Photo: GerthMichael · CC BY-SA 3.0Princeton is among the driest of Canadian towns: 355 mm of rain and snow a year
Midsummer highs settle at about 27.3°C. Summer afternoons here are warmer than in 91% of Canadian towns. Winter and summer sit 36°C apart. Heating does most of its work from October to April, in months below 10°C on average.
1991–2020 normals from ECCC’s Princeton station, 1.6 km north-east.
A year in Princeton at a glance
Each month’s typical high and low, in °C.
What stands out about Princeton’s climate
Compared with Canadian towns, with its place among towns of 2,500+ in British Columbia beside it.
What a year in Princeton feels like
Typical highs and lows by season and by month, from ECCC’s 1991–2020 normals.
About 177 frosts and 111 warm days a year
Frost comes from September to May; in December almost every night freezes. Some 6 nights a year drop under −20°C.
Frost days by month
Average days at 0°C or below
Days above 20°C by month
Average days
About 355 mm of rain and snow a year
November brings the most rain and snow; April, the least. About 76 days a year bring 1 mm or more.
Rain and snow by month
Millimetres
Rain alone by month
Millimetres
125 cm of snow in a typical year
The snow season runs October to April; December brings the most, about 37 cm.
Snowfall by month
Centimetres
Snow on the ground by month
Centimetres at month’s end
Heating a home in Princeton
88% of a year’s heating need falls between October and April. Months averaging under 10°C: October to April.
Measured against 18°C: each day’s shortfall in mean temperature, added over twelve months. Homes here need less heating than 66% of Canadian towns.
Living with Princeton’s climate
What the normals mean for a garden, a day outside and the depth of winter.
Plant out after about 21 May; the first frost of autumn usually arrives near 15 September, leaving roughly 116 days without frost.
No month here brings highs of 17–27°C together with nights of 8°C or more.
Parks & trails →Count on some 6 days a year when the wind makes it feel below −20.
Humid heat, a humidex over 30, comes on about 29 days a year.
Ice storms, floods and heat waves are risks, not averages: they are on Princeton’s hazards page.
Flood & hazards →ECCC’s normals location: Princeton
Behind the 1991–2020 normals for Princeton are 2 stations, which ECCC combines into one record.
| Distance from the town | 1.6 km north-east |
| Station altitude | 702 m |
| Completeness | meets the WMO “3 and 5” rule |
| WMO standard normals | No |
| Coldest reading, 1991–2020 | −35.5°C |
| Hottest reading, 1991–2020 | 39.3°C |
| Average wind | 3.9 km/h on average, most often from the west |
| Next-nearest location | Penticton, 67 km |
How Princeton 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
Nearby places read from a different ECCC location (places on Princeton’s own would show the same figures). The one place listed is 48 km from Princeton, the nearest with figures.
| Town | July high | January low | Rain & snow |
|---|---|---|---|
| Princeton | 27.3°C | −9.1°C | 355 mm |
| Electoral Area G, Okanagan-Similkameen 48 km · Penticton | 29.2°C 1.9°C warmer | −3.2°C 5.9°C milder | 344 mm |
Princeton 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 | −1.7°C | −9.1°C | −5.4°C | 35 mm | 34 cm |
| February | 2.4°C | −7.6°C | −2.6°C | 23 mm | 17 cm |
| March | 8.6°C | −3.9°C | 2.4°C | 19 mm | 13 cm |
| April | 14.2°C | −0.4°C | 6.9°C | 18 mm | 3 cm |
| May | 19.4°C | 3.7°C | 11.6°C | 31 mm | 1 cm |
| June | 22.3°C | 7.3°C | 14.8°C | 39 mm | 0 cm |
| July | 27.3°C | 9.7°C | 18.5°C | 25 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 27.3°C | 9.1°C | 18.2°C | 22 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 22.0°C | 5.2°C | 13.6°C | 26 mm | 0 cm |
| October | 12.9°C | 0.4°C | 6.7°C | 33 mm | 3 cm |
| November | 3.7°C | −4.0°C | −0.2°C | 44 mm | 19 cm |
| December | −1.8°C | −8.5°C | −5.1°C | 38 mm | 37 cm |
| Year | 13.1°C | 0.2°C | 6.6°C | 355 mm | 125 cm |
In March, anything from −26.8°C to 23.5°C
Two years in three, February’s average falls within 2.8°C of its normal of −2.6°C; August keeps to within 1.1°C.
Where Princeton’s numbers come from
Averages over 30 years, not a forecast.
- Normals: ECCC’s 1991–2020 Canadian Climate Normals for Princeton, the nearest location with a full year of temperatures.
- 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: a sunshine figure (ECCC published none for 1991–2020) and any lapse-rate correction for height, as the town has no elevation here.
Canadian Climate Normals 1991–2020 · ECCC Data Services End-use Licence. Data Source: Environment and Climate Change Canada
Questions about Princeton’s climate
How warm does Princeton get in summer?
The warmest month is July, when afternoons average 27.3°C.
How cold does Princeton get in winter?
At its coldest, in January, the normal low is −9.1°C.
How much rain and snow does Princeton get?
About 355 mm a year, rain and melted snow together. November is the wettest month (44 mm) and April the driest (18 mm).
How long does snow stay on the ground?
There is 1 cm of snow or more on the ground on roughly 110 days a year.
Are these figures for Princeton itself?
Yes, from ECCC’s station within Princeton’s boundary.
Data Source: Environment and Climate Change Canada · ECCC Data Services End-use Licence Today’s forecast for Princeton →
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).