Shimla in Winter
In winter (December, January and February), Shimla sees average daytime highs around 13°C and overnight lows near 2°C, with 223 mm of precipitation over about 24 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 13°C. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 59% of the time across winter, and the air most often feels dry.
Winter is Shimla's weakest season of the year to visit on our travel score. For the whole year in context, see Shimla's year-round climate.
- Avg daytime high
- 13°C
- coldest season of the year
- Avg overnight low
- 2°C
- Precipitation
- 223 mm
- 24 wet days
- Avg wind
- 5 km/h
- Travel score
- 4.2
- weakest season of the year
- Months
- Dec · Jan · Feb
Temperature in Shimla in Winter
Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 13°C.
A typical winter day in Shimla reaches about 13°C and drops to 2°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is December, the coolest January.
How winter really feels in Shimla
Once humidity and wind are folded in, winter brings about 0 days that feel above 32°C and 20 that feel at or below 0°C.
The story in winter is cold — wind chill drags the overnight "feels like" below the raw low.
Shimla 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 | 12° / 1° | 85 | 8.6 | 4.1 | 10.2 | 3.3 |
| Feb | 14° / 3° | 109 | 10.7 | 3.8 | 10.9 | 4.1 |
| Mar | 18° / 7° | 112 | 13.6 | 0.8 | 11.8 | 5.6 |
| Apr | 23° / 11° | 98 | 12.8 | 0 | 12.7 | 6.6 |
| May | 26° / 15° | 76 | 12.7 | 0 | 13.6 | 6.6 |
| Jun | 26° / 17° | 160 | 17 | 0 | 14 | 5.7 |
| Jul | 25° / 19° | 377 | 28.2 | 0 | 13.8 | 4.0 |
| Aug | 25° / 19° | 352 | 27.8 | 0 | 13.1 | 4.1 |
| Sep | 24° / 16° | 193 | 18.7 | 0 | 12.2 | 5.8 |
| Oct | 22° / 11° | 33 | 6.1 | 0 | 11.2 | 7.9 |
| Nov | 18° / 6° | 22 | 3.7 | 0.1 | 10.4 | 7.4 |
| Dec | 14° / 3° | 30 | 4.4 | 1.1 | 10 | 5.3 |
Cloud cover in Winter
The sky is clear or mostly clear about 59% of the time across winter.
Chance of precipitation in Winter
Shimla gets around 223 mm of rain and snow over 24 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 5 km/h across winter.
Sunrise & sunset in Winter
Daylight runs from about 10 h 06 min in early December to 11 h 18 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 3.9 kWh/m².
Hazard calendar for Shimla
None of Shimla's seasonal hazards peak in winter. The full-year calendar below shows when the rainy season, cyclone risk and dust haze do.
Shimla's rainy season runs July–September, when most of the year's rain falls.
Shimla sees seasonal dust haze (June), heaviest in June.
Is winter a good time to visit Shimla?
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 reasonable time to visit Shimla for sightseeing.
What to pack for Shimla in Winter
From winter's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.
In winter, Shimla sees daytime highs around 13°C and nights near 2°C. Pack a warm layer. Worth having: rain gear. About 24 days see rain.
UV index in Shimla in Winter
Clear-sky midday UV across winter averages around 4 — enough to warrant sun protection. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.
Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Shimla peaks around June 16 at about 11 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near January 1 at about 4 (moderate).
The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — every month of the year.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UV index (midday) | 4 | 5 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 12 | 9 | 11 | 9 | 7 | 4 | 4 |
| Level | Moderate | High | Very high | Very high | Very high | Extreme | Very high | Extreme | Very high | Very high | Moderate | Moderate |
| UV index (midday) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 4 | Moderate |
| Feb | 5 | High |
| Mar | 9 | Very high |
| Apr | 9 | Very high |
| May | 9 | Very high |
| Jun | 12 | Extreme |
| Jul | 9 | Very high |
| Aug | 11 | Extreme |
| Sep | 9 | Very high |
| Oct | 7 | Very high |
| Nov | 4 | Moderate |
| Dec | 4 | Moderate |
Air quality in Shimla in Winter
Average fine-particle pollution (PM2.5) through the year — so you can see where winter falls, not just the annual average.
Air quality in Shimla is worst in December — around 37 µg/m³ PM2.5 (poor), about 2.1× the cleanest month (August, 17 µg/m³).
Seasonal pattern from CAMS reanalysis, scaled to Shimla's WHO annual average of 26 µg/m³.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | 36 | 30 | 25 | 21 | 21 | 22 | 18 | 17 | 20 | 28 | 35 | 37 |
| Level | Poor | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Poor |
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 36 | Poor |
| Feb | 30 | Moderate |
| Mar | 25 | Moderate |
| Apr | 21 | Moderate |
| May | 21 | Moderate |
| Jun | 22 | Moderate |
| Jul | 18 | Moderate |
| Aug | 17 | Moderate |
| Sep | 20 | Moderate |
| Oct | 28 | Moderate |
| Nov | 35 | Moderate |
| Dec | 37 | Poor |
Where is Shimla?
Shimla sits at 31.1°N, 77.2°E, 2,073 m above sea level, in India. The nearest listed city is Rishikesh, 155 km away.
Topography around Shimla
How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Shimla.
Within 3 km, the terrain around Shimla has large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 979 m around an average of 1,939 m above sea level; within 16 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,222 m; within 80 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 4,838 m.
The land around Shimla is covered by trees (79%) within 3 km, trees (78%) and grassland (20%) within 16 km, and trees (65%) within 80 km.
India travel facts
- Travel advisory
- Level 2
- Exercise Increased Caution
- Power plugs
- Type C / D / M
- 230 V · 50 Hz
- Prices
- ≈ 23% of US
- price level, 2025
- GDP per capita
- $2,702
- 2025
- Happiness
- 4.5 / 10
- World Happiness, 2025
- Safe drinking water
- 76%
- of population, 2024
- Homicide rate
- 2.8
- per 100k, 2022
- Road deaths
- 15.6
- per 100k/yr, 2019
- Income group
- Lower middle
- World Bank
- English
- Low
- EF EPI 484
- 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 Shimla (31.1044°, 77.1666°, elevation 2,073 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.