Photo: Ansgar Walk · CC BY-SA 2.5

Climate in Arviat · ECCC 1991–2020 normals

Few Canadian towns have colder winter nights than Arviat

In July the day’s top temperature is typically 15.2°C. Summers stay cool: July afternoons here are cooler than in almost every Canadian town. The year swings widely: the coldest month’s nights and the warmest month’s afternoons are 47°C apart. The furnace earns its keep from September to June, the months that average under 10°C.

July afternoons: cooler than almost every Canadian town

January nights: colder than almost every Canadian town

Rain and snow a year: drier than almost every Canadian town

1991–2020 normals from ECCC’s Arviat station, 0.5 km south-west.

July high

15.2°C

Typical Canadian town 25.5°C

January low

−31.9°C

Typical Canadian town −13.5°C

Rain & snow a year

318 mm

Typical Canadian town 883 mm

Snowfall a year

81 cm

Typical Canadian town 141 cm

Frost days

254

a year at 0°C or below

A year in Arviat at a glance

Each month’s typical high and low, in °C.

Jan−24°C−32°C

Feb−24°C−32°CColdest nights

Mar−18°C−27°C

Apr−9°C−19°C

May−1°C−7°C

Jun8°C1°C

Jul15°C7°CWarmest

Aug14°C7°CWettest

Sep8°C2°C

Oct0°C−6°CSnowiest

Nov now−11°C−19°C

Dec−19°C−27°C

What stands out about Arviat’s climate

Compared with Canadian towns, with its place among towns of 2,500+ in Nunavut beside it.

Colder than almost every Canadian townJanuary nights average −31.9°C; February is colder still. 2nd mildest of 3 towns of 2,500+ in Nunavut.Cooler than almost every Canadian townJuly afternoons average 15.2°C, the warmest of the year. The warmest of 3 towns of 2,500+ in Nunavut.Drier than almost every Canadian townAbout 318 mm of rain and melted snow a year; August is the wettest month and February the driest. 2nd wettest of 3 towns of 2,500+ in Nunavut.

A normal year

What a year in Arviat feels like

Each season’s and each month’s usual high and low, 1991–2020.

Winter

−23°C / −30°C

37 mm, with 21 cm of snow

Spring

−10°C / −18°C

55 mm, with 31 cm of snow

Summer

13°C / 5°C

132 mm of rain and snow, the wettest season

Autumn

−1°C / −7°C

94 mm, with 28 cm of snow

−40°

−30°

−20°

−10°

0°

10°

20°

−24°C−32°C

−18°C−27°C

−9°C−19°C

−1°C−7°C

8°C1°C

15°C7°C

14°C7°C

8°C2°C

0°C−6°C

−11°C−19°C

−19°C−27°C

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec

Best months to be outsideNo month has highs of 17°C or more with nights of 8°C or more: summers here are cool.

Frost & warm days

Frost on 254 days, 20°C on 10

The frost season runs September to June, and January freezes nearly every night. On about 136 nights a year the air falls below −20°C.

254

Frost days a year (0°C or below)

More frosts than almost every Canadian town

213

Days that stay below 0°C

136

Nights a year below −20°C

Days a year above 20°C

Frost days by month

Average days at 0°C or below

JFMAMJJASOND

Days above 20°C by month

Average days

5.7

JFMAMJJASOND

Rain & snow

About 318 mm of rain and snow a year

August is the wettest month and February the driest. 2nd wettest of 3 towns of 2,500+ in Nunavut. About 75 days a year bring 1 mm or more.

318 mm

Rain and snow a year

Drier than almost every Canadian town

185 mm

Of it as rain alone (58%)

60 mm

August, the wettest month

11 mm

February, the driest month

Rain and snow by month

Millimetres

60 mm

JFMAMJJASOND

Rain alone by month

Millimetres

61 mm

JFMAMJJASOND

Snow

Snowfall: about 81 cm in a normal year

Expect snow from September to June, with about 13 cm in October, the snowiest month. 3rd snowiest of 3 towns of 2,500+ in Nunavut.

81 cm

Snowfall a year

Less snowy than 93% of Canadian towns

Days a year with 0.2 cm of snow or more

Snowfall by month

Centimetres

13 cm

JFMAMJJASOND

Heating

Heating a home in Arviat

80% of a year’s heating need falls between October and April. Months averaging under 10°C: September to June.

9,754 heating degree days (below 18°C)a year, 1991–2020

450 growing degree days (above 5°C)a year, 1991–2020

A day averaging 10 degrees under 18°C adds 10 to the total; warm days add nothing. Homes here need more heating than almost every Canadian town.

Living here

Living with Arviat’s climate

Gardening, time outside, winter cold and summer heat, from the 1991–2020 normals.

Get outside

Summer nights stay cool here: no month pairs 17–27°C afternoons with 8°C nights.

Parks & trails →

Wind chill

Plan for about 180 days a year with a wind chill below −20.

Storms and extremes

Bad-weather days, from blizzards to floods, get their own page for Arviat: the hazards page.

Flood & hazards →

Weather station

ECCC’s normals location: Arviat

Arviat is a composite: ECCC joins 4 stations’ readings to make its 1991–2020 normals.

Distance from the town	0.5 km south-west
Station altitude	10 m
Completeness	meets the WMO “3 and 5” rule
WMO standard normals	No
Coldest reading, 1991–2020	−47.0°C
Hottest reading, 1991–2020	31.0°C
Average wind	22.8 km/h on average, most often from the north-west
Next-nearest location	Whale Cove, 148 km

Compared with other towns

How Arviat 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 Nunavut.

July afternoons15.2°C

ArviatMedian Canadian town

12°C16°C20°C24°C

Cooler than almost every Canadian townThe warmest of 3 towns of 2,500+ in Nunavut

January nights−31.9°C

ArviatMedian Canadian town

−35°C−30°C−25°C−20°C−15°C−10°C

Colder than almost every Canadian town2nd mildest of 3 towns of 2,500+ in Nunavut

Rain and snow a year318 mm

ArviatMedian Canadian town

05001,0001,500

Drier than almost every Canadian town2nd wettest of 3 towns of 2,500+ in Nunavut

Snowfall a year81 cm

ArviatMedian Canadian town

0100200300

Less snowy than 93% of Canadian towns3rd snowiest of 3 towns of 2,500+ in Nunavut

Month by month

Arviat 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	−24.4°C	−31.9°C	−28.2°C	12 mm	7 cm
February	−24.2°C	−32.0°C	−28.1°C	11 mm	5 cm
March	−18.1°C	−27.4°C	−22.8°C	16 mm	9 cm
April	−9.4°C	−18.7°C	−14.2°C	19 mm	10 cm
May	−1.1°C	−7.3°C	−4.3°C	19 mm	12 cm
June	8.3°C	1.3°C	4.8°C	30 mm	1 cm
July	15.2°C	7.1°C	11.2°C	42 mm	0 cm
August	14.1°C	7.3°C	10.7°C	60 mm	0 cm
September	8.0°C	2.4°C	5.2°C	47 mm	3 cm
October	−0.4°C	−5.5°C	−2.9°C	27 mm	13 cm
November	−11.0°C	−19.0°C	−15.0°C	20 mm	12 cm
December	−19.4°C	−27.0°C	−23.2°C	13 mm	9 cm
Year	−5.2°C	−12.6°C	−8.9°C	318 mm	81 cm

Year to year

February: −47.0°C at its coldest, −1.5°C at its warmest

Year to year, January varies most (a standard deviation of 3.5°C around −28.2°C) and August least (0.8°C).

−50°

−40°

−30°

−20°

−10°

0°

10°

20°

30°

40°

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec

Record low to record high, 1991–2020Normal

Sources

Where Arviat’s numbers come from

Averages over 30 years, not a forecast.

Normals: ECCC’s normals for Arviat, 1991–2020, chosen as the nearest location with a full temperature record.
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: hours of sunshine, missing from the 1991–2020 normals, and a height correction: the town has no elevation on file.

Canadian Climate Normals 1991–2020 · ECCC Data Services End-use Licence. Data Source: Environment and Climate Change Canada

Questions about Arviat’s climate

How warm does Arviat get in summer?

The warmest month is July, when afternoons average 15.2°C.

How cold does Arviat get in winter?

February nights average −32.0°C, the coldest of the year.

How much rain and snow does Arviat get?

The yearly total is about 318 mm. August gets 60 mm, the most of any month; February gets 11 mm, the least.

Are these figures for Arviat itself?

Yes, from ECCC’s station within Arviat’s boundary.

Data Source: Environment and Climate Change Canada · ECCC Data Services End-use Licence Today’s forecast for Arviat →

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).