Shymkent weather in December

In December, Shymkent sees average daytime highs of 6°C and overnight lows near -3°C, with 68 mm of precipitation across 9.4 wet days and about 9 hours of daylight. It is the 11th-warmest and 5th-wettest month of the year here.

Highs ease over the month, from about 7°C in the first days to 5°C by the end. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 33% of the time in December, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 9 h 06 min at the start of December to 8 h 54 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, December is Shymkent's 9th-clearest and 10th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Shymkent's year-round climate.

Daytime high
11th warmest
Overnight low
-3°
2nd coldest
Precipitation
68 mm
9.4 wet days
Daylight
8 h 54 min
8:50 AM – 5:45 PM
Cloud cover
60%
9th clearest
Wind
7 km/h
10th windiest
Solar energy
1.69 kWh/m²
Travel score
0.3
out of 10

Shymkent is city in Kazakhstan.

Density
3,458/km²
people per km²
Founded
1101

Air quality: WHO Ambient Air Quality Database. Density & description: Wikidata (CC0), GeoNames.

Temperature in December

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Highs ease over the month, from about 7°C in the first days to 5°C by the end.

A typical December day in Shymkent reaches about 6°C in the afternoon and slips back to -3°C overnight — a 9°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between -2°C and 13°C. Set against its neighbours, December runs about 6°C cooler than November and about 2°C warmer than January.

-10°10°20°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
17-2
27-2
37-2
47-2
57-2
66-3
76-3
86-3
96-3
106-3
116-3
126-3
136-3
145-3
155-3
165-3
175-3
185-3
195-3
205-4
215-4
225-4
235-4
245-4
255-4
265-4
275-4
285-4
295-4
305-4
315-4

How December really feels in Shymkent

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.

Shymkent weather by month

How December compares with the rest of the year at a glance. December is the 11th-warmest and 5th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan / -5°7010.86.79.30.0
Feb / -3°7910.3510.30.6
Mar13° / 8511.62.211.63.5
Apr20° / 9411.40.313.16.1
May25° / 14°649.1014.47.1
Jun31° / 18°275.50155.5
Jul33° / 20°122.6014.84.4
Aug32° / 18°81.4013.75.2
Sep27° / 13°102012.38.1
Oct20° / 355.10.310.87.2
Nov12° / 638.52.19.63.1
Dec / -3°689.4590.3

Cloud cover in December

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 33% of the time in December.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 9% of December, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 58%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
14555
24555
34555
44555
54555
64456
74555
84555
94456
104357
114456
124357
134357
144258
154258
164159
174159
184060
194159
204159
214159
224060
234060
244060
254060
263961
273961
283961
293961
303961
313961

Chance of precipitation in December

Any precipitationSnow

Shymkent gets around 68 mm of rain and snow over 9.4 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 30% and peaks near 32% on the wettest days, and about 5 days bring snow.

0%10%20%30%40%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
12913
22913
32913
42913
52913
62913
72913
82913
92913
102914
112914
122914
132915
143016
153016
163017
173117
183118
193118
203119
213119
223219
233219
243219
253219
263219
273219
283219
293219
303218
313218

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 7 km/h in December.

Across December, daily wind ranges from about 7 km/h on the calmest days to 8 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

0246810151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
17calm
27calm
37calm
47calm
57calm
67calm
77calm
87calm
97calm
107calm
117calm
127calm
137calm
147calm
157calm
167calm
177calm
187calm
197calm
207calm
217calm
228calm
238calm
248calm
258calm
268calm
278calm
288calm
298calm
307calm
317calm

Sunrise & sunset in December

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 9 h 06 min at the start of December to 8 h 54 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 8:37 AM to 8:56 AM, and sunset from 5:45 PM to 5:53 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
19.18:375:45
29.18:385:45
39.18:395:45
49.18:405:45
59.18:415:45
69.08:425:44
79.08:435:44
89.08:445:44
99.08:455:44
109.08:465:44
119.08:475:44
129.08:475:45
138.98:485:45
148.98:495:45
158.98:495:45
168.98:505:45
178.98:515:46
188.98:515:46
198.98:525:46
208.98:535:47
218.98:535:47
228.98:545:48
238.98:545:48
248.98:545:49
258.98:555:49
268.98:555:50
278.98:555:50
288.98:565:51
298.98:565:52
308.98:565:52
318.98:565:53

Solar energy in December

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in December, about 1.69 kWh/m² — the year's lowest.

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 1.69 kWh/m² to a high of 7.44 kWh/m² in July across the year — December's 1.69 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

00.511.522.5151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
11.8Dim
21.8Dim
31.8Dim
41.8Dim
51.8Dim
61.8Dim
71.8Dim
81.7Dim
91.7Dim
101.7Dim
111.7Dim
121.7Dim
131.7Dim
141.7Dim
151.7Dim
161.7Dim
171.7Dim
181.7Dim
191.7Dim
201.7Dim
211.7Dim
221.7Dim
231.7Dim
241.7Dim
251.7Dim
261.7Dim
271.7Dim
281.7Dim
291.7Dim
301.7Dim
311.7Dim
Planning a trip in December

Hazard calendar for Shymkent

In seasonPeak

In December, Shymkent sits inside its rainy season season. The full year is below, with each hazard's peak months called out.

Shymkent's rainy season runs November–May, when most of the year's rain falls.

Rainy season
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec

Is December a good time to visit Shymkent?

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

0.3
Sightseeing
11th-best month of the year
0.0
Beach & pool
10th-best month of the year

December is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Shymkent.

What to pack for Shymkent in December

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

In December, Shymkent sees daytime highs around 6°C and nights near -3°C. Pack a warm layer and a heavy coat. Worth having: rain gear. About 9 days see rain.

a warm layera heavy coatrain gear

UV index in Shymkent in December

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in December peaks around 2. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Shymkent peaks around June 12 at about 8 (very high) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near January 10 at about 2 (low).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 8 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLowModerateHighVery highHighModerateLowJun 12UV 8Jan 10UV 2
UV index (midday)Level
Jan2Low
Feb3Moderate
Mar4Moderate
Apr5High
May8Very high
Jun8Very high
Jul7Very high
Aug8Very high
Sep6High
Oct4Moderate
Nov2Low
Dec2Low

Air quality in Shymkent in December

GoodModeratePoorUnhealthyVery unhealthy

Average fine-particle pollution (PM2.5) through the year — so you can see where December falls, not just the annual average.

Air quality in Shymkent is worst in May — around 24 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 1.8× the cleanest month (December, 14 µg/m³).

Modeled monthly averages (CAMS reanalysis, 2015–2024).

0102030JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModerateMay 1224 µg/m³Dec 2314 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan14Moderate
Feb16Moderate
Mar22Moderate
Apr23Moderate
May24Moderate
Jun21Moderate
Jul20Moderate
Aug18Moderate
Sep20Moderate
Oct21Moderate
Nov16Moderate
Dec14Moderate
Location & terrain

Where is Shymkent?

Shymkent sits at 42.3°N, 69.6°E, 520 m above sea level, in Kazakhstan. The nearest listed city is Aksu, 22 km away.

Topography around Shymkent

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Shymkent has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 98 m around an average of 524 m above sea level; within 16 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 387 m; within 80 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 3,913 m.

The land around Shymkent is covered by artificial surfaces (87%) within 3 km, cropland (52%) and artificial surfaces (30%) within 16 km, and grassland (60%) and cropland (33%) within 80 km.

3 km
98 m
16 km
387 m
80 km
3,913 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrain
December weather nearby: Aksu 22 km · Lenger 27 km · Turar Ryskulov 66 km · Arys 66 km · Iskandar 84 km · G‘azalkent 85 km · Chirchiq 94 km · Saryaghash 101 km

Kazakhstan travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 1
Exercise Normal Precautions
Power plugs
Type C / F
230 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 33% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$14,692
2025
Happiness
6.6 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
92%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
2.6
per 100k, 2022
Road deaths
12.7
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
Upper middle
World Bank
English
Very low
EF EPI 417
Religion
Muslim 69%Christian 17%non-believers 2%Buddhism 0%

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 Shymkent (42.3099°, 69.6004°, elevation 520 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. Monthly air-quality (PM2.5) seasonality is from the CAMS EAC4 reanalysis (Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service), scaled to the WHO annual mean where available. Topography is sampled from the Copernicus DEM GLO-90 elevation model (© ESA/Airbus) and ESA WorldCover 2021 land cover (CC BY 4.0).