South Shields weather in December

In December, South Shields sees average daytime highs of 7°C and overnight lows near 3°C, with 59 mm of precipitation across 12.4 wet days and about 7 hours of daylight. It is the 11th-warmest and 5th-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 7°C through the month. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 18% of the time in December, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 7 h 18 min at the start of December to 7 hours by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, December is South Shields's 1st-clearest and 3rd-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see South Shields's year-round climate.

Daytime high
11th warmest
Overnight low
3rd coldest
Precipitation
59 mm
12.4 wet days
Daylight
6 h 54 min
8:34 AM – 3:30 PM
Cloud cover
70%
1st clearest
Wind
19 km/h
3rd windiest
Solar energy
0.45 kWh/m²
Travel score
1.0
out of 10

South Shields is town in Tyne and Wear, England, UK.

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

Temperature in December

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 7°C through the month.

A typical December day in South Shields reaches about 7°C in the afternoon and slips back to 3°C overnight — a 4°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 3°C and 12°C. Set against its neighbours, December runs about 2°C cooler than November and on par with January.

-5°10°15°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
184
284
384
484
584
684
784
884
984
1083
1183
1273
1373
1473
1573
1673
1773
1873
1973
2073
2173
2273
2373
2473
2573
2673
2773
2873
2973
3073
3173

How December really feels in South Shields

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.

South Shields 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 / 5312.21.57.50.8
Feb / 4610.91.69.31.0
Mar / 4310.6111.41.9
Apr12° / 51110.213.82.8
May14° / 4811.3015.84.0
Jun17° / 11°6011.50175.1
Jul19° / 13°6112016.55.7
Aug19° / 13°6812.3014.75.6
Sep17° / 11°529.8012.55.2
Oct13° / 5811.8010.23.5
Nov10° / 6212.50.38.12.0
Dec / 5912.41.271.0

Cloud cover in December

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 18% of the time in December, the clearest month of the year.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 16% of December, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 66%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
13466
23565
33565
43565
53565
63565
73664
83565
93565
103565
113664
123664
133565
143565
153466
163367
173367
183367
193367
203268
213268
223268
233268
243466
253367
263367
273466
283466
293466
303466
313466

Chance of precipitation in December

Any precipitationSnow

South Shields gets around 59 mm of rain and snow over 12.4 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 40% and peaks near 44% on the wettest days, and about 1 day brings snow.

0%10%20%30%40%50%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
1443
2443
3433
4433
5433
6423
7423
8413
9413
10403
11403
12393
13393
14393
15393
16393
17393
18393
19394
20394
21394
22394
23394
24395
25405
26405
27406
28416
29416
30416
31426

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 19 km/h in December.

Across December, daily wind ranges from about 19 km/h on the calmest days to 20 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

0510152025151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
119light breeze
219light breeze
319light breeze
419light breeze
519light breeze
619light breeze
719light breeze
819light breeze
919light breeze
1019light breeze
1119light breeze
1219light breeze
1319light breeze
1419light breeze
1519light breeze
1619light breeze
1719light breeze
1819light breeze
1919light breeze
2019light breeze
2119light breeze
2219light breeze
2319light breeze
2419light breeze
2519light breeze
2619light breeze
2719light breeze
2819light breeze
2920light breeze
3020light breeze
3120light breeze

Sunrise & sunset in December

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 7 h 18 min at the start of December to 7 hours by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days shrink by about 18 minutes over December. Sunrise moves from 8:16 AM to 8:39 AM, and sunset from 3:35 PM to 3:38 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
17.38:163:35
27.38:173:34
37.28:193:34
47.28:203:33
57.28:223:32
67.18:233:32
77.18:243:31
87.18:263:31
97.18:273:31
107.08:283:30
117.08:293:30
127.08:303:30
137.08:313:30
147.08:323:30
156.98:333:30
166.98:343:30
176.98:353:30
186.98:353:30
196.98:363:31
206.98:373:31
216.98:373:31
226.98:383:32
236.98:383:32
246.98:393:33
256.98:393:33
266.98:393:34
276.98:393:35
286.98:393:36
296.98:403:36
307.08:403:37
317.08:393:38

Solar energy in December

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in December, about 0.45 kWh/m² — the year's lowest.

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 0.45 kWh/m² to a high of 5.08 kWh/m² in June across the year — December's 0.45 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

00.511.52151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
10.5Dim
20.5Dim
30.5Dim
40.5Dim
50.5Dim
60.5Dim
70.5Dim
80.5Dim
90.5Dim
100.5Dim
110.5Dim
120.5Dim
130.5Dim
140.5Dim
150.5Dim
160.5Dim
170.4Dim
180.4Dim
190.4Dim
200.4Dim
210.4Dim
220.4Dim
230.4Dim
240.4Dim
250.4Dim
260.4Dim
270.4Dim
280.4Dim
290.5Dim
300.5Dim
310.5Dim
Planning a trip in December

Is December a good time to visit South Shields?

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

1.0
Sightseeing
10th-best month of the year
0.0
Beach & pool
7th-best month of the year

December is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in South Shields.

What to pack for South Shields in December

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

In December, South Shields sees daytime highs around 7°C and nights near 3°C. Pack a warm layer. Worth having: a heavy coat and rain gear. About 12 days see rain.

a warm layera heavy coatrain gear

Sea temperature near South Shields in December

The nearest coast averages about 9°C in December — the other half of the beach question. The full-year curve and swim-comfort zones are below.

The sea at the nearest coast (about 14 km away) is warmest in August at about 15°C and coldest in March near 6°C.

The water stays below 20°C all year — cool enough that most swimmers want a wetsuit.

5°10°15°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbracingcool
Sea temperature (°C)Comfort
Jan7Bracing
Feb7Bracing
Mar6Bracing
Apr7Bracing
May9Bracing
Jun12Bracing
Jul14Bracing
Aug15Bracing
Sep13Bracing
Oct12Bracing
Nov10Bracing
Dec9Bracing

UV index in South Shields 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 South Shields peaks around August 10 at about 6 (high) — 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 6 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLowModerateHighModerateLowAug 10UV 6Jan 1UV 0
UV index (midday)Level
Jan0Low
Feb1Low
Mar2Moderate
Apr3Moderate
May5Moderate
Jun5High
Jul6High
Aug6High
Sep3Moderate
Oct2Low
Nov1Low
Dec0Low
Location & terrain

Where is South Shields?

South Shields sits at 55.0°N, 1.4°W, 12 m above sea level, in United Kingdom. The nearest listed city is Tynemouth, 2.0 km away.

Topography around South Shields

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around South Shields has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 66 m around an average of 18 m above sea level; within 16 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 176 m; within 80 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 900 m.

The land around South Shields is covered by artificial surfaces (47%) and water (28%) within 3 km, water (46%) and artificial surfaces (23%) within 16 km, and grassland (48%) and water (26%) within 80 km.

3 km
66 m
16 km
176 m
80 km
900 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater
December weather nearby: Tynemouth 2.0 km · North Shields 2.0 km · Jarrow 4.0 km · Whitley Bay 5.0 km · Hebburn 6.0 km · Wallsend 7.0 km · Felling 10 km · Sunderland 11 km

United Kingdom travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 2
Exercise Increased Caution
Power plugs
Type D / G / M
230 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 89% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$57,602
2025
Happiness
6.7 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
100%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
1.1
per 100k, 2021
Road deaths
3.2
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
High
World Bank
Religion
Christian 60%none 26%Muslim 4%other 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 South Shields (54.9986°, -1.4323°, elevation 12 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. Sea temperatures are the NOAA OISST v2.1 1991–2020 monthly climatology (public domain), sampled at the nearest ocean point. 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).