Addis Ababa weather in December

In December, Addis Ababa sees average daytime highs of 22°C and overnight lows near 7°C, with 6 mm of rain across 1.2 wet days and about 11.5 hours of daylight. It is the 6th-warmest and 12th-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 22°C through the month. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 55% of the time in December, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 11 h 30 min at the start of December to 11 h 30 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, December is Addis Ababa's 1st-clearest and 5th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Addis Ababa's year-round climate.

Daytime high: 22°; 6th warmest
Overnight low: 7°; 1st coldest
Rainfall: 6 mm; 1.2 wet days
Daylight: 11 h 30 min; 6:37 AM – 6:05 PM
Cloud cover: 36%; 1st clearest
Wind: 8 km/h; 5th windiest
Solar energy: 5.87 kWh/m²
Travel score: 8.5; out of 10

Addis Ababa is capital city of Ethiopia.

Air quality: Elevated; PM2.5 20.5 µg/m³ · 2019
Density: 7,325/km²; people per km²
Founded: 1886

Air quality: WHO Ambient Air Quality Database. Density & description: Wikidata (CC0), GeoNames.

← November Addis Ababa year-round climate January →Best places to visit in December

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

Temperature in December

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 22°C through the month.

A typical December day in Addis Ababa reaches about 22°C in the afternoon and slips back to 7°C overnight — a 15°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 20°C and 24°C. Set against its neighbours, December runs on par with November and on par with January.

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

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

Addis Ababa weather by month

How December compares with the rest of the year at a glance. December is the 6th-warmest and 12th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

Month	High / Low (°C)	Rainfall (mm)	Wet days	Daylight (hours)	Travel score
Jan	23° / 8°	15	3.3	11.5	8.1
Feb	24° / 10°	19	4.2	11.7	8.1
Mar	24° / 11°	65	10	11.9	7.2
Apr	24° / 12°	142	13.6	12.2	6.4
May	23° / 12°	177	13.6	12.4	6.3
Jun	22° / 11°	267	23.5	12.5	4.6
Jul	20° / 11°	377	30.9	12.5	3.3
Aug	20° / 11°	407	31	12.3	3.3
Sep	20° / 11°	275	24.9	12.1	4.2
Oct	21° / 9°	48	6.9	11.8	7.2
Nov	22° / 8°	10	1.8	11.6	8.3
Dec	22° / 7°	6	1.2	11.5	8.5

Cloud cover in December

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 55% of the time in December, the clearest month of the year.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 24% of December, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 22%.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Clearer (%)	80	80	81	81	80	80	80	80	81	81	81	81	81	81	80	80	80	80	79	79	79	78	77	76	75	74	74	73	73	72	72
Cloudier (%)	20	20	19	19	20	20	20	20	19	19	19	19	19	19	20	20	20	20	21	21	21	22	23	24	25	26	26	27	27	28	28

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	80	20
2	80	20
3	81	19
4	81	19
5	80	20
6	80	20
7	80	20
8	80	20
9	81	19
10	81	19
11	81	19
12	81	19
13	81	19
14	81	19
15	80	20
16	80	20
17	80	20
18	80	20
19	79	21
20	79	21
21	79	21
22	78	22
23	77	23
24	76	24
25	75	25
26	74	26
27	74	26
28	73	27
29	73	27
30	72	28
31	72	28

Chance of precipitation in December

Any precipitation

Addis Ababa gets around 6 mm of rain over 1.2 wet days in December, the driest month. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Day to day, the chance of measurable rain averages around 4% and peaks near 6% on the wettest days.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Rain chance (%)	4	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	5	5	5	5	5	6	6	6	6

	Rain chance (%)
1	4
2	3
3	3
4	3
5	3
6	3
7	3
8	3
9	3
10	3
11	3
12	3
13	3
14	3
15	4
16	4
17	4
18	4
19	4
20	4
21	4
22	4
23	5
24	5
25	5
26	5
27	5
28	6
29	6
30	6
31	6

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.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Dry (%)	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100

	Dry (%)
1	100
2	100
3	100
4	100
5	100
6	100
7	100
8	100
9	100
10	100
11	100
12	100
13	100
14	100
15	100
16	100
17	100
18	100
19	100
20	100
21	100
22	100
23	100
24	100
25	100
26	100
27	100
28	100
29	100
30	100
31	100

Wind in December

Winds average 8 km/h in December.

Across December, daily wind ranges from about 8 km/h on the calmest days to 8 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Wind speed (km/h)	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8
Feels	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm

	Wind speed (km/h)	Feels
1	8	calm
2	8	calm
3	8	calm
4	8	calm
5	8	calm
6	8	calm
7	8	calm
8	8	calm
9	8	calm
10	8	calm
11	8	calm
12	8	calm
13	8	calm
14	8	calm
15	8	calm
16	8	calm
17	8	calm
18	8	calm
19	8	calm
20	8	calm
21	8	calm
22	8	calm
23	8	calm
24	8	calm
25	8	calm
26	8	calm
27	8	calm
28	8	calm
29	8	calm
30	8	calm
31	8	calm

Sunrise & sunset in December

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 11 h 30 min at the start of December to 11 h 30 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 0 minutes over December. Sunrise moves from 6:29 AM to 6:44 AM, and sunset from 6:00 PM to 6:13 PM.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Daylight (h)	11.5	11.5	11.5	11.5	11.5	11.5	11.5	11.5	11.5	11.5	11.5	11.5	11.5	11.5	11.5	11.5	11.5	11.5	11.5	11.5	11.5	11.5	11.5	11.5	11.5	11.5	11.5	11.5	11.5	11.5	11.5
Sunrise (AM)	6:29	6:30	6:30	6:31	6:31	6:32	6:32	6:33	6:33	6:34	6:34	6:35	6:35	6:36	6:36	6:37	6:37	6:38	6:38	6:39	6:39	6:40	6:40	6:41	6:41	6:42	6:42	6:42	6:43	6:43	6:44
Sunset (PM)	6:00	6:00	6:01	6:01	6:01	6:02	6:02	6:02	6:03	6:03	6:03	6:04	6:04	6:05	6:05	6:05	6:06	6:06	6:07	6:07	6:08	6:08	6:09	6:09	6:10	6:10	6:11	6:11	6:12	6:12	6:13

	Daylight (h)	Sunrise (AM)	Sunset (PM)
1	11.5	6:29	6:00
2	11.5	6:30	6:00
3	11.5	6:30	6:01
4	11.5	6:31	6:01
5	11.5	6:31	6:01
6	11.5	6:32	6:02
7	11.5	6:32	6:02
8	11.5	6:33	6:02
9	11.5	6:33	6:03
10	11.5	6:34	6:03
11	11.5	6:34	6:03
12	11.5	6:35	6:04
13	11.5	6:35	6:04
14	11.5	6:36	6:05
15	11.5	6:36	6:05
16	11.5	6:37	6:05
17	11.5	6:37	6:06
18	11.5	6:38	6:06
19	11.5	6:38	6:07
20	11.5	6:39	6:07
21	11.5	6:39	6:08
22	11.5	6:40	6:08
23	11.5	6:40	6:09
24	11.5	6:41	6:09
25	11.5	6:41	6:10
26	11.5	6:42	6:10
27	11.5	6:42	6:11
28	11.5	6:42	6:11
29	11.5	6:43	6:12
30	11.5	6:43	6:12
31	11.5	6:44	6:13

Solar energy in December

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in December, about 5.87 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 4.79 kWh/m² to a high of 6.45 kWh/m² in March across the year — December's 5.87 kWh/m² falls in the middle.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Solar energy (kWh/m²)	5.9	5.9	5.9	5.9	5.9	5.9	5.9	5.9	5.9	5.9	5.9	5.9	5.9	5.9	5.9	5.9	5.9	5.9	5.9	5.8	5.8	5.8	5.8	5.8	5.8	5.8	5.8	5.8	5.8	5.8	5.8
Level	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright

	Solar energy (kWh/m²)	Level
1	5.9	Bright
2	5.9	Bright
3	5.9	Bright
4	5.9	Bright
5	5.9	Bright
6	5.9	Bright
7	5.9	Bright
8	5.9	Bright
9	5.9	Bright
10	5.9	Bright
11	5.9	Bright
12	5.9	Bright
13	5.9	Bright
14	5.9	Bright
15	5.9	Bright
16	5.9	Bright
17	5.9	Bright
18	5.9	Bright
19	5.9	Bright
20	5.8	Bright
21	5.8	Bright
22	5.8	Bright
23	5.8	Bright
24	5.8	Bright
25	5.8	Bright
26	5.8	Bright
27	5.8	Bright
28	5.8	Bright
29	5.8	Bright
30	5.8	Bright
31	5.8	Bright

Planning a trip in December

Hazard calendar for Addis Ababa

In seasonPeak

None of Addis Ababa's seasonal hazards are active in December. The full-year calendar below shows when the rainy season, cyclone risk and dust haze do peak.

Addis Ababa's monsoon runs June–September, when most of the year's rain falls.

Monsoon

Jan

Feb

Mar

Apr

May

Jun

Jul

Aug

Sep

Oct

Nov

Dec

Is December a good time to visit Addis Ababa?

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

8.5

Sightseeing

1st-best month of the year

6.1

Beach & pool

4th-best month of the year

December is one of the better times to visit Addis Ababa for general sightseeing. The water and warmth also suit a beach or pool day.

What to pack for Addis Ababa in December

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

In December, Addis Ababa sees daytime highs around 22°C and nights near 7°C. Worth packing: light clothes, a warm layer and sun protection.

light clothesa warm layersun protection

UV index in Addis Ababa in December

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in December peaks around 11 (very high — sun protection essential). The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Addis Ababa peaks around March 18 at about 16 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 10 at about 11 (extreme).

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)	13	15	16	15	14	13	12	15	13	13	11	11
Level	Extreme	Extreme	Extreme	Extreme	Extreme	Extreme	Extreme	Extreme	Extreme	Extreme	Extreme	Extreme

	UV index (midday)	Level
Jan	13	Extreme
Feb	15	Extreme
Mar	16	Extreme
Apr	15	Extreme
May	14	Extreme
Jun	13	Extreme
Jul	12	Extreme
Aug	15	Extreme
Sep	13	Extreme
Oct	13	Extreme
Nov	11	Extreme
Dec	11	Extreme

Air quality in Addis Ababa 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 Addis Ababa is worst in September — around 25 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), and holds fairly steady the rest of the year.

Seasonal pattern from CAMS reanalysis, scaled to Addis Ababa's WHO annual average of 20.5 µg/m³.

	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
PM2.5 (µg/m³)	19	19	19	19	21	24	19	19	25	22	19	20
Level	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate

	PM2.5 (µg/m³)	Level
Jan	19	Moderate
Feb	19	Moderate
Mar	19	Moderate
Apr	19	Moderate
May	21	Moderate
Jun	24	Moderate
Jul	19	Moderate
Aug	19	Moderate
Sep	25	Moderate
Oct	22	Moderate
Nov	19	Moderate
Dec	20	Moderate

Location & terrain

Where is Addis Ababa?

Addis Ababa sits at 9.0°N, 38.7°E, 2,405 m above sea level, in Ethiopia. The nearest listed city is Burayu, 10 km away.

Topography around Addis Ababa

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Addis Ababa has significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 259 m around an average of 2,409 m above sea level; within 16 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,149 m; within 80 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,254 m.

The land around Addis Ababa is covered by artificial surfaces (84%) within 3 km, artificial surfaces (36%) and cropland (33%) within 16 km, and cropland (80%) within 80 km.

3 km

259 m

artificial surfaces 84%

16 km

1,149 m

artificial surfaces 36%

80 km

2,254 m

cropland 80%

treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrain

← November Addis Ababa year-round climate January →Best places to visit in December

December weather nearby: Burayu 10 km · Sebeta 19 km · Genet 28 km · Sendafa 33 km · Ādīs ‘Alem 38 km · Bishoftu 40 km · Mojo 64 km · Gīnch’ī 66 km

Ethiopia travel facts

Travel advisory: Level 3; Reconsider Travel
Power plugs: Type C / E / F / L; 220 V · 50 Hz
Prices: ≈ 37% of US; price level, 2025
GDP per capita: $933; 2025
Happiness: 4.0 / 10; World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water: 14%; of population, 2024
Homicide rate: 8.5; per 100k, 2012
Road deaths: 28.2; per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group: Low; World Bank
English: Low; EF EPI 499
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 Addis Ababa (9.025°, 38.7469°, elevation 2,405 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. 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).

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

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	80	20
2	80	20
3	81	19
4	81	19
5	80	20
6	80	20
7	80	20
8	80	20
9	81	19
10	81	19
11	81	19
12	81	19
13	81	19
14	81	19
15	80	20
16	80	20
17	80	20
18	80	20
19	79	21
20	79	21
21	79	21
22	78	22
23	77	23
24	76	24
25	75	25
26	74	26
27	74	26
28	73	27
29	73	27
30	72	28
31	72	28

	Rain chance (%)
1	4
2	3
3	3
4	3
5	3
6	3
7	3
8	3
9	3
10	3
11	3
12	3
13	3
14	3
15	4
16	4
17	4
18	4
19	4
20	4
21	4
22	4
23	5
24	5
25	5
26	5
27	5
28	6
29	6
30	6
31	6

	Dry (%)
1	100
2	100
3	100
4	100
5	100
6	100
7	100
8	100
9	100
10	100
11	100
12	100
13	100
14	100
15	100
16	100
17	100
18	100
19	100
20	100
21	100
22	100
23	100
24	100
25	100
26	100
27	100
28	100
29	100
30	100
31	100

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

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	80	20
2	80	20
3	81	19
4	81	19
5	80	20
6	80	20
7	80	20
8	80	20
9	81	19
10	81	19
11	81	19
12	81	19
13	81	19
14	81	19
15	80	20
16	80	20
17	80	20
18	80	20
19	79	21
20	79	21
21	79	21
22	78	22
23	77	23
24	76	24
25	75	25
26	74	26
27	74	26
28	73	27
29	73	27
30	72	28
31	72	28

	Rain chance (%)
1	4
2	3
3	3
4	3
5	3
6	3
7	3
8	3
9	3
10	3
11	3
12	3
13	3
14	3
15	4
16	4
17	4
18	4
19	4
20	4
21	4
22	4
23	5
24	5
25	5
26	5
27	5
28	6
29	6
30	6
31	6

	Dry (%)
1	100
2	100
3	100
4	100
5	100
6	100
7	100
8	100
9	100
10	100
11	100
12	100
13	100
14	100
15	100
16	100
17	100
18	100
19	100
20	100
21	100
22	100
23	100
24	100
25	100
26	100
27	100
28	100
29	100
30	100
31	100

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

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	80	20
2	80	20
3	81	19
4	81	19
5	80	20
6	80	20
7	80	20
8	80	20
9	81	19
10	81	19
11	81	19
12	81	19
13	81	19
14	81	19
15	80	20
16	80	20
17	80	20
18	80	20
19	79	21
20	79	21
21	79	21
22	78	22
23	77	23
24	76	24
25	75	25
26	74	26
27	74	26
28	73	27
29	73	27
30	72	28
31	72	28

	Rain chance (%)
1	4
2	3
3	3
4	3
5	3
6	3
7	3
8	3
9	3
10	3
11	3
12	3
13	3
14	3
15	4
16	4
17	4
18	4
19	4
20	4
21	4
22	4
23	5
24	5
25	5
26	5
27	5
28	6
29	6
30	6
31	6

	Dry (%)
1	100
2	100
3	100
4	100
5	100
6	100
7	100
8	100
9	100
10	100
11	100
12	100
13	100
14	100
15	100
16	100
17	100
18	100
19	100
20	100
21	100
22	100
23	100
24	100
25	100
26	100
27	100
28	100
29	100
30	100
31	100