Pinehurst in Winter

In winter (December, January and February), Pinehurst sees average daytime highs around 54°F and overnight lows near 36°F, with 10.6 in of precipitation over about 27 wet days across the season. It is the coldest season of the year and the driest season of the year.

Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 54°F. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 38% of the time across winter, and the air most often feels dry.

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

Avg daytime high
54°F
coldest season of the year
Avg overnight low
36°F
Precipitation
10.6 in
27 wet days
Avg wind
7 mph
Travel score
3.4
weakest season of the year
Months
Dec · Jan · Feb

Temperature in Pinehurst in Winter

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 54°F.

A typical winter day in Pinehurst reaches about 54°F and drops to 36°F overnight. The warmest of the three months is February, the coolest January.

20°40°60°80°DecJanFeb

How winter really feels in Pinehurst

Once humidity and wind are folded in, winter brings about 0 days that feel above 90°F and 73 that feel at or below 32°F.

Days feeling ≥ 90°F
0
heat index over the day's high
Days feeling ≤ 32°F
73
wind chill below the day's low

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

Pinehurst 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
Jan52° / 34°3.79.719.92.9
Feb56° / 36°3.28.9110.73.7
Mar63° / 43°3.910.10.311.75.6
Apr73° / 51°3.58.7012.97.0
May80° / 60°3.310.6013.86.4
Jun86° / 68°4.312.9014.34.5
Jul89° / 72°4.615.5014.13.6
Aug87° / 70°4.613.5013.34.3
Sep81° / 64°4.810.3012.26.2
Oct72° / 53°3.27.4011.17.3
Nov62° / 42°3.27.70.110.15.8
Dec55° / 37°3.78.80.49.73.6

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 precipitationSnow

Pinehurst gets around 10.6 in of rain and snow over 27 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 7 mph across winter.

0246810DecJanFeb

Sunrise & sunset in Winter

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 9 h 48 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 2.7 kWh/m².

01234DecJanFeb
Planning a trip in winter

Is winter a good time to visit Pinehurst?

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.

3.4
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 Pinehurst.

What to pack for Pinehurst in Winter

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

In winter, Pinehurst sees daytime highs around 54°F and nights near 36°F. Pack a warm layer. Worth having: rain gear. About 27 days see rain.

a warm layerrain gear

UV index in Pinehurst in Winter

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV across winter averages around 3 — enough to warrant sun protection. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Pinehurst peaks around July 14 at about 9 (very high) — 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.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModerateHighVery highHighModerateJul 14UV 9Dec 20UV 2
UV index (midday)Level
Jan3Moderate
Feb4Moderate
Mar6High
Apr7Very high
May8Very high
Jun9Very high
Jul9Very high
Aug8Very high
Sep7High
Oct5Moderate
Nov4Moderate
Dec2Moderate

Air quality in Pinehurst 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 Pinehurst is worst in July — around 18 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 2.4× the cleanest month (December, 8 µg/m³).

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

01020JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecGoodModerateGoodJul 1918 µg/m³Dec 188 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan8Good
Feb11Good
Mar14Moderate
Apr13Moderate
May13Moderate
Jun16Moderate
Jul18Moderate
Aug17Moderate
Sep15Moderate
Oct13Moderate
Nov9Good
Dec8Good
Location & terrain

Where is Pinehurst?

Pinehurst sits at 35.2°N, 79.5°W, 525 ft above sea level, in United States. The nearest listed city is Sanford, 25 mi away.

Topography around Pinehurst

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

Within 2 miles, the terrain around Pinehurst has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 217 ft around an average of 486 ft above sea level; within 10 miles, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 449 ft; within 50 miles, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,227 ft.

The land around Pinehurst is covered by trees (72%) within 2 miles, trees (79%) within 10 miles, and trees (76%) within 50 miles.

2 miles
217 ft
10 miles
449 ft
50 miles
1,227 ft
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaceswater
Winter weather nearby: Sanford 25 mi · Fort Bragg 27 mi · Laurinburg 29 mi · Hope Mills 34 mi · Fayetteville 35 mi · Asheboro 40 mi · Albemarle 43 mi · Fuquay-Varina 47 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 Pinehurst (35.1954°, -79.4695°, elevation 525 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.