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Typical December weather

Santa Barbara

California · December

Genuinely wet, and colder after dark than anyone packs for.

64° days
40° nights

about 4 rainy days · 10 hours of daylight · ocean 60°

What to pack

What December feels like

December brings the coldest nights of the year, and away from the waterfront they surprise people every winter — frost on the windshields out toward the airport is normal. The harbor parade of lights is the local December event, weather permitting.

Expect about 4 days with real rain — enough to notice, not enough to plan around. The air runs dry — whatever the thermometer says, it wears easy.

Can you swim?

The ocean runs about 60° — cold — a quick dip takes resolve.

The numbers

Typical high64°
Typical low40°
Days with real rain4
Total rain2.9 in
Humiditydry air
Water temperature60°
Sunrise / sunset (mid-month)6:58 am / 4:50 pm

How December compares

See the whole year in Santa Barbara ›