Skellefteå in Winter
In winter (December, January and February), Skellefteå sees average daytime highs around -3°C and overnight lows near -8°C, with 121 mm of precipitation over about 28 wet days across the season. It is the coldest season of the year and the 3rd-wettest season.
Over the season highs ease from about -0°C in early December to -4°C by late February. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 15% of the time across winter, and the air most often feels dry.
Winter is Skellefteå's weakest season of the year to visit on our travel score. For the whole year in context, see Skellefteå's year-round climate.
- Avg daytime high
- -3°C
- coldest season of the year
- Avg overnight low
- -8°C
- Precipitation
- 121 mm
- 28 wet days
- Avg wind
- 16 km/h
- Travel score
- 0.0
- weakest season of the year
- Months
- Dec · Jan · Feb
Temperature in Skellefteå in Winter
Over the season highs ease from about -0°C in early December to -4°C by late February.
A typical winter day in Skellefteå reaches about -3°C and drops to -8°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is December, the coolest February.
How winter really feels in Skellefteå
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.
Skellefteå 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 | -4° / -9° | 41 | 9.9 | 10.4 | 4.6 | 0.0 |
| Feb | -5° / -10° | 29 | 7 | 8.4 | 7.8 | 0.0 |
| Mar | -1° / -7° | 32 | 7.4 | 8.1 | 11.2 | 0.0 |
| Apr | 4° / -2° | 32 | 7.1 | 4.8 | 14.7 | 0.2 |
| May | 10° / 4° | 41 | 8.6 | 0.7 | 18.1 | 2.2 |
| Jun | 14° / 9° | 58 | 9.6 | 0 | 20.6 | 4.2 |
| Jul | 18° / 13° | 73 | 12 | 0 | 19.5 | 5.6 |
| Aug | 17° / 12° | 69 | 11 | 0 | 16.2 | 5.3 |
| Sep | 12° / 8° | 58 | 9.3 | 0 | 12.7 | 3.3 |
| Oct | 6° / 2° | 63 | 10.9 | 2.7 | 9.2 | 0.6 |
| Nov | 1° / -2° | 55 | 11.6 | 8 | 5.8 | 0.0 |
| Dec | -2° / -6° | 51 | 10.8 | 10.2 | 3.4 | 0.0 |
Cloud cover in Winter
The sky is clear or mostly clear about 15% of the time across winter.
Chance of precipitation in Winter
Skellefteå gets around 121 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 16 km/h across winter.
Sunrise & sunset in Winter
Daylight runs from about 4 h 12 min in early December to 9 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 0.3 kWh/m².
Is winter a good time to visit Skellefteå?
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 Skellefteå.
What to pack for Skellefteå in Winter
From winter's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.
In winter, Skellefteå sees daytime highs around -3°C and nights near -8°C. Pack a warm layer and a heavy coat. Worth having: rain gear. About 28 days see rain.
Sea temperature near Skellefteå in Winter
The nearest coast averages about 1°C across winter — the other half of the beach question. The full-year curve and swim-comfort zones are below.
The sea at the nearest coast (about 24 km away) is warmest in August at about 15°C and coldest in February near 0°C.
The water stays below 20°C all year — cool enough that most swimmers want a wetsuit.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sea temperature (°C) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 8 | 14 | 15 | 12 | 8 | 5 | 3 |
| Comfort | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing |
| Sea temperature (°C) | Comfort | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 1 | Bracing |
| Feb | 0 | Bracing |
| Mar | 0 | Bracing |
| Apr | 1 | Bracing |
| May | 3 | Bracing |
| Jun | 8 | Bracing |
| Jul | 14 | Bracing |
| Aug | 15 | Bracing |
| Sep | 12 | Bracing |
| Oct | 8 | Bracing |
| Nov | 5 | Bracing |
| Dec | 3 | Bracing |
UV index in Skellefteå in Winter
Clear-sky midday UV across winter averages around 0. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.
Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Skellefteå peaks around July 15 at about 5 (moderate) — a little sun protection helps at midday. It bottoms out near December 17 at about 0 (low).
The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 4 months of the year.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UV index (midday) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Level | Low | Low | Low | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Low | Low | Low | Low |
| UV index (midday) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 0 | Low |
| Feb | 0 | Low |
| Mar | 1 | Low |
| Apr | 2 | Moderate |
| May | 4 | Moderate |
| Jun | 4 | Moderate |
| Jul | 5 | Moderate |
| Aug | 3 | Moderate |
| Sep | 2 | Low |
| Oct | 1 | Low |
| Nov | 0 | Low |
| Dec | 0 | Low |
Where is Skellefteå?
Skellefteå sits at 64.8°N, 21.0°E, 34 m above sea level, in Sweden. The nearest listed city is Piteå, 68 km away.
Topography around Skellefteå
How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Skellefteå.
Within 3 km, the terrain around Skellefteå has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 138 m around an average of 42 m above sea level; within 16 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 224 m; within 80 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 515 m.
The land around Skellefteå is covered by trees (58%) and artificial surfaces (20%) within 3 km, trees (65%) within 16 km, and trees (62%) and water (28%) within 80 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
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 Skellefteå (64.7507°, 20.9528°, elevation 34 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.