Moscow in Winter
In winter (December, January and February), Moscow sees average daytime highs around -4°C and overnight lows near -9°C, with 103 mm of precipitation over about 28 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 -4°C. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 6% of the time across winter, and the air most often feels dry.
Winter is Moscow's weakest season of the year to visit on our travel score. For the whole year in context, see Moscow's year-round climate.
- Avg daytime high
- -4°C
- coldest season of the year
- Avg overnight low
- -9°C
- Precipitation
- 103 mm
- 28 wet days
- Avg wind
- 14 km/h
- Travel score
- 0.0
- weakest season of the year
- Months
- Dec · Jan · Feb
Temperature in Moscow in Winter
Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around -4°C.
A typical winter day in Moscow reaches about -4°C and drops to -9°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is December, the coolest February.
How winter really feels in Moscow
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.
Moscow 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 | -5° / -10° | 35 | 9.9 | 10.6 | 7.4 | 0.0 |
| Feb | -4° / -10° | 32 | 8.3 | 9.7 | 9.2 | 0.0 |
| Mar | 2° / -5° | 33 | 8.4 | 7 | 11.4 | 0.0 |
| Apr | 11° / 1° | 36 | 8.8 | 2 | 13.8 | 2.6 |
| May | 18° / 8° | 58 | 11.3 | 0.1 | 15.9 | 5.6 |
| Jun | 22° / 12° | 72 | 12.2 | 0 | 17.1 | 6.1 |
| Jul | 24° / 14° | 75 | 11.8 | 0 | 16.7 | 6.6 |
| Aug | 22° / 12° | 66 | 10.5 | 0 | 14.8 | 6.5 |
| Sep | 16° / 8° | 57 | 9.4 | 0.1 | 12.5 | 4.8 |
| Oct | 9° / 3° | 57 | 10.8 | 2.1 | 10.1 | 1.5 |
| Nov | 1° / -3° | 43 | 9.6 | 6.1 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Dec | -3° / -7° | 37 | 10.2 | 9.7 | 6.8 | 0.0 |
Cloud cover in Winter
The sky is clear or mostly clear about 6% of the time across winter.
Chance of precipitation in Winter
Moscow gets around 103 mm of rain and snow over 28 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 7 h 12 min in early December to 10 h 12 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 0.7 kWh/m².
Is winter a good time to visit Moscow?
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 Moscow.
What to pack for Moscow in Winter
From winter's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.
In winter, Moscow sees daytime highs around -4°C and nights near -9°C. Pack a warm layer and a heavy coat. Worth having: rain gear. About 28 days see rain.
UV index in Moscow in Winter
Clear-sky midday UV across winter averages around 1. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.
Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Moscow peaks around June 23 at about 6 (high) — a little sun protection helps at midday. It bottoms out near December 20 at about 0 (low).
The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 6 months of the year.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UV index (midday) | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| Level | Low | Low | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | High | High | Moderate | Moderate | Low | Low | Low |
| UV index (midday) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 1 | Low |
| Feb | 1 | Low |
| Mar | 2 | Moderate |
| Apr | 3 | Moderate |
| May | 4 | Moderate |
| Jun | 6 | High |
| Jul | 6 | High |
| Aug | 5 | Moderate |
| Sep | 4 | Moderate |
| Oct | 2 | Low |
| Nov | 1 | Low |
| Dec | 0 | Low |
Air quality in Moscow 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 Moscow is worst in March — around 18 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 1.8× the cleanest month (November, 10 µg/m³).
Seasonal pattern from CAMS reanalysis, scaled to Moscow's WHO annual average of 14 µg/m³.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | 11 | 11 | 18 | 17 | 15 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 14 | 12 | 10 | 11 |
| Level | Good | Good | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Good | Good | Good |
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 11 | Good |
| Feb | 11 | Good |
| Mar | 18 | Moderate |
| Apr | 17 | Moderate |
| May | 15 | Moderate |
| Jun | 16 | Moderate |
| Jul | 16 | Moderate |
| Aug | 16 | Moderate |
| Sep | 14 | Moderate |
| Oct | 12 | Good |
| Nov | 10 | Good |
| Dec | 11 | Good |
Where is Moscow?
Moscow sits at 55.8°N, 37.6°E, 155 m above sea level, in Russia. The nearest listed city is Zamoskvorech’ye, 2.0 km away.
Topography around Moscow
How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Moscow.
Within 3 km, the terrain around Moscow has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 60 m around an average of 145 m above sea level; within 16 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 155 m; within 80 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 219 m.
The land around Moscow is covered by artificial surfaces (86%) within 3 km, artificial surfaces (52%) and trees (42%) within 16 km, and trees (68%) within 80 km.
Russia travel facts
- Travel advisory
- Level 4
- Do Not Travel
- Power plugs
- Type C / F
- 230 V · 50 Hz
- Prices
- ≈ 32% of US
- price level, 2025
- GDP per capita
- $17,547
- 2025
- Happiness
- 5.8 / 10
- World Happiness, 2025
- Safe drinking water
- 76%
- of population, 2024
- Homicide rate
- 6.8
- per 100k, 2021
- Road deaths
- 12
- per 100k/yr, 2019
- Income group
- High
- World Bank
- English
- Moderate
- EF EPI 521
- 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 Moscow (55.752°, 37.6178°, elevation 155 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.