Gilroy in Winter

In winter (December, January and February), Gilroy sees average daytime highs around 59°F and overnight lows near 41°F, with 9.8 in of rain over about 25 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 59°F. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 36% of the time across winter, and the air most often feels dry.

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

Avg daytime high
59°F
coldest season of the year
Avg overnight low
41°F
Rainfall
9.8 in
25 wet days
Avg wind
4 mph
Travel score
4.7
weakest season of the year
Months
Dec · Jan · Feb

Temperature in Gilroy in Winter

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 59°F.

A typical winter day in Gilroy reaches about 59°F and drops to 41°F overnight. The warmest of the three months is February, the coolest December.

30°40°50°60°70°80°DecJanFeb

Gilroy 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 daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan58° / 41°3.48.39.74.6
Feb60° / 43°3.48.510.65.0
Mar63° / 45°2.5811.76.0
Apr66° / 47°1.14.612.97.1
May70° / 50°0.52.8148.1
Jun75° / 53°0.10.614.59.2
Jul79° / 57°0.00.214.39.2
Aug79° / 57°0.00.113.49.2
Sep78° / 56°0.10.412.39.2
Oct73° / 51°0.71.9118.7
Nov64° / 45°1.44.7106.7
Dec58° / 40°3.07.79.54.6

Cloud cover in Winter

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 36% of the time across winter.

0%25%50%75%100%DecJanFeb

Chance of precipitation in Winter

Any precipitation

Gilroy gets around 9.8 in of rain over 25 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 4 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 2.8 kWh/m².

012345DecJanFeb
Planning a trip in winter

Is winter a good time to visit Gilroy?

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.

4.7
Sightseeing
4th-best month of the year
0.2
Beach & pool
4th-best month of the year

winter is a reasonable time to visit Gilroy for sightseeing.

What to pack for Gilroy in Winter

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

In winter, Gilroy sees daytime highs around 59°F and nights near 41°F. Worth packing: a warm layer and rain gear. About 25 days see rain.

a warm layerrain gear

Sea temperature near Gilroy in Winter

The nearest coast averages about 55°F across winter — the other half of the beach question. The full-year curve and swim-comfort zones are below.

The sea at the nearest coast (about 19 mi away) is warmest in September at about 58°F and coldest in April near 54°F.

The water stays below 68°F all year — cool enough that most swimmers want a wetsuit.

52°54°56°58°60°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbracingcool
Sea temperature (°F)Comfort
Jan55Bracing
Feb55Bracing
Mar55Bracing
Apr54Bracing
May54Bracing
Jun55Bracing
Jul57Bracing
Aug58Bracing
Sep58Bracing
Oct58Bracing
Nov56Bracing
Dec55Bracing

UV index in Gilroy 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 Gilroy peaks around June 22 at about 10 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 14 at about 2 (moderate).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 9 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModerateHighVery highExtremeVery highHighModerateJun 22UV 10Dec 14UV 2
UV index (midday)Level
Jan3Moderate
Feb4Moderate
Mar4Moderate
Apr7High
May8Very high
Jun11Extreme
Jul10Extreme
Aug10Very high
Sep7High
Oct5High
Nov2Moderate
Dec2Moderate

Air quality in Gilroy 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 Gilroy is worst in August — around 22 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 4.2× the cleanest month (June, 5 µg/m³).

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

0102030JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecGoodModerateGoodAug 1920 µg/m³Jun 135 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan7Good
Feb8Good
Mar8Good
Apr7Good
May6Good
Jun5Good
Jul8Good
Aug22Moderate
Sep15Moderate
Oct12Moderate
Nov8Good
Dec7Good
Location & terrain

Where is Gilroy?

Gilroy sits at 37.0°N, 121.6°W, 200 ft above sea level, in United States. The nearest listed city is Morgan Hill, 9.9 mi away.

Topography around Gilroy

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

Within 2 miles, the terrain around Gilroy has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 640 ft around an average of 217 ft above sea level; within 10 miles, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,871 ft; within 50 miles, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 5,161 ft.

The land around Gilroy is covered by artificial surfaces (49%) and cropland (25%) within 2 miles, trees (38%) and grassland (36%) within 10 miles, and grassland (39%) and trees (27%) within 50 miles.

2 miles
640 ft
10 miles
2,871 ft
50 miles
5,161 ft
treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater
Winter weather nearby: Morgan Hill 9.9 mi · Watsonville 12 mi · Hollister 14 mi · Prunedale 17 mi · Live Oak 23 mi · Salinas 23 mi · Santa Cruz 25 mi · Marina 25 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 Gilroy (37.0058°, -121.5683°, elevation 200 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.