Precipitation in Forest Heights trails that of 82% of Canadian towns: 445 mm a year
Midwinter brings lows of about −13.5°C. Seasons differ by 37°C, from the coldest nights to the warmest afternoons. In July, afternoons here are cooler than in 80% of Canadian towns. Frost comes on about 193 days a year, so leave time to clear the car.
1991–2020 normals from ECCC’s Calgary (Airport) location, 8.2 km north.
A year in Forest Heights at a glance
Each month’s typical high and low, in °C.
What stands out about Forest Heights’s climate
Compared with Canadian towns, with its place among towns of 2,500+ in Alberta beside it.
What a year in Forest Heights feels like
Typical highs and lows by season and by month, from ECCC’s 1991–2020 normals.
193 frost days and 87 days above 20°C 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
The most falls in June, the least in January. 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
139 cm of snow in a typical year
From September to May snow is likely; March is the peak, at about 24 cm.
Snowfall by month
Centimetres
Snow on the ground by month
Centimetres at month’s end
Heating a home in Forest Heights
85% of a year’s heating need falls between October and April. Months averaging under 10°C: October to May.
Heating degree days total each day’s gap between its mean temperature and 18°C. That means homes here need more heating than 68% of Canadian towns.
Living with Forest Heights’s climate
The averages read for the garden, the outdoors and the coldest and hottest days.
Tender plants are usually safe from around 21 May until frost returns near 18 September: about 119 days.
For long days outdoors, Jul and Aug bring highs of 17–27°C and lows of 8°C or more.
Parks & trails →The wind chill passes −20 on about 42 days in a normal year.
The air feels heavier than 30 on the humidex for about 9 days a year.
A typical year is calm by definition; Forest Heights’s hazards page covers the exceptions.
Flood & hazards →ECCC’s normals location: Calgary (Airport)
Calgary (Airport) is a composite: ECCC joins 2 stations’ readings to make its 1991–2020 normals.
| Distance from the town | 8.2 km north |
| 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, 85 km |
How Forest Heights compares
Against the 2,611 Canadian towns and neighbourhoods of 2,500 or more, each read from its own normals location; the dots are the other locations those towns use in Alberta.
Nearby towns’ climate
Nearby places read from a different ECCC location (places on Forest Heights’s own would show the same figures). The nearest places to Forest Heights with figures are 52–68 km away.
| Town | July high | January low | Rain & snow |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forest Heights Calgary (Airport) | 23.5°C | −13.5°C | 445 mm |
| Wheatland County 52 km · Queenstown | 25.0°C 1.5°C warmer | −13.7°C about the same | 412 mm |
| Carstairs 57 km · Sundre | 22.8°C 0.7°C cooler | −18.0°C 4.5°C colder | 496 mm |
| Stoney 142, 143, 144 63 km · Banff | 22.5°C 1.0°C cooler | −13.5°C about the same | 454 mm |
Forest Heights 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 |
Two years in three, February’s average lands within 4.1°C of normal, against the steadier June
Each bar spans a month’s coldest and warmest readings over thirty years; December’s run from −38.2°C in 1996 to 19.5°C in 1999.
Where Forest Heights’s numbers come from
Averages over 30 years, not a forecast.
- Normals: ECCC’s 1991–2020 Canadian Climate Normals for Calgary (Airport), the nearest location with a full year of temperatures.
- Comparisons: Canada’s towns and neighbourhoods of 2,500+ (no city totals, no reserves), each through its own nearest location.
- Not on this page: sunshine, which none of ECCC’s 450 locations publishes for 1991–2020, and the town’s own height above sea level, so no figure is adjusted for altitude.
Canadian Climate Normals 1991–2020 · ECCC Data Services End-use Licence. Data Source: Environment and Climate Change Canada
Questions about Forest Heights’s climate
How warm does Forest Heights get in summer?
A normal July afternoon tops out at about 23.5°C, the year’s high point.
How cold does Forest Heights get in winter?
In January, the coldest month, the typical low is −13.5°C.
How much rain and snow does Forest Heights get?
Over twelve months, rain and melted snow come to 445 mm; the range runs from 10 mm in January to 113 mm in June.
How long does snow stay on the ground?
Snow covers the ground, 1 cm or more, on about 93 days a year.
Are these figures for Forest Heights itself?
They are the normals for Calgary (Airport), measured just outside Forest Heights itself.
Data Source: Environment and Climate Change Canada · ECCC Data Services End-use Licence Today’s forecast for Forest Heights →
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).