Dry weather: only 423 mm of rain and snow a year falls on Downtown, less than on 90% of Canadian towns
Peak summer warmth arrives in July, with afternoons near 23.5°C. Summers stay cool: July afternoons here are cooler than in 80% of Canadian towns. The wettest month is July; the driest is February. Plan time outside from June to August, when highs sit at 21–24°C.
Environment and Climate Change Canada’s 1991–2020 normals at its Edmonton (City) station, 3.8 km north.
A year in Downtown at a glance
Each month’s typical high and low, in °C.
What stands out about Downtown’s climate
Compared with Canadian towns, with its place among towns of 2,500+ in Alberta beside it.
What a year in Downtown feels like
Each season’s and each month’s usual high and low, 1991–2020.
Frost on 179 days, 20°C on 90
From September to May frost is routine, and in January it comes on almost every night. Deep cold, under −20°C, comes on about 24 nights a year.
Frost days by month
Average days at 0°C or below
Days above 20°C by month
Average days
About 423 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
124 cm of snow in a typical year
The snow season runs October to May; January brings the most, about 26 cm.
Snowfall by month
Centimetres
Snow on the ground by month
Centimetres at month’s end
Heating a home in Downtown
89% of a year’s heating need falls between October and April. Months averaging under 10°C: October to April.
Heating degree days total each day’s gap between its mean temperature and 18°C. A house here needs more heating than 76% of Canadian towns.
Living with Downtown’s climate
The averages read for the garden, the outdoors and the coldest and hottest days.
Frost usually lets go around 7 May and returns near 25 September, about 141 days apart.
The outdoor season by the averages is Jun, Jul and Aug, with highs of 17–27°C and lows of 8°C or more.
Parks & trails →On some 50 days a year the wind chill drops past −20; mitts and a scarf earn their place.
The humidex tops 30 on about 11 days a year: muggy days to plan around.
A normal year has no blizzard, flood or heat wave in it; Downtown’s hazards page looks at those.
Flood & hazards →ECCC’s normals location: Edmonton (City)
Edmonton (City) is a composite: ECCC joins 3 stations’ readings to make its 1991–2020 normals.
| Distance from the town | 3.8 km north |
| Station altitude | 671 m |
| Completeness | meets the WMO “3 and 5” rule |
| WMO standard normals | No |
| Coldest reading, 1991–2020 | −37.8°C |
| Hottest reading, 1991–2020 | 34.9°C |
| Average wind | 12.2 km/h on average, most often from the west |
| Next-nearest location | Edmonton (Airport), 25 km |
How Downtown 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
The nearest places on a normals location of their own: those that share Downtown’s would only repeat its figures. Downtown has few close neighbours with figures, so the list reaches 21–25 km out.
| Town | July high | January low | Rain & snow |
|---|---|---|---|
| Downtown Edmonton (City) | 23.5°C | −14.7°C | 423 mm |
| Beaumont 21 km · Edmonton (Airport) | 23.0°C 0.5°C cooler | −18.1°C 3.4°C colder | 434 mm |
| Fort Saskatchewan 24 km · Fort Saskatchewan | 23.6°C about the same | −17.8°C 3.1°C colder | 473 mm |
Downtown weather by month
Average daily high and low, mean temperature, rain and snow (as water) and snowfall by month, 1991–2020.
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Rain & snow | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | −5.8°C | −14.7°C | −10.3°C | 20 mm | 26 cm |
| February | −3.0°C | −12.7°C | −7.9°C | 12 mm | 13 cm |
| March | 1.7°C | −7.8°C | −3.1°C | 17 mm | 19 cm |
| April | 10.4°C | −0.7°C | 4.9°C | 29 mm | 15 cm |
| May | 17.5°C | 5.6°C | 11.6°C | 44 mm | 5 cm |
| June | 21.0°C | 10.2°C | 15.6°C | 70 mm | 0 cm |
| July | 23.5°C | 12.6°C | 18.1°C | 83 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 22.6°C | 11.3°C | 17.0°C | 61 mm | under 1 cm |
| September | 17.6°C | 6.2°C | 11.9°C | 39 mm | 1 cm |
| October | 10.0°C | −0.1°C | 5.0°C | 21 mm | 11 cm |
| November | 0.6°C | −7.5°C | −3.5°C | 18 mm | 20 cm |
| December | −4.7°C | −13.2°C | −9.0°C | 12 mm | 15 cm |
| Year | 9.3°C | −0.9°C | 4.2°C | 423 mm | 124 cm |
The month with the widest range: March, −34.0°C to 23.9°C
Two years in three, February’s average falls within 4.2°C of its normal of −7.9°C; June keeps to within 1.0°C.
Where Downtown’s numbers come from
Averages over 30 years, not a forecast.
- Normals: 1991–2020 normals for Edmonton (City) from ECCC’s climate data site, the nearest location with every month of temperature.
- Comparisons: every Canadian town and neighbourhood of 2,500 or more, each read from its own nearest location; city totals and reserves are left out.
- 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 Downtown’s climate
How warm does Downtown get in summer?
Peak warmth comes in July, at about 23.5°C by mid-afternoon.
How cold does Downtown get in winter?
Lows sink to −14.7°C on an average January night.
How much rain and snow does Downtown get?
Count on roughly 423 mm a year, heaviest in July (83 mm) and lightest in February (12 mm).
Are these figures for Downtown itself?
Nearly: Edmonton (City), the location behind them, sits just beyond Downtown’s boundary.
Data Source: Environment and Climate Change Canada · ECCC Data Services End-use Licence Today’s forecast for Downtown →
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).