Climate averages 1991–2020
Riga weather
in December.
A cold month with moderate precipitation: the 10th warmest and the 5th driest of the year.
Long-term climate patterns, not a forecast for a particular trip.
December is a cold month in Riga: daytime highs average 0.8°C and nights cool to about -2.6°C. By daytime temperature it is the 10th warmest of the 12 months.
Expect about 49 mm of precipitation on roughly 12 days, which makes December a month with moderate precipitation (the 5th driest of the 12 months). Daylight, from sunrise to sunset, lasts about 6 h 52 min on an average December day.
The nearest other city in this atlas is Šiauliai (123 km away). In December its highs average 0.3°C, 0.5°C cooler than Riga, with 40 mm of precipitation.
Among the 2 cities listed in Latvia, Riga ranks 1st of 2 for the warmest December highs and 2nd of 2 for the driest December (precipitation, lowest first). The mean December high of those 2 cities is 0.2°C; Riga is 0.6°C warmer than that mean.
From December to January, average highs fall by 1.7°C to -0.8°C, and monthly precipitation falls from 49 mm to 46 mm.
The annual picture
December in context
Monthly precipitation
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
Riga climate table
| Month | Average highHigh / low | Average low | Precipitation mm/month | Wet days ≥1 mm/day | Daylight hours/dayDaylight h/day |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | -0.8°C-4.9°C | -4.9°C | 46 | 11.2 | 7.57 h |
| February | -0.4°C-5.3°C | -5.3°C | 39 | 9.9 | 9.49 h |
| March | 3.9°C-2.7°C | -2.7°C | 38 | 9.7 | 11.812 h |
| April | 10.8°C2.3°C | 2.3°C | 41 | 9.2 | 14.214 h |
| May | 16.4°C7.8°C | 7.8°C | 52 | 10.3 | 16.516 h |
| June | 20.0°C12.2°C | 12.2°C | 73 | 11.3 | 17.718 h |
| July | 22.4°C15.0°C | 15.0°C | 70 | 11.7 | 17.217 h |
| August | 21.6°C14.5°C | 14.5°C | 79 | 13.0 | 15.215 h |
| September | 16.6°C10.5°C | 10.5°C | 70 | 11.6 | 12.913 h |
| October | 10.0°C5.3°C | 5.3°C | 80 | 14.2 | 10.410 h |
| November | 4.4°C1.0°C | 1.0°C | 59 | 12.8 | 8.28 h |
| December, selected | 0.8°C-2.6°C | -2.6°C | 49 | 12.0 | 6.97 h |
Precipitation (rain or snow, as water) is the average of the 30 separate monthly totals. A wet 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
- Šiauliai in DecemberLithuania · 123 kmHigh 0.3°C · Low -3.4°C · 40 mm precipitation
- Panevėžys in DecemberLithuania · 136 kmHigh 0.5°C · Low -3.0°C · 42 mm precipitation
- Daugavpils in DecemberLatvia · 190 kmHigh -0.5°C · Low -3.9°C · 43 mm precipitation
- Tartu in DecemberEstonia · 223 kmHigh -0.4°C · Low -3.9°C · 44 mm precipitation
- Kaunas in DecemberLithuania · 228 kmHigh 0.5°C · Low -3.1°C · 45 mm precipitation
- Klaipėda in DecemberLithuania · 229 kmHigh 2.7°C · Low -0.5°C · 61 mm rain
- Vilnius in DecemberLithuania · 261 kmHigh 0.1°C · Low -3.5°C · 47 mm precipitation
- Pskov in DecemberRussia · 271 kmHigh -0.8°C · Low -4.4°C · 43 mm precipitation
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 Riga) is explained once on the Riga year overview and on the Sources, method and limits page.