Sylvan Lake sits near the top of Canadian towns for frosts
Expect July afternoons of about 22.9°C. From frozen January to warm July, readings climb 41°C. In July, afternoons here are cooler than in 92% of Canadian towns. Have the furnace checked before October to May, the months that average under 10°C.
Sylvan Lake has no ECCC normals station of its own: every figure here comes from Red Deer, 20 km south-east.
A year in Sylvan Lake at a glance
Each month’s typical high and low, in °C.
What stands out about Sylvan Lake’s climate
Compared with Canadian towns, with its place among towns of 2,500+ in Alberta beside it.
What a year in Sylvan Lake feels like
Each season’s and each month’s usual high and low, 1991–2020.
212 frost days and 85 days above 20°C a year
The frost season runs September to May, and January freezes nearly every night. On about 34 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
483 mm of precipitation in a typical year
June is the wettest month and February the driest. Some 81 days a year see 1 mm of rain or snow or more.
Rain and snow by month
Millimetres
Rain alone by month
Millimetres
Snowfall: about 138 cm in a normal year
Snow falls from September to May, most of all in March (about 23 cm).
Snowfall by month
Centimetres
Snow on the ground by month
Centimetres at month’s end
Heating a home in Sylvan Lake
86% of a year’s heating need falls between October and April. Months averaging under 10°C: October to May.
One degree below 18°C for one day makes one heating degree day; the year’s days are added together. That means homes here need more heating than 84% of Canadian towns.
Living with Sylvan Lake’s climate
The averages read for the garden, the outdoors and the coldest and hottest days.
Seedlings can go out once the average last frost, around 22 May, has passed; autumn’s first, near 12 September, ends a season of about 112 days.
The comfortable months for a day outside, highs of 17–27°C and nights of 8°C or more: Jul.
Parks & trails →Count on some 64 days a year when the wind makes it feel below −20.
On some 9 days a year the humidex climbs past 30.
A typical year is calm by definition; Sylvan Lake’s hazards page covers the exceptions.
Flood & hazards →ECCC’s normals location: Red Deer
Red Deer is a composite: ECCC joins 3 stations’ readings to make its 1991–2020 normals.
| Distance from the town | 20 km south-east |
| 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 | Sundre, 71 km |
How Sylvan Lake compares
Compared with 2,611 towns and neighbourhoods of 2,500 or more across Canada; the dots mark the other normals locations in Alberta.
Nearby towns’ climate
The nearest places on a normals location of their own: those that share Sylvan Lake’s would only repeat its figures. The nearest place to Sylvan Lake with figures is 46 km away.
| Town | July high | January low | Rain & snow |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sylvan Lake Red Deer | 22.9°C | −17.6°C | 483 mm |
| Clearwater County 46 km · Sundre | 22.8°C about the same | −18.0°C about the same | 496 mm |
Sylvan Lake 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 | −5.6°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 |
In March, anything from −38.0°C to 24.8°C
Two years in three, February’s average falls within 4.3°C of its normal of −9.8°C; June keeps to within 0.9°C.
Where Sylvan Lake’s numbers come from
Averages over 30 years, not a forecast.
- Normals: ECCC’s 1991–2020 Canadian Climate Normals for Red Deer, the nearest location with a full year of temperatures.
- Comparisons: the 2,500-plus towns and neighbourhoods of Canada, each read from its closest normals location; whole cities and reserves aren’t counted.
- 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 Sylvan Lake’s climate
How warm does Sylvan Lake get in summer?
The warmest month is July, when afternoons average 22.9°C.
How cold does Sylvan Lake get in winter?
Winter bottoms out in January, with lows near −17.6°C.
How much rain and snow does Sylvan Lake get?
Rain and snow, with snow counted as water, total 483 mm a year; June leads with 98 mm and February trails with 12 mm.
How long does snow stay on the ground?
There is 1 cm of snow or more on the ground on roughly 129 days a year.
Are these figures for Sylvan Lake itself?
No, the station behind them is Red Deer, beyond Sylvan Lake’s boundary.
Data Source: Environment and Climate Change Canada · ECCC Data Services End-use Licence Today’s forecast for Sylvan 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).