Kiruna weather in December

In December, Kiruna sees average daytime highs of -6°C and overnight lows near -13°C, with 36 mm of precipitation across 9.4 wet days and about 0.1 hours of daylight. It is the 10th-warmest and 8th-wettest month of the year here.

Highs ease over the month, from about -5°C in the first days to -8°C by the end. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 14% of the time in December, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 1 h 06 min at the start of December to 0 hours by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, December is Kiruna's 9th-clearest and 2nd-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Kiruna's year-round climate.

Daytime high
-6°
10th warmest
Overnight low
-13°
3rd coldest
Precipitation
36 mm
9.4 wet days
Daylight
0 hours
— – —
Cloud cover
77%
9th clearest
Wind
11 km/h
2nd windiest
Solar energy
0 kWh/m²
Travel score
0.0
out of 10

Kiruna is urban area in Kiruna Municipality, Sweden.

Air quality
Excellent
PM2.5 3 µg/m³ · 2019
Founded
1900

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 -5°C in the first days to -8°C by the end.

A typical December day in Kiruna reaches about -6°C in the afternoon and slips back to -13°C overnight — a 6°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between -15°C and 1°C. Set against its neighbours, December runs about 3°C cooler than November and about 2°C warmer than January.

-30°-20°-10°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
1-5-11
2-5-11
3-5-11
4-5-11
5-5-11
6-5-11
7-5-11
8-5-11
9-5-11
10-5-12
11-6-12
12-6-12
13-6-12
14-6-12
15-6-12
16-6-12
17-6-12
18-6-13
19-7-13
20-7-13
21-7-13
22-7-13
23-7-14
24-7-14
25-8-14
26-8-14
27-8-14
28-8-14
29-8-14
30-8-14
31-8-14

How December really feels in Kiruna

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
31 feel bitter (≤ -10°C)

The story in December is cold — wind chill drags the overnight "feels like" below the raw low.

Kiruna weather by month

How December compares with the rest of the year at a glance. December is the 10th-warmest and 8th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan-9° / -15°317.89.72.10.0
Feb-8° / -15°267.48.970.0
Mar-3° / -11°2478.9110.0
Apr / -6°286.97.115.10.0
May / 559.95.119.61.3
Jun14° / 80130.323.93.5
Jul17° / 11115022.14.7
Aug15° / 8013.60174.0
Sep10° / 6410.81.512.81.9
Oct / -3°489.76.88.70.0
Nov-4° / -9°399.3104.20.0
Dec-6° / -13°369.410.60.10.0

Cloud cover in December

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 14% of the time in December.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 11% of December, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 75%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
12575
22575
32674
42674
52674
62674
72674
82674
92674
102674
112674
122674
132674
142575
152575
162575
172575
182575
192476
202377
212377
222377
232377
242377
252377
262377
272377
282377
292377
302377
312278

Chance of precipitation in December

Any precipitationSnow

Kiruna gets around 36 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 29% and peaks near 30% on the wettest days, and about 11 days bring snow.

0%10%20%30%40%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
12833
22833
32933
42933
52934
62934
73034
83034
93034
103034
113034
123034
133034
143034
153034
163034
173034
183034
193034
203034
213034
223034
233034
243034
253034
262934
272934
282834
292834
302834
312834

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 11 km/h in December.

Across December, daily wind ranges from about 10 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
2710calm
2810calm
2911calm
3011calm
3111calm

Sunrise & sunset in December

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 1 h 06 min at the start of December to 0 hours by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
11.110:5512:03
20.711:0911:50
30.0
40.0
50.0
60.0
70.0
80.0
90.0
100.0
110.0
120.0
130.0
140.0
150.0
160.0
170.0
180.0
190.0
200.0
210.0
220.0
230.0
240.0
250.0
260.0
270.0
280.0
290.0
300.0
310.0

Solar energy in December

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in December, about 0 kWh/m² — the year's lowest.

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 0 kWh/m² to a high of 4.96 kWh/m² in May across the year — December's 0 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

00.511.52151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
10.0Dim
20.0Dim
30.0Dim
40.0Dim
50.0Dim
60.0Dim
70.0Dim
80.0Dim
90.0Dim
100.0Dim
110.0Dim
120.0Dim
130.0Dim
140.0Dim
150.0Dim
160.0Dim
170.0Dim
180.0Dim
190.0Dim
200.0Dim
210.0Dim
220.0Dim
230.0Dim
240.0Dim
250.0Dim
260.0Dim
270.0Dim
280.0Dim
290.0Dim
300.0Dim
310.0Dim
Planning a trip in December

Hazard calendar for Kiruna

In seasonPeak

None of Kiruna's seasonal hazards are active in December. The full-year calendar below shows when the rainy season, cyclone risk and dust haze do peak.

Kiruna's rainy season runs May–September, 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 Kiruna?

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

0.0
Sightseeing
6th-best month of the year
Beach & pool
never really warm enough

December is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Kiruna.

What to pack for Kiruna in December

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

In December, Kiruna sees daytime highs around -6°C and nights near -13°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 Kiruna in December

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in December peaks around 0. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Kiruna peaks around July 14 at about 4 (moderate) — a little sun protection helps at midday. It bottoms out near January 1 at about 0 (low).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 4 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLowModerateLowJul 14UV 4Jan 1UV 0
UV index (midday)Level
Jan0Low
Feb0Low
Mar1Low
Apr2Low
May3Moderate
Jun4Moderate
Jul4Moderate
Aug3Moderate
Sep1Low
Oct1Low
Nov0Low
Dec0Low
Location & terrain

Where is Kiruna?

Kiruna sits at 67.9°N, 20.2°E, 579 m above sea level, in Sweden. The nearest listed city is Harstad, 184 km away.

HarstadLeviTromsdalenTromsoBodenLofotenBodø

Topography around Kiruna

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Kiruna has significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 322 m around an average of 523 m above sea level; within 16 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 470 m; within 80 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,846 m.

The land around Kiruna is covered by trees (41%) within 3 km, trees (50%) and grassland (34%) within 16 km, and trees (40%) and grassland (37%) within 80 km.

3 km
322 m
16 km
470 m
80 km
1,846 m
treesgrasslandartificial surfacesbare terrainsnow and icewaterwetlandmoss and lichen
December weather nearby: Harstad 184 km · Levi 192 km · Tromsdalen 205 km · Tromso 206 km · Boden 235 km · Lofoten 239 km · Bodø 256 km · Alta 265 km

Sweden travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 2
Exercise Increased Caution
Power plugs
Type C / F
230 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 87% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$63,133
2025
Happiness
7.3 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
100%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
1.1
per 100k, 2023
Road deaths
3.1
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
High
World Bank
English
Very high
EF EPI 609
Religion
Church of Sweden 54%none or unspecified 37%other 9%

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 Kiruna (67.8557°, 20.2251°, elevation 579 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. Topography is sampled from the Copernicus DEM GLO-90 elevation model (© ESA/Airbus) and ESA WorldCover 2021 land cover (CC BY 4.0).