West Hempstead in Winter

In winter (December, January and February), West Hempstead sees average daytime highs around 41°F and overnight lows near 30°F, with 10.6 in of precipitation over about 28 wet days across the season. It is the coldest season of the year and the driest season of the year.

Over the season highs ease from about 47°F in early December to 42°F by late February. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 33% of the time across winter, and the air most often feels dry.

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

Avg daytime high
41°F
coldest season of the year
Avg overnight low
30°F
Precipitation
10.6 in
28 wet days
Avg wind
10 mph
Travel score
0.3
weakest season of the year
Months
Dec · Jan · Feb

Temperature in West Hempstead in Winter

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Over the season highs ease from about 47°F in early December to 42°F by late February.

A typical winter day in West Hempstead reaches about 41°F and drops to 30°F overnight. The warmest of the three months is December, the coolest January.

20°40°60°DecJanFeb

How winter really feels in West Hempstead

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

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

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

West Hempstead 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
Jan38° / 28°3.39.24.19.40.0
Feb40° / 28°3.18.73.610.40.1
Mar47° / 35°4.210.42.911.71.4
Apr57° / 45°3.610.60.313.14.0
May67° / 55°3.410.8014.26.0
Jun76° / 65°3.710.6014.96.6
Jul82° / 71°3.710.5014.66.2
Aug80° / 70°3.910.4013.66.5
Sep74° / 63°3.69.2012.37.0
Oct63° / 52°4.08.4010.95.8
Nov53° / 42°3.28.30.49.73.1
Dec44° / 33°4.19.72.49.10.7

Cloud cover in Winter

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 33% of the time across winter.

0%25%50%75%100%DecJanFeb

Chance of precipitation in Winter

Any precipitationSnow

West Hempstead gets around 10.6 in of rain and snow over 28 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 10 mph across winter.

051015DecJanFeb

Sunrise & sunset in Winter

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 9 h 18 min in early December to 10 h 54 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 2.3 kWh/m².

01234DecJanFeb
Planning a trip in winter

Hazard calendar for West Hempstead

In seasonPeak

None of West Hempstead's seasonal hazards peak in winter. The full-year calendar below shows when the rainy season, cyclone risk and dust haze do.

West Hempstead 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 winter a good time to visit West Hempstead?

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.

0.3
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 West Hempstead.

What to pack for West Hempstead in Winter

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

In winter, West Hempstead sees daytime highs around 41°F and nights near 30°F. Pack a warm layer and a heavy coat. Worth having: rain gear. About 28 days see rain.

a warm layera heavy coatrain gear

Sea temperature near West Hempstead in Winter

The nearest coast averages about 43°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 August at about 73°F and coldest in February near 40°F.

It's comfortable for a long swim from Jun 30 to Sep 25 — about 2.9 months when the water holds above 68°F.

40°50°60°70°80°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbracingcoolrefreshingwarmcomfortable to swim
Sea temperature (°F)Comfort
Jan43Bracing
Feb40Bracing
Mar40Bracing
Apr46Bracing
May55Bracing
Jun65Cool
Jul72Refreshing
Aug73Refreshing
Sep70Refreshing
Oct63Cool
Nov55Bracing
Dec48Bracing

UV index in West Hempstead in Winter

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV across winter averages around 2. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in West Hempstead peaks around July 11 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 8 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLowModerateHighVery highHighModerateLowJul 11UV 8Dec 22UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan2Low
Feb3Moderate
Mar5Moderate
Apr6High
May7Very high
Jun8Very high
Jul8Very high
Aug6High
Sep6High
Oct3Moderate
Nov2Moderate
Dec1Low

Air quality in West Hempstead 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 West Hempstead is worst in July — around 19 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 2.2× the cleanest month (November, 9 µg/m³).

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

0102030JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecGoodModerateGoodJul 1018 µg/m³Nov 169 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan11Good
Feb13Moderate
Mar15Moderate
Apr16Moderate
May18Moderate
Jun18Moderate
Jul19Moderate
Aug16Moderate
Sep13Moderate
Oct10Good
Nov9Good
Dec10Good
Location & terrain

Where is West Hempstead?

West Hempstead sits at 40.7°N, 73.7°W, 66 ft above sea level, in United States. The nearest listed city is Franklin Square, 1.2 mi away.

Topography around West Hempstead

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

Within 2 miles, the terrain around West Hempstead has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 108 ft around an average of 69 ft above sea level; within 10 miles, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 400 ft; within 50 miles, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,716 ft.

The land around West Hempstead is covered by artificial surfaces (50%) and trees (38%) within 2 miles, artificial surfaces (44%) and trees (28%) within 10 miles, and trees (43%) and water (40%) within 50 miles.

2 miles
108 ft
10 miles
400 ft
50 miles
1,716 ft
treesgrasslandartificial surfacesbare terrainwaterwetland
Winter weather nearby: Franklin Square 1.2 mi · Hempstead 1.9 mi · Garden City 1.9 mi · Uniondale 3.1 mi · North Valley Stream 3.1 mi · Mineola 3.1 mi · Floral Park 3.1 mi · Rockville Centre 3.1 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 West Hempstead (40.7048°, -73.6501°, elevation 66 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.