Dry weather: only 428 mm of rain and snow a year falls on Nanton, less than on 86% of Canadian towns
The depth of winter brings overnight lows near −13.2°C. About 191 nights a year bring a frost, more than in 75% of Canadian towns. Winter and summer sit 38°C apart. An umbrella or a shovel earns its place on about 73 days a year with 1 mm or more.
ECCC publishes no normals for Nanton itself; the figures are those of Claresholm, 40 km south.
A year in Nanton at a glance
Each month’s typical high and low, in °C.
What stands out about Nanton’s climate
Compared with Canadian towns, with its place among towns of 2,500+ in Alberta beside it.
What a year in Nanton feels like
Each season’s and each month’s usual high and low, 1991–2020.
191 frost days and 106 days above 20°C a year
The frost season runs September to May, and December freezes nearly every night. Some 24 nights a year drop under −20°C.
Frost days by month
Average days at 0°C or below
Days above 20°C by month
Average days
428 mm of precipitation in a typical year
June is the wettest month and January the driest.
Rain and snow by month
Millimetres
Rain alone by month
Millimetres
About 111 cm of snow a year
From September to May snow is likely; March is the peak, at about 22 cm.
Snowfall by month
Centimetres
Heating a home in Nanton
86% of a year’s heating need falls between October and April. Months averaging under 10°C: October to April.
Each day the mean sits under 18°C adds its shortfall; a year’s total is its heating degree days.
Living with Nanton’s climate
The averages read for the garden, the outdoors and the coldest and hottest days.
On average the last spring frost comes around 25 May and the first autumn frost around 13 September: about 110 frost-free days between.
Plan time outside for Jul and Aug: highs of 17–27°C and nights no colder than 8°C.
Parks & trails →Bitter wind chill, under −20, comes on about 41 days a year.
Humid heat, a humidex over 30, comes on about 17 days a year.
The normals describe a typical year, not its worst days; the hazards page covers Nanton’s.
Flood & hazards →ECCC’s normals location: Claresholm
Claresholm is a composite: ECCC joins 2 stations’ readings to make its 1991–2020 normals.
| Distance from the town | 40 km south |
| Station altitude | 1,009 m |
| Completeness | meets the WMO “3 and 5” rule |
| WMO standard normals | Yes |
| Coldest reading, 1991–2020 | −41.8°C |
| Hottest reading, 1991–2020 | 39.7°C |
| Average wind | 12.6 km/h on average, most often from the north |
| Next-nearest location | Queenstown, 64 km |
How Nanton 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
Places around Nanton whose figures come from another normals location. Nanton has few close neighbours with figures, so the list reaches 27–50 km out.
| Town | July high | January low | Rain & snow |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nanton Claresholm | 25.2°C | −13.2°C | 428 mm |
| High River 27 km · Calgary (Airport) | 23.5°C 1.7°C cooler | −13.5°C about the same | 445 mm |
| Vulcan 37 km · Queenstown | 25.0°C about the same | −13.7°C 0.5°C colder | 412 mm |
Nanton 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 | 0.4°C | −13.2°C | −6.4°C | 13 mm | 15 cm |
| February | 1.8°C | −12.0°C | −5.1°C | 15 mm | 17 cm |
| March | 5.9°C | −7.7°C | −0.9°C | 22 mm | 22 cm |
| April | 11.7°C | −2.3°C | 4.7°C | 33 mm | 12 cm |
| May | 17.3°C | 2.8°C | 10.1°C | 68 mm | 6 cm |
| June | 20.9°C | 7.0°C | 14.0°C | 93 mm | 0 cm |
| July | 25.2°C | 9.3°C | 17.2°C | 47 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 25.1°C | 8.3°C | 16.7°C | 43 mm | under 1 cm |
| September | 20.0°C | 3.8°C | 11.9°C | 42 mm | 1 cm |
| October | 12.9°C | −1.7°C | 5.6°C | 20 mm | 7 cm |
| November | 5.4°C | −7.6°C | −1.1°C | 18 mm | 16 cm |
| December | 0.9°C | −12.5°C | −5.8°C | 16 mm | 15 cm |
| Year | 12.3°C | −2.2°C | 5.1°C | 428 mm | 111 cm |
February strays furthest from its normal year to year, by 4.9°C; June the least
The thirty-year records stretch furthest in February: a low of −40.0°C in 1994 and a high of 24.0°C in 1992.
Where Nanton’s numbers come from
Averages over 30 years, not a forecast.
- Normals: Environment and Climate Change Canada’s 1991–2020 normals, Claresholm: the nearest of its locations with every month’s 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: 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 Nanton’s climate
How warm does Nanton get in summer?
July is the warmest month, with average highs of 25.2°C.
How cold does Nanton get in winter?
The year’s coldest nights belong to January, at about −13.2°C.
How much rain and snow does Nanton get?
Over twelve months, rain and melted snow come to 428 mm; the range runs from 13 mm in January to 93 mm in June.
Are these figures for Nanton itself?
Not exactly. Nanton lacks a normals station, so Claresholm supplies the figures.
Data Source: Environment and Climate Change Canada · ECCC Data Services End-use Licence Today’s forecast for Nanton →
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).