Worcester weather in December

In December, Worcester sees average daytime highs of 39°F and overnight lows near 26°F, with 4.3 in of precipitation across 10.5 wet days and about 9 hours of daylight. It is the 10th-warmest and 1st-wettest month of the year here.

Highs ease over the month, from about 43°F in the first days to 37°F by the end. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 29% of the time in December, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 9 h 06 min at the start of December to 9 hours by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, December is Worcester's 8th-clearest and 4th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Worcester's year-round climate.

Daytime high
39°
10th warmest
Overnight low
26°
3rd coldest
Precipitation
4.3 in
10.5 wet days
Daylight
8 h 54 min
7:16 AM – 4:11 PM
Cloud cover
61%
8th clearest
Wind
8 mph
4th windiest
Solar energy
1.61 kWh/m²
Travel score
0.1
out of 10

Worcester is county seat city in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States.

Density
2,074/km²
people per km²
Founded
1848

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 43°F in the first days to 37°F by the end.

A typical December day in Worcester reaches about 39°F in the afternoon and slips back to 26°F overnight — a 13°F spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 28°F and 53°F. Set against its neighbours, December runs about 10°F cooler than November and about 5°F warmer than January.

20°40°60°151015202531
Avg high (°F)Avg low (°F)
14430
24330
34329
44229
54229
64228
74128
84128
94027
104027
114027
123926
133926
143926
153926
163826
173825
183825
193825
203825
213825
223825
233824
243724
253724
263724
273724
283723
293723
303623
313623

How December really feels in Worcester

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
4 feel bitter (≤ 14°F)

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

Worcester weather by month

How December compares with the rest of the year at a glance. December is the 10th-warmest and 1st-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°F)Rainfall (inches)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan34° / 20°3.49.86.49.30.0
Feb37° / 21°3.18.65.710.30.0
Mar44° / 29°4.210.75.211.60.9
Apr56° / 39°3.711.31.513.13.7
May67° / 49°3.210.8014.45.9
Jun76° / 58°3.911.50156.5
Jul82° / 64°3.610.6014.86.2
Aug80° / 63°3.810.2013.76.6
Sep72° / 55°3.68.5012.36.9
Oct60° / 44°3.99.80.310.85.0
Nov49° / 35°3.49.11.29.62.1
Dec39° / 26°4.310.55.590.1

Cloud cover in December

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 29% of the time in December.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 16% of December, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 55%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
14852
24753
34753
44753
54753
64753
74654
84555
94555
104456
114456
124456
134357
144357
154357
164357
174357
184357
194357
204357
214555
224555
234555
244555
254654
264753
274753
284753
294753
304753
314753

Chance of precipitation in December

Any precipitationSnow

Worcester gets around 4.3 in of rain and snow over 10.5 wet days in December, the wettest month. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Day to day, the chance of measurable precipitation averages around 34% and peaks near 35% on the wettest days, and about 6 days bring snow.

0%10%20%30%40%50%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
13112
23213
33214
43215
53316
63316
73317
83418
93418
103418
113419
123519
133519
143519
153418
163418
173418
183417
193417
203417
213417
223317
233317
243317
253417
263417
273417
283417
293418
303518
313518

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 8 mph in December.

Across December, daily wind ranges from about 8 mph on the calmest days to 9 mph at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

051015151015202531
Wind speed (mph)Feels
18light breeze
28light breeze
38light breeze
48light breeze
58light breeze
68light breeze
78light breeze
88light breeze
98light breeze
108light breeze
118light breeze
128light breeze
138light breeze
148light breeze
158light breeze
168light breeze
178light breeze
188light breeze
198light breeze
208light breeze
218light breeze
228light breeze
238light breeze
248light breeze
259light breeze
269light breeze
279light breeze
289light breeze
299light breeze
309light breeze
319light breeze

Sunrise & sunset in December

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 9 h 06 min at the start of December to 9 hours by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days shrink by about 6 minutes over December. Sunrise moves from 7:03 AM to 7:22 AM, and sunset from 4:11 PM to 4:19 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
19.17:034:11
29.17:044:11
39.17:054:11
49.17:064:10
59.17:074:10
69.07:084:10
79.07:094:10
89.07:094:10
99.07:104:10
109.07:114:10
119.07:124:10
129.07:134:10
139.07:134:10
148.97:144:11
158.97:154:11
168.97:164:11
178.97:164:11
188.97:174:12
198.97:174:12
208.97:184:12
218.97:194:13
228.97:194:13
238.97:194:14
248.97:204:14
258.97:204:15
268.97:214:16
278.97:214:16
288.97:214:17
298.97:214:17
308.97:224:18
319.07:224:19

Solar energy in December

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in December, about 1.61 kWh/m² — the year's lowest.

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 1.61 kWh/m² to a high of 5.87 kWh/m² in July across the year — December's 1.61 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

00.511.522.5151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
11.7Dim
21.7Dim
31.7Dim
41.7Dim
51.7Dim
61.7Dim
71.6Dim
81.6Dim
91.6Dim
101.6Dim
111.6Dim
121.6Dim
131.6Dim
141.6Dim
151.6Dim
161.6Dim
171.6Dim
181.6Dim
191.6Dim
201.6Dim
211.6Dim
221.6Dim
231.6Dim
241.6Dim
251.6Dim
261.6Dim
271.6Dim
281.6Dim
291.7Dim
301.7Dim
311.7Dim
Planning a trip in December

Is December a good time to visit Worcester?

Our two travel scores rate December for general sightseeing and for beach or pool weather — 0 (poor) to 10 (ideal).

0.1
Sightseeing
10th-best month of the year
0.0
Beach & pool
9th-best month of the year

December is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Worcester.

What to pack for Worcester in December

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

In December, Worcester sees daytime highs around 39°F and nights near 26°F. Pack a warm layer and a heavy coat. Worth having: rain gear. About 11 days see rain.

a warm layera heavy coatrain gear

UV index in Worcester 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 Worcester peaks around July 10 at about 7 (very high) — sunscreen and a hat are worth it in the middle of the day. It bottoms out near December 23 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 10UV 7Dec 23UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan1Low
Feb3Moderate
Mar4Moderate
Apr5High
May7Very high
Jun7Very high
Jul8Very high
Aug5High
Sep6High
Oct3Moderate
Nov2Moderate
Dec1Low
Location & terrain

Where is Worcester?

Worcester sits at 42.3°N, 71.8°W, 482 ft above sea level, in United States. The nearest listed city is Auburn, 5.0 mi away.

Topography around Worcester

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

Within 2 miles, the terrain around Worcester has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 351 ft around an average of 551 ft above sea level; within 10 miles, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,155 ft; within 50 miles, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 3,176 ft.

The land around Worcester is covered by artificial surfaces (52%) and trees (41%) within 2 miles, trees (79%) within 10 miles, and trees (86%) within 50 miles.

2 miles
351 ft
10 miles
1,155 ft
50 miles
3,176 ft
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaceswaterwetland
December weather nearby: Auburn 5.0 mi · Shrewsbury 5.0 mi · Holden 6.8 mi · Grafton 6.8 mi · Marlborough 14 mi · Milford 17 mi · Ashland 17 mi · Southbridge 17 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 Worcester (42.2626°, -71.8023°, elevation 482 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. 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).