Sun City in Winter

In winter (December, January and February), Sun City sees average daytime highs around 64°F and overnight lows near 43°F, with 9.7 in of rain over about 19 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 64°F. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 48% of the time across winter, and the air most often feels dry.

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

Avg daytime high
64°F
coldest season of the year
Avg overnight low
43°F
Rainfall
9.7 in
19 wet days
Avg wind
4 mph
Travel score
6.5
3rd-best season
Months
Dec · Jan · Feb

Temperature in Sun City in Winter

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 64°F.

A typical winter day in Sun City reaches about 64°F and drops to 43°F overnight. The warmest of the three months is February, the coolest December.

40°60°80°DecJanFeb

How winter really feels in Sun City

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

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

winter sits comfortably in between — no days that feel dangerously hot or drop to a hard freeze once humidity and wind are folded in.

Sun City 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
Jan64° / 42°3.26.4106.5
Feb64° / 44°4.17.110.76.4
Mar67° / 47°2.56.311.77.0
Apr71° / 50°1.24.412.87.9
May76° / 55°0.62.513.78.7
Jun83° / 60°0.10.714.27.8
Jul89° / 66°0.10.9145.5
Aug91° / 67°0.10.613.35.0
Sep87° / 64°0.21.112.26.1
Oct80° / 56°0.82.811.28.3
Nov70° / 47°1.23.310.38.0
Dec63° / 42°2.45.29.86.5

Cloud cover in Winter

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 48% of the time across winter.

0%25%50%75%100%DecJanFeb

Chance of precipitation in Winter

Any precipitation

Sun City gets around 9.7 in of rain over 19 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 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 3.4 kWh/m².

024DecJanFeb
Planning a trip in winter

Is winter a good time to visit Sun City?

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.

6.5
Sightseeing
3rd-best month of the year
1.9
Beach & pool
4th-best month of the year

winter is a reasonable time to visit Sun City for sightseeing.

What to pack for Sun City in Winter

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

In winter, Sun City sees daytime highs around 64°F and nights near 43°F. Worth packing: a warm layer. About 19 days see rain.

a warm layer

Sea temperature near Sun City in Winter

The nearest coast averages about 60°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 34 mi away) is warmest in August at about 70°F and coldest in January near 59°F.

It's comfortable for a long swim from Jul 6 to Oct 6 — about 3.1 months when the water holds above 68°F.

60°65°70°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbracingcoolrefreshingcomfortable to swim
Sea temperature (°F)Comfort
Jan59Cool
Feb59Cool
Mar60Cool
Apr61Cool
May63Cool
Jun66Cool
Jul69Refreshing
Aug70Refreshing
Sep70Refreshing
Oct67Cool
Nov64Cool
Dec61Cool

UV index in Sun City in Winter

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV across winter averages around 4 — enough to warrant sun protection. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Sun City peaks around July 12 at about 11 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 17 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 highExtremeVery highHighModerateJul 12UV 11Dec 17UV 3
UV index (midday)Level
Jan4Moderate
Feb5Moderate
Mar5Moderate
Apr8Very high
May8Very high
Jun11Extreme
Jul11Extreme
Aug10Extreme
Sep8Very high
Oct6High
Nov4Moderate
Dec3Moderate

Air quality in Sun City 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 Sun City is worst in September — around 40 µg/m³ PM2.5 (poor), about 5.4× the cleanest month (December, 7 µg/m³).

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

010203040JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecGoodModerateModerateGoodSep 1437 µg/m³Dec 207 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan8Good
Feb9Good
Mar11Good
Apr10Good
May8Good
Jun19Moderate
Jul12Moderate
Aug20Moderate
Sep40Poor
Oct10Good
Nov8Good
Dec7Good
Location & terrain

Where is Sun City?

Sun City sits at 33.7°N, 117.2°W, 1,424 ft above sea level, in United States. The nearest listed city is Menifee, 3.1 mi away.

Topography around Sun City

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

Within 2 miles, the terrain around Sun City has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 807 ft around an average of 1,503 ft above sea level; within 10 miles, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,516 ft; within 50 miles, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 11,421 ft.

The land around Sun City is covered by artificial surfaces (51%) and grassland (22%) within 2 miles, grassland (35%), artificial surfaces (22%) and shrubs (21%) within 10 miles, and shrubs (29%) within 50 miles.

2 miles
807 ft
10 miles
1,516 ft
50 miles
11,421 ft
treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater
Winter weather nearby: Menifee 3.1 mi · Perris 5.6 mi · Lake Elsinore 8.1 mi · Wildomar 8.7 mi · Mead Valley 11 mi · Murrieta 11 mi · Hemet 13 mi · San Jacinto 15 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 Sun City (33.7092°, -117.1973°, elevation 1,424 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.