Photo: jasonwoodhead23 · CC BY 2.0Ponoka is among the frostiest of Canadian towns
July afternoons average 22.9°C. Summers stay cool: July afternoons here are cooler than in 92% of Canadian towns. Expect the most rain and snow in June and the least in February. Heating does most of its work from October to May, in months below 10°C on average.
Every figure here comes from Red Deer, 59 km south; ECCC has no normals closer to Ponoka, so they describe the wider area.
A year in Ponoka at a glance
Each month’s typical high and low, in °C.
What stands out about Ponoka’s climate
Compared with Canadian towns, with its place among towns of 2,500+ in Alberta beside it.
What a year in Ponoka feels like
Seasons and months as ECCC’s 1991–2020 normals give them: a typical day’s high and low.
About 212 frosts and 85 warm days a year
The frost season runs September to May, and January freezes nearly every night. Deep cold, under −20°C, comes on about 34 nights a year.
Frost days by month
Average days at 0°C or below
Days above 20°C by month
Average days
Rain and melted snow: about 483 mm a year
On about 81 days a year, 1 mm or more falls.
Rain and snow by month
Millimetres
Rain alone by month
Millimetres
138 cm of snow in a typical year
The snow season runs September to May; March brings the most, about 23 cm.
Snowfall by month
Centimetres
Snow on the ground by month
Centimetres at month’s end
Heating a home in Ponoka
86% of a year’s heating need falls between October and April. Months averaging under 10°C: October to May.
Every day colder than 18°C on average adds its gap in degrees to the year’s heating total. A house here needs more heating than 84% of Canadian towns.
Living with Ponoka’s climate
Gardening, time outside, winter cold and summer heat, from the 1991–2020 normals.
About 112 days a year pass without frost, from an average last frost of 22 May to a first of 12 September.
Mild days and mild nights together (17–27°C by day, 8°C or more at night) belong to Jul.
Parks & trails →Wind chill falls below −20 on about 64 days a year: cover skin and dress in layers.
Muggy heat with a humidex over 30 arrives on about 9 days a year.
Averages smooth over blizzards, ice storms, floods and heat waves; Ponoka’s hazards page covers the risks.
Flood & hazards →ECCC’s normals location: Red Deer
Behind the 1991–2020 normals for Red Deer are 3 stations, which ECCC combines into one record.
| Distance from the town | 59 km south |
| Station altitude | 905 m |
| Completeness | meets the WMO “3 and 5” rule |
| WMO standard normals | No |
| Coldest reading, 1991–2020 | −43.8°C |
| Hottest reading, 1991–2020 | 36.3°C |
| Average wind | 11.0 km/h on average, most often from the south |
| Next-nearest location | Camrose, 66 km |
How Ponoka 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 Ponoka whose figures come from another normals location. Ponoka has few close neighbours with figures, so the list reaches 17–23 km out.
| Town | July high | January low | Rain & snow |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ponoka Red Deer | 22.9°C | −17.6°C | 483 mm |
| Samson 137 17 km · Camrose | 23.1°C about the same | −17.8°C about the same | 378 mm |
| Louis Bull 138B 23 km · Edmonton (Airport) | 23.0°C about the same | −18.1°C 0.5°C colder | 434 mm |
Ponoka 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 | −5.6°C | −17.6°C | −11.6°C | 16 mm | 20 cm |
| February | −3.5°C | −16.1°C | −9.8°C | 12 mm | 15 cm |
| March | 1.3°C | −10.5°C | −4.6°C | 19 mm | 23 cm |
| April | 10.1°C | −3.0°C | 3.6°C | 28 mm | 18 cm |
| May | 16.8°C | 2.7°C | 9.7°C | 58 mm | 10 cm |
| June | 20.0°C | 7.4°C | 13.7°C | 98 mm | 0 cm |
| July | 22.9°C | 9.4°C | 16.2°C | 90 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 22.4°C | 7.9°C | 15.2°C | 70 mm | under 1 cm |
| September | 17.8°C | 3.0°C | 10.4°C | 38 mm | 2 cm |
| October | 10.4°C | −3.4°C | 3.5°C | 22 mm | 10 cm |
| November | 1.1°C | −10.5°C | −4.7°C | 17 mm | 20 cm |
| December | −4.4°C | −16.2°C | −10.3°C | 14 mm | 19 cm |
| Year | 9.1°C | −3.9°C | 2.6°C | 483 mm | 138 cm |
February strays furthest from its normal year to year, by 4.3°C; June the least
Records from 1991 to 2020: no month spans more than March, between −38.0°C (2002) and 24.8°C (2004).
Where Ponoka’s numbers come from
Averages over 30 years, not a forecast.
- Normals: the closest ECCC location with twelve months of temperature normals, Red Deer, 1991–2020.
- 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 Ponoka’s climate
How warm does Ponoka get in summer?
In July, the warmest month, the typical high is 22.9°C.
How cold does Ponoka get in winter?
Lows sink to −17.6°C on an average January night.
How much rain and snow does Ponoka get?
A normal year brings 483 mm, snow included as water: June is wettest at 98 mm, February driest at 12 mm.
How long does snow stay on the ground?
Around 129 days a year see 1 cm of snow or more lying.
Are these figures for Ponoka itself?
They are the figures for Red Deer, which read better as the region’s climate than Ponoka’s own.
Data Source: Environment and Climate Change Canada · ECCC Data Services End-use Licence Today’s forecast for Ponoka →
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).