New Orleans weather in December
In December, New Orleans has daytime highs averaging 18 °C, nights around 11 °C, with 9.4 wet days, and a sea temperature of 16 °C. Figures are 1991–2020 climate normals.
- 17.5°C Average high
- 10.8°C Average low
- 9.4days Wet days
- 103mm Rainfall
- 16.2°C Sea temperature
- 10h Daylight
Daily temperatures through December
How December develops
Averages for the first, middle and last part of the month, from daily 1991–2020 normals. Chance of rain is the share of years in which that calendar day recorded more than 1 mm.
| Days | Avg high | Avg low | Chance of rain |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1–10 December | 18.5 °C | 11.6 °C | 29 % |
| 11–20 December | 17.6 °C | 10.7 °C | 28 % |
| 21–31 December | 16.7 °C | 10.2 °C | 35 % |
- Average highs fall from 18.5 °C early in December to 16.7 °C by the end of it.
- Rain is most likely over days 21–31 of December (35 % of days) and least likely over days 11–20 (28 %).
What to expect
| Measure | Typical December | Share of the month |
|---|---|---|
| Days above 25 °C | 0.3 of 31 | 1 % |
| Days above 30 °C | 0 of 31 | 0 % |
| Days below 0 °C | 0.1 of 31 | 0 % |
| Days with more than 1 mm rain | 9.4 of 31 | 30 % |
Conditions in December
| Measure | Average |
|---|---|
| Mean temperature | 14 °C |
| Record high (1991–2020) | 26 °C |
| Record low (1991–2020) | -1.7 °C |
| Relative humidity | 77 % |
| Wind speed | 21 km/h |
| Cloud cover | 57 % |
December compared with the months around it
| Month | Avg high | Rainfall | Cloud |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 16.4 °C | 116 mm | 57 % |
| February | 18.3 °C | 113 mm | 57 % |
| October | 25.4 °C | 89 mm | 39 % |
| November | 20.7 °C | 84 mm | 45 % |
| December | 17.5 °C | 103 mm | 57 % |
See all twelve months for New Orleans
- December is the 11th warmest month here.
- It is the 5th driest month of the year.
- It ranks 9th for least cloud cover.
- Days last about 10 hours from sunrise to sunset.
- It rains on 9.4 of 31 days — 30 % of the month.
- Nights are about 6.7 °C cooler than the middle of the day.
- The hottest December day on record since 1991 reached 26 °C, 8.8 °C above the usual daytime high.
- Beach score: 32 / 100 — see how this is calculated.
QuestionsDecember in New Orleans, answered
How warm is New Orleans in December?
Daily highs average 18 °C and nights fall to about 11 °C, a spread of 6.7 °C between afternoon and dawn. That makes December the 11th warmest month of the year here.
Does it rain much in New Orleans in December?
December averages 103 mm of rain, spread over about 9 of the 31 days — 30 % of the month. Cloud cover averages 57 % of the sky.
Is the sea warm enough to swim in December?
The sea averages 16 °C off New Orleans in December. Most people find water below 20 °C bracing and above 25 °C comfortable for a long swim; this figure is a monthly surface average, so a sheltered bay on a still afternoon can be warmer.
How long are the days in December?
New Orleans averages 10 hours between sunrise and sunset in December. Day length is computed from latitude and date, so it is exact rather than modelled — but it says nothing about how much of that time is sunny.
Data sources and method
- ERA5 / ERA5-Land reanalysis — Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S), ECMWF. Copernicus Licence
- Open-Meteo — Open-Meteo.com. CC BY 4.0
- NOAA OISST v2.1 — NOAA Physical Sciences Laboratory. Public domain
- GeoNames — GeoNames.org. CC BY 4.0
- Normal period
- 1991–2020
- Dataset version
- era5-1991-2020-scores1.1
- Last processed
Measured values come from ERA5 reanalysis and are reproduced unchanged. Calculated by us: daylight hours, beach and comfort scores, monthly rankings, threshold day counts, chance of a wet day by date, ten-day averages within the month. Full formulas are on the methodology page.
Contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information 2026. Neither the European Commission nor ECMWF is responsible for any use that may be made of the Copernicus information or data it contains.