Dry weather: only 445 mm of rain and snow a year falls on Calgary, less than on 82% of Canadian towns
Midsummer highs settle at about 23.5°C. June is the wettest month, January the driest. Summers stay cool: July afternoons here are cooler than in 80% of Canadian towns. Comfortable outdoor weather, highs of 23–24°C, belongs to July and August.
Figures: ECCC’s 1991–2020 normals at Calgary (Airport) (9.6 km north-east).
A year in Calgary at a glance
Each month’s typical high and low, in °C.
What stands out about Calgary’s climate
Compared with Canadian towns, with its place among towns of 2,500+ in Alberta beside it.
What a year in Calgary feels like
Typical highs and lows by season and by month, from ECCC’s 1991–2020 normals.
About 193 frosts and 87 warm days a year
From September to May frost is routine, and in December it comes on almost every night. On about 22 nights a year the air falls below −20°C.
Frost days by month
Average days at 0°C or below
Days above 20°C by month
Average days
About 445 mm of rain and snow a year
Some 72 days a year see 1 mm of rain or snow or more.
Rain and snow by month
Millimetres
Rain alone by month
Millimetres
Snowfall: about 139 cm in a normal year
Snow falls from September to May, most of all in March (about 24 cm).
Snowfall by month
Centimetres
Snow on the ground by month
Centimetres at month’s end
Heating a home in Calgary
85% of a year’s heating need falls between October and April. Months averaging under 10°C: October to May.
Warm days count for nothing; each colder day adds how far its mean sits below 18°C. Over a year, a home here needs more heating than 68% of Canadian towns.
Living with Calgary’s climate
Gardening, time outside, winter cold and summer heat, from the 1991–2020 normals.
Tender plants are usually safe from around 21 May until frost returns near 18 September: about 119 days.
Warm afternoons without cold nights, 17–27°C and 8°C or more, mark Jul and Aug.
Parks & trails →Count on some 42 days a year when the wind makes it feel below −20.
Muggy heat with a humidex over 30 arrives on about 9 days a year.
For the weather that does damage, from ice storms to floods, see Calgary’s hazards page.
Flood & hazards →ECCC’s normals location: Calgary (Airport)
ECCC builds the Calgary (Airport) normals from 2 stations’ records over 1991–2020, joined where one replaced another.
| Distance from the town | 9.6 km north-east |
| Station altitude | 1,099 m |
| Completeness | at least 20 years |
| WMO standard normals | No |
| Coldest reading, 1991–2020 | −39.7°C |
| Hottest reading, 1991–2020 | 36.5°C |
| Average wind | 13.8 km/h on average, most often from the south |
| Next-nearest location | Queenstown, 90 km |
How Calgary compares
Compared with 2,611 towns and neighbourhoods of 2,500 or more across Canada; the dots mark the other normals locations in Alberta.
Nearby towns’ climate
Places around Calgary whose figures come from another normals location. Distances here run 57–72 km: that is how far the nearest places with figures are from Calgary.
| Town | July high | January low | Rain & snow |
|---|---|---|---|
| Calgary Calgary (Airport) | 23.5°C | −13.5°C | 445 mm |
| Stoney 142, 143, 144 57 km · Banff | 22.5°C 1.0°C cooler | −13.5°C about the same | 454 mm |
| Carstairs 57 km · Sundre | 22.8°C 0.7°C cooler | −18.0°C 4.5°C colder | 496 mm |
| Wheatland County 58 km · Queenstown | 25.0°C 1.5°C warmer | −13.7°C about the same | 412 mm |
Calgary weather by month
Each month’s normals, 1991–2020: high, low, mean, precipitation and snowfall.
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Rain & snow | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | −1.5°C | −13.5°C | −7.6°C | 10 mm | 17 cm |
| February | 0.1°C | −11.8°C | −5.9°C | 12 mm | 17 cm |
| March | 3.8°C | −8.1°C | −2.2°C | 18 mm | 24 cm |
| April | 10.8°C | −1.9°C | 4.5°C | 30 mm | 23 cm |
| May | 16.4°C | 3.4°C | 9.9°C | 61 mm | 10 cm |
| June | 19.7°C | 7.7°C | 13.7°C | 113 mm | under 1 cm |
| July | 23.5°C | 10.2°C | 16.9°C | 66 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 23.1°C | 9.2°C | 16.2°C | 54 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 18.3°C | 4.7°C | 11.5°C | 37 mm | 2 cm |
| October | 11.1°C | −1.3°C | 4.9°C | 17 mm | 12 cm |
| November | 4.1°C | −7.5°C | −1.7°C | 16 mm | 19 cm |
| December | −0.4°C | −12.1°C | −6.3°C | 13 mm | 16 cm |
| Year | 10.8°C | −1.8°C | 4.5°C | 445 mm | 139 cm |
A December here can run from −38.2°C to 19.5°C
February is the least predictable month: about two years in three its average lands within 4.1°C of the normal, −5.9°C. June is the steadiest, within 1.1°C.
Where Calgary’s numbers come from
Averages over 30 years, not a forecast.
- Normals: the 1991–2020 normals from ECCC for Calgary (Airport), its nearest location with complete temperatures.
- Comparisons: a pool of Canadian towns and neighbourhoods of 2,500 or more, read alike; whole cities and reserves stay out of it.
- Not on this page: a sunshine figure (ECCC published none for 1991–2020) and any lapse-rate correction for height, as the town has no elevation here.
Canadian Climate Normals 1991–2020 · ECCC Data Services End-use Licence. Data Source: Environment and Climate Change Canada
Questions about Calgary’s climate
How warm does Calgary get in summer?
Highs reach 23.5°C on an average July day; no month is warmer.
How cold does Calgary get in winter?
In January, the coldest month, the typical low is −13.5°C.
How much rain and snow does Calgary get?
Precipitation totals 445 mm a year, with June the wettest month (113 mm) and January the driest (10 mm).
How long does snow stay on the ground?
Count on about 93 days of snow cover a year, 1 cm or deeper.
Are these figures for Calgary itself?
Yes, measured at Calgary (Airport), which sits inside Calgary’s boundary.
Data Source: Environment and Climate Change Canada · ECCC Data Services End-use Licence Today’s forecast for Calgary →
Adapted from Statistics Canada (Census of Population 2021, population estimates 2025, 2021 census boundaries) under the Statistics Canada Open Licence; this does not constitute an endorsement by Statistics Canada. Neighbourhood names in some cities © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).