Port McNeill sits near the top of Canadian towns for rain and snow, with 1,911 mm a year
High summer brings afternoon highs near 18.0°C. The wettest month is November; the driest is July. Its July afternoons stay fresher than in almost every Canadian town. Ice scrapers and block heaters earn their keep on roughly 47 days a year at 0°C or below.
Environment and Climate Change Canada’s 1991–2020 normals at its Port Hardy station, 23 km north-west.
A year in Port McNeill at a glance
Each month’s typical high and low, in °C.
What stands out about Port McNeill’s climate
Compared with Canadian towns, with its place among towns of 2,500+ in British Columbia beside it.
What a year in Port McNeill feels like
Each season’s and each month’s usual high and low, 1991–2020.
47 frost days and 15 days above 20°C a year
The frost season runs October 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
1,911 mm of precipitation in a typical year
6th wettest of 256 towns of 2,500+ in British Columbia. On about 181 days a year, 1 mm or more falls.
Rain and snow by month
Millimetres
Rain alone by month
Millimetres
About 39 cm of snow a year
Expect snow from November to April, with about 13 cm in January, the snowiest month.
Snowfall by month
Centimetres
Snow on the ground by month
Centimetres at month’s end
Heating a home in Port McNeill
77% of a year’s heating need falls between October and April. Months averaging under 10°C: October to April.
Heating degree days total each day’s gap between its mean temperature and 18°C. Over a year, a home here needs less heating than 92% of Canadian towns.
Living with Port McNeill’s climate
Gardening, time outside, winter cold and summer heat, from the 1991–2020 normals.
Seedlings can go out once the average last frost, around 19 April, has passed; autumn’s first, near 4 November, ends a season of about 199 days.
The outdoor season by the averages is Jul and Aug, with highs of 17–27°C and lows of 8°C or more.
Parks & trails →What averages leave out, the floods and ice storms, is on Port McNeill’s hazards page.
Flood & hazards →ECCC’s normals location: Port Hardy
ECCC builds the Port Hardy normals from 2 stations’ records over 1991–2020, joined where one replaced another.
| Distance from the town | 23 km north-west |
| Station altitude | 22 m |
| Completeness | meets the WMO “3 and 5” rule |
| WMO standard normals | No |
| Coldest reading, 1991–2020 | −11.8°C |
| Hottest reading, 1991–2020 | 30.0°C |
| Average wind | 11.2 km/h on average, most often from the east |
| Next-nearest location | Addenbroke Island, 126 km |
How Port McNeill compares
Compared with 2,611 towns and neighbourhoods of 2,500 or more across Canada; the dots mark the other normals locations in British Columbia.
Nearby towns’ climate
Nearby places read from a different ECCC location (places on Port McNeill’s own would show the same figures). The nearest places to Port McNeill with figures are 115–153 km away.
| Town | July high | January low | Rain & snow |
|---|---|---|---|
| Port McNeill Port Hardy | 18.0°C | 1.6°C | 1,911 mm |
| Gold River 115 km · Estevan Point | 17.4°C 0.6°C cooler | 3.6°C 2.0°C milder | 3,111 mm |
| Electoral Area C, Strathcona 144 km · Campbell River | 23.5°C 5.5°C warmer | −0.5°C 2.1°C colder | 1,482 mm |
Port McNeill 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 | 6.5°C | 1.6°C | 4.1°C | 240 mm | 13 cm |
| February | 7.2°C | 1.2°C | 4.2°C | 150 mm | 6 cm |
| March | 8.7°C | 1.8°C | 5.3°C | 171 mm | 5 cm |
| April | 11.3°C | 3.4°C | 7.4°C | 119 mm | 1 cm |
| May | 14.2°C | 6.1°C | 10.2°C | 72 mm | 0 cm |
| June | 16.1°C | 8.9°C | 12.5°C | 74 mm | 0 cm |
| July | 18.0°C | 10.8°C | 14.4°C | 57 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 18.4°C | 10.8°C | 14.6°C | 78 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 16.0°C | 8.8°C | 12.4°C | 121 mm | 0 cm |
| October | 11.8°C | 5.7°C | 8.8°C | 245 mm | 0 cm |
| November | 8.3°C | 3.0°C | 5.6°C | 319 mm | 4 cm |
| December | 6.0°C | 1.5°C | 3.8°C | 266 mm | 11 cm |
| Year | 11.9°C | 5.3°C | 8.6°C | 1,911 mm | 39 cm |
February varies most from one year to the next (1.5°C), July least
Records from 1991 to 2020: no month spans more than May, between −1.5°C (2013) and 26.7°C (1993).
Where Port McNeill’s numbers come from
Averages over 30 years, not a forecast.
- Normals: the Canadian Climate Normals, 1991–2020, at Port Hardy (the closest location with all twelve months of temperatures).
- Comparisons: Canadian towns and neighbourhoods of at least 2,500, each placed by its nearest location (city totals and reserves excluded).
- 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 Port McNeill’s climate
How warm does Port McNeill get in summer?
On a normal day in August the thermometer climbs to 18.4°C, the warmest of the year.
How cold does Port McNeill get in winter?
In February, the coldest month, the typical low is 1.2°C.
How much rain and snow does Port McNeill get?
Rain and snow add up to about 1,911 mm of water a year; November brings the most (319 mm), July the least (57 mm).
How long does snow stay on the ground?
Snow lies on the ground for about 7 days in a normal year.
Are these figures for Port McNeill itself?
Almost: ECCC’s Port Hardy location, which gives these figures, lies a short way outside Port McNeill.
Data Source: Environment and Climate Change Canada · ECCC Data Services End-use Licence Today’s forecast for Port McNeill →
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).