Brighton in Winter

In winter (December, January and February), Brighton sees average daytime highs around 44°F and overnight lows near 20°F, with 1.4 in of precipitation over about 10 wet days across the season. It is the coldest season of the year and the driest season of the year.

Over the season highs climb from about 45°F in early December to 49°F by late February. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 48% of the time across winter, and the air most often feels dry.

Winter is Brighton's weakest season of the year to visit on our travel score. For the whole year in context, see Brighton's year-round climate.

Avg daytime high
44°F
coldest season of the year
Avg overnight low
20°F
Precipitation
1.4 in
10 wet days
Avg wind
5 mph
Travel score
0.8
weakest season of the year
Months
Dec · Jan · Feb

Temperature in Brighton in Winter

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Over the season highs climb from about 45°F in early December to 49°F by late February.

A typical winter day in Brighton reaches about 44°F and drops to 20°F overnight. The warmest of the three months is February, the coolest January.

20°40°60°DecJanFeb

How winter really feels in Brighton

Once humidity and wind are folded in, winter brings about 0 days that feel above 90°F and 90 that feel at or below 32°F.

Days feeling ≥ 90°F
0
heat index over the day's high
Days feeling ≤ 32°F
90
71 feel bitter (≤ 14°F)

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

Brighton 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.

MonthHigh / Low (°F)Rainfall (inches)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan42° / 19°0.53.33.59.50.4
Feb46° / 22°0.53.63.510.41.5
Mar56° / 29°1.35.43.411.74.3
Apr63° / 37°2.07.63.2135.8
May72° / 46°2.59.50.614.26.7
Jun83° / 55°1.57014.86.3
Jul89° / 61°1.36.9014.54.6
Aug87° / 60°1.25.7013.65.5
Sep79° / 51°1.04.20.412.37.7
Oct65° / 38°1.25.11.510.96.9
Nov52° / 27°0.74.13.39.83.4
Dec42° / 20°0.533.29.20.5

Cloud cover in Winter

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 48% of the time across winter.

0%25%50%75%100%DecJanFeb

Chance of precipitation in Winter

Any precipitationSnow

Brighton gets around 1.4 in of rain and snow over 10 wet days across winter. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

0%10%20%30%DecJanFeb

Humidity in Winter

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

Most of winter feels dry — the stacked bands show each day's mix of comfort levels, read off the dew point.

0%25%50%75%100%DecJanFeb

Wind in Winter

Winds average 5 mph across winter.

0246810DecJanFeb

Sunrise & sunset in Winter

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 9 h 24 min in early December to 11 hours by late February. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AMDecJanFeb

Solar energy in Winter

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day across winter, about 3.0 kWh/m².

012345DecJanFeb
Planning a trip in winter

Is winter a good time to visit Brighton?

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.

0.8
Sightseeing
4th-best month of the year
0.0
Beach & pool
4th-best month of the year

winter is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Brighton.

What to pack for Brighton in Winter

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

In winter, Brighton sees daytime highs around 44°F and nights near 20°F. Pack a warm layer and a heavy coat. About 10 days see rain.

a warm layera heavy coat

UV index in Brighton in Winter

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV across winter averages around 3. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Brighton peaks around July 12 at about 11 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 23 at about 2 (low).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 10 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModerateHighVery highExtremeVery highHighModerateJul 12UV 11Dec 23UV 2
UV index (midday)Level
Jan2Low
Feb4Moderate
Mar7High
Apr6High
May7Very high
Jun10Extreme
Jul11Extreme
Aug10Very high
Sep7Very high
Oct5High
Nov3Moderate
Dec2Low

Air quality in Brighton in Winter

GoodModeratePoorUnhealthyVery unhealthy

Average fine-particle pollution (PM2.5) through the year — so you can see where winter falls, not just the annual average.

Air quality in Brighton is worst in August — around 21 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 1.6× the cleanest month (May, 13 µg/m³).

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

0102030JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModerateAug 1620 µg/m³May 1113 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan17Moderate
Feb15Moderate
Mar16Moderate
Apr13Moderate
May13Moderate
Jun14Moderate
Jul14Moderate
Aug21Moderate
Sep13Moderate
Oct15Moderate
Nov15Moderate
Dec16Moderate
Location & terrain

Where is Brighton?

Brighton sits at 40.0°N, 104.8°W, 4,984 ft above sea level, in United States. The nearest listed city is Northglenn, 11 mi away.

Topography around Brighton

How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 2, 10 and 50 miles of Brighton.

Within 2 miles, the terrain around Brighton has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 194 ft around an average of 4,990 ft above sea level; within 10 miles, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 640 ft; within 50 miles, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 9,626 ft.

The land around Brighton is covered by artificial surfaces (34%), grassland (32%) and cropland (21%) within 2 miles, grassland (51%) and cropland (28%) within 10 miles, and grassland (48%), trees (22%) and cropland (20%) within 50 miles.

2 miles
194 ft
10 miles
640 ft
50 miles
9,626 ft
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater
Winter weather nearby: Northglenn 11 mi · Thornton 11 mi · Erie 13 mi · Commerce City 14 mi · Sherrelwood 14 mi · Lafayette 14 mi · Broomfield 15 mi · Westminster 16 mi

United States travel facts

Power plugs
Type A / B
120 V · 60 Hz
Prices
≈ 100% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$90,027
2025
Happiness
6.8 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
98%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
5.8
per 100k, 2023
Road deaths
12.7
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
High
World Bank
Religion
Protestant 47%unaffiliated 23%Roman Catholic 21%Jewish 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 Brighton (39.9853°, -104.8205°, elevation 4,984 ft), 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.