Few Canadian towns have colder winter nights than Russell
The warmest part of a July day comes in at 23.7°C on average. By precipitation alone, it ranks drier than 78% of Canadian towns. The year swings widely: the coldest month’s nights and the warmest month’s afternoons are 46°C apart. Homes need heating from October to May, the months averaging under 10°C.
The nearest ECCC normals location is Roblin, 50 km north: at that distance its figures describe the region more than Russell itself.
A year in Russell at a glance
Each month’s typical high and low, in °C.
What stands out about Russell’s climate
Compared with Canadian towns, with its place among towns of 2,500+ in Manitoba beside it.
What a year in Russell feels like
Seasons and months as ECCC’s 1991–2020 normals give them: a typical day’s high and low.
About 206 frosts and 90 warm days a year
From September to May frost is routine, and in January it comes on almost every night. Some 56 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
Rain and melted snow: about 448 mm a year
The most falls in June, the least in February. 188th wettest of 189 towns of 2,500+ in Manitoba. About 75 days a year bring 1 mm or more.
Rain and snow by month
Millimetres
Rain alone by month
Millimetres
About 95 cm of snow a year
Expect snow from October to May, with about 20 cm in December, the snowiest month. 185th snowiest of 187 towns of 2,500+ in Manitoba.
Snowfall by month
Centimetres
Heating a home in Russell
89% of a year’s heating need falls between October and April. Months averaging under 10°C: October to May.
The count adds up, day by day, how far the mean temperature falls short of 18°C. That means homes here need more heating than almost every Canadian town.
Living with Russell’s climate
Gardening, time outside, winter cold and summer heat, from the 1991–2020 normals.
Highs of 17–27°C with nights of 8°C or more come in Jun, Jul and Aug.
Parks & trails →Wind chill falls below −20 on about 90 days a year: cover skin and dress in layers.
Summer brings about 21 days when the humidex passes 30.
Averages smooth over blizzards, ice storms, floods and heat waves; Russell’s hazards page covers the risks.
Flood & hazards →ECCC’s normals location: Roblin
ECCC builds the Roblin normals from 2 stations’ records over 1991–2020, joined where one replaced another.
| Distance from the town | 50 km north |
| Station altitude | 540 m |
| Completeness | meets the WMO “3 and 5” rule |
| WMO standard normals | No |
| Coldest reading, 1991–2020 | −49.5°C |
| Hottest reading, 1991–2020 | 36.4°C |
| Average wind | 15.0 km/h on average, most often from the east |
| Next-nearest location | Elkhorn, 89 km |
How Russell 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 Manitoba.
Nearby towns’ climate
The nearest places on a normals location of their own: those that share Russell’s would only repeat its figures. Russell has few close neighbours with figures, so the list reaches 40–75 km out.
| Town | July high | January low | Rain & snow |
|---|---|---|---|
| Russell Roblin | 23.7°C | −22.3°C | 448 mm |
| Prairie View 40 km · Elkhorn | 25.4°C 1.7°C warmer | −19.6°C 2.7°C milder | 517 mm |
| Esterhazy 54 km · Kipling | 24.1°C about the same | −19.1°C 3.2°C milder | 489 mm |
| Gilbert Plains 75 km · Dauphin | 25.1°C 1.4°C warmer | −20.9°C 1.4°C milder | 462 mm |
Russell 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 | −12.1°C | −22.3°C | −17.2°C | 18 mm | 20 cm |
| February | −9.5°C | −20.4°C | −15.0°C | 13 mm | 10 cm |
| March | −2.2°C | −13.1°C | −7.7°C | 23 mm | 15 cm |
| April | 8.0°C | −3.6°C | 2.3°C | 27 mm | 7 cm |
| May | 16.7°C | 3.2°C | 9.9°C | 45 mm | 2 cm |
| June | 21.2°C | 9.0°C | 15.1°C | 88 mm | 0 cm |
| July | 23.7°C | 11.2°C | 17.4°C | 71 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 23.1°C | 9.7°C | 16.4°C | 70 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 17.8°C | 4.9°C | 11.4°C | 34 mm | 1 cm |
| October | 8.6°C | −1.9°C | 3.4°C | 25 mm | 7 cm |
| November | −2.0°C | −10.9°C | −6.5°C | 18 mm | 13 cm |
| December | −9.6°C | −19.0°C | −14.3°C | 18 mm | 20 cm |
| Year | 7.0°C | −4.4°C | 1.3°C | 448 mm | 95 cm |
The most changeable month: February, give or take 4.2°C; the steadiest, July
Bars run from each month’s record low to its record high since 1991. March spans the most, from −40.0°C (2003) to 20.0°C (1993).
Where Russell’s numbers come from
Averages over 30 years, not a forecast.
- Normals: ECCC’s normals for Roblin, 1991–2020, chosen as the nearest location with a full temperature record.
- 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 (no 1991–2020 normals exist for it) and any altitude adjustment, since there is no elevation for the town itself.
Canadian Climate Normals 1991–2020 · ECCC Data Services End-use Licence. Data Source: Environment and Climate Change Canada
Questions about Russell’s climate
How warm does Russell get in summer?
Summer peaks in July: a typical afternoon reaches 23.7°C.
How cold does Russell get in winter?
Midwinter means January, when a typical night reaches −22.3°C.
How much rain and snow does Russell get?
The yearly total is about 448 mm. June gets 88 mm, the most of any month; February gets 13 mm, the least.
Are these figures for Russell itself?
Not really: Roblin, the closest location with normals, lies well away from Russell.
Data Source: Environment and Climate Change Canada · ECCC Data Services End-use Licence Today’s forecast for Russell →
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).