Clifton weather in December

In December, Clifton sees average daytime highs of 35°F and overnight lows near 15°F, with 1.5 in of precipitation across 7.3 wet days and about 9.3 hours of daylight. It is the 11th-warmest and 11th-wettest month of the year here.

Highs ease over the month, from about 39°F in the first days to 32°F by the end. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 46% of the time in December, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 9 h 30 min at the start of December to 9 h 18 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, December is Clifton's 7th-clearest and 11th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Clifton's year-round climate.

Daytime high: 35°; 11th warmest
Overnight low: 15°; 2nd coldest
Precipitation: 1.5 in; 7.3 wet days
Daylight: 9 h 18 min; 7:32 AM – 4:48 PM
Cloud cover: 47%; 7th clearest
Wind: 3 mph; 11th windiest
Solar energy: 2.58 kWh/m²
Travel score: 0.0; out of 10

Clifton is census-designated place in Mesa County, Colorado, United States.

Density: 1,250/km²; people per km²

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

← November Clifton year-round climate January →Best places to visit in December

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

Temperature in December

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Highs ease over the month, from about 39°F in the first days to 32°F by the end.

A typical December day in Clifton reaches about 35°F in the afternoon and slips back to 15°F overnight — a 20°F spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 25°F and 44°F. Set against its neighbours, December runs about 12°F cooler than November and on par with January.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Avg high (°F)	39	39	38	38	38	37	37	37	36	36	36	35	35	35	35	34	34	34	33	33	33	33	33	33	33	32	32	32	32	32	32
Avg low (°F)	19	19	19	18	18	17	17	17	17	16	16	15	15	15	15	14	14	14	13	13	13	13	12	12	12	12	12	12	12	12	12

	Avg high (°F)	Avg low (°F)
1	39	19
2	39	19
3	38	19
4	38	18
5	38	18
6	37	17
7	37	17
8	37	17
9	36	17
10	36	16
11	36	16
12	35	15
13	35	15
14	35	15
15	35	15
16	34	14
17	34	14
18	34	14
19	33	13
20	33	13
21	33	13
22	33	13
23	33	12
24	33	12
25	33	12
26	32	12
27	32	12
28	32	12
29	32	12
30	32	12
31	32	12

How December really feels in Clifton

Once humidity and wind are folded in, December averages 0 days that feel above 90°F and 31 that feel at or below 32°F — the comfort signal a plain temperature reading hides.

Days feeling ≥ 90°F

heat index over the day's high

Days feeling ≤ 32°F

16 feel bitter (≤ 14°F)

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

Clifton weather by month

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

Month	High / Low (°F)	Rainfall (inches)	Wet days	Snow days	Daylight (hours)	Travel score
Jan	34° / 13°	1.5	7.5	7.2	9.6	0.0
Feb	39° / 19°	1.7	9	8.1	10.5	0.0
Mar	49° / 27°	2.0	9.5	6.5	11.7	2.2
Apr	58° / 34°	2.0	9.7	3.8	13	4.5
May	70° / 44°	1.9	8.8	0.6	14.1	6.8
Jun	82° / 53°	1.0	4.8	0	14.7	7.0
Jul	87° / 60°	2.2	8.6	0	14.5	5.1
Aug	83° / 58°	3.2	11.7	0	13.5	5.9
Sep	75° / 49°	2.7	8.9	0.1	12.3	7.3
Oct	62° / 37°	2.0	8.1	1.6	11	5.8
Nov	47° / 25°	1.7	7	4.9	9.9	1.6
Dec	35° / 15°	1.5	7.3	7.3	9.3	0.0

Cloud cover in December

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 46% of the time in December.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 13% of December, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 40%.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Clearer (%)	63	62	63	62	62	61	61	61	60	60	60	60	60	59	59	59	60	60	60	60	60	60	59	59	59	59	58	58	58	57	56
Cloudier (%)	37	38	37	38	38	39	39	39	40	40	40	40	40	41	41	41	40	40	40	40	40	40	41	41	41	41	42	42	42	43	44

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	63	37
2	62	38
3	63	37
4	62	38
5	62	38
6	61	39
7	61	39
8	61	39
9	60	40
10	60	40
11	60	40
12	60	40
13	60	40
14	59	41
15	59	41
16	59	41
17	60	40
18	60	40
19	60	40
20	60	40
21	60	40
22	60	40
23	59	41
24	59	41
25	59	41
26	59	41
27	58	42
28	58	42
29	58	42
30	57	43
31	56	44

Chance of precipitation in December

Any precipitationSnow

Clifton gets around 1.5 in of rain and snow over 7.3 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 24% and peaks near 24% on the wettest days, and about 7 days bring snow.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Rain chance (%)	22	22	22	22	22	23	23	23	23	24	24	24	24	24	24	24	24	24	24	24	24	24	24	24	23	24	24	24	24	24	24
Snow chance (%)	19	19	20	20	21	21	22	22	22	23	23	24	24	24	24	25	25	25	25	25	25	25	25	25	25	25	25	24	24	24	24

	Rain chance (%)	Snow chance (%)
1	22	19
2	22	19
3	22	20
4	22	20
5	22	21
6	23	21
7	23	22
8	23	22
9	23	22
10	24	23
11	24	23
12	24	24
13	24	24
14	24	24
15	24	24
16	24	25
17	24	25
18	24	25
19	24	25
20	24	25
21	24	25
22	24	25
23	24	25
24	24	25
25	23	25
26	24	25
27	24	25
28	24	24
29	24	24
30	24	24
31	24	24

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.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Dry (%)	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100

	Dry (%)
1	100
2	100
3	100
4	100
5	100
6	100
7	100
8	100
9	100
10	100
11	100
12	100
13	100
14	100
15	100
16	100
17	100
18	100
19	100
20	100
21	100
22	100
23	100
24	100
25	100
26	100
27	100
28	100
29	100
30	100
31	100

Wind in December

Winds average 3 mph in December.

Across December, daily wind ranges from about 3 mph on the calmest days to 3 mph at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Wind speed (mph)	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3
Feels	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm

	Wind speed (mph)	Feels
1	3	calm
2	3	calm
3	3	calm
4	3	calm
5	3	calm
6	3	calm
7	3	calm
8	3	calm
9	3	calm
10	3	calm
11	3	calm
12	3	calm
13	3	calm
14	3	calm
15	3	calm
16	3	calm
17	3	calm
18	3	calm
19	3	calm
20	3	calm
21	3	calm
22	3	calm
23	3	calm
24	3	calm
25	3	calm
26	3	calm
27	3	calm
28	3	calm
29	3	calm
30	3	calm
31	3	calm

Sunrise & sunset in December

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 9 h 30 min at the start of December to 9 h 18 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days shrink by about 12 minutes over December. Sunrise moves from 7:20 AM to 7:38 AM, and sunset from 4:47 PM to 4:56 PM.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Daylight (h)	9.5	9.4	9.4	9.4	9.4	9.4	9.4	9.3	9.3	9.3	9.3	9.3	9.3	9.3	9.3	9.3	9.3	9.3	9.3	9.3	9.3	9.3	9.3	9.3	9.3	9.3	9.3	9.3	9.3	9.3	9.3
Sunrise (AM)	7:20	7:21	7:22	7:23	7:24	7:24	7:25	7:26	7:27	7:28	7:28	7:29	7:30	7:31	7:31	7:32	7:33	7:33	7:34	7:34	7:35	7:35	7:36	7:36	7:37	7:37	7:37	7:38	7:38	7:38	7:38
Sunset (PM)	4:47	4:47	4:47	4:47	4:47	4:47	4:47	4:47	4:47	4:47	4:47	4:47	4:47	4:47	4:48	4:48	4:48	4:49	4:49	4:49	4:50	4:50	4:51	4:51	4:52	4:52	4:53	4:54	4:54	4:55	4:56

	Daylight (h)	Sunrise (AM)	Sunset (PM)
1	9.5	7:20	4:47
2	9.4	7:21	4:47
3	9.4	7:22	4:47
4	9.4	7:23	4:47
5	9.4	7:24	4:47
6	9.4	7:24	4:47
7	9.4	7:25	4:47
8	9.3	7:26	4:47
9	9.3	7:27	4:47
10	9.3	7:28	4:47
11	9.3	7:28	4:47
12	9.3	7:29	4:47
13	9.3	7:30	4:47
14	9.3	7:31	4:47
15	9.3	7:31	4:48
16	9.3	7:32	4:48
17	9.3	7:33	4:48
18	9.3	7:33	4:49
19	9.3	7:34	4:49
20	9.3	7:34	4:49
21	9.3	7:35	4:50
22	9.3	7:35	4:50
23	9.3	7:36	4:51
24	9.3	7:36	4:51
25	9.3	7:37	4:52
26	9.3	7:37	4:52
27	9.3	7:37	4:53
28	9.3	7:38	4:54
29	9.3	7:38	4:54
30	9.3	7:38	4:55
31	9.3	7:38	4:56

Solar energy in December

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in December, about 2.58 kWh/m² — the year's lowest.

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 2.58 kWh/m² to a high of 8.07 kWh/m² in June across the year — December's 2.58 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Solar energy (kWh/m²)	2.7	2.7	2.7	2.6	2.6	2.6	2.6	2.6	2.6	2.6	2.5	2.5	2.5	2.5	2.5	2.5	2.5	2.5	2.5	2.5	2.5	2.6	2.6	2.6	2.6	2.6	2.6	2.6	2.6	2.6	2.7
Level	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate

	Solar energy (kWh/m²)	Level
1	2.7	Moderate
2	2.7	Moderate
3	2.7	Moderate
4	2.6	Moderate
5	2.6	Moderate
6	2.6	Moderate
7	2.6	Moderate
8	2.6	Moderate
9	2.6	Moderate
10	2.6	Moderate
11	2.5	Moderate
12	2.5	Moderate
13	2.5	Moderate
14	2.5	Moderate
15	2.5	Moderate
16	2.5	Moderate
17	2.5	Moderate
18	2.5	Moderate
19	2.5	Moderate
20	2.5	Moderate
21	2.5	Moderate
22	2.6	Moderate
23	2.6	Moderate
24	2.6	Moderate
25	2.6	Moderate
26	2.6	Moderate
27	2.6	Moderate
28	2.6	Moderate
29	2.6	Moderate
30	2.6	Moderate
31	2.7	Moderate

Planning a trip in December

Is December a good time to visit Clifton?

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

0.0

Sightseeing

10th-best month of the year

0.0

Beach & pool

9th-best month of the year

December is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Clifton.

What to pack for Clifton in December

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

In December, Clifton sees daytime highs around 35°F and nights near 15°F. Pack a warm layer and a heavy coat. About 7 days see rain.

a warm layera heavy coat

UV index in Clifton in December

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in December peaks around 2. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Clifton peaks around July 16 at about 11 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 20 at about 2 (moderate).

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

	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
UV index (midday)	3	4	6	6	8	11	11	10	7	6	3	2
Level	Moderate	Moderate	High	High	Very high	Extreme	Extreme	Extreme	Very high	High	Moderate	Moderate

	UV index (midday)	Level
Jan	3	Moderate
Feb	4	Moderate
Mar	6	High
Apr	6	High
May	8	Very high
Jun	11	Extreme
Jul	11	Extreme
Aug	10	Extreme
Sep	7	Very high
Oct	6	High
Nov	3	Moderate
Dec	2	Moderate

Location & terrain

Where is Clifton?

Clifton sits at 39.1°N, 108.4°W, 4,724 ft above sea level, in United States. The nearest listed city is Grand Junction, 5.6 mi away.

Topography around Clifton

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

Within 2 miles, the terrain around Clifton has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 322 ft around an average of 4,728 ft above sea level; within 10 miles, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 4,150 ft; within 50 miles, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 7,149 ft.

The land around Clifton is covered by artificial surfaces (31%) and grassland (21%) within 2 miles, grassland (34%) and bare terrain (22%) within 10 miles, and trees (40%), grassland (25%) and shrubs (22%) within 50 miles.

2 miles

322 ft

artificial surfaces 31%

10 miles

4,150 ft

grassland 34%

50 miles

7,149 ft

trees 40%

treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater

← November Clifton year-round climate January →Best places to visit in December

December weather nearby: Grand Junction 5.6 mi · Montrose 52 mi · Moab 69 mi · Telluride 87 mi · Aspen 88 mi · Durango 129 mi · Farmington 164 mi · Rock Springs 177 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

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 Clifton (39.0919°, -108.449°, elevation 4,724 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. 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).

	Avg high (°F)	Avg low (°F)
1	39	19
2	39	19
3	38	19
4	38	18
5	38	18
6	37	17
7	37	17
8	37	17
9	36	17
10	36	16
11	36	16
12	35	15
13	35	15
14	35	15
15	35	15
16	34	14
17	34	14
18	34	14
19	33	13
20	33	13
21	33	13
22	33	13
23	33	12
24	33	12
25	33	12
26	32	12
27	32	12
28	32	12
29	32	12
30	32	12
31	32	12

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	63	37
2	62	38
3	63	37
4	62	38
5	62	38
6	61	39
7	61	39
8	61	39
9	60	40
10	60	40
11	60	40
12	60	40
13	60	40
14	59	41
15	59	41
16	59	41
17	60	40
18	60	40
19	60	40
20	60	40
21	60	40
22	60	40
23	59	41
24	59	41
25	59	41
26	59	41
27	58	42
28	58	42
29	58	42
30	57	43
31	56	44

	Rain chance (%)	Snow chance (%)
1	22	19
2	22	19
3	22	20
4	22	20
5	22	21
6	23	21
7	23	22
8	23	22
9	23	22
10	24	23
11	24	23
12	24	24
13	24	24
14	24	24
15	24	24
16	24	25
17	24	25
18	24	25
19	24	25
20	24	25
21	24	25
22	24	25
23	24	25
24	24	25
25	23	25
26	24	25
27	24	25
28	24	24
29	24	24
30	24	24
31	24	24

	Dry (%)
1	100
2	100
3	100
4	100
5	100
6	100
7	100
8	100
9	100
10	100
11	100
12	100
13	100
14	100
15	100
16	100
17	100
18	100
19	100
20	100
21	100
22	100
23	100
24	100
25	100
26	100
27	100
28	100
29	100
30	100
31	100

	Avg high (°F)	Avg low (°F)
1	39	19
2	39	19
3	38	19
4	38	18
5	38	18
6	37	17
7	37	17
8	37	17
9	36	17
10	36	16
11	36	16
12	35	15
13	35	15
14	35	15
15	35	15
16	34	14
17	34	14
18	34	14
19	33	13
20	33	13
21	33	13
22	33	13
23	33	12
24	33	12
25	33	12
26	32	12
27	32	12
28	32	12
29	32	12
30	32	12
31	32	12

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	63	37
2	62	38
3	63	37
4	62	38
5	62	38
6	61	39
7	61	39
8	61	39
9	60	40
10	60	40
11	60	40
12	60	40
13	60	40
14	59	41
15	59	41
16	59	41
17	60	40
18	60	40
19	60	40
20	60	40
21	60	40
22	60	40
23	59	41
24	59	41
25	59	41
26	59	41
27	58	42
28	58	42
29	58	42
30	57	43
31	56	44

	Rain chance (%)	Snow chance (%)
1	22	19
2	22	19
3	22	20
4	22	20
5	22	21
6	23	21
7	23	22
8	23	22
9	23	22
10	24	23
11	24	23
12	24	24
13	24	24
14	24	24
15	24	24
16	24	25
17	24	25
18	24	25
19	24	25
20	24	25
21	24	25
22	24	25
23	24	25
24	24	25
25	23	25
26	24	25
27	24	25
28	24	24
29	24	24
30	24	24
31	24	24

	Dry (%)
1	100
2	100
3	100
4	100
5	100
6	100
7	100
8	100
9	100
10	100
11	100
12	100
13	100
14	100
15	100
16	100
17	100
18	100
19	100
20	100
21	100
22	100
23	100
24	100
25	100
26	100
27	100
28	100
29	100
30	100
31	100

	Avg high (°F)	Avg low (°F)
1	39	19
2	39	19
3	38	19
4	38	18
5	38	18
6	37	17
7	37	17
8	37	17
9	36	17
10	36	16
11	36	16
12	35	15
13	35	15
14	35	15
15	35	15
16	34	14
17	34	14
18	34	14
19	33	13
20	33	13
21	33	13
22	33	13
23	33	12
24	33	12
25	33	12
26	32	12
27	32	12
28	32	12
29	32	12
30	32	12
31	32	12

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	63	37
2	62	38
3	63	37
4	62	38
5	62	38
6	61	39
7	61	39
8	61	39
9	60	40
10	60	40
11	60	40
12	60	40
13	60	40
14	59	41
15	59	41
16	59	41
17	60	40
18	60	40
19	60	40
20	60	40
21	60	40
22	60	40
23	59	41
24	59	41
25	59	41
26	59	41
27	58	42
28	58	42
29	58	42
30	57	43
31	56	44

	Rain chance (%)	Snow chance (%)
1	22	19
2	22	19
3	22	20
4	22	20
5	22	21
6	23	21
7	23	22
8	23	22
9	23	22
10	24	23
11	24	23
12	24	24
13	24	24
14	24	24
15	24	24
16	24	25
17	24	25
18	24	25
19	24	25
20	24	25
21	24	25
22	24	25
23	24	25
24	24	25
25	23	25
26	24	25
27	24	25
28	24	24
29	24	24
30	24	24
31	24	24

	Dry (%)
1	100
2	100
3	100
4	100
5	100
6	100
7	100
8	100
9	100
10	100
11	100
12	100
13	100
14	100
15	100
16	100
17	100
18	100
19	100
20	100
21	100
22	100
23	100
24	100
25	100
26	100
27	100
28	100
29	100
30	100
31	100