Nuuk in Winter
In winter (December, January and February), Nuuk sees average daytime highs around -9°C and overnight lows near -15°C, with 160 mm of precipitation over about 27 wet days across the season. It is the coldest season of the year and the 3rd-wettest season.
Over the season highs ease from about -7°C in early December to -10°C by late February. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 18% of the time across winter, and the air most often feels dry.
Winter is Nuuk's 3rd-best season to visit on our travel score. For the whole year in context, see Nuuk's year-round climate.
- Avg daytime high
- -9°C
- coldest season of the year
- Avg overnight low
- -15°C
- Precipitation
- 160 mm
- 27 wet days
- Avg wind
- 14 km/h
- Travel score
- 0.0
- 3rd-best season
- Months
- Dec · Jan · Feb
Temperature in Nuuk in Winter
Over the season highs ease from about -7°C in early December to -10°C by late February.
A typical winter day in Nuuk reaches about -9°C and drops to -15°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is December, the coolest January.
How winter really feels in Nuuk
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.
Nuuk 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 | -10° / -15° | 56 | 9.4 | 11.7 | 4.9 | 0.0 |
| Feb | -10° / -15° | 42 | 7.1 | 9.5 | 7.9 | 0.0 |
| Mar | -8° / -13° | 48 | 7.8 | 9.4 | 11.2 | 0.0 |
| Apr | -2° / -7° | 53 | 8.1 | 9 | 14.6 | 0.0 |
| May | 3° / -2° | 58 | 8.2 | 6.9 | 17.9 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 8° / 3° | 65 | 9.6 | 1.9 | 20.2 | 1.4 |
| Jul | 11° / 5° | 62 | 9 | 0.2 | 19.2 | 2.6 |
| Aug | 10° / 5° | 78 | 11.4 | 0.3 | 16.1 | 2.1 |
| Sep | 6° / 2° | 97 | 12.4 | 3.5 | 12.7 | 0.6 |
| Oct | 1° / -4° | 79 | 10.4 | 8.3 | 9.3 | 0.0 |
| Nov | -5° / -10° | 77 | 11.1 | 11.3 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Dec | -8° / -13° | 62 | 10.5 | 11.7 | 3.8 | 0.0 |
Cloud cover in Winter
The sky is clear or mostly clear about 18% of the time across winter.
Chance of precipitation in Winter
Nuuk gets around 160 mm of rain and snow over 27 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 14 km/h across winter.
Sunrise & sunset in Winter
Daylight runs from about 4 h 30 min in early December to 9 h 24 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 0.4 kWh/m².
Is winter a good time to visit Nuuk?
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 Nuuk.
What to pack for Nuuk in Winter
From winter's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.
In winter, Nuuk sees daytime highs around -9°C and nights near -15°C. Pack a warm layer and a heavy coat. Worth having: rain gear. About 27 days see rain.
Sea temperature near Nuuk in Winter
The nearest coast averages about 0°C across winter — 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 5°C and coldest in February near -0°C.
The water stays below 20°C all year — cool enough that most swimmers want a wetsuit.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sea temperature (°C) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
| Comfort | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing |
| Sea temperature (°C) | Comfort | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 0 | Bracing |
| Feb | 0 | Bracing |
| Mar | 0 | Bracing |
| Apr | 0 | Bracing |
| May | 1 | Bracing |
| Jun | 3 | Bracing |
| Jul | 5 | Bracing |
| Aug | 5 | Bracing |
| Sep | 4 | Bracing |
| Oct | 3 | Bracing |
| Nov | 2 | Bracing |
| Dec | 1 | Bracing |
UV index in Nuuk in Winter
Clear-sky midday UV across winter averages around 0. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.
Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Nuuk peaks around June 17 at about 5 (moderate) — a little sun protection helps at midday. It bottoms out near December 19 at about 0 (low).
The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 4 months of the year.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UV index (midday) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Level | Low | Low | Low | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Low | Low | Low | Low |
| UV index (midday) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 0 | Low |
| Feb | 0 | Low |
| Mar | 1 | Low |
| Apr | 3 | Moderate |
| May | 3 | Moderate |
| Jun | 5 | Moderate |
| Jul | 4 | Moderate |
| Aug | 3 | Moderate |
| Sep | 2 | Low |
| Oct | 1 | Low |
| Nov | 0 | Low |
| Dec | 0 | Low |
Where is Nuuk?
Nuuk sits at 64.2°N, 51.7°W, 5 m above sea level, in Greenland. The nearest listed city is Keflavik, 1,404 km away.
Topography around Nuuk
How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Nuuk.
Within 3 km, the terrain around Nuuk has significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 349 m around an average of 21 m above sea level; within 16 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,157 m; within 80 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,598 m.
The land around Nuuk is covered by water (65%) within 3 km, water (51%) and grassland (20%) within 16 km, and water (47%), moss and lichen (21%) and grassland (20%) within 80 km.
Greenland travel facts
- Travel advisory
- Level 2
- Exercise Increased Caution
- Power plugs
- Type C / E / F / K
- 230 V · 50 Hz
- Prices
- ≈ 77% of US
- price level, 2023
- GDP per capita
- $58,499
- 2023
- Homicide rate
- 5.4
- per 100k, 2016
- Income group
- High
- World Bank
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 Nuuk (64.1835°, -51.7216°, elevation 5 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.