 3 | Moderate |
| Apr | 5 | High |
| May | 7 | Very high |
| Jun | 7 | Very high |
| Jul | 9 | Very high |
| Aug | 8 | Very high |
| Sep | 6 | High |
| Oct | 3 | Moderate |
| Nov | 2 | Low |
| Dec | 1 | Low |
Air quality in Urumqi 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 Urumqi is worst in March — around 77 µg/m³ PM2.5 (unhealthy), and holds fairly steady the rest of the year.
Seasonal pattern from CAMS reanalysis, scaled to Urumqi's WHO annual average of 65.7 µg/m³.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | 77 | 73 | 77 | 73 | 77 | 61 | 53 | 60 | 54 | 55 | 59 | 69 |
| Level | Unhealthy | Unhealthy | Unhealthy | Unhealthy | Unhealthy | Unhealthy | Poor | Unhealthy | Poor | Poor | Unhealthy | Unhealthy |
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 77 | Unhealthy |
| Feb | 73 | Unhealthy |
| Mar | 77 | Unhealthy |
| Apr | 73 | Unhealthy |
| May | 77 | Unhealthy |
| Jun | 61 | Unhealthy |
| Jul | 53 | Poor |
| Aug | 60 | Unhealthy |
| Sep | 54 | Poor |
| Oct | 55 | Poor |
| Nov | 59 | Unhealthy |
| Dec | 69 | Unhealthy |
Where is Urumqi?
Urumqi sits at 43.8°N, 87.6°E, 862 m above sea level, in China. The nearest listed city is Turpan, 159 km away.
Topography around Urumqi
How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Urumqi.
Within 3 km, the terrain around Urumqi has significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 253 m around an average of 881 m above sea level; within 16 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,040 m; within 80 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 4,842 m.
The land around Urumqi is covered by artificial surfaces (79%) within 3 km, grassland (36%), artificial surfaces (32%) and bare terrain (24%) within 16 km, and grassland (43%) and bare terrain (30%) 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 Urumqi (43.801°, 87.6005°, elevation 862 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.