Pontarlier in Winter
In winter (December, January and February), Pontarlier sees average daytime highs around 5°C and overnight lows near -1°C, with 391 mm of precipitation over about 43 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 23% of the time across winter, and the air most often feels dry.
Winter is Pontarlier's weakest season of the year to visit on our travel score. For the whole year in context, see Pontarlier's year-round climate.
- Avg daytime high
- 5°C
- coldest season of the year
- Avg overnight low
- -1°C
- Precipitation
- 391 mm
- 43 wet days
- Avg wind
- 11 km/h
- Travel score
- 0.1
- weakest season of the year
- Months
- Dec · Jan · Feb
Temperature in Pontarlier in Winter
Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 5°C.
A typical winter day in Pontarlier reaches about 5°C and drops to -1°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is February, the coolest January.
How winter really feels in Pontarlier
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.
Pontarlier 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 | 4° / -1° | 128 | 14.3 | 8.5 | 8.8 | 0.0 |
| Feb | 5° / -1° | 114 | 13.1 | 8.5 | 10 | 0.2 |
| Mar | 10° / 2° | 121 | 14.4 | 5.9 | 11.6 | 1.9 |
| Apr | 13° / 5° | 121 | 15.1 | 3.1 | 13.3 | 3.3 |
| May | 17° / 9° | 156 | 17.5 | 0.5 | 14.8 | 4.5 |
| Jun | 21° / 12° | 142 | 16.1 | 0 | 15.6 | 5.5 |
| Jul | 23° / 14° | 137 | 15.5 | 0 | 15.3 | 6.1 |
| Aug | 23° / 13° | 139 | 14.6 | 0 | 14 | 6.2 |
| Sep | 18° / 10° | 126 | 13.6 | 0 | 12.4 | 5.3 |
| Oct | 14° / 7° | 129 | 13.7 | 0.7 | 10.6 | 3.6 |
| Nov | 8° / 3° | 136 | 14.4 | 4.4 | 9.2 | 1.1 |
| Dec | 5° / -0° | 149 | 15.3 | 8.5 | 8.4 | 0.0 |
Cloud cover in Winter
The sky is clear or mostly clear about 23% of the time across winter.
Chance of precipitation in Winter
Pontarlier gets around 391 mm of rain and snow over 43 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 11 km/h across winter.
Sunrise & sunset in Winter
Daylight runs from about 8 h 36 min in early December to 10 h 42 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 1.5 kWh/m².
Is winter a good time to visit Pontarlier?
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 Pontarlier.
What to pack for Pontarlier in Winter
From winter's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.
In winter, Pontarlier sees daytime highs around 5°C and nights near -1°C. Pack a warm layer and rain gear. Worth having: a heavy coat. About 43 days see rain.
UV index in Pontarlier in Winter
Clear-sky midday UV across winter averages around 1. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.
Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Pontarlier peaks around July 15 at about 8 (very high) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. 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.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UV index (midday) | 1 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 7 | 7 | 9 | 7 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
| Level | Low | Low | Moderate | High | High | Very high | Very high | High | Moderate | Moderate | Low | Low |
| UV index (midday) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 1 | Low |
| Feb | 2 | Low |
| Mar | 4 | Moderate |
| Apr | 5 | High |
| May | 7 | High |
| Jun | 7 | Very high |
| Jul | 9 | Very high |
| Aug | 7 | High |
| Sep | 5 | Moderate |
| Oct | 3 | Moderate |
| Nov | 2 | Low |
| Dec | 1 | Low |
Where is Pontarlier?
Pontarlier sits at 46.9°N, 6.4°E, 834 m above sea level, in France. The nearest listed city is Yverdon-les-Bains, 26 km away.
Topography around Pontarlier
How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Pontarlier.
Within 3 km, the terrain around Pontarlier has significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 364 m around an average of 898 m above sea level; within 16 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,215 m; within 80 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,196 m.
The land around Pontarlier is covered by trees (44%), grassland (34%) and artificial surfaces (20%) within 3 km, trees (48%) and grassland (46%) within 16 km, and trees (50%) and grassland (30%) within 80 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
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 Pontarlier (46.9035°, 6.3554°, elevation 834 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.