Photo: Wolfmum · CC BY-SA 4.0Ice on the ground: Cold Lake sees more frosts than 90% of Canadian towns
The warmest part of a July day comes in at 23.6°C on average. Precipitation follows the seasons: June brings about 6.8 times as much as February. It is a dry place: less rain and snow fall here than on 85% of Canadian towns. Long walks are most pleasant from June to August, when afternoons reach 21–24°C.
1991–2020 normals from ECCC’s Cold Lake station, 5.4 km west.
A year in Cold Lake at a glance
Each month’s typical high and low, in °C.
What stands out about Cold Lake’s climate
Compared with Canadian towns, with its place among towns of 2,500+ in Alberta beside it.
What a year in Cold Lake feels like
Typical highs and lows by season and by month, from ECCC’s 1991–2020 normals.
198 frost days and 89 days above 20°C a year
From September to May frost is routine, and in December it comes on almost every night. On about 43 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
Rain and melted snow: about 437 mm a year
On about 76 days a year, 1 mm or more falls.
Rain and snow by month
Millimetres
Rain alone by month
Millimetres
127 cm of snow in a typical year
Expect snow from October to May, with about 23 cm in January, the snowiest month.
Snowfall by month
Centimetres
Snow on the ground by month
Centimetres at month’s end
Heating a home in Cold Lake
89% of a year’s heating need falls between October and April. Months averaging under 10°C: October to April.
Warm days count for nothing; each colder day adds how far its mean sits below 18°C. By this count, homes here need more heating than 94% of Canadian towns.
Living with Cold Lake’s climate
The averages read for the garden, the outdoors and the coldest and hottest days.
Gardens get from about 19 May to 16 September without frost, around 119 days in all.
Highs of 17–27°C with nights of 8°C or more come in Jun, Jul and Aug.
Parks & trails →Frostbite weather, a wind chill under −20, turns up on about 70 days a year.
Muggy heat with a humidex over 30 arrives on about 11 days a year.
Severe weather is a separate story from the averages: see Cold Lake’s hazards page.
Flood & hazards →ECCC’s normals location: Cold Lake
The page’s figures are ECCC’s 1991–2020 normals for Cold Lake, one of its 450 normals locations.
| Distance from the town | 5.4 km west |
| Station altitude | 541 m |
| Completeness | meets the WMO “3 and 5” rule |
| WMO standard normals | Yes |
| Coldest reading, 1991–2020 | −44.4°C |
| Hottest reading, 1991–2020 | 36.3°C |
| Average wind | 11.1 km/h on average, most often from the west |
| Next-nearest location | Lac la Biche, 123 km |
How Cold Lake compares
Placed among 2,611 Canadian towns and neighbourhoods of 2,500+, each on its nearest normals location; each dot is another location used in Alberta.
Nearby towns’ climate
Places around Cold Lake whose figures come from another normals location. Cold Lake has few close neighbours with figures, so the list reaches 81–106 km out.
| Town | July high | January low | Rain & snow |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cold Lake | 23.6°C | −19.6°C | 437 mm |
| Makwa Lake 129B 81 km · Meadow Lake | 23.7°C about the same | −22.8°C 3.2°C colder | 407 mm |
| St. Paul 87 km · Vegreville | 23.5°C about the same | −19.0°C 0.6°C milder | 388 mm |
| Seekaskootch 119 88 km · Lloydminster | 23.2°C about the same | −18.8°C 0.8°C milder | 424 mm |
| White Fish Lake 128 106 km · Lac la Biche | 23.1°C 0.5°C cooler | −19.1°C 0.5°C milder | 388 mm |
Cold Lake weather by month
Month by month, 1991–2020: the usual high, low and mean, the rain and snow, and the snowfall.
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Rain & snow | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | −9.9°C | −19.6°C | −14.8°C | 17 mm | 23 cm |
| February | −6.3°C | −17.3°C | −11.8°C | 13 mm | 17 cm |
| March | 0.5°C | −10.7°C | −5.1°C | 18 mm | 18 cm |
| April | 9.4°C | −2.2°C | 3.6°C | 34 mm | 14 cm |
| May | 17.1°C | 4.1°C | 10.6°C | 40 mm | 2 cm |
| June | 21.0°C | 9.2°C | 15.1°C | 86 mm | under 1 cm |
| July | 23.6°C | 11.8°C | 17.7°C | 79 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 22.5°C | 10.3°C | 16.4°C | 52 mm | under 1 cm |
| September | 16.9°C | 4.9°C | 10.9°C | 39 mm | under 1 cm |
| October | 8.4°C | −1.3°C | 3.6°C | 24 mm | 8 cm |
| November | −1.9°C | −9.8°C | −5.9°C | 19 mm | 23 cm |
| December | −8.7°C | −17.4°C | −13.1°C | 16 mm | 22 cm |
| Year | 7.7°C | −3.2°C | 2.3°C | 437 mm | 127 cm |
A December here can run warm or cold, its average moving by about 4.3°C; the steadiest month is June
Over 1991–2020, March saw both −39.6°C (2009) and 17.9°C (1992), the widest span of any month.
Where Cold Lake’s numbers come from
Averages over 30 years, not a forecast.
- Normals: the Canadian Climate Normals, 1991–2020, at Cold Lake (the closest location with all twelve months of temperatures).
- Comparisons: every place of 2,500+ in Canada but the city hubs and the reserves, each on its nearest ECCC location.
- Not on this page: hours of sunshine, missing from the 1991–2020 normals, and a height correction: the town has no elevation on file.
Canadian Climate Normals 1991–2020 · ECCC Data Services End-use Licence. Data Source: Environment and Climate Change Canada
Questions about Cold Lake’s climate
How warm does Cold Lake get in summer?
Expect highs near 23.6°C in July, the hottest month on average.
How cold does Cold Lake get in winter?
The year’s coldest nights belong to January, at about −19.6°C.
How much rain and snow does Cold Lake get?
Rain and snow, with snow counted as water, total 437 mm a year; June leads with 86 mm and February trails with 13 mm.
How long does snow stay on the ground?
Around 142 days a year see 1 cm of snow or more lying.
Are these figures for Cold Lake itself?
Yes, from ECCC’s station within Cold Lake’s boundary.
Data Source: Environment and Climate Change Canada · ECCC Data Services End-use Licence Today’s forecast for Cold Lake →
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).