Climate averages 1991–2020
Cincinnati weather
in December.
A cold, wet month: the 11th warmest and the 8th driest of the year.
Long-term climate patterns, not a forecast for a particular trip.
December is a cold month in Cincinnati: daytime highs average 5.6°C and nights cool to about -1.9°C. By daytime temperature it is the 11th warmest of the 12 months.
Expect about 92 mm of rain on roughly 10 days, which makes December a wet month (the 8th driest of the 12 months). Daylight, from sunrise to sunset, lasts about 9 h 29 min on an average December day.
The nearest other city in this atlas is Dayton (76 km away). In December its highs average 4.6°C, 1.0°C cooler than Cincinnati, with 85 mm of rain.
Among the 498 cities listed in the United States, Cincinnati ranks joint 337th of 498 for the warmest December highs and 339th of 498 for the driest December (rainfall, lowest first). The mean December high of those 498 cities is 10.5°C; Cincinnati is 5.0°C cooler than that mean.
From December to January, average highs fall by 2.0°C to 3.5°C, and monthly rainfall falls from 92 mm to 83 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
Cincinnati climate table
| Month | Average highHigh / low | Average low | Rainfall mm/month | Rain days ≥1 mm/day | Daylight hours/dayDaylight h/day |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 3.5°C-4.8°C | -4.8°C | 83 | 10.1 | 9.810 h |
| February | 5.9°C-3.5°C | -3.5°C | 75 | 9.1 | 10.711 h |
| March | 11.2°C1.0°C | 1.0°C | 105 | 10.9 | 11.912 h |
| April | 17.7°C6.8°C | 6.8°C | 118 | 12.2 | 13.213 h |
| May | 22.4°C12.5°C | 12.5°C | 117 | 13.0 | 14.314 h |
| June | 27.0°C17.3°C | 17.3°C | 106 | 12.1 | 14.915 h |
| July | 28.9°C19.5°C | 19.5°C | 88 | 11.3 | 14.615 h |
| August | 28.5°C18.9°C | 18.9°C | 75 | 9.8 | 13.714 h |
| September | 25.0°C15.2°C | 15.2°C | 68 | 7.9 | 12.512 h |
| October | 18.4°C8.9°C | 8.9°C | 75 | 8.2 | 11.211 h |
| November | 11.3°C2.8°C | 2.8°C | 84 | 8.9 | 10.110 h |
| December, selected | 5.6°C-1.9°C | -1.9°C | 92 | 10.2 | 9.59 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
- Dayton in DecemberUnited States · 76 kmHigh 4.6°C · Low -2.3°C · 85 mm rain
- Lexington in DecemberUnited States · 127 kmHigh 7.1°C · Low -0.4°C · 106 mm rain
- Muncie in DecemberUnited States · 140 kmHigh 3.6°C · Low -3.7°C · 74 mm rain
- Louisville in DecemberUnited States · 145 kmHigh 7.1°C · Low -0.5°C · 102 mm rain
- Indianapolis in DecemberUnited States · 158 kmHigh 4.2°C · Low -2.9°C · 78 mm rain
- Fishers in DecemberUnited States · 158 kmHigh 4.0°C · Low -3.3°C · 76 mm rain
- Columbus in DecemberUnited States · 160 kmHigh 4.5°C · Low -2.7°C · 86 mm rain
- Carmel in DecemberUnited States · 167 kmHigh 3.9°C · Low -3.3°C · 76 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 Cincinnati) is explained once on the Cincinnati year overview and on the Sources, method and limits page.