Sallanches weather in December

In December, Sallanches sees average daytime highs of -2°C and overnight lows near -11°C, with 184 mm of precipitation across 13.8 wet days and about 8.5 hours of daylight. It is the 11th-warmest and 1st-wettest month of the year here.

Highs ease over the month, from about -1°C in the first days to -3°C by the end. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 31% of the time in December, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 8 h 42 min at the start of December to 8 h 30 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, December is Sallanches's 8th-clearest and 1st-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Sallanches's year-round climate.

Daytime high
-2°
11th warmest
Overnight low
-11°
2nd coldest
Precipitation
184 mm
13.8 wet days
Daylight
8 h 30 min
8:15 AM – 4:44 PM
Cloud cover
62%
8th clearest
Wind
5 km/h
1st windiest
Solar energy
1.38 kWh/m²
Travel score
0.0
out of 10

Temperature in December

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Highs ease over the month, from about -1°C in the first days to -3°C by the end.

A typical December day in Sallanches reaches about -2°C in the afternoon and slips back to -11°C overnight — a 8°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between -8°C and 3°C. Set against its neighbours, December runs about 5°C cooler than November and on par with January.

-20°-15°-10°-5°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
1-1-9
2-1-9
3-1-10
4-1-10
5-1-10
6-1-10
7-1-10
8-2-10
9-2-10
10-2-10
11-2-10
12-2-10
13-2-10
14-2-10
15-2-11
16-2-11
17-2-11
18-2-11
19-2-11
20-3-11
21-3-11
22-3-11
23-3-11
24-3-11
25-3-11
26-3-11
27-3-11
28-3-11
29-3-11
30-3-11
31-3-11

How December really feels in Sallanches

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
31 feel bitter (≤ -10°C)

The story in December is cold — wind chill drags the overnight "feels like" below the raw low.

Sallanches weather by month

How December compares with the rest of the year at a glance. December is the 11th-warmest and 1st-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan-3° / -11°16412.913.18.90.0
Feb-1° / -10°13811.611.9100.0
Mar / -6°13813.71311.60.0
Apr / -3°12615.510.613.30.6
May11° / 17619.95.714.72.3
Jun16° / 17119.81.115.53.7
Jul18° / 170190.515.24.7
Aug18° / 14917.40.3144.8
Sep14° / 12815.32.212.33.5
Oct / -0°12813.45.410.71.8
Nov / -6°14913.811.69.30.1
Dec-2° / -11°18413.813.88.50.0

Cloud cover in December

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 31% of the time in December.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 10% of December, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 59%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
14159
24159
34258
44258
54258
64258
74357
84357
94357
104357
114258
124258
134258
144258
154258
164258
174258
184258
194159
204159
214159
224159
234159
244060
254060
264060
274060
284060
294060
304159
314159

Chance of precipitation in December

Any precipitationSnow

Sallanches gets around 184 mm of rain and snow over 13.8 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 45% and peaks near 46% on the wettest days, and about 14 days bring snow.

0%20%40%60%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
14442
24443
34443
44444
54444
64444
74444
84444
94444
104444
114444
124444
134445
144545
154545
164545
174444
184544
194544
204545
214545
224545
234646
244646
254646
264646
274646
284646
294646
304646
314646

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

Across December, daily wind ranges from about 5 km/h on the calmest days to 5 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

0246810151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
15calm
25calm
35calm
45calm
55calm
65calm
75calm
85calm
95calm
105calm
115calm
125calm
135calm
145calm
155calm
165calm
175calm
185calm
195calm
205calm
215calm
225calm
235calm
245calm
255calm
265calm
275calm
285calm
295calm
305calm
315calm

Sunrise & sunset in December

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 8 h 42 min at the start of December to 8 h 30 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 8:02 AM to 8:22 AM, and sunset from 4:45 PM to 4:52 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
18.78:024:45
28.78:034:45
38.78:044:44
48.78:054:44
58.68:064:44
68.68:074:44
78.68:084:43
88.68:094:43
98.68:104:43
108.58:114:43
118.58:124:43
128.58:124:43
138.58:134:43
148.58:144:43
158.58:154:44
168.58:154:44
178.58:164:44
188.58:174:44
198.58:174:45
208.58:184:45
218.58:184:46
228.58:194:46
238.58:194:46
248.58:204:47
258.58:204:48
268.58:214:48
278.58:214:49
288.58:214:49
298.58:214:50
308.58:214:51
318.58:224:52

Solar energy in December

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in December, about 1.38 kWh/m² — the year's lowest.

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 1.38 kWh/m² to a high of 5.79 kWh/m² in June across the year — December's 1.38 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

00.511.522.5151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
11.6Dim
21.5Dim
31.5Dim
41.5Dim
51.5Dim
61.5Dim
71.5Dim
81.4Dim
91.4Dim
101.4Dim
111.4Dim
121.4Dim
131.4Dim
141.4Dim
151.4Dim
161.4Dim
171.4Dim
181.4Dim
191.4Dim
201.4Dim
211.4Dim
221.4Dim
231.4Dim
241.4Dim
251.4Dim
261.4Dim
271.4Dim
281.4Dim
291.4Dim
301.4Dim
311.4Dim
Planning a trip in December

Is December a good time to visit Sallanches?

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

0.0
Sightseeing
9th-best month of the year
0.0
Beach & pool
6th-best month of the year

December is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Sallanches.

What to pack for Sallanches in December

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

In December, Sallanches sees daytime highs around -2°C and nights near -11°C. Pack a warm layer and a heavy coat. Worth having: rain gear. About 14 days see rain.

a warm layera heavy coatrain gear

UV index in Sallanches 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 Sallanches peaks around July 13 at about 9 (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 8 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLowModerateHighVery highHighModerateLowJul 13UV 9Jan 1UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan1Low
Feb3Moderate
Mar5Moderate
Apr5High
May7Very high
Jun9Very high
Jul9Very high
Aug8Very high
Sep6High
Oct4Moderate
Nov2Low
Dec1Low
Location & terrain

Where is Sallanches?

Sallanches sits at 45.9°N, 6.6°E, 580 m above sea level, in France. The nearest listed city is Cluses, 14 km away.

Topography around Sallanches

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Sallanches has large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,166 m around an average of 830 m above sea level; within 16 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,305 m; within 80 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 4,572 m.

The land around Sallanches is covered by trees (62%) and grassland (26%) within 3 km, trees (51%) and grassland (41%) within 16 km, and trees (46%) and grassland (32%) within 80 km.

3 km
1,166 m
16 km
2,305 m
80 km
4,572 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainsnow and icewatermoss and lichen
December weather nearby: Cluses 14 km · Chamonix 19 km · Albertville 35 km · Annecy-le-Vieux 38 km · Martigny-Ville 38 km · Annecy 39 km · Annemasse 41 km · Cran-Gevrier 41 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 Sallanches (45.9442°, 6.6316°, elevation 580 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. Topography is sampled from the Copernicus DEM GLO-90 elevation model (© ESA/Airbus) and ESA WorldCover 2021 land cover (CC BY 4.0).