York weather in December

In December, York sees average daytime highs of 7°C and overnight lows near 2°C, with 58 mm of precipitation across 11.1 wet days and about 7.2 hours of daylight. It is the 11th-warmest and 6th-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 16% of the time in December, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 7 h 30 min at the start of December to 7 h 12 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, December is York's 4th-clearest and 4th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see York's year-round climate.

Daytime high
11th warmest
Overnight low
3rd coldest
Precipitation
58 mm
11.1 wet days
Daylight
7 h 12 min
8:26 AM – 3:35 PM
Cloud cover
71%
4th clearest
Wind
16 km/h
4th windiest
Solar energy
0.52 kWh/m²
Travel score
0.8
out of 10

York is city in North Yorkshire, England, United Kingdom.

Air quality
Moderate
PM2.5 11.1 µg/m³ · 2019
Density
574/km²
people per km²
Founded
~71 CE

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 York reaches about 7°C in the afternoon and slips back to 2°C overnight — a 5°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 2°C and 11°C. Set against its neighbours, December runs about 3°C cooler than November and on par with January.

-5°10°15°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
183
283
383
483
573
673
772
872
972
1072
1172
1272
1372
1472
1572
1672
1772
1872
1972
2072
2172
2262
2362
2462
2562
2662
2762
2862
2962
3062
3162

How December really feels in York

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.

York weather by month

How December compares with the rest of the year at a glance. December is the 11th-warmest and 6th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan / 5411.81.37.70.7
Feb / 46101.89.41.0
Mar10° / 4610.8111.52.0
Apr12° / 5811.50.413.73.1
May15° / 5511.5015.74.3
Jun18° / 10°7112.2016.85.3
Jul20° / 12°6611.9016.35.9
Aug20° / 12°7211.5014.65.9
Sep17° / 10°5710012.55.3
Oct13° / 6111.5010.23.6
Nov10° / 5911.30.48.31.9
Dec / 5811.11.17.20.8

Cloud cover in December

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 16% of the time in December.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 15% of December, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 69%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
13070
23169
33268
43268
53268
63367
73367
83367
93367
103367
113268
123268
133268
143268
153169
163169
173169
183169
193070
203070
213070
223070
233169
243169
253169
263169
273169
283169
293169
303169
313070

Chance of precipitation in December

Any precipitationSnow

York gets around 58 mm of rain and snow over 11.1 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 36% and peaks near 39% on the wettest days, and about 1 day brings snow.

0%10%20%30%40%50%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
1373
2373
3363
4363
5363
6353
7353
8343
9343
10343
11333
12333
13332
14342
15342
16342
17342
18352
19353
20363
21363
22363
23373
24374
25384
26384
27384
28395
29395
30395
31395

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 16 km/h in December.

Across December, daily wind ranges from about 16 km/h on the calmest days to 17 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

05101520151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
116light breeze
216light breeze
316light breeze
416light breeze
516light breeze
616light breeze
716light breeze
816light breeze
916light breeze
1016light breeze
1116light breeze
1216light breeze
1316light breeze
1416light breeze
1516light breeze
1616light breeze
1716light breeze
1816light breeze
1916light breeze
2016light breeze
2116light breeze
2216light breeze
2316light breeze
2417light breeze
2517light breeze
2617light breeze
2717light breeze
2817light breeze
2917light breeze
3017light breeze
3117light breeze

Sunrise & sunset in December

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 7 h 30 min at the start of December to 7 h 12 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days shrink by about 18 minutes over December. Sunrise moves from 8:08 AM to 8:32 AM, and sunset from 3:40 PM to 3:43 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
17.58:083:40
27.58:103:39
37.58:113:38
47.48:133:38
57.48:143:37
67.48:153:37
77.38:173:36
87.38:183:36
97.38:193:36
107.38:203:36
117.28:213:35
127.28:223:35
137.28:233:35
147.28:243:35
157.28:253:35
167.28:263:35
177.18:273:35
187.18:273:36
197.18:283:36
207.18:293:36
217.18:293:37
227.18:303:37
237.18:303:38
247.18:303:38
257.18:313:39
267.18:313:39
277.18:313:40
287.28:313:41
297.28:313:42
307.28:323:43
317.28:323:43

Solar energy in December

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in December, about 0.52 kWh/m² — the year's lowest.

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 0.52 kWh/m² to a high of 5 kWh/m² in June across the year — December's 0.52 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

00.511.52151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
10.6Dim
20.6Dim
30.6Dim
40.6Dim
50.6Dim
60.6Dim
70.6Dim
80.6Dim
90.5Dim
100.5Dim
110.5Dim
120.5Dim
130.5Dim
140.5Dim
150.5Dim
160.5Dim
170.5Dim
180.5Dim
190.5Dim
200.5Dim
210.5Dim
220.5Dim
230.5Dim
240.5Dim
250.5Dim
260.5Dim
270.5Dim
280.5Dim
290.5Dim
300.5Dim
310.5Dim
Planning a trip in December

Is December a good time to visit York?

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

0.8
Sightseeing
11th-best month of the year
0.0
Beach & pool
7th-best month of the year

December is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in York.

What to pack for York in December

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

In December, York sees daytime highs around 7°C and nights near 2°C. Pack a warm layer. Worth having: a heavy coat and rain gear. About 11 days see rain.

a warm layera heavy coatrain gear

Sea temperature near York 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 63 km away) is warmest in August at about 15°C and coldest in February 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
Feb6Bracing
Mar6Bracing
Apr7Bracing
May9Bracing
Jun11Bracing
Jul14Bracing
Aug15Bracing
Sep14Bracing
Oct13Bracing
Nov11Bracing
Dec9Bracing

UV index in York 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 York peaks around August 11 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.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLowModerateHighModerateLowAug 11UV 6Dec 20UV 0
UV index (midday)Level
Jan1Low
Feb1Low
Mar3Moderate
Apr3Moderate
May5High
Jun5High
Jul6High
Aug6High
Sep4Moderate
Oct2Low
Nov1Low
Dec0Low
Location & terrain

Where is York?

York sits at 54.0°N, 1.1°W, 17 m above sea level, in United Kingdom. The nearest listed city is Selby, 19 km away.

Topography around York

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around York has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 36 m around an average of 14 m above sea level; within 16 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 80 m; within 80 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 711 m.

The land around York is covered by artificial surfaces (48%), grassland (25%) and trees (23%) within 3 km, cropland (51%) and grassland (32%) within 16 km, and grassland (37%) and cropland (34%) within 80 km.

3 km
36 m
16 km
80 m
80 km
711 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaceswater
December weather nearby: Selby 19 km · Kippax 28 km · Harrogate 30 km · Goole 31 km · Castleford 32 km · Chapel Allerton 33 km · Pontefract 33 km · Ripon 35 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 York (53.9576°, -1.0827°, elevation 17 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).