Cowichan sits near the top of Canadian towns for mild winters
July afternoons average 22.7°C. Summers stay cool: July afternoons here are cooler than in 94% of Canadian towns. The gap between a January night and a July afternoon is 21°C. Ice scrapers and block heaters earn their keep on roughly 45 days a year at 0°C or below.
These are not Cowichan’s own readings: ECCC keeps no normals there, so the page uses Victoria (Airport), 23 km south-east.
A year in Cowichan at a glance
Each month’s typical high and low, in °C.
What stands out about Cowichan’s climate
Compared with Canadian towns, with its place among towns of 2,500+ in British Columbia beside it.
What a year in Cowichan feels like
Each season’s and each month’s usual high and low, 1991–2020.
Frost on 45 days, 20°C on 83
The frost season runs November to April, peaking in January at about 10 nights.
Frost days by month
Average days at 0°C or below
Days above 20°C by month
Average days
901 mm of precipitation in a typical year
About 119 days a year bring 1 mm or more.
Rain and snow by month
Millimetres
Rain alone by month
Millimetres
About 39 cm of snow a year
Snow falls from November to March, most of all in December (about 12 cm).
Snowfall by month
Centimetres
Snow on the ground by month
Centimetres at month’s end
Heating a home in Cowichan
84% of a year’s heating need falls between October and April. Months averaging under 10°C: November to April.
Every day colder than 18°C on average adds its gap in degrees to the year’s heating total. Homes here need less heating than 95% of Canadian towns.
Living with Cowichan’s climate
The averages read for the garden, the outdoors and the coldest and hottest days.
About 213 days a year pass without frost, from an average last frost of 4 April to a first of 4 November.
For long days outdoors, Jun, Jul, Aug and Sep bring highs of 17–27°C and lows of 8°C or more.
Parks & trails →A humidex above 30 marks about 6 days in a normal year.
Averages smooth over blizzards, ice storms, floods and heat waves; Cowichan’s hazards page covers the risks.
Flood & hazards →ECCC’s normals location: Victoria (Airport)
ECCC builds the Victoria (Airport) normals from 2 stations’ records over 1991–2020, joined where one replaced another.
| Distance from the town | 23 km south-east |
| Station altitude | 20 m |
| Completeness | meets the WMO “3 and 5” rule |
| WMO standard normals | No |
| Coldest reading, 1991–2020 | −10.5°C |
| Hottest reading, 1991–2020 | 36.3°C |
| Average wind | 9.7 km/h on average, most often from the west |
| Next-nearest location | Saturna CAPMON, 41 km |
How Cowichan 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 British Columbia.
Nearby towns’ climate
The nearest places on a normals location of their own: those that share Cowichan’s would only repeat its figures. The nearest places to Cowichan with figures are 30–39 km away.
| Town | July high | January low | Rain & snow |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cowichan Victoria (Airport) | 22.7°C | 1.6°C | 901 mm |
| Southern Gulf Islands 30 km · Saturna CAPMON | 21.6°C 1.1°C cooler | 2.3°C 0.7°C milder | 802 mm |
| Electoral Area H, Cowichan Valley 30 km · Vancouver International (Airport) | 22.4°C about the same | 1.4°C about the same | 1,160 mm |
| Langford 38 km · Victoria Gonzales (City) | 20.6°C 2.1°C cooler | 3.8°C 2.2°C milder | 675 mm |
Cowichan 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 | 7.5°C | 1.6°C | 4.6°C | 155 mm | 11 cm |
| February | 8.7°C | 1.4°C | 5.0°C | 85 mm | 7 cm |
| March | 10.8°C | 2.7°C | 6.8°C | 80 mm | 4 cm |
| April | 13.7°C | 4.6°C | 9.1°C | 48 mm | 1 cm |
| May | 17.5°C | 7.6°C | 12.6°C | 37 mm | 0 cm |
| June | 20.2°C | 10.1°C | 15.2°C | 29 mm | 0 cm |
| July | 22.7°C | 11.7°C | 17.2°C | 20 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 22.6°C | 11.6°C | 17.1°C | 24 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 19.7°C | 9.2°C | 14.5°C | 36 mm | 0 cm |
| October | 14.3°C | 6.0°C | 10.2°C | 96 mm | under 1 cm |
| November | 9.9°C | 3.0°C | 6.5°C | 146 mm | 4 cm |
| December | 7.3°C | 1.5°C | 4.4°C | 146 mm | 12 cm |
| Year | 14.6°C | 5.9°C | 10.3°C | 901 mm | 39 cm |
From year to year, February moves by 1.5°C, more than any month, and August least
Records from 1991 to 2020: no month spans more than June, between 2.1°C (1991) and 33.5°C (2003).
Where Cowichan’s numbers come from
Averages over 30 years, not a forecast.
- Normals: Environment and Climate Change Canada’s 1991–2020 normals, Victoria (Airport): the nearest of its locations with every month’s temperatures.
- Comparisons: the towns and neighbourhoods of 2,500+ across Canada, each on its nearest normals location, without the city totals or the reserves.
- Not on this page: sunshine, which none of ECCC’s 450 locations publishes for 1991–2020, and the town’s own height above sea level, so no figure is adjusted for altitude.
Canadian Climate Normals 1991–2020 · ECCC Data Services End-use Licence. Data Source: Environment and Climate Change Canada
Questions about Cowichan’s climate
How warm does Cowichan get in summer?
Peak warmth comes in July, at about 22.7°C by mid-afternoon.
How cold does Cowichan get in winter?
The coldest nights come in February, averaging 1.4°C.
How much rain and snow does Cowichan get?
Around 901 mm a year in all, from 155 mm in January down to 20 mm in July.
How long does snow stay on the ground?
The ground is white, with 1 cm or more, on some 8 days a year.
Are these figures for Cowichan itself?
Only indirectly: the readings are made at Victoria (Airport), outside Cowichan.
Data Source: Environment and Climate Change Canada · ECCC Data Services End-use Licence Today’s forecast for Cowichan →
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).