Climate in Hudson Bay · ECCC 1991–2020 normals

Hudson Bay has some of the coldest winter nights among Canadian towns

July afternoons average 24.3°C. Counting rain and snow together, it is drier than 85% of Canadian towns. Seasons differ by 47°C, from the coldest nights to the warmest afternoons. Heating does most of its work from October to May, in months below 10°C on average.

July afternoons: cooler than 68% of Canadian towns

January nights: colder than almost every Canadian town

Rain and snow a year: drier than 85% of Canadian towns

Read at Hudson Bay, 6.0 km south-east: ECCC’s normals for 1991–2020.

July high

24.3°C

Typical Canadian town 25.5°C

January low

−22.4°C

Typical Canadian town −13.5°C

Rain & snow a year

445 mm

Typical Canadian town 883 mm

Snowfall a year

177 cm

Typical Canadian town 141 cm

Frost days

215

a year at 0°C or below

A year in Hudson Bay at a glance

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

Jan−12°C−22°CColdest nights

Feb−8°C−21°C

Mar−1°C−14°C

Apr9°C−5°C

May17°C2°C

Jun21°C8°C

Jul24°C11°CWarmestWettest

Aug23°C10°C

Sep18°C4°C

Oct8°C−2°C

Nov now−2°C−11°CSnowiest

Dec−10°C−19°C

What stands out about Hudson Bay’s climate

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

Colder than almost every Canadian townJanuary nights average −22.4°C, the coldest of the year. 98th mildest of 105 towns of 2,500+ in Saskatchewan.A wider year than 93% of Canadian townsFrom January nights to July afternoons, the year spans 46.7°C.Drier than 85% of Canadian townsAbout 445 mm of rain and melted snow a year; July is the wettest month and February the driest. 9th wettest of 105 towns of 2,500+ in Saskatchewan.

A normal year

What a year in Hudson Bay feels like

Typical highs and lows by season and by month, from ECCC’s 1991–2020 normals.

Winter

−10°C / −21°C

52 mm, with 71 cm of snow

Spring

8°C / −6°C

75 mm, with 51 cm of snow

Summer

23°C / 10°C

221 mm of rain and snow, the wettest season

Autumn

8°C / −3°C

97 mm, with 56 cm of snow

−30°

−20°

−10°

0°

10°

20°

30°

−12°C−22°C

−8°C−21°C

−1°C−14°C

9°C−5°C

17°C2°C

21°C8°C

24°C11°C

23°C10°C

18°C4°C

8°C−2°C

−2°C−11°C

−10°C−19°C

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec

Best months to be outsideJulAugHighs of 17–27°C and nights of 8°C or more

Frost & warm days

Frost on 215 days, 20°C on 93

The frost season runs September to May, and January freezes nearly every night. Deep cold, under −20°C, comes on about 61 nights a year.

215

Frost days a year (0°C or below)

More frosts than almost every Canadian town

121

Days that stay below 0°C

Nights a year below −20°C

Days a year above 20°C

Days a year above 30°C

Frost days by month

Average days at 0°C or below

JFMAMJJASOND

Days above 20°C by month

Average days

JFMAMJJASOND

Rain & snow

Rain and melted snow: about 445 mm a year

July brings the most rain and snow; February, the least. 9th wettest of 105 towns of 2,500+ in Saskatchewan. On about 72 days a year, 1 mm or more falls.

445 mm

Rain and snow a year

Drier than 85% of Canadian towns

82 mm

July, the wettest month

13 mm

February, the driest month

Rain and snow by month

Millimetres

82 mm

JFMAMJJASOND

Snow

Snowfall: about 177 cm in a normal year

From September to May snow is likely; November is the peak, at about 36 cm. The snowiest of 102 towns of 2,500+ in Saskatchewan.

177 cm

Snowfall a year

Snowier than 64% of Canadian towns

Days a year with 0.2 cm of snow or more

Snowfall by month

Centimetres

36 cm

JFMAMJJASOND

Snowfall: Mafeking, 89 km away (Hudson Bay records no complete year of it).

Heating

Heating a home in Hudson Bay

88% of a year’s heating need falls between October and April. Months averaging under 10°C: October to May.

6,190 heating degree days (below 18°C)a year, 1991–2020

1,432 growing degree days (above 5°C)a year, 1991–2020

Measured against 18°C: each day’s shortfall in mean temperature, added over twelve months. Homes here need more heating than almost every Canadian town.

Living here

Living with Hudson Bay’s climate

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

Get outside

The comfortable months for a day outside, highs of 17–27°C and nights of 8°C or more: Jul and Aug.

Parks & trails →

Wind chill

Bitter wind chill, under −20, comes on about 88 days a year.

Humidex

About 20 days a year turn sultry, with the humidex past 30.

Storms and extremes

Averages smooth over blizzards, ice storms, floods and heat waves; Hudson Bay’s hazards page covers the risks.

Flood & hazards →

Weather station

ECCC’s normals location: Hudson Bay

ECCC builds the Hudson Bay normals from 4 stations’ records over 1991–2020, joined where one replaced another.

Distance from the town	6.0 km south-east
Station altitude	358 m
Completeness	meets the WMO “3 and 5” rule
WMO standard normals	No
Snowfall from	Mafeking, 89 km
Coldest reading, 1991–2020	−43.5°C
Hottest reading, 1991–2020	36.2°C
Average wind	11.1 km/h on average, most often from the south-west
Next-nearest location	Mafeking, 89 km

Compared with other towns

How Hudson Bay compares

Compared with 2,611 towns and neighbourhoods of 2,500 or more across Canada; the dots mark the other normals locations in Saskatchewan.

July afternoons24.3°C

Hudson BayMedian Canadian town

20°C22°C24°C26°C28°C

Cooler than 68% of Canadian towns

January nights−22.4°C

Hudson BayMedian Canadian town

−25°C−20°C−15°C−10°C

Colder than almost every Canadian town98th mildest of 105 towns of 2,500+ in Saskatchewan

Rain and snow a year445 mm

Hudson BayMedian Canadian town

05001,0001,500

Drier than 85% of Canadian towns9th wettest of 105 towns of 2,500+ in Saskatchewan

Snowfall a year177 cm

Hudson BayMedian Canadian town

0100200300

Snowier than 64% of Canadian townsThe snowiest of 102 towns of 2,500+ in Saskatchewan

Next door

Nearby towns’ climate

Places around Hudson Bay whose figures come from another normals location. Distances here run 92–112 km: that is how far the nearest places with figures are from Hudson Bay.

Town	July high	January low	Rain & snow
Hudson Bay	24.3°C	−22.4°C	445 mm
Moose Range No. 486 92 km · Nipawin	23.8°C 0.5°C cooler	−23.4°C 1.0°C colder	424 mm
Preeceville No. 334 100 km · Yorkton	24.4°C about the same	−20.9°C 1.5°C milder	448 mm
Tisdale 111 km · Melfort	23.4°C 0.9°C cooler	−21.1°C 1.3°C milder	397 mm
Swan River 112 km · Mafeking	24.8°C 0.5°C warmer	−21.2°C 1.2°C milder	658 mm

Month by month

Hudson Bay 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	−11.6°C	−22.4°C	−17.0°C	20 mm	27 cm
February	−8.3°C	−20.6°C	−14.5°C	13 mm	18 cm
March	−1.1°C	−13.9°C	−7.5°C	18 mm	19 cm
April	8.6°C	−4.7°C	2.0°C	24 mm	27 cm
May	16.6°C	1.9°C	9.2°C	33 mm	5 cm
June	21.3°C	7.9°C	14.6°C	71 mm	under 1 cm
July	24.3°C	11.1°C	17.7°C	82 mm	0 cm
August	23.2°C	9.5°C	16.4°C	68 mm	0 cm
September	17.5°C	4.1°C	10.8°C	42 mm	2 cm
October	8.3°C	−2.4°C	3.0°C	33 mm	18 cm
November	−2.3°C	−11.2°C	−6.7°C	22 mm	36 cm
December	−10.0°C	−19.3°C	−14.6°C	18 mm	26 cm
Year	7.2°C	−5.0°C	1.1°C	445 mm	177 cm

Year to year

A December here can run warm or cold, its average moving by about 4.6°C; the steadiest month is July

March has the widest record range, −38.6°C in 2017 to 19.0°C in 1993; the tick on each bar is the month’s normal.

−50°

−40°

−30°

−20°

−10°

0°

10°

20°

30°

40°

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec

Record low to record high, 1991–2020Normal

Sources

Where Hudson Bay’s numbers come from

Averages over 30 years, not a forecast.

Normals: the Canadian Climate Normals, 1991–2020, at Hudson Bay (the closest location with all twelve months of temperatures).
Other locations: ECCC blanks a month that fails its completeness rule, so the precipitation or snowfall here comes from the next location with all twelve months.
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 Hudson Bay’s climate

How warm does Hudson Bay get in summer?

July is the warmest month, with average highs of 24.3°C.

How cold does Hudson Bay get in winter?

A typical January night falls to −22.4°C, the year’s low point.

How much rain and snow does Hudson Bay get?

Around 445 mm a year in all, from 82 mm in July down to 13 mm in February.

Are these figures for Hudson Bay itself?

Almost: ECCC’s Hudson Bay location, which gives these figures, lies a short way outside Hudson Bay.

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

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).