Photo: Marie-Hélène Lareault · Public domainHardly any Canadian towns see fresher July days than Whapmagoostui
Deep winter brings January lows near −25.3°C. Winter and summer sit 44°C apart. In January, nights here are colder than in almost every Canadian town. Have the furnace checked before September to June, the months that average under 10°C.
1991–2020 normals from ECCC’s Kuujjuarapik station, 0.4 km north.
A year in Whapmagoostui at a glance
Each month’s typical high and low, in °C.
What stands out about Whapmagoostui’s climate
Compared with Canadian towns, with its place among towns of 2,500+ in Quebec beside it.
What a year in Whapmagoostui feels like
Typical highs and lows by season and by month, from ECCC’s 1991–2020 normals.
224 frost days and 29 days above 20°C a year
The frost season runs September to June, and January freezes nearly every night. On about 81 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
Rain and melted snow: about 664 mm a year
September is the wettest month and February the driest. 513th wettest of 514 towns of 2,500+ in Quebec. Some 127 days a year see 1 mm of rain or snow or more.
Rain and snow by month
Millimetres
Rain alone by month
Millimetres
230 cm of snow in a typical year
From September to June snow is likely; December is the peak, at about 53 cm.
Snowfall by month
Centimetres
Snow on the ground by month
Centimetres at month’s end
Heating a home in Whapmagoostui
81% of a year’s heating need falls between October and April. Months averaging under 10°C: September to June.
Every day colder than 18°C on average adds its gap in degrees to the year’s heating total. That means homes here need more heating than almost every Canadian town.
Living with Whapmagoostui’s climate
The averages read for the garden, the outdoors and the coldest and hottest days.
About 103 days a year pass without frost, from an average last frost of 18 June to a first of 30 September.
Even midsummer nights fall below 8°C on average, so no month meets the mild-day rule of 17–27°C by day.
Parks & trails →Expect around 119 days a year when the wind chill sinks below −20.
Plan shade and water for about 3 days a year above 30 on the humidex.
A typical year is calm by definition; Whapmagoostui’s hazards page covers the exceptions.
Flood & hazards →ECCC’s normals location: Kuujjuarapik
Kuujjuarapik is a composite: ECCC joins 3 stations’ readings to make its 1991–2020 normals.
| Distance from the town | 0.4 km north |
| Station altitude | 12 m |
| Completeness | meets the WMO “3 and 5” rule |
| WMO standard normals | No |
| Coldest reading, 1991–2020 | −46.0°C |
| Hottest reading, 1991–2020 | 37.0°C |
| Average wind | 17.2 km/h on average, most often from the west |
| Next-nearest location | La Grande Rivière, 183 km |
How Whapmagoostui 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.
Whapmagoostui weather by month
Each month’s normals, 1991–2020: high, low, mean, precipitation and snowfall.
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Rain & snow | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | −17.2°C | −25.3°C | −21.3°C | 29 mm | 29 cm |
| February | −17.2°C | −27.3°C | −22.3°C | 19 mm | 19 cm |
| March | −10.5°C | −21.5°C | −16.0°C | 24 mm | 22 cm |
| April | −2.5°C | −12.2°C | −7.3°C | 20 mm | 15 cm |
| May | 6.2°C | −2.7°C | 1.8°C | 40 mm | 13 cm |
| June | 12.6°C | 2.5°C | 7.6°C | 57 mm | 2 cm |
| July | 16.6°C | 7.2°C | 11.9°C | 82 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 16.2°C | 8.6°C | 12.4°C | 85 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 11.8°C | 5.1°C | 8.5°C | 108 mm | 2 cm |
| October | 5.8°C | 0.5°C | 3.2°C | 84 mm | 23 cm |
| November | −1.1°C | −6.2°C | −3.7°C | 65 mm | 53 cm |
| December | −9.8°C | −16.5°C | −13.2°C | 52 mm | 53 cm |
| Year | 0.9°C | −7.3°C | −3.2°C | 664 mm | 230 cm |
March: −42.8°C at its coldest, 12.1°C at its warmest
The month to count on least is December: one year in three its average strays more than 3.7°C from −13.2°C. September moves least, typically by 1.3°C.
Where Whapmagoostui’s numbers come from
Averages over 30 years, not a forecast.
- Normals: Environment and Climate Change Canada’s 1991–2020 normals, Kuujjuarapik: the nearest of its locations with every month’s temperatures.
- Comparisons: all Canadian places of 2,500 or more except city totals and reserves, each read the same way.
- 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 Whapmagoostui’s climate
How warm does Whapmagoostui get in summer?
On a normal day in July the thermometer climbs to 16.6°C, the warmest of the year.
How cold does Whapmagoostui get in winter?
Deep winter means February, when nights average −27.3°C.
How much rain and snow does Whapmagoostui get?
The year adds up to 664 mm. September is the peak month (108 mm) and February the low one (19 mm).
How long does snow stay on the ground?
Snow lies on the ground for about 188 days in a normal year.
Are these figures for Whapmagoostui itself?
Yes. Kuujjuarapik, where ECCC’s 1991–2020 normals were measured, lies within Whapmagoostui.
Data Source: Environment and Climate Change Canada · ECCC Data Services End-use Licence Today’s forecast for Whapmagoostui →
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).