Copenhagen weather in December

In December, Copenhagen sees average daytime highs of 4°C and overnight lows near 1°C, with 53 mm of precipitation across 11.6 wet days and about 6.9 hours of daylight. It is the 10th-warmest and 6th-wettest month of the year here.

Highs ease over the month, from about 5°C in the first days to 3°C by the end. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 12% of the time in December, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 7 h 12 min at the start of December to 6 h 48 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, December is Copenhagen's 12th-clearest and 3rd-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Copenhagen's year-round climate.

Daytime high
10th warmest
Overnight low
4th coldest
Precipitation
53 mm
11.6 wet days
Daylight
6 h 48 min
8:42 AM – 3:29 PM
Cloud cover
78%
12th clearest
Wind
18 km/h
3rd windiest
Solar energy
0.36 kWh/m²
Travel score
0.0
out of 10

Copenhagen is capital and largest city of Denmark.

Air quality
Moderate
PM2.5 11.3 µg/m³ · 2019
Density
12,691/km²
people per km²
Founded
1167

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 5°C in the first days to 3°C by the end.

A typical December day in Copenhagen reaches about 4°C in the afternoon and slips back to 1°C overnight — a 4°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between -1°C and 8°C. Set against its neighbours, December runs about 3°C cooler than November and about 1°C warmer than January.

-10°-5°10°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
152
252
352
452
552
652
752
851
951
1051
1151
1251
1341
1441
1541
1641
1740
1840
1940
2040
2140
2240
2340
2440
2540
2630
2730
283-1
293-1
303-1
313-1

How December really feels in Copenhagen

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.

Copenhagen weather by month

How December compares with the rest of the year at a glance. December is the 10th-warmest and 6th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan / -1°5011.747.40.0
Feb / -1°419.44.59.20.0
Mar / 43102.511.40.5
Apr11° / 419.30.413.82.8
May16° / 5210.3015.94.8
Jun19° / 11°7111.2017.15.8
Jul21° / 13°7212016.76.2
Aug21° / 13°7712.8014.86.0
Sep17° / 10°5910.2012.55.2
Oct12° / 6011.7010.13.0
Nov / 50110.980.9
Dec / 5311.62.86.90.0

Cloud cover in December

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 12% of the time in December, the cloudiest month of the year.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 11% of December, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 77%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
12080
22179
32179
42080
52080
62278
72278
82278
92278
102278
112377
122476
132476
142476
152476
162476
172476
182476
192377
202476
212476
222476
232476
242476
252575
262575
272674
282674
292674
302674
312575

Chance of precipitation in December

Any precipitationSnow

Copenhagen gets around 53 mm of rain and snow over 11.6 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 37% and peaks near 40% on the wettest days, and about 3 days bring snow.

0%10%20%30%40%50%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
1366
2366
3376
4376
5376
6387
7387
8387
9387
10387
11387
12377
13377
14377
15378
16368
17368
18369
19369
203710
213710
223710
233711
243711
253711
263711
273811
283812
293912
303912
314012

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 18 km/h in December.

Across December, daily wind ranges from about 18 km/h on the calmest days to 19 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

0510152025151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
118light breeze
218light breeze
318light breeze
418light breeze
518light breeze
618light breeze
718light breeze
818light breeze
918light breeze
1018light breeze
1118light breeze
1218light breeze
1318light breeze
1418light breeze
1518light breeze
1618light breeze
1718light breeze
1818light breeze
1918light breeze
2018light breeze
2118light breeze
2218light breeze
2318light breeze
2418light breeze
2518light breeze
2618light breeze
2719light breeze
2819light breeze
2919light breeze
3019light breeze
3119light breeze

Sunrise & sunset in December

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 7 h 12 min at the start of December to 6 h 48 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days shrink by about 24 minutes over December. Sunrise moves from 8:24 AM to 8:48 AM, and sunset from 3:35 PM to 3:38 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
17.28:243:35
27.18:263:34
37.18:273:33
47.18:293:33
57.08:303:32
67.08:313:32
77.08:333:31
86.98:343:31
96.98:353:30
106.98:363:30
116.98:383:30
126.88:393:29
136.88:403:29
146.88:413:29
156.88:423:29
166.88:423:29
176.88:433:29
186.88:443:30
196.88:453:30
206.78:453:30
216.78:463:31
226.78:463:31
236.78:473:32
246.78:473:32
256.88:483:33
266.88:483:33
276.88:483:34
286.88:483:35
296.88:483:36
306.88:483:37
316.88:483:38

Solar energy in December

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in December, about 0.36 kWh/m² — the year's lowest.

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 0.36 kWh/m² to a high of 5.54 kWh/m² in June across the year — December's 0.36 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

00.511.52151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
10.4Dim
20.4Dim
30.4Dim
40.4Dim
50.4Dim
60.4Dim
70.4Dim
80.4Dim
90.4Dim
100.4Dim
110.4Dim
120.4Dim
130.4Dim
140.3Dim
150.3Dim
160.3Dim
170.3Dim
180.3Dim
190.3Dim
200.3Dim
210.3Dim
220.3Dim
230.4Dim
240.4Dim
250.4Dim
260.4Dim
270.4Dim
280.4Dim
290.4Dim
300.4Dim
310.4Dim
Planning a trip in December

Is December a good time to visit Copenhagen?

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 Copenhagen.

What to pack for Copenhagen in December

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

In December, Copenhagen sees daytime highs around 4°C and nights near 1°C. Pack a warm layer. Worth having: a heavy coat and rain gear. About 12 days see rain.

a warm layera heavy coatrain gear

Sea temperature near Copenhagen in December

The nearest coast averages about 5°C in December — the other half of the beach question. The full-year curve and swim-comfort zones are below.

The sea offshore is warmest in August at about 18°C and coldest in February near 2°C.

The water stays below 20°C all year — cool enough that most swimmers want a wetsuit.

0°5°10°15°20°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbracingcoolrefreshing
Sea temperature (°C)Comfort
Jan3Bracing
Feb2Bracing
Mar3Bracing
Apr6Bracing
May10Bracing
Jun14Bracing
Jul17Cool
Aug18Cool
Sep15Cool
Oct12Bracing
Nov9Bracing
Dec5Bracing

UV index in Copenhagen in December

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in December peaks around 0. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Copenhagen peaks around June 23 at about 5 (high) — a little sun protection helps at midday. It bottoms out near December 20 at about 0 (low).

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

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLowModerateHighModerateLowJun 23UV 5Dec 20UV 0
UV index (midday)Level
Jan0Low
Feb1Low
Mar2Moderate
Apr3Moderate
May5Moderate
Jun5High
Jul5High
Aug5Moderate
Sep3Moderate
Oct2Low
Nov1Low
Dec0Low

Air quality in Copenhagen in December

GoodModeratePoorUnhealthyVery unhealthy

Average fine-particle pollution (PM2.5) through the year — so you can see where December falls, not just the annual average.

Air quality in Copenhagen is worst in April — around 15 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 2.2× the cleanest month (November, 7 µg/m³).

Seasonal pattern from CAMS reanalysis, scaled to Copenhagen's WHO annual average of 11.3 µg/m³.

01020JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecGoodModerateGoodApr 1515 µg/m³Nov 237 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan9Good
Feb10Good
Mar14Moderate
Apr15Moderate
May13Moderate
Jun13Moderate
Jul13Moderate
Aug13Moderate
Sep12Moderate
Oct9Good
Nov7Good
Dec7Good
Location & terrain

Where is Copenhagen?

Copenhagen sits at 55.7°N, 12.6°E, 14 m above sea level, in Denmark. The nearest listed city is Indre By, 1.0 km away.

Topography around Copenhagen

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Copenhagen has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 49 m around an average of 9 m above sea level; within 16 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 86 m; within 80 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 270 m.

The land around Copenhagen is covered by artificial surfaces (65%) and trees (20%) within 3 km, water (46%) and artificial surfaces (22%) within 16 km, and water (41%) and cropland (26%) within 80 km.

3 km
49 m
16 km
86 m
80 km
270 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaceswaterwetland
December weather nearby: Indre By 1.0 km · Frederiksberg 2.0 km · Valby 3.0 km · Vanløse 5.0 km · Hvidovre 7.0 km · Rødovre 7.0 km · Charlottenlund 9.0 km · Avedøre 9.0 km

Denmark travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 2
Exercise Increased Caution
Power plugs
Type C / E / F / K
230 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 92% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$76,970
2025
Happiness
7.5 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
100%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
0.8
per 100k, 2023
Road deaths
3.7
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
High
World Bank
English
Very high
EF EPI 611
Religion
Evangelical Lutheran 71%other/none/unspecified 24%Muslim 4%

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 Copenhagen (55.6759°, 12.5655°, elevation 14 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. Sea temperatures are the NOAA OISST v2.1 1991–2020 monthly climatology (public domain), sampled at the nearest ocean point. UV index is derived from CAMS (Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service) clear-sky UV data — contains modified Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service information. Monthly air-quality (PM2.5) seasonality is from the CAMS EAC4 reanalysis (Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service), scaled to the WHO annual mean where available. Topography is sampled from the Copernicus DEM GLO-90 elevation model (© ESA/Airbus) and ESA WorldCover 2021 land cover (CC BY 4.0).