Pacific Grove in Winter

In winter (December, January and February), Pacific Grove sees average daytime highs around 55°F and overnight lows near 51°F, with 13.1 in of rain over about 30 wet days across the season. It is the 3rd-warmest season and the wettest season of the year.

Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 55°F. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 38% of the time across winter, and the air most often feels dry.

Winter is Pacific Grove's weakest season of the year to visit on our travel score. Pacific Grove has little temperature swing across the year, so its calendar seasons blur — the season framing matters less here than for a place with four distinct seasons. For the whole year in context, see Pacific Grove's year-round climate.

Avg daytime high
55°F
3rd-warmest season
Avg overnight low
51°F
Rainfall
13.1 in
30 wet days
Avg wind
10 mph
Travel score
3.5
weakest season of the year
Months
Dec · Jan · Feb

Temperature in Pacific Grove in Winter

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 55°F.

A typical winter day in Pacific Grove reaches about 55°F and drops to 51°F overnight. The warmest of the three months is December, the coolest February.

40°50°60°70°DecJanFeb

Pacific Grove 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
Jan55° / 51°4.5109.83.6
Feb54° / 51°4.59.910.63.3
Mar54° / 51°3.39.211.73.4
Apr54° / 51°1.55.812.93.6
May54° / 52°0.63.313.94.0
Jun55° / 53°0.21.314.54.6
Jul57° / 55°0.00.114.25.2
Aug59° / 56°0.10.313.45.8
Sep60° / 57°0.10.712.26.2
Oct60° / 56°0.92.711.16.0
Nov57° / 54°2.15.8104.7
Dec55° / 52°4.09.69.53.7

Cloud cover in Winter

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 38% of the time across winter.

0%25%50%75%100%DecJanFeb

Chance of precipitation in Winter

Any precipitation

Pacific Grove gets around 13.1 in of rain over 30 wet days across winter. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

0%10%20%30%40%50%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 10 mph across winter.

051015DecJanFeb

Sunrise & sunset in Winter

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 9 h 42 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 2.9 kWh/m².

012345DecJanFeb
Planning a trip in winter

Hazard calendar for Pacific Grove

In seasonPeak

In winter, Pacific Grove overlaps its rainy season season. The full year is below, with each hazard's peak months called out.

Pacific Grove's rainy season runs November–March, when most of the year's rain falls.

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

Is winter a good time to visit Pacific Grove?

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.

3.5
Sightseeing
4th-best month of the year
Beach & pool
never really warm enough

winter is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Pacific Grove.

What to pack for Pacific Grove in Winter

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

In winter, Pacific Grove sees daytime highs around 55°F and nights near 51°F. Worth packing: a warm layer and rain gear. About 30 days see rain.

a warm layerrain gear

Sea temperature near Pacific Grove 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 offshore 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
Nov57Bracing
Dec55Bracing

UV index in Pacific Grove 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 Pacific Grove peaks around June 23 at about 10 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 13 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 23UV 10Dec 13UV 2
UV index (midday)Level
Jan3Moderate
Feb4Moderate
Mar5Moderate
Apr7High
May8Very high
Jun10Extreme
Jul10Extreme
Aug10Very high
Sep6High
Oct5High
Nov2Moderate
Dec2Moderate

Air quality in Pacific Grove 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 Pacific Grove is worst in August — around 17 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 2.9× the cleanest month (June, 6 µg/m³).

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

01020JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecGoodModerateGoodAug 1816 µg/m³Jun 186 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan7Good
Feb9Good
Mar8Good
Apr7Good
May7Good
Jun6Good
Jul6Good
Aug17Moderate
Sep11Good
Oct10Good
Nov9Good
Dec6Good
Location & terrain

Where is Pacific Grove?

Pacific Grove sits at 36.6°N, 121.9°W, 151 ft above sea level, in United States. The nearest listed city is Monterey, 1.9 mi away.

Topography around Pacific Grove

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

Within 2 miles, the terrain around Pacific Grove has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 778 ft around an average of 118 ft above sea level; within 10 miles, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,949 ft; within 50 miles, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 5,883 ft.

The land around Pacific Grove is covered by water (45%), trees (25%) and artificial surfaces (24%) within 2 miles, water (61%) and trees (22%) within 10 miles, and water (35%), trees (29%) and grassland (24%) within 50 miles.

2 miles
778 ft
10 miles
1,949 ft
50 miles
5,883 ft
treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater
Winter weather nearby: Monterey 1.9 mi · Seaside 3.7 mi · Marina 8.1 mi · Salinas 15 mi · Prunedale 17 mi · Watsonville 22 mi · Big Sur 25 mi · Santa Cruz 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 Pacific Grove (36.6177°, -121.9166°, elevation 151 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.