Göttingen weather in December

In December, Göttingen sees average daytime highs of 4°C and overnight lows near -0°C, with 67 mm of precipitation across 14 wet days and about 7.7 hours of daylight. It is the 11th-warmest and 2nd-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 4°C through the month. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 9% of the time in December, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 7 h 54 min at the start of December to 7 h 42 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, December is Göttingen's 12th-clearest and 2nd-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Göttingen's year-round climate.

Daytime high
11th warmest
Overnight low
-0°
3rd coldest
Precipitation
67 mm
14 wet days
Daylight
7 h 36 min
8:28 AM – 4:05 PM
Cloud cover
81%
12th clearest
Wind
13 km/h
2nd windiest
Solar energy
0.56 kWh/m²
Travel score
0.0
out of 10

Göttingen is large city in Lower Saxony, Germany.

Air quality
Good
PM2.5 9.5 µg/m³ · 2019
Density
1,045/km²
people per km²
Founded
~953 CE

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 4°C through the month.

A typical December day in Göttingen reaches about 4°C in the afternoon and slips back to -0°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 9°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)
151
251
341
441
541
640
740
840
940
1040
1140
1240
1340
1440
1540
1640
1740
1840
1940
2040
2130
2230
2330
2430
253-1
263-1
273-1
283-1
293-1
303-1
313-1

How December really feels in Göttingen

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.

Göttingen weather by month

How December compares with the rest of the year at a glance. December is the 11th-warmest and 2nd-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan / -1°6613.14.98.10.0
Feb / -1°5211.14.89.60.0
Mar / 5912.62.711.51.3
Apr13° / 4710.50.313.53.6
May17° / 6111.5015.35.2
Jun20° / 11°6612.3016.35.8
Jul22° / 13°7512.9015.96.2
Aug22° / 13°6711.2014.46.4
Sep18° / 10°5610012.45.5
Oct13° / 6011.60.110.43.2
Nov / 6011.91.68.60.8
Dec / -0°67144.67.70.0

Cloud cover in December

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 9% of the time in December, the cloudiest month of the year.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 9% of December, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 82%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
11981
21981
31981
41882
51981
61981
71981
81981
91981
101981
111981
121981
131981
141981
151783
161783
171783
181783
191783
201783
211783
221783
231783
241882
251882
261882
271783
281882
291981
301981
311981

Chance of precipitation in December

Any precipitationSnow

Göttingen gets around 67 mm of rain and snow over 14 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 45% and peaks near 48% on the wettest days, and about 5 days bring snow. The odds climb toward the end of the month.

0%20%40%60%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
13710
23710
33811
43911
54011
64111
74211
84312
94312
104412
114413
124413
134513
144514
154614
164614
174615
184715
194716
204716
214716
224717
234717
244717
254718
264818
274818
284817
294817
304817
314816

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 13 km/h in December.

Across December, daily wind ranges from about 12 km/h on the calmest days to 14 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

05101520151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
112light breeze
212light breeze
313light breeze
413light breeze
513light breeze
613light breeze
713light breeze
813light breeze
913light breeze
1013light breeze
1113light breeze
1213light breeze
1313light breeze
1413light breeze
1513light breeze
1613light breeze
1713light breeze
1813light breeze
1913light breeze
2013light breeze
2113light breeze
2213light breeze
2313light breeze
2413light breeze
2513light breeze
2614light breeze
2714light breeze
2814light breeze
2914light breeze
3014light breeze
3114light breeze

Sunrise & sunset in December

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 7 h 54 min at the start of December to 7 h 42 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 8:12 AM to 8:34 AM, and sunset from 4:08 PM to 4:13 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
17.98:124:08
27.98:134:08
37.98:144:07
47.98:164:07
57.88:174:06
67.88:184:06
77.88:194:06
87.78:204:05
97.78:214:05
107.78:224:05
117.78:234:05
127.78:244:05
137.78:254:05
147.68:264:05
157.68:274:05
167.68:284:05
177.68:294:05
187.68:294:05
197.68:304:06
207.68:314:06
217.68:314:06
227.68:324:07
237.68:324:07
247.68:324:08
257.68:334:09
267.68:334:09
277.68:334:10
287.68:334:11
297.68:344:11
307.68:344:12
317.78:344:13

Solar energy in December

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in December, about 0.56 kWh/m² — the year's lowest.

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 0.56 kWh/m² to a high of 5.3 kWh/m² in June across the year — December's 0.56 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

00.511.52151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
10.7Dim
20.7Dim
30.6Dim
40.6Dim
50.6Dim
60.6Dim
70.6Dim
80.6Dim
90.6Dim
100.6Dim
110.6Dim
120.6Dim
130.6Dim
140.6Dim
150.6Dim
160.5Dim
170.5Dim
180.5Dim
190.5Dim
200.5Dim
210.5Dim
220.5Dim
230.5Dim
240.5Dim
250.5Dim
260.5Dim
270.5Dim
280.6Dim
290.6Dim
300.6Dim
310.6Dim
Planning a trip in December

Is December a good time to visit Göttingen?

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 Göttingen.

What to pack for Göttingen in December

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

In December, Göttingen sees daytime highs around 4°C and nights near -0°C. Pack a warm layer and rain gear. Worth having: a heavy coat. About 14 days see rain.

a warm layerrain geara heavy coat

UV index in Göttingen 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 Göttingen peaks around July 12 at about 6 (high) — sunscreen and a hat are worth it in the middle of the day. It bottoms out near December 22 at about 1 (low).

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

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLowModerateHighModerateLowJul 12UV 6Dec 22UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan1Low
Feb1Low
Mar3Moderate
Apr4Moderate
May6High
Jun6High
Jul6High
Aug6High
Sep4Moderate
Oct2Moderate
Nov1Low
Dec1Low
Location & terrain

Where is Göttingen?

Göttingen sits at 51.5°N, 9.9°E, 153 m above sea level, in Germany. The nearest listed city is Northeim, 20 km away.

Topography around Göttingen

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Göttingen has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 211 m around an average of 179 m above sea level; within 16 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 381 m; within 80 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,081 m.

The land around Göttingen is covered by trees (41%) and artificial surfaces (40%) within 3 km, cropland (42%) and trees (37%) within 16 km, and trees (44%) and cropland (39%) within 80 km.

3 km
211 m
16 km
381 m
80 km
1,081 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaceswater
December weather nearby: Northeim 20 km · Witzenhausen 22 km · Heilbad Heiligenstadt 22 km · Duderstadt 23 km · Hannoversch Münden 24 km · Uslar 25 km · Einbeck 32 km · Vellmar 37 km

Germany travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 2
Exercise Increased Caution
Power plugs
Type C / F
230 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 80% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$60,496
2025
Happiness
6.9 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
100%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
0.9
per 100k, 2023
Road deaths
3.8
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
High
World Bank
English
Very high
EF EPI 615
Religion
none 44%Roman Catholic 25%Protestant 23%other 5%

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 Göttingen (51.5344°, 9.9323°, elevation 153 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).