Climate averages 1991–2020
San José weather
in December.
A warm, wet month: the 10th warmest and the 5th driest of the year.
Long-term climate patterns, not a forecast for a particular trip.
December is a warm month in San José: daytime highs average 23.8°C and nights cool to about 17.3°C. By daytime temperature it is the 10th warmest of the 12 months.
Expect about 169 mm of rain on roughly 18 days, which makes December a wet month (the 5th driest of the 12 months). Daylight, from sunrise to sunset, lasts about 11 h 33 min on an average December day.
The nearest other city in this atlas is David (247 km away). In December its highs average 29.1°C, 5.2°C warmer than San José, with 189 mm of rain.
From December to January, average highs rise by 0.7°C to 24.6°C, and monthly rainfall falls from 169 mm to 104 mm.
The annual picture
December in context
Monthly rainfall
Average total · mmAverages from hourly ERA5 reanalysis data. Actual weather varies from year to year. How these numbers are calculated
Every month, side by side
San José climate table
| Month | Average highHigh / low | Average low | Rainfall mm/month | Rain days ≥1 mm/day | Daylight hours/dayDaylight h/day |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 24.6°C16.8°C | 16.8°C | 104 | 13.3 | 11.612 h |
| February | 25.7°C16.9°C | 16.9°C | 69 | 11.9 | 11.812 h |
| March | 26.6°C17.4°C | 17.4°C | 65 | 13.9 | 12.112 h |
| April | 26.5°C18.1°C | 18.1°C | 102 | 18.0 | 12.312 h |
| May | 25.0°C18.6°C | 18.6°C | 357 | 27.8 | 12.613 h |
| June | 24.4°C18.6°C | 18.6°C | 385 | 28.8 | 12.713 h |
| July | 24.2°C18.3°C | 18.3°C | 293 | 28.2 | 12.613 h |
| August | 24.3°C18.2°C | 18.2°C | 345 | 28.5 | 12.412 h |
| September | 24.2°C18.1°C | 18.1°C | 391 | 29.1 | 12.212 h |
| October | 23.7°C18.1°C | 18.1°C | 430 | 30.1 | 11.912 h |
| November | 23.4°C17.9°C | 17.9°C | 312 | 25.5 | 11.712 h |
| December, selected | 23.8°C17.3°C | 17.3°C | 169 | 17.8 | 11.612 h |
Rainfall is the average of the 30 separate monthly totals. A rain day is a local calendar day with at least 1 mm of precipitation. Daylight is the calculated sunrise-to-sunset length, not measured sunshine.
Compare places
December in nearby cities
- David in DecemberPanama · 247 kmHigh 29.1°C · Low 21.5°C · 189 mm rain
- Granada, Nicaragua in DecemberNicaragua · 302 kmHigh 29.3°C · Low 23.8°C · 9.3 mm rain
- Masaya in DecemberNicaragua · 316 kmHigh 29.1°C · Low 22.4°C · 9.3 mm rain
- Managua in DecemberNicaragua · 340 kmHigh 32.1°C · Low 23.6°C · 4.6 mm rain
- Matagalpa in DecemberNicaragua · 388 kmHigh 26.3°C · Low 19.1°C · 13 mm rain
- León, Nicaragua in DecemberNicaragua · 413 kmHigh 31.6°C · Low 23.9°C · 8.1 mm rain
- Estelí in DecemberNicaragua · 430 kmHigh 27.0°C · Low 18.7°C · 6.3 mm rain
- Chinandega in DecemberNicaragua · 447 kmHigh 31.6°C · Low 23.9°C · 6.3 mm rain
Read the numbers correctly
Climate, not a promise.
These patterns help compare months. They cannot tell you the weather on a specific day of your trip.
Sources, method and limitsHow these numbers are made (what the highs, lows and rain days mean, the sources and the model cell used for San José) is explained once on the San José year overview and on the Sources, method and limits page.