Photo: The original uploader was IDuke at English Wikipedia . · CC BY-SA 2.5Hardly any Canadian towns see softer January nights than Esquimalt
Sunny July days climb to about 20.6°C. By July afternoons alone, it runs cooler than almost every Canadian town. Seasons differ by 17°C, from the coldest nights to the warmest afternoons. Frost comes on about 10 days a year, so leave time to clear the car.
ECCC publishes no normals for Esquimalt itself; the figures are those of Victoria Gonzales (City), 6.3 km south-east.
A year in Esquimalt at a glance
Each month’s typical high and low, in °C.
What stands out about Esquimalt’s climate
Compared with Canadian towns, with its place among towns of 2,500+ in British Columbia beside it.
What a year in Esquimalt feels like
Seasons and months as ECCC’s 1991–2020 normals give them: a typical day’s high and low.
About 10 frosts and 54 warm days a year
The frost season runs November to February, peaking in January at about 3 nights.
Frost days by month
Average days at 0°C or below
Days above 20°C by month
Average days
Rain and melted snow: about 675 mm a year
November brings the most rain and snow; July, the least. Some 104 days a year see 1 mm of rain or snow or more.
Rain and snow by month
Millimetres
Snowfall: about 39 cm in a normal year
Snow falls from November to March, most of all in December (about 12 cm).
Snowfall by month
Centimetres
Snowfall: Victoria (Airport), 24 km away (Victoria Gonzales (City) records no complete year of it).
Heating a home in Esquimalt
82% of a year’s heating need falls between October and April. Months averaging under 10°C: November to March.
Every day colder than 18°C on average adds its gap in degrees to the year’s heating total. In heating terms, homes need less heating than 98% of Canadian towns.
Living with Esquimalt’s climate
Gardening, time outside, winter cold and summer heat, from the 1991–2020 normals.
For long days outdoors, Jun, Jul, Aug and Sep bring highs of 17–27°C and lows of 8°C or more.
Parks & trails →The air feels heavier than 30 on the humidex for about 3 days a year.
A typical year is calm by definition; Esquimalt’s hazards page covers the exceptions.
Flood & hazards →ECCC’s normals location: Victoria Gonzales (City)
ECCC builds the Victoria Gonzales (City) normals from 2 stations’ records over 1991–2020, joined where one replaced another.
| Distance from the town | 6.3 km south-east |
| Station altitude | 70 m |
| Completeness | meets the WMO “3 and 5” rule |
| WMO standard normals | No |
| Snowfall from | Victoria (Airport), 24 km |
| Coldest reading, 1991–2020 | −8.8°C |
| Hottest reading, 1991–2020 | 36.0°C |
| Average wind | 14.3 km/h on average, most often from the west |
| Next-nearest location | Victoria (University), 8.4 km |
How Esquimalt 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 British Columbia.
Nearby towns’ climate
The nearest places on a normals location of their own: those that share Esquimalt’s would only repeat its figures. The nearest places to Esquimalt with figures are 6–24 km away.
Esquimalt 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 | 7.8°C | 3.8°C | 5.8°C | 111 mm | 11 cm |
| February | 8.6°C | 3.6°C | 6.1°C | 61 mm | 7 cm |
| March | 10.7°C | 4.6°C | 7.7°C | 62 mm | 4 cm |
| April | 13.5°C | 6.4°C | 10.0°C | 36 mm | 1 cm |
| May | 16.5°C | 8.7°C | 12.6°C | 28 mm | 0 cm |
| June | 18.7°C | 10.5°C | 14.6°C | 19 mm | 0 cm |
| July | 20.6°C | 11.9°C | 16.3°C | 13 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 20.7°C | 12.1°C | 16.4°C | 16 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 18.9°C | 11.0°C | 15.0°C | 28 mm | 0 cm |
| October | 13.9°C | 8.2°C | 11.1°C | 85 mm | under 1 cm |
| November | 9.9°C | 5.4°C | 7.7°C | 129 mm | 4 cm |
| December | 7.5°C | 3.6°C | 5.5°C | 87 mm | 12 cm |
| Year | 14.0°C | 7.5°C | 10.7°C | 675 mm | 39 cm |
The month with the widest range: June, 6.2°C to 34.6°C
February is the least predictable month: about two years in three its average lands within 1.5°C of the normal, 6.1°C. August is the steadiest, within 0.6°C.
Where Esquimalt’s numbers come from
Averages over 30 years, not a forecast.
- Normals: the closest ECCC location with twelve months of temperature normals, Victoria Gonzales (City), 1991–2020.
- Other locations: precipitation and snowfall come from the nearest location that publishes all twelve months of them, as named above.
- 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, not in ECCC’s 1991–2020 normals, and the effect of the town’s height, for which there is no figure.
Canadian Climate Normals 1991–2020 · ECCC Data Services End-use Licence. Data Source: Environment and Climate Change Canada
Questions about Esquimalt’s climate
How warm does Esquimalt get in summer?
The year’s warmest days come in August, with highs averaging 20.7°C.
How cold does Esquimalt get in winter?
Expect nights around 3.6°C in February; no month is colder.
How much rain and snow does Esquimalt get?
Over twelve months, rain and melted snow come to 675 mm; the range runs from 13 mm in July to 129 mm in November.
Are these figures for Esquimalt itself?
They are the closest available: the normals for Victoria Gonzales (City), since Esquimalt has none.
Data Source: Environment and Climate Change Canada · ECCC Data Services End-use Licence Today’s forecast for Esquimalt →
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).