Brest weather in December

In December, Brest sees average daytime highs of 11°C and overnight lows near 7°C, with 106 mm of precipitation across 15.3 wet days and about 8.2 hours of daylight. It is the 10th-warmest and 1st-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 11°C through the month. 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 8 h 24 min at the start of December to 8 h 12 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, December is Brest's 10th-clearest and 1st-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Brest's year-round climate.

Daytime high
11°
10th warmest
Overnight low
4th coldest
Precipitation
106 mm
15.3 wet days
Daylight
8 h 06 min
9:10 AM – 5:18 PM
Cloud cover
72%
10th clearest
Wind
24 km/h
1st windiest
Solar energy
0.89 kWh/m²
Travel score
2.1
out of 10

Brest is port city in the Finistère department, Brittany, France.

Air quality
Good
PM2.5 7.5 µg/m³ · 2019
Density
2,927/km²
people per km²

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

Temperature in December

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 11°C through the month.

A typical December day in Brest reaches about 11°C in the afternoon and slips back to 7°C overnight — a 3°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 7°C and 13°C. Set against its neighbours, December runs about 2°C cooler than November and about 1°C warmer than January.

10°15°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
1118
2118
3118
4118
5118
6118
7118
8118
9117
10117
11117
12117
13117
14117
15117
16117
17107
18107
19107
20107
21107
22107
23107
24107
25107
26107
27107
28107
29107
30107
31107

Brest weather by month

How December compares with the rest of the year at a glance. December is the 10th-warmest and 1st-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan10° / 9915.38.61.8
Feb10° / 7913.39.91.8
Mar11° / 6412.611.62.5
Apr13° / 6611.913.43.2
May15° / 10°5910.6154.4
Jun17° / 13°479.715.85.5
Jul19° / 14°4510.115.56.1
Aug19° / 14°531014.16.1
Sep18° / 13°529.612.45.8
Oct15° / 11°9214.110.64.1
Nov12° / 9614.992.9
Dec11° / 10615.38.22.1

Cloud cover in December

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 12% of the time in December.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 16% of December, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 72%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
13169
23169
33268
43268
53169
63268
73367
83367
93268
103268
113268
123070
133070
142971
152971
162773
172773
182674
192575
202575
212575
222575
232575
242575
252575
262476
272476
282476
292476
302476
312575

Chance of precipitation in December

Any precipitation

Brest gets around 106 mm of rain and snow over 15.3 wet days in December, the wettest month. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Day to day, the chance of measurable precipitation averages around 50% and peaks near 51% on the wettest days, and about 0 day brings snow.

0%20%40%60%151015202531
Rain chance (%)
150
250
349
449
548
648
748
847
948
1048
1148
1248
1349
1449
1550
1650
1750
1850
1950
2051
2151
2251
2351
2451
2551
2651
2751
2851
2951
3051
3151

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 24 km/h in December, the windiest month of the year.

Across December, daily wind ranges from about 24 km/h on the calmest days to 25 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

0102030151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
124breezy
224breezy
324breezy
424breezy
524breezy
624breezy
724breezy
824breezy
924breezy
1024breezy
1124breezy
1224breezy
1324breezy
1424breezy
1524breezy
1624breezy
1724breezy
1824breezy
1924breezy
2024breezy
2124breezy
2224breezy
2324breezy
2424breezy
2524breezy
2625breezy
2725breezy
2825breezy
2925breezy
3025breezy
3125breezy

Sunrise & sunset in December

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 8 h 24 min at the start of December to 8 h 12 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days shrink by about 12 minutes over December. Sunrise moves from 8:55 AM to 9:16 AM, and sunset from 5:20 PM to 5:26 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
18.48:555:20
28.48:575:19
38.48:585:19
48.38:595:19
58.39:005:18
68.39:015:18
78.39:025:18
88.29:035:18
98.29:045:18
108.29:055:18
118.29:065:18
128.29:075:18
138.29:085:18
148.19:095:18
158.19:095:18
168.19:105:18
178.19:115:18
188.19:125:18
198.19:125:19
208.19:135:19
218.19:135:20
228.19:145:20
238.19:145:21
248.19:155:21
258.19:155:22
268.19:155:22
278.19:165:23
288.19:165:24
298.19:165:24
308.19:165:25
318.29:165:26

Solar energy in December

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in December, about 0.89 kWh/m² — the year's lowest.

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 0.89 kWh/m² to a high of 6.38 kWh/m² in June across the year — December's 0.89 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

00.511.52151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
11.0Dim
21.0Dim
31.0Dim
41.0Dim
51.0Dim
61.0Dim
70.9Dim
80.9Dim
90.9Dim
100.9Dim
110.9Dim
120.9Dim
130.9Dim
140.9Dim
150.9Dim
160.9Dim
170.9Dim
180.9Dim
190.9Dim
200.9Dim
210.9Dim
220.9Dim
230.9Dim
240.9Dim
250.9Dim
260.9Dim
270.9Dim
280.9Dim
290.9Dim
300.9Dim
310.9Dim
Planning a trip in December

Is December a good time to visit Brest?

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

2.1
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 Brest.

What to pack for Brest in December

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

In December, Brest sees daytime highs around 11°C and nights near 7°C. Pack a warm layer and rain gear. Worth having: a windbreaker. About 15 days see rain.

a warm layerrain geara windbreaker

Sea temperature near Brest in December

The nearest coast averages about 12°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 16°C and coldest in February near 10°C.

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

8°10°12°14°16°18°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbracingcool
Sea temperature (°C)Comfort
Jan11Bracing
Feb10Bracing
Mar10Bracing
Apr11Bracing
May13Bracing
Jun14Bracing
Jul15Cool
Aug16Cool
Sep15Cool
Oct15Bracing
Nov14Bracing
Dec12Bracing

UV index in Brest in December

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in December peaks around 1. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Brest peaks around August 14 at about 7 (high) — sunscreen and a hat are worth it in the middle of the day. It bottoms out near January 1 at about 1 (low).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 7 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLowModerateHighModerateLowAug 14UV 7Jan 1UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan1Low
Feb1Low
Mar3Moderate
Apr5Moderate
May6High
Jun7High
Jul6High
Aug7High
Sep5Moderate
Oct3Moderate
Nov1Low
Dec1Low
Location & terrain

Where is Brest?

Brest sits at 48.4°N, 4.5°W, 49 m above sea level, in France. The nearest listed city is Landerneau, 19 km away.

Topography around Brest

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Brest has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 109 m around an average of 39 m above sea level; within 16 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 182 m; within 80 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 384 m.

The land around Brest is covered by artificial surfaces (46%), water (28%) and trees (22%) within 3 km, trees (27%), water (25%) and cropland (21%) within 16 km, and water (56%) within 80 km.

3 km
109 m
16 km
182 m
80 km
384 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaceswater
December weather nearby: Landerneau 19 km · Douarnenez 35 km · Quimper 52 km · Morlaix 53 km · Concarneau 71 km · Lannion 85 km · Ploemeur 107 km · Lorient 109 km

France travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 2
Exercise Increased Caution
Power plugs
Type C / E
230 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 77% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$48,986
2025
Happiness
6.6 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
100%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
1.3
per 100k, 2023
Road deaths
5.1
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
High
World Bank
English
Moderate
EF EPI 539
Religion
Roman Catholic 47%none 33%Muslim 4%Protestant 2%

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 Brest (48.3903°, -4.4863°, elevation 49 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. Topography is sampled from the Copernicus DEM GLO-90 elevation model (© ESA/Airbus) and ESA WorldCover 2021 land cover (CC BY 4.0).