Durango in Winter

In winter (December, January and February), Durango sees average daytime highs around 36°F and overnight lows near 13°F, with 6.6 in of precipitation over about 22 wet days across the season. It is the coldest season of the year and the wettest season of the year.

Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 36°F. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 47% of the time across winter, and the air most often feels dry.

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

Avg daytime high
36°F
coldest season of the year
Avg overnight low
13°F
Precipitation
6.6 in
22 wet days
Avg wind
5 mph
Travel score
0.0
weakest season of the year
Months
Dec · Jan · Feb

Temperature in Durango in Winter

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 36°F.

A typical winter day in Durango reaches about 36°F and drops to 13°F overnight. The warmest of the three months is February, the coolest December.

20°40°DecJanFeb

How winter really feels in Durango

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
90 feel bitter (≤ 14°F)

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

Durango 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
Jan35° / 12°2.47.17.39.70.0
Feb38° / 16°2.38.37.810.60.0
Mar46° / 22°1.97.86.311.71.3
Apr54° / 29°1.77.33.912.93.7
May65° / 37°1.56.41146.6
Jun77° / 46°0.73.3014.58.3
Jul81° / 53°1.57.7014.37.1
Aug78° / 52°1.88.8013.47.2
Sep71° / 44°2.57.1012.37.4
Oct59° / 33°2.27.31.4115.4
Nov46° / 20°2.06.25101.4
Dec35° / 11°2.06.66.69.50.0

Cloud cover in Winter

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 47% of the time across winter.

0%25%50%75%100%DecJanFeb

Chance of precipitation in Winter

Any precipitationSnow

Durango gets around 6.6 in of rain and snow over 22 wet days across winter. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

0%10%20%30%40%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 36 min in early December to 11 h 06 min 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 3.4 kWh/m².

024DecJanFeb
Planning a trip in winter

Is winter a good time to visit Durango?

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.

0.0
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 Durango.

What to pack for Durango in Winter

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

In winter, Durango sees daytime highs around 36°F and nights near 13°F. Pack a warm layer and a heavy coat. Worth having: rain gear. About 22 days see rain.

a warm layera heavy coatrain gear

UV index in Durango in Winter

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV across winter averages around 4 — enough to warrant sun protection. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Durango peaks around July 12 at about 12 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 18 at about 3 (moderate).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 11 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModerateHighVery highExtremeVery highHighModerateJul 12UV 12Dec 18UV 3
UV index (midday)Level
Jan3Moderate
Feb5Moderate
Mar6High
Apr6High
May9Very high
Jun11Extreme
Jul12Extreme
Aug11Extreme
Sep8Very high
Oct6High
Nov4Moderate
Dec3Moderate

Air quality in Durango 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 Durango is worst in June — around 17 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 3.6× the cleanest month (October, 5 µg/m³).

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

01020JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecGoodModerateGoodJun 1616 µg/m³Oct 225 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan5Good
Feb5Good
Mar6Good
Apr6Good
May6Good
Jun17Moderate
Jul7Good
Aug9Good
Sep7Good
Oct5Good
Nov5Good
Dec5Good
Location & terrain

Where is Durango?

Durango sits at 37.3°N, 107.9°W, 6,532 ft above sea level, in United States. The nearest listed city is Farmington, 42 mi away.

Topography around Durango

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

Within 2 miles, the terrain around Durango has significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,289 ft around an average of 6,870 ft above sea level; within 10 miles, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 4,692 ft; within 50 miles, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 9,012 ft.

The land around Durango is covered by trees (58%) and grassland (21%) within 2 miles, trees (63%) and grassland (28%) within 10 miles, and trees (52%) and grassland (22%) within 50 miles.

2 miles
1,289 ft
10 miles
4,692 ft
50 miles
9,012 ft
treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwatermoss and lichen
Winter weather nearby: Farmington 42 mi · Telluride 46 mi · Montrose 83 mi · Moab 128 mi · Grand Junction 129 mi · Clifton 129 mi · Gallup 130 mi · Aspen 144 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 Durango (37.2753°, -107.8801°, elevation 6,532 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.