Xi'an in Winter
In winter (December, January and February), Xi'an sees average daytime highs around 8°C and overnight lows near -1°C, with 44 mm of precipitation over about 11 wet days across the season. It is the coldest season of the year and the driest season of the year.
Over the season highs climb from about 9°C in early December to 12°C by late February. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 43% of the time across winter, and the air most often feels dry.
Winter is Xi'an's weakest season of the year to visit on our travel score. For the whole year in context, see Xi'an's year-round climate.
- Avg daytime high
- 8°C
- coldest season of the year
- Avg overnight low
- -1°C
- Precipitation
- 44 mm
- 11 wet days
- Avg wind
- 4 km/h
- Travel score
- 1.4
- weakest season of the year
- Months
- Dec · Jan · Feb
Temperature in Xi'an in Winter
Over the season highs climb from about 9°C in early December to 12°C by late February.
A typical winter day in Xi'an reaches about 8°C and drops to -1°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is February, the coolest January.
How winter really feels in Xi'an
Once humidity and wind are folded in, winter brings about 0 days that feel above 32°C and 80 that feel at or below 0°C.
The story in winter is cold — wind chill drags the overnight "feels like" below the raw low.
Xi'an 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 | 6° / -3° | 13 | 3.2 | 2.6 | 10 | 0.4 |
| Feb | 10° / 0° | 18 | 4.1 | 2 | 10.7 | 2.5 |
| Mar | 16° / 5° | 33 | 6 | 0.7 | 11.7 | 5.4 |
| Apr | 23° / 11° | 46 | 7 | 0.1 | 12.8 | 7.1 |
| May | 27° / 16° | 71 | 8.2 | 0 | 13.8 | 6.5 |
| Jun | 31° / 20° | 93 | 7.3 | 0 | 14.2 | 4.7 |
| Jul | 32° / 23° | 144 | 10.7 | 0 | 14.1 | 3.8 |
| Aug | 31° / 22° | 129 | 10.6 | 0 | 13.3 | 4.6 |
| Sep | 26° / 17° | 133 | 11.7 | 0 | 12.2 | 6.3 |
| Oct | 20° / 11° | 81 | 10 | 0 | 11.1 | 6.2 |
| Nov | 13° / 4° | 40 | 6.6 | 1.1 | 10.2 | 4.0 |
| Dec | 7° / -1° | 13 | 3.3 | 1.4 | 9.8 | 1.2 |
Cloud cover in Winter
The sky is clear or mostly clear about 43% of the time across winter.
Chance of precipitation in Winter
Xi'an gets around 44 mm of rain and snow over 11 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 4 km/h across winter.
Sunrise & sunset in Winter
Daylight runs from about 9 h 54 min in early December to 11 h 12 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 3.0 kWh/m².
Hazard calendar for Xi'an
None of Xi'an's seasonal hazards peak in winter. The full-year calendar below shows when the rainy season, cyclone risk and dust haze do.
Xi'an's rainy season runs May–October, when most of the year's rain falls.
Xi'an sees seasonal dust haze (April–May), heaviest in May.
Is winter a good time to visit Xi'an?
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 Xi'an.
What to pack for Xi'an in Winter
From winter's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.
In winter, Xi'an sees daytime highs around 8°C and nights near -1°C. Pack a warm layer. Worth having: a heavy coat. About 11 days see rain.
UV index in Xi'an 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 Xi'an peaks around July 11 at about 10 (very high) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near January 12 at about 2 (moderate).
The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 10 months of the year.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UV index (midday) | 2 | 3 | 6 | 6 | 8 | 10 | 10 | 7 | 8 | 5 | 3 | 2 |
| Level | Low | Moderate | High | High | Very high | Very high | Very high | Very high | Very high | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate |
| UV index (midday) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 2 | Low |
| Feb | 3 | Moderate |
| Mar | 6 | High |
| Apr | 6 | High |
| May | 8 | Very high |
| Jun | 10 | Very high |
| Jul | 10 | Very high |
| Aug | 7 | Very high |
| Sep | 8 | Very high |
| Oct | 5 | Moderate |
| Nov | 3 | Moderate |
| Dec | 2 | Moderate |
Air quality in Xi'an 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 Xi'an is worst in January — around 82 µg/m³ PM2.5 (unhealthy), about 1.9× the cleanest month (August, 42 µg/m³).
Seasonal pattern from CAMS reanalysis, scaled to Xi'an's WHO annual average of 63.1 µg/m³.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | 82 | 77 | 75 | 67 | 59 | 49 | 43 | 42 | 53 | 65 | 72 | 74 |
| Level | Unhealthy | Unhealthy | Unhealthy | Unhealthy | Unhealthy | Poor | Poor | Poor | Poor | Unhealthy | Unhealthy | Unhealthy |
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 82 | Unhealthy |
| Feb | 77 | Unhealthy |
| Mar | 75 | Unhealthy |
| Apr | 67 | Unhealthy |
| May | 59 | Unhealthy |
| Jun | 49 | Poor |
| Jul | 43 | Poor |
| Aug | 42 | Poor |
| Sep | 53 | Poor |
| Oct | 65 | Unhealthy |
| Nov | 72 | Unhealthy |
| Dec | 74 | Unhealthy |
Where is Xi'an?
Xi'an sits at 34.3°N, 108.9°E, 416 m above sea level, in China. The nearest listed city is Luoyang, 325 km away.
Topography around Xi'an
How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Xi'an.
Within 3 km, the terrain around Xi'an has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 34 m around an average of 409 m above sea level; within 16 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 385 m; within 80 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,645 m.
The land around Xi'an is covered by artificial surfaces (91%) within 3 km, artificial surfaces (61%) within 16 km, and trees (42%) and cropland (41%) 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 Xi'an (34.2583°, 108.9286°, elevation 416 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.