Plattsburgh weather in December

In December, Plattsburgh sees average daytime highs of 33°F and overnight lows near 22°F, with 3.0 in of precipitation across 11.6 wet days and about 8.7 hours of daylight. It is the 10th-warmest and 9th-wettest month of the year here.

Highs ease over the month, from about 37°F in the first days to 29°F by the end. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 13% of the time in December, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 8 h 54 min at the start of December to 8 h 42 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, December is Plattsburgh's 12th-clearest and 2nd-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Plattsburgh's year-round climate.

Daytime high
33°
10th warmest
Overnight low
22°
3rd coldest
Precipitation
3.0 in
11.6 wet days
Daylight
8 h 36 min
7:31 AM – 4:09 PM
Cloud cover
75%
12th clearest
Wind
7 mph
2nd windiest
Solar energy
1.17 kWh/m²
Travel score
0.0
out of 10

Plattsburgh is city in and county seat of Clinton County, New York, United States.

Density
1,163/km²
people per km²
Founded
1785

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

Temperature in December

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Highs ease over the month, from about 37°F in the first days to 29°F by the end.

A typical December day in Plattsburgh reaches about 33°F in the afternoon and slips back to 22°F overnight — a 11°F spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 20°F and 43°F. Set against its neighbours, December runs about 11°F cooler than November and about 7°F warmer than January.

20°40°151015202531
Avg high (°F)Avg low (°F)
13827
23727
33726
43626
53626
63625
73525
83524
93424
103423
113423
123322
133322
143322
153222
163221
173221
183221
193120
203120
213120
223119
233119
243019
253019
263018
272918
282918
292917
302917
312917

How December really feels in Plattsburgh

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
0
heat index over the day's high
Days feeling ≤ 32°F
31
20 feel bitter (≤ 14°F)

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

Plattsburgh weather by month

How December compares with the rest of the year at a glance. December is the 10th-warmest and 9th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°F)Rainfall (inches)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan26° / 12°2.59.88.790.0
Feb28° / 12°2.28.57.910.10.0
Mar37° / 22°2.911.16.711.60.1
Apr52° / 35°3.711.62.613.22.6
May65° / 46°4.0120.114.65.5
Jun74° / 55°4.412.3015.36.3
Jul78° / 62°4.212.80156.3
Aug76° / 60°4.212.6013.96.6
Sep69° / 53°3.79.8012.36.4
Oct56° / 42°4.312.40.510.73.5
Nov43° / 32°3.211.73.49.40.7
Dec33° / 22°3.011.68.88.70.0

Cloud cover in December

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 13% of the time in December, the cloudiest month of the year.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 12% of December, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 75%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
12377
22476
32476
42476
52476
62476
72476
82476
92575
102575
112575
122575
132575
142575
152575
162476
172476
182476
192476
202476
212476
222575
232674
242674
252674
262773
272773
282773
292773
302773
312773

Chance of precipitation in December

Any precipitationSnow

Plattsburgh gets around 3.0 in of rain and snow over 11.6 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 37% and peaks near 43% on the wettest days, and about 9 days bring snow. The odds ease toward the end of the month.

0%10%20%30%40%50%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
14323
24324
34225
44225
54126
64027
73927
83928
93829
103829
113729
123730
133630
143630
153630
163630
173630
183629
193629
203629
213629
223628
233628
243628
253628
263628
273628
283627
293628
303628
313528

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.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Dry (%)
1100
2100
3100
4100
5100
6100
7100
8100
9100
10100
11100
12100
13100
14100
15100
16100
17100
18100
19100
20100
21100
22100
23100
24100
25100
26100
27100
28100
29100
30100
31100

Wind in December

Winds average 7 mph in December.

Across December, daily wind ranges from about 7 mph on the calmest days to 8 mph at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

0246810151015202531
Wind speed (mph)Feels
18light breeze
28light breeze
38light breeze
48light breeze
58light breeze
68light breeze
77light breeze
87light breeze
97light breeze
107light breeze
117calm
127calm
137calm
147calm
157calm
167calm
177calm
187calm
197calm
207calm
217calm
227calm
237calm
247calm
257calm
267calm
277calm
287calm
297calm
307calm
317calm

Sunrise & sunset in December

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 8 h 54 min at the start of December to 8 h 42 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 7:17 AM to 7:37 AM, and sunset from 4:10 PM to 4:17 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
18.97:174:10
28.87:194:09
38.87:204:09
48.87:214:09
58.87:224:09
68.87:234:08
78.77:244:08
88.77:254:08
98.77:254:08
108.77:264:08
118.77:274:08
128.77:284:08
138.77:294:08
148.77:304:09
158.67:304:09
168.67:314:09
178.67:324:09
188.67:324:10
198.67:334:10
208.67:334:10
218.67:344:11
228.67:344:11
238.67:354:12
248.67:354:12
258.67:364:13
268.67:364:13
278.67:364:14
288.67:374:15
298.67:374:15
308.77:374:16
318.77:374:17

Solar energy in December

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in December, about 1.17 kWh/m² — the year's lowest.

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 1.17 kWh/m² to a high of 5.87 kWh/m² in July across the year — December's 1.17 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

00.511.52151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
11.2Dim
21.2Dim
31.2Dim
41.2Dim
51.2Dim
61.2Dim
71.2Dim
81.2Dim
91.2Dim
101.2Dim
111.2Dim
121.2Dim
131.2Dim
141.2Dim
151.2Dim
161.2Dim
171.2Dim
181.2Dim
191.2Dim
201.2Dim
211.2Dim
221.2Dim
231.2Dim
241.2Dim
251.2Dim
261.2Dim
271.2Dim
281.2Dim
291.2Dim
301.3Dim
311.3Dim
Planning a trip in December

Hazard calendar for Plattsburgh

In seasonPeak

None of Plattsburgh's seasonal hazards are active in December. The full-year calendar below shows when the rainy season, cyclone risk and dust haze do peak.

Plattsburgh sits in the Atlantic hurricane belt; the season peaks August–October.

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

Is December a good time to visit Plattsburgh?

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
8th-best month of the year

December is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Plattsburgh.

What to pack for Plattsburgh in December

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

In December, Plattsburgh sees daytime highs around 33°F and nights near 22°F. Pack a warm layer and a heavy coat. Worth having: rain gear. About 12 days see rain.

a warm layera heavy coatrain gear

UV index in Plattsburgh in December

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in December peaks around 1. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Plattsburgh peaks around July 13 at about 8 (very high) — sunscreen and a hat are worth it in the middle of the day. It bottoms out near December 22 at about 1 (low).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 7 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLowModerateHighModerateModerateLowJul 13UV 8Dec 22UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan1Low
Feb2Moderate
Mar4Moderate
Apr5Moderate
May7High
Jun6High
Jul8Very high
Aug4Moderate
Sep5High
Oct3Moderate
Nov2Low
Dec1Low
Location & terrain

Where is Plattsburgh?

Plattsburgh sits at 44.7°N, 73.5°W, 138 ft above sea level, in United States. The nearest listed city is Colchester, 19 mi away.

Topography around Plattsburgh

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

Within 2 miles, the terrain around Plattsburgh has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 272 ft around an average of 151 ft above sea level; within 10 miles, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,457 ft; within 50 miles, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 5,325 ft.

The land around Plattsburgh is covered by water (34%), trees (26%) and artificial surfaces (22%) within 2 miles, trees (45%) and water (28%) within 10 miles, and trees (69%) within 50 miles.

2 miles
272 ft
10 miles
1,457 ft
50 miles
5,325 ft
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwaterwetland
December weather nearby: Colchester 19 mi · Burlington 19 mi · South Burlington 21 mi · Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu 43 mi · Saint-Constant 47 mi · Candiac 47 mi · Sainte-Catherine 49 mi · Châteauguay 50 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 Plattsburgh (44.6995°, -73.4529°, elevation 138 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. Tropical-cyclone seasons are the published climatological basin seasons (NOAA National Hurricane Center / regional warning centres). 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).