Somerset East weather in December

In December, Somerset East sees average daytime highs of 27°C and overnight lows near 14°C, with 70 mm of rain across 9.9 wet days and about 14.1 hours of daylight. It is the 3rd-warmest and 4th-wettest month of the year here.

Highs climb over the month, from about 26°C in the first days to 28°C by the end. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 47% of the time in December, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 14 hours at the start of December to 14 h 06 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, December is Somerset East's 10th-clearest and 2nd-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Somerset East's year-round climate.

Daytime high
27°
3rd warmest
Overnight low
14°
9th coldest
Rainfall
70 mm
9.9 wet days
Daylight
14 h 06 min
5:10 AM – 7:18 PM
Cloud cover
46%
10th clearest
Wind
11 km/h
2nd windiest
Solar energy
7.16 kWh/m²
Travel score
6.7
out of 10

Somerset East is town in South Africa.

Founded
1825

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

Temperature in December

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Highs climb over the month, from about 26°C in the first days to 28°C by the end.

A typical December day in Somerset East reaches about 27°C in the afternoon and slips back to 14°C overnight — a 13°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 20°C and 34°C. Set against its neighbours, December runs about 2°C warmer than November and about 1°C cooler than January.

10°20°30°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
12612
22613
32613
42613
52613
62613
72613
82613
92713
102713
112713
122713
132714
142714
152714
162714
172714
182714
192714
202714
212714
222814
232814
242814
252814
262814
272815
282815
292815
302815
312815

Somerset East weather by month

How December compares with the rest of the year at a glance. December is the 3rd-warmest and 4th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan28° / 15°7610.313.96.2
Feb28° / 15°7310.213.26.3
Mar26° / 14°731012.26.9
Apr23° / 11°477.611.27.4
May21° / 224.810.37.7
Jun19° / 234.69.97.3
Jul19° / 233.810.17.5
Aug20° / 315.310.87.4
Sep22° / 325.111.87.7
Oct24° / 10°558.712.87.3
Nov25° / 12°67913.77.1
Dec27° / 14°709.914.16.7

Cloud cover in December

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 47% of the time in December.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 18% of December, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 35%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
16040
26040
36040
46040
56040
66040
76139
86139
96139
106238
116238
126337
136337
146535
156535
166535
176634
186733
196733
206733
216832
226832
236931
246832
256832
266832
276931
286931
296931
306931
316832

Chance of precipitation in December

Any precipitation

Somerset East gets around 70 mm of rain over 9.9 wet days in December. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Day to day, the chance of measurable rain averages around 32% and peaks near 34% on the wettest days.

0%10%20%30%40%151015202531
Rain chance (%)
131
231
331
431
531
631
731
831
931
1031
1131
1231
1331
1432
1532
1633
1733
1833
1934
2034
2134
2234
2334
2434
2534
2633
2733
2833
2933
3033
3133

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 60% of days. It rarely turns muggy — the humid and sticky bands barely register.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Dry (%)Comfortable (%)Humid (%)Muggy (%)
1742240
2742240
3732340
4712450
5702550
6682660
7672760
8672760
9652870
10652870
11632980
12632980
13622990
146228100
156128110
166028120
176028120
185928130
195828140
205828140
215728150
225629150
235429161
245330161
255131171
265131171
275032181
284833181
294733191
304634191
314634191

Wind in December

Winds average 11 km/h in December.

Across December, daily wind ranges from about 11 km/h on the calmest days to 11 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

051015151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
111calm
211calm
311calm
411calm
511calm
611calm
711calm
811calm
911calm
1011calm
1111calm
1211calm
1311calm
1411calm
1511calm
1611calm
1711calm
1811calm
1911calm
2011calm
2111calm
2211calm
2311calm
2411calm
2511calm
2611calm
2711calm
2811calm
2911calm
3011calm
3111calm

Sunrise & sunset in December

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 14 hours at the start of December to 14 h 06 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 6 minutes over December. Sunrise moves from 5:07 AM to 5:17 AM, and sunset from 7:07 PM to 7:25 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
114.05:077:07
214.05:077:08
314.05:077:09
414.05:077:10
514.15:077:11
614.15:077:11
714.15:087:12
814.15:087:13
914.15:087:14
1014.15:087:14
1114.15:087:15
1214.15:087:16
1314.15:097:16
1414.15:097:17
1514.15:097:18
1614.15:107:18
1714.15:107:19
1814.25:107:19
1914.25:117:20
2014.25:117:20
2114.25:117:21
2214.25:127:21
2314.25:127:22
2414.25:137:22
2514.25:137:23
2614.25:147:23
2714.15:157:23
2814.15:157:24
2914.15:167:24
3014.15:167:24
3114.15:177:25

Solar energy in December

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in December, about 7.16 kWh/m² — the sunniest month for solar.

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 2.94 kWh/m² to a high of 7.16 kWh/m² in December across the year — December's 7.16 kWh/m² sits near the top of that range.

02468151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
17.0Intense
27.0Intense
37.0Intense
47.0Intense
57.1Intense
67.1Intense
77.1Intense
87.1Intense
97.1Intense
107.1Intense
117.1Intense
127.1Intense
137.2Intense
147.2Intense
157.2Intense
167.2Intense
177.2Intense
187.2Intense
197.2Intense
207.2Intense
217.2Intense
227.2Intense
237.2Intense
247.2Intense
257.2Intense
267.2Intense
277.2Intense
287.2Intense
297.2Intense
307.2Intense
317.1Intense
Planning a trip in December

Is December a good time to visit Somerset East?

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

6.7
Sightseeing
10th-best month of the year
6.8
Beach & pool
3rd-best month of the year

December is a reasonable time to visit Somerset East for sightseeing. The water and warmth also suit a beach or pool day.

What to pack for Somerset East in December

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

In December, Somerset East sees daytime highs around 27°C and nights near 14°C. Pack light clothes and sun protection. Worth having: rain gear. About 10 days see rain.

light clothessun protectionrain gear

UV index in Somerset East in December

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in December peaks around 13 (very high — sun protection essential). The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Somerset East peaks around January 14 at about 14 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near June 23 at about 3 (moderate).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — every month of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecExtremeVery highHighModerateHighExtremeJan 14UV 14Jun 23UV 3
UV index (midday)Level
Jan14Extreme
Feb12Extreme
Mar10Very high
Apr6High
May5Moderate
Jun3Moderate
Jul3Moderate
Aug5Moderate
Sep7High
Oct11Extreme
Nov12Extreme
Dec13Extreme

Air quality in Somerset East 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 Somerset East is worst in June — around 16 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 2.7× the cleanest month (January, 6 µg/m³).

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

01020JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecGoodModerateGoodJun 1516 µg/m³Jan 196 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan6Good
Feb6Good
Mar8Good
Apr11Good
May16Moderate
Jun16Moderate
Jul16Moderate
Aug16Moderate
Sep14Moderate
Oct11Good
Nov7Good
Dec6Good
Location & terrain

Where is Somerset East?

Somerset East sits at 32.7°S, 25.6°E, 748 m above sea level, in South Africa. The nearest listed city is Cradock, 62 km away.

Topography around Somerset East

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Somerset East has large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 793 m around an average of 837 m above sea level; within 16 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,030 m; within 80 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,066 m.

The land around Somerset East is covered by trees (38%) and grassland (28%) within 3 km, grassland (62%) and shrubs (23%) within 16 km, and grassland (70%) and shrubs (21%) within 80 km.

3 km
793 m
16 km
1,030 m
80 km
2,066 m
treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrain
December weather nearby: Cradock 62 km · Fort Beaufort 98 km · Grahamstown 109 km · Graaff Reinet 112 km · Kariega 116 km · Alice 117 km · Whittlesea 131 km · Port Elizabeth 138 km

South Africa travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 2
Exercise Increased Caution
Power plugs
Type C / M / N
230 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 41% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$6,598
2025
Happiness
5.0 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
68%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
43.7
per 100k, 2022
Road deaths
22.2
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
Upper middle
World Bank
English
Very high
EF EPI 602
Religion
Christian 86%or other traditional African religions 5%nothing in particular 5%Muslim 2%

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 Somerset East (-32.7217°, 25.588°, elevation 748 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).