October 2026 Review

It's maybe been feeling a little unusually wintery, but it's time for our big look back at Edmonton weather for October 2026.

In spite of the early snow October 2026's temperatures were pretty average. 

The average High of 11.1°C was the 78th warmest. The average Low of -0.3°C was 74th. 

That's above 2018-2020, and close to 2021. 

Over the past century October's average Highs have stayed very flat.



High Temperatures

October had 18 above-average Highs and 13 below. The below-average final week definitely did give us an early taste of winter. 

The coldest High was -1.1°C on the 29th, and the warmest was 22°C on the 17th.

October averages 2 20°C Highs, and 2026 got 3. (2022 had 12) 

It also averages 2 Highs below freezing, and even with the cold final week 2026 only had 1.



Warm Days So Far

We've probably seen our final 20°C High of the year. (we have recorded 5 of them in November, but the most recent was 1949). 

2026 ends up with 106, when our recent average is 111. But our historic average is closer to 90.



Low Temperatures

October 2026's Lows had 12 above-average and 19 below. 

The warmest was 7.2°C on the 8th. The coldest was -8.3°C on the 25th. The first frost was -0.2°C on the 4th.

In October we average 13 below-freezing Lows, and 3 of those are below -5°C. 2026 was pretty average with 14 and 3. 

Some Octobers drop below -10°C, although the last time that happened was 2020 & 2019. And back in 2003 & 2002 we even got to -16°C.



First-Frost

Blatchford's average first frost is September 30th. 2026 was a few days later on October 4th. 

2023 & 2022 have the records, waiting until October 22nd & 23rd. 

Our final spring frost on May 17th was a little late, so 2026 had 139 frost-free days, when we average 146.

Around the neighbourhood Blatchford's first frost was October 4th, Stony Plain was October 1st, the airport was September 15th, and Campsie was September 13th. All of those were about a week later than average.



Warm & Cold Months

October's temperatures were the definition of average, so its bubbles barely show up here. 

The average High of 11.1°C was right on the 20th century average. 

The average Low of -0.3°C was just 0.2°C warmer than the 20th century average.



Across Canada

Across Canada October was warm from Saskatchewan through Quebec, and not very exciting everywhere else. 

At the top Toronto's Highs were 3.3°C warmer than their 20th century average, while Calgary's were -0.5°C below theirs.



Precipitation

In October Edmonton averages 18mm of Precipitation. 

In 2026 Blatchford was above average with 29.9mm, while the airport got 23.7mm, and Stony Plain got 23.2mm.



2026 So Far

By the end of October we average around 400mm of precipitation for the year, but Blatchford blew past that in mid-July. Blatchford is up at 747mm, Stony Plain has 594mm, and the airport has 520mm.



New Record!

Blatchford's 746.7mm is the wettest year on record. 

It passed 1900's record of 724.8mm on October 10th, and Stony Plain's 1980 record of 731.9mm on October 23rd. 

For the rest of the year we average another 36mm, which would put us around 780mm.



Precipitation Across Canada

Edmonton's 747mm has us at the bottom of the pack of the central & eastern cities, and just ahead of Toronto's 747mm. 

We're even well ahead of Vancouver's 569mm, which is a bottom-10 year for them. 

The prairie cities are from 360-430mm.

.Halifax's 1159mm is pretty typical.

For big October storms St. John's had a 39mm day on the 15th. Montréal, Ottawa & St. John's all had days around 25mm. Edmonton's biggest day was 9.3mm on the 23rd.



Snow

And yup, we got snow. In recent years our first snow had been pretty late, and the average date was around October 30th. 

But 2026 got started on October 10th, which was the earliest since 2019. Although 2018 & 2017 both got quite a bit of September snow.

In October we average 7cm of snow, and 2026 delivered 11.8cm. 

And we average 4 days with snow, but got 6.

When we get early snow it almost always melts off, and it sounds like that will happen next week. 

But now that we're into November, the permanent snow can show up at any point. 

Although 2025, 2024 & 2023 did all wait until very late November or early December.

Who else got snow already?

Calgary recorded 6.8cm, although a bunch of other cities don't measure snowfall. 

But for snowdepth Dawson City, Regina and Saskatoon also made an appearance.



November

For November, we average around 18 Highs above 0°C, but we also start seeing lows of -10°C or -15°C. -20°C even shows up sometimes, like in 2022, and 2010-2015. 2014 got down to -29.8°C.

The Record for Wettest Year: October 10, 2026

 As of 11AM on October 10th Blatchford will have recorded 725.4mm of precipitation in 2026.

That's a new record! It beats 724.5mm from 1900.

(for the completists out there, Stony Plain got to 731.9mm in 1980, so we've still got that to aim for, possibly this weekend.)

https://public.tableau.com/shared/YGK9JDZT2?:display_count=n&:origin=viz_share_link

I use data from Environment Canada, but if you look at their total it's only around 708mm. Why the difference? Well, they declare a day "missing" if any of its hourly data is missing. So they count a day like August 4 (and several others) as 0mm, even though their actual station actually recorded 5.6mm. I think that's weird, and it reduces their total by around 15mm.

So how did we break the record?

It was basically all June & July.

They are normally our rainy months, but in 2026 they were the 2nd & 3rd rainiest months ever recorded. In an entire year we average ~430mm, and they dropped 536.5mm in 2 months.

https://public.tableau.com/shared/8HKKDZM3Z?:display_count=n&:origin=viz_share_link

The Other Big Years

- 1901's 699mm had a big July (the biggest) & September.

- 1900's 724.8mm didn't have any huge months, but was above average from January through October.

- 1980's 731.9mm in Stony Plain had a big June-August, and December

https://public.tableau.com/shared/B6K9CJSYJ?:display_count=n&:origin=viz_share_link

Around Town

2026 was a somewhat strange year, with historically huge gaps between stations.

Everybody is above average, but Blatchford has 150mm more than Stony Plain, and 225mm more than the airport.

The stations won't always match, but they're never that far apart.

For the rest of the year we average around another 50mm. And yes, snow will count towards the total precipitation.

https://public.tableau.com/shared/6S8NWCYFD?:display_count=n&:origin=viz_share_link

September 2026 Review

It's time for our big look back at September 2026, which was another pretty quiet month.

September 2026 was our coldest September since 2020. But historically that still puts it well above average. 

The average High of 19.3°C was the 30th warmest. 

The average Low of 12°C was 10th warmest. (compared to 100 years ago September's average Lows have increased by 5°C)



High Temperatures

September's Highs basically bounced around the average all month, with a few extra warm days around the 21st. The coldest High was 11.1°C on the 26th, and the warmest was 28°C on the 21st. 

Overall 16 Highs were above-average, and 14 were below.

September averages 12 20°C Highs, and 2026 got 12. 

4 of those might get to 25°C, while 2026 got 6 of them.

2022 & 2024 both had several 30°C Highs, but 2026's warmest was 28°C. 

And September averages 2 Highs below 10°C, but 2026 had none.



Warm Days So Far

We might still see some warm days in October. 

But right now 2026 has had 103 Highs reach 20°C, which is typical nowadays, but the historic average was closer to 90. 

And 38 of those got to 25°C, which is just a bit above average.



Low Temperatures

September 2026's Lows were mostly above average: 19 were above, with 11 below. 

The warmest was 14.6°C on the 2nd. The coldest was 1.4°C on the 15th. So it was another frost-free September for Blatchford.

Blatchford hasn't had a September frost since 2019. Although they used to happen every few years.



First-Frost

Blatchford's average first frost is September 30th, and Stony Plain's is September 25th. But so far they're both frost-free.

The airport & Campsie got their first frosts on the 15th & 13th, which is a little later than their averages of the 10th & 6th.



Warm & Cold Months

September 2026 gets medium orange/warms dots. 

The average High of 19.3°C was 2.4°C warmer than the 20th century average. The average Low of 7.8°C was 3.1°C warmer than the 20th century average.



The Horserace

With 3 months left in the year (and the promise of a super El Niño on the way) 2026's temperatures currently sit as Edmonton's 23rd warmest on record, at 1.48°C warmer than the 20th Century average. 

Recently 2025 & 2024 ended the year as 7th & 10th, while 2023 was 1st.



Across Canada

Across Canada September was cool in the east, and above-average everywhere else. Saskatoon's Highs were 2.8°C warmer than their 20th century average, while Moncton's were 0.8°C below theirs.



Precipitation

In September Edmonton averages 32mm of Precipitation. After the ridiculously rainy summer, September was below average. 

In 2026 Blatchford got 14.4mm, the airport got 21mm, and Stony Plain got 21.7mm.



2026 So Far

By the end of September we average around 382mm of precipitation for the year, but in 2026 the local stations are still well above average. Blatchford is up at 716.8mm, Stony Plain has 571mm, and the airport has 496mm.

716.8mm is Blatchford's 2nd rainiest year on record. It's just 8mm behind 1900's record of 724.8mm. In October we average 18mm, and before the end of the year we average 54mm.



Precipitation Across Canada

Edmonton's 717mm has it well ahead of the other prairie cities, which are all between 350-400mm. But central & eastern Canada are mostly from 800-1000mm, with Halifax close to 1100mm.

For big September storms Halifax led the way with 72.6mm on the 4th. That first week saw 40mm+ storms in Toronto, Halifax, Charlottetown (x2), St. John's, Regina & Saskatoon. Compared to that the rest of the month was pretty quiet.



October

For October, we average about 1~2 Highs of 20°C, but half of the time there are none. 

October also averages 2 Highs below 0°C, and 14 freezing Lows. 

And...we average 7cm of snow in October. Although 2021, 2022, 2024 & 2025 had none.

August 2026 Review

So it's the end of August, and we finished off the summer with a pretty quiet month. Let's take our big look back at Edmonton weather for the past month.

August 2026 was our coldest August since 2020, but historically that still puts it well above average. 

The average High of 23.4°C was the 41st warmest. The average Low of 12°C was 21st warmest. 

(compared to 100 years ago August's average Lows have increased by 5°C)



High Temperatures

August's Highs were a little below average early in the month, and a little above late in the month. 

The coldest High was 17.7°C on the 13th, and the warmest was 29.7°C on the 26th & 27th. Overall 16 Highs were above-average, and 15 were below.

August gets to 30°C about half of the time. 2026 got close with three 29°C days, but didn't quite make it. 

August averages 10 25°C days, and 2026 only got 7. And it averages 23 20°C days, and got 27.



Warm Days So Far

The summer of 2026 was not a scorcher.

At the end of August we've had 89 Highs reach 20°C. 32 of those got to 25°C, and 4 reached 30°C. 

Those numbers are all pretty normal for us They're down from the string of exceptionally hot summers that we had from 2021-2025.

Our 30°C season can stretch into the first week of September, with the occasional stragglers later in the month.

And our 25°C season can extend through September, with a bit of spillover into October.



Low Temperatures

For the Lows 12 were below average, mostly early in the month, and then the other 19 were above average. That included a new record for August 22nd of 16.1°C.

August Lows usually don't have much of a spread.

It averages 19 Lows between 10-15°C, and this year we got 20. 

On the warm side we had 4 above 15°C, and the cool side had 7 below 10°C. Both of those were pretty average.



Warm & Cold Months

August gets orange/warms dots smaller than anything since 2020. The average High of 23.4°C was 1.3°C warmer than the 20th century average. The average Low of 12°C was 2.4°C warmer than the 20th century average.



Across Canada

August was a little above-average across all of Canada.

Kelowna was at the top with an average High of 29.9°C, which was 3.2°C above their 20th century average. At the other end Saskatoon's 24.2°C was -0.2°C below theirs.



Summer 2026

Across the county the summer of 2026 (May-August) was top 20~30 for a lot of the country, including Edmonton.

At the top Kelowna's had its 3rd warmest, and Moncton's was 8th. At the other end Winnipeg, Ottawa & St. John's were around their top-50.



Precipitation

And now: Precipitation.

After a frankly ridiculous June & July, August was mostly back to normal. August averages 50mm.

In 2026 Blatchford got 42.7mm, the airport got 53.6mm, and Stony Plain got 63.8mm.



2026 So Far

At the end of August Blatchford has had a total of 702.4mm. By this point of the year our average is half of that at around 350mm. 

Stony Plain & the airport are well below Blatchford, but still well above average with 549.3mm & 475mm.

702.4mm is Blatchford's 2nd rainiest year on record, passing 1901's 699m, but behind 1900's 724.8mm. 

Between now and the end of the year we average another 85mm, so catching the record should be pretty likely.

Edmonton's monsoon season typically lasts from mid-May to mid-August. This year things got a little excessive in the middle of that. But by this point we should be pretty much done with our summer storms.



Precipitation Across Canada

Across the country Blatchford's 702mm is enough to put us in the middle of a bunch of cities like Toronto, Ottawa, Montréal and Charlottetown. That's a weird spot for Edmonton to be. At the top Halifax is around 900mm, while Kelowna is below 100mm.

For big August storms Ottawa, Winnipeg & Montréal each got a 30mm+ day. And there were lots more from 20-30mm. Edmonton's biggest was 20.5mm on August 2nd.



The River

After spending most of July above 500m3/s, in August the river settled down to the more typical range of 200-300m3/s,



September

For September we average 11 days at 20°C, including 3 at 25°C. Although 2025, 2024 & 2022 all started with heatwaves.

September frost and snow can both happen. But our last September frost was 2019, and last snow was 2018.