Photo: SaguenayMaville · CC BY-SA 4.0Midwinter lows in Saguenay sink below those of 89% of Canadian towns
Sunny July days climb to about 24.5°C. By July afternoons alone, it runs cooler than 67% of Canadian towns. Expect the most rain and snow in July and the least in February. Ice scrapers and block heaters earn their keep on roughly 188 days a year at 0°C or below.
Environment and Climate Change Canada’s 1991–2020 normals, measured at Bagotville, 11 km south-east.
A year in Saguenay at a glance
Each month’s typical high and low, in °C.
What stands out about Saguenay’s climate
Compared with Canadian towns, with its place among towns of 2,500+ in Quebec beside it.
What a year in Saguenay feels like
Seasons and months as ECCC’s 1991–2020 normals give them: a typical day’s high and low.
About 188 frosts and 92 warm days a year
From September to May frost is routine, and in January it comes on almost every night. On about 43 nights a year the air falls below −20°C.
Frost days by month
Average days at 0°C or below
Days above 20°C by month
Average days
About 928 mm of rain and snow a year
On about 143 days a year, 1 mm or more falls.
Rain and snow by month
Millimetres
Rain alone by month
Millimetres
302 cm of snow in a typical year
From October to May snow is likely; December is the peak, at about 65 cm.
Snowfall by month
Centimetres
Snow on the ground by month
Centimetres at month’s end
Heating a home in Saguenay
90% of a year’s heating need falls between October and April. Months averaging under 10°C: October to April.
Warm days count for nothing; each colder day adds how far its mean sits below 18°C. Homes here need more heating than 83% of Canadian towns.
Living with Saguenay’s climate
Gardening, time outside, winter cold and summer heat, from the 1991–2020 normals.
Gardens get from about 20 May to 27 September without frost, around 128 days in all.
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 76 days a year: cover skin and dress in layers.
Muggy heat with a humidex over 30 arrives on about 23 days a year.
For blizzards, floods and wildfire, turn to Saguenay’s hazards page.
Flood & hazards →ECCC’s normals location: Bagotville
The page’s figures are ECCC’s 1991–2020 normals for Bagotville, one of its 450 normals locations.
| Distance from the town | 11 km south-east |
| Station altitude | 159 m |
| Completeness | meets the WMO “3 and 5” rule |
| WMO standard normals | Yes |
| Coldest reading, 1991–2020 | −40.6°C |
| Hottest reading, 1991–2020 | 38.4°C |
| Average wind | 14.9 km/h on average, most often from the west |
| Next-nearest location | Roberval, 87 km |
How Saguenay compares
Placed among 2,611 Canadian towns and neighbourhoods of 2,500+, each on its nearest normals location; each dot is another location used in Quebec.
Nearby towns’ climate
Nearby places read from a different ECCC location (places on Saguenay’s own would show the same figures). The nearest place to Saguenay with figures is 41 km away.
| Town | July high | January low | Rain & snow |
|---|---|---|---|
| Saguenay Bagotville | 24.5°C | −20.4°C | 928 mm |
| Saint-Bruno 41 km · Roberval | 23.7°C 0.8°C cooler | −20.8°C about the same | 911 mm |
Saguenay weather by month
Each month’s normals, 1991–2020: high, low, mean, precipitation and snowfall.
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Rain & snow | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | −9.7°C | −20.4°C | −15.1°C | 58 mm | 62 cm |
| February | −7.4°C | −18.7°C | −13.1°C | 48 mm | 52 cm |
| March | −0.7°C | −11.8°C | −6.3°C | 58 mm | 49 cm |
| April | 7.4°C | −3.2°C | 2.1°C | 61 mm | 23 cm |
| May | 16.6°C | 3.7°C | 10.2°C | 78 mm | 3 cm |
| June | 22.3°C | 9.6°C | 16.0°C | 89 mm | 0 cm |
| July | 24.5°C | 12.9°C | 18.7°C | 112 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 23.4°C | 11.8°C | 17.6°C | 100 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 18.2°C | 6.9°C | 12.6°C | 102 mm | 0 cm |
| October | 9.9°C | 1.4°C | 5.7°C | 92 mm | 8 cm |
| November | 2.3°C | −5.4°C | −1.5°C | 66 mm | 39 cm |
| December | −5.1°C | −13.9°C | −9.5°C | 64 mm | 65 cm |
| Year | 8.5°C | −2.3°C | 3.1°C | 928 mm | 302 cm |
The month with the widest range: March, −33.0°C to 25.2°C
Bars run from each month’s record low to its record high over 1991–2020; January is the month whose average wanders most from year to year (±3.2°C around −15.1°C), August the one that wanders least (±1.1°C).
Where Saguenay’s numbers come from
Averages over 30 years, not a forecast.
- Normals: the Canadian Climate Normals, 1991–2020, at Bagotville (the closest location with all twelve months of temperatures).
- Comparisons: the 2,500-plus towns and neighbourhoods of Canada, each read from its closest normals location; whole cities and reserves aren’t counted.
- 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 Saguenay’s climate
How warm does Saguenay get in summer?
Summer peaks in July: a typical afternoon reaches 24.5°C.
How cold does Saguenay get in winter?
Midwinter means January, when a typical night reaches −20.4°C.
How much rain and snow does Saguenay get?
Count on roughly 928 mm a year, heaviest in July (112 mm) and lightest in February (48 mm).
How long does snow stay on the ground?
About 156 days a year count as snow-covered, with 1 cm or more.
Are these figures for Saguenay itself?
Yes: they are ECCC’s 1991–2020 normals for Bagotville, a location inside Saguenay.
Data Source: Environment and Climate Change Canada · ECCC Data Services End-use Licence Today’s forecast for Saguenay →
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).