Sumter in Winter

In winter (December, January and February), Sumter sees average daytime highs around 58°F and overnight lows near 39°F, with 10.4 in of precipitation over about 26 wet days across the season. It is the coldest season of the year and the 2nd-wettest season.

Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 58°F. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 37% of the time across winter, and the air most often feels dry.

Winter is Sumter's 3rd-best season to visit on our travel score. For the whole year in context, see Sumter's year-round climate.

Avg daytime high
58°F
coldest season of the year
Avg overnight low
39°F
Precipitation
10.4 in
26 wet days
Avg wind
8 mph
Travel score
4.6
3rd-best season
Months
Dec · Jan · Feb

Temperature in Sumter in Winter

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 58°F.

A typical winter day in Sumter reaches about 58°F and drops to 39°F overnight. The warmest of the three months is February, the coolest January.

20°40°60°80°DecJanFeb

How winter really feels in Sumter

Once humidity and wind are folded in, winter brings about 0 days that feel above 90°F and 28 that feel at or below 32°F.

Days feeling ≥ 90°F
0
heat index over the day's high
Days feeling ≤ 32°F
28
wind chill below the day's low

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

Sumter 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
Jan56° / 37°3.58.90.5104.1
Feb60° / 40°3.38.60.310.74.9
Mar67° / 46°3.49.40.111.76.4
Apr76° / 54°3.48012.87.2
May82° / 63°3.19.5013.76.2
Jun88° / 71°4.213.2014.24.1
Jul91° / 74°4.715.50143.2
Aug89° / 73°4.714.5013.33.7
Sep84° / 67°4.210012.25.6
Oct75° / 56°3.37.6011.17.4
Nov66° / 45°2.87.2010.26.6
Dec59° / 40°3.78.60.19.84.7

Cloud cover in Winter

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 37% of the time across winter.

0%25%50%75%100%DecJanFeb

Chance of precipitation in Winter

Any precipitationSnow

Sumter gets around 10.4 in of rain and snow over 26 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 8 mph across winter.

051015DecJanFeb

Sunrise & sunset in Winter

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 9 h 54 min in early December to 11 h 12 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.

01234DecJanFeb
Planning a trip in winter

Is winter a good time to visit Sumter?

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.

4.6
Sightseeing
3rd-best month of the year
0.3
Beach & pool
4th-best month of the year

winter is a reasonable time to visit Sumter for sightseeing.

What to pack for Sumter in Winter

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

In winter, Sumter sees daytime highs around 58°F and nights near 39°F. Worth packing: a warm layer and rain gear. About 26 days see rain.

a warm layerrain gear

UV index in Sumter 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 Sumter peaks around July 13 at about 9 (very high) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 20 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 highHighModerateJul 13UV 9Dec 20UV 3
UV index (midday)Level
Jan3Moderate
Feb5Moderate
Mar6High
Apr7High
May8Very high
Jun9Very high
Jul9Very high
Aug8Very high
Sep7Very high
Oct5Moderate
Nov4Moderate
Dec3Moderate

Air quality in Sumter 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 Sumter is worst in March — around 18 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 2.3× the cleanest month (December, 8 µg/m³).

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

01020JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecGoodModerateGoodJul 1518 µg/m³Dec 178 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan8Good
Feb11Good
Mar18Moderate
Apr13Moderate
May13Moderate
Jun17Moderate
Jul18Moderate
Aug16Moderate
Sep12Good
Oct9Good
Nov8Good
Dec8Good
Location & terrain

Where is Sumter?

Sumter sits at 33.9°N, 80.3°W, 171 ft above sea level, in United States. The nearest listed city is Florence, 38 mi away.

Topography around Sumter

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

Within 2 miles, the terrain around Sumter has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 98 ft around an average of 171 ft above sea level; within 10 miles, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 305 ft; within 50 miles, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,079 ft.

The land around Sumter is covered by trees (63%) and artificial surfaces (25%) within 2 miles, trees (64%) within 10 miles, and trees (75%) within 50 miles.

2 miles
98 ft
10 miles
305 ft
50 miles
1,079 ft
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater
Winter weather nearby: Florence 38 mi · Columbia 40 mi · West Columbia 42 mi · Saint Andrews 44 mi · Seven Oaks 47 mi · Lexington 52 mi · Summerville 63 mi · Goose Creek 67 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 Sumter (33.9204°, -80.3415°, elevation 171 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.