Riverdale is drier than 90% of Canadian towns: 423 mm of rain and snow a year
On a normal January night the air cools to about −14.7°C. In July, afternoons here are cooler than in 80% of Canadian towns. The seasons are far apart: from a winter night to a summer afternoon the average spans 38°C. The outdoor season runs from June to August, with highs of 21–24°C.
Read at Edmonton (City), 4.9 km north-west: ECCC’s normals for 1991–2020.
A year in Riverdale at a glance
Each month’s typical high and low, in °C.
What stands out about Riverdale’s climate
Compared with Canadian towns, with its place among towns of 2,500+ in Alberta beside it.
What a year in Riverdale feels like
Seasons and months as ECCC’s 1991–2020 normals give them: a typical day’s high and low.
Frost on 179 days, 20°C on 90
From September to May frost is routine, and in January it comes on almost every night. On about 24 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
423 mm of precipitation in a typical year
July brings the most rain and snow; February, the least. On about 72 days a year, 1 mm or more falls.
Rain and snow by month
Millimetres
Rain alone by month
Millimetres
About 124 cm of snow a year
From October to May snow is likely; January is the peak, at about 26 cm.
Snowfall by month
Centimetres
Snow on the ground by month
Centimetres at month’s end
Heating a home in Riverdale
89% of a year’s heating need falls between October and April. Months averaging under 10°C: October to April.
A heating degree day is one degree of shortfall below 18°C for one day, summed over the year. In heating terms, homes need more heating than 76% of Canadian towns.
Living with Riverdale’s climate
Gardening, time outside, winter cold and summer heat, from the 1991–2020 normals.
Between the last frost, near 7 May, and the first, near 25 September, lie about 141 frost-free days.
Plan time outside for Jun, Jul and Aug: highs of 17–27°C and nights no colder than 8°C.
Parks & trails →A wind chill below −20 is part of about 50 days a year here.
About 11 days a year turn sultry, with the humidex past 30.
The normals describe a typical year, not its worst days; the hazards page covers Riverdale’s.
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 | 4.9 km north-west |
| 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 Riverdale 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
The nearest places on a normals location of their own: those that share Riverdale’s would only repeat its figures. Distances here run 21–26 km: that is how far the nearest places with figures are from Riverdale.
| Town | July high | January low | Rain & snow |
|---|---|---|---|
| Riverdale 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 23 km · Fort Saskatchewan | 23.6°C about the same | −17.8°C 3.1°C colder | 473 mm |
Riverdale 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 |
Two years in three, February’s average lands within 4.2°C of normal, against the steadier June
March has the widest record range, −34.0°C in 2003 to 23.9°C in 2004; the tick on each bar is the month’s normal.
Where Riverdale’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: sunshine, absent from every 1991–2020 location, and an altitude correction, for want of the town’s own elevation.
Canadian Climate Normals 1991–2020 · ECCC Data Services End-use Licence. Data Source: Environment and Climate Change Canada
Questions about Riverdale’s climate
How warm does Riverdale get in summer?
July is the warmest month, with average highs of 23.5°C.
How cold does Riverdale get in winter?
The coldest nights come in January, averaging −14.7°C.
How much rain and snow does Riverdale get?
The year adds up to 423 mm. July is the peak month (83 mm) and February the low one (12 mm).
Are these figures for Riverdale itself?
Close to it: they are ECCC’s 1991–2020 normals for Edmonton (City), just outside Riverdale’s boundary.
Data Source: Environment and Climate Change Canada · ECCC Data Services End-use Licence Today’s forecast for Riverdale →
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).