At Toronto Pearson, the long-running airport station, Environment and Climate Change Canada’s 1981-2010 normals give an average daily temperature of 8.2 C (46.8 F), 108.5 cm (42.7 in) of snow, and 785.9 mm (30.9 in) of total precipitation a year. January averages -5.5 C (22.1 F), and July about 21.5 C (70.7 F).
The records are more dramatic than the averages. The wettest day measured at Pearson was October 15, 1954, during Hurricane Hazel, and the January 1999 snowstorm left a two-week total of more than 100 cm (39 in) at the downtown station, as summed from the daily records. The sections below state the station and period for every figure, because Toronto’s weather has been recorded at several sites.
Which station and which years
Three Environment Canada climate stations supply most of the numbers here. The station named “Toronto” (climate ID 6158350) has daily records from March 1840, with temperature readings through June 2003. “Toronto Lester B. Pearson Int’l A” (6158733) has daily data from 1937 to June 2013. Its successor, “Toronto Intl A” (6158731), has data from June 13, 2013. Pearson lies in the city’s west end, away from the lakefront, and its totals can differ from downtown totals for the same storm.
The monthly table below uses the 1981-2010 normals for Pearson, read from the Environment and Climate Change Canada data service (climate normals, climate ID 6158733). The agency has also published 1991-2020 normals, and its current normals pages should be checked for newer values.
Monthly normals at Pearson, 1981-2010
| Month | Mean daily temperature (C) | Snowfall (cm) | Total precipitation (mm) |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | -5.5 | 29.5 | 51.8 |
| February | -4.5 | 24.0 | 47.7 |
| March | 0.1 | 17.7 | 49.8 |
| April | 7.1 | 4.5 | 68.5 |
| May | 13.1 | 0.0 | 74.3 |
| June | 18.6 | 0.0 | 71.5 |
| July | 21.5 | 0.0 | 75.7 |
| August | 20.6 | 0.0 | 78.1 |
| September | 16.2 | 0.0 | 74.5 |
| October | 9.5 | 0.4 | 61.1 |
| November | 3.7 | 7.5 | 75.1 |
| December | -2.2 | 24.9 | 57.9 |
| Year | 8.2 | 108.5 | 785.9 |
The same normals show about 27 days a year with thunderstorms, with June, July, and August each averaging five or more, and about seven days a year with freezing rain or freezing drizzle, most of them from December to February. April is the first month with measurable rain above 60 mm, and November is the first with more than 5 cm of snow.
Temperature extremes
At the downtown “Toronto” station, the highest daily maximum in the record is 40.6 C (105.1 F), reached on July 8, 9, and 10, 1936. The lowest daily minimum is -32.8 C (-27.0 F) on January 10, 1859. At Pearson, the extremes for 1937 to 2013 are 38.3 C (100.9 F) on August 25, 1948, and -31.3 C (-24.3 F) on January 4, 1981. Nineteenth-century downtown readings came from instruments and sites that changed over time, so they are not strictly comparable to modern airport data.
At Toronto Intl A, which began recording in June 2013, the data service lists a highest maximum of 36.8 C on July 14, 2026, and a lowest minimum of -26.3 C on February 13, 2016. These recent values are early in a short record and may be revised.
Hurricane Hazel, October 1954
Environment Canada’s archive explains that Hazel’s remnants became an extratropical storm, Hazel II, over New York State. The storm merged with a cold front and passed directly over Toronto near midnight on October 15 and 16, 1954. The two weeks before Hazel had been unusually wet, so the ground could not absorb the rain, and water ran straight into rivers and streams.
The archive gives these rainfall figures: 107 mm in 12 hours and 137 mm in 24 hours at Malton airport, now Pearson; 183 mm in 24 hours in Toronto; 210 mm in 48 hours at Brampton; and 229 mm over the Humber River watershed. Its summary page says up to 225 mm fell on Toronto. The daily series gives 121.4 mm for the calendar day of October 15 at Pearson, the largest one-day total in its 1937 to 2013 record, and 86.9 mm at the downtown station. The measuring windows and stations differ, which explains why the numbers do not match.
The archive names Holland Marsh, Raymore Drive, Woodbridge on the Humber, and Long Branch on Etobicoke Creek among the hardest-hit places. It gives an official death toll of 81, notes that other sources report 80 to 83, and states that Raymore Drive in Etobicoke had 35 deaths on that one street. It also reports that 1,896 families were left homeless and that the Humber rose 6 to 9 m in some areas.
The January 1999 snowstorm
Snow fell on most days from January 2 to January 15, 1999. Summed from the daily records, the downtown “Toronto” station received 113.2 cm (44.6 in) in that span, including 38 cm on January 2 alone. Pearson recorded 74.0 cm (29.1 in) for the same days, with a snow depth of 67 cm at the end. The totals depend on the station and the date range chosen, and media accounts give other figures for the city.
According to The Weather Network, a storm on January 2 dropped 40 cm and the total passed 100 cm by January 14, when Mayor Mel Lastman called in the Canadian Armed Forces. Soldiers cleaned catch basins and shoveled around fire hydrants, and Lastman called off the army’s services on January 15. The storm remains a reference point in discussions of how the city clears its streets.
Snowfall records
The largest one-day snowfall in the downtown record is 48.3 cm (19.0 in) on December 11, 1944. At Pearson the 1937-2013 maximum is 39.9 cm on February 25, 1965. Toronto Intl A lists 46.2 cm on January 25, 2026, in a record that began in 2013. Adding the daily values by winter, the snowiest complete winter at Pearson was 1938-39 at 207.4 cm. That season total is a sum of daily readings, not an official published figure.
The December 2013 ice storm
On December 20 to 22, 2013, Toronto Intl A recorded 9.6, 16.6, and 14.0 mm of precipitation on successive days, with temperatures that stayed close to freezing (a high of 1.9 C and a low of -2.6 C on December 22). The temperature fell to -8.5 C on December 23. Environment Canada’s normals show that freezing rain happens on about seven days a year at Pearson, so a multi-day event is unusual.
Environment Canada’s top weather stories review for 2014 says that between 20 and 30 mm of ice fell at the storm’s epicenter between Niagara and Trenton, and that Toronto Pearson recorded about 43 hours of freezing rain and drizzle between the evening of December 20 and late afternoon on December 22. It reports over 500,000 people without power, more than half of them in the Toronto region, and says more than 100,000 people in southern Ontario were still without power on December 26.
Tornadoes in the Toronto region
Tornadoes are recorded in the region around the city. The strongest reported in central Ontario was the F4 at Barrie on May 31, 1985. Environment and Climate Change Canada’s figures, as quoted by the Highways and Hailstones site, give eight deaths in Barrie and 12 across the day’s tornadoes. Other media reports give a higher count for the day, so the day’s total remains a disputed figure.
Earthquakes felt in Toronto
Large damaging earthquakes are rare in southern Ontario. Natural Resources Canada runs Earthquakes Canada, whose catalog and felt reports are the place to check recent events. The Natural Resources Canada pages could not be fetched for this review, so the article makes no further claims on the subject.
Frequently asked questions
How much snow does Toronto get in a year?
The 1981-2010 normal at Toronto Pearson is 108.5 cm. Downtown amounts differ, and individual winters vary widely.
What is the hottest temperature ever recorded in Toronto?
At the downtown station, 40.6 C on July 8, 9, and 10, 1936. At Pearson, the highest is 38.3 C on August 25, 1948.
When was Hurricane Hazel in Toronto?
On the night of October 15-16, 1954. Environment Canada’s archive places the center over the city near midnight.
Does Toronto have earthquakes?
Large damaging earthquakes are rare in southern Ontario. Earthquakes Canada, a Natural Resources Canada service, lists recent events.
How hard did the 1999 snowstorm hit?
The downtown station recorded 113.2 cm from January 2 to January 15, 1999, summed from the daily records. Pearson recorded 74.0 cm for the same days.
Related reading
- Transit history, from streetcars to subway
- Toronto Islands on Lake Ontario
- Researching storms in historical newspapers
- Heritage designation of historic buildings
- Toronto history overview
Sources
- Environment and Climate Change Canada, Canadian Climate Normals 1981-2010, Toronto Lester B. Pearson Int’l A (climate ID 6158733), OGC API: total snowfall, total precipitation, mean daily temperature
- Environment and Climate Change Canada, Historical Climate Data, daily records (climate-daily collection): Toronto (6158350), Pearson (6158733) (Toronto Intl A, 6158731, is served by the same collection)
- Environment Canada archive, Hurricane Hazel: summary, storm information, impacts, fatalities
- Environment and Climate Change Canada, Canada’s top 10 weather stories for 2014, chapter 4 (December 2013 ice storm)
- The Weather Network, “This Day in Weather History, January 14, 1999: Call in the Army” (secondary)
- Highways and Hailstones, “Barrie, ON F4 Tornado of May 31, 1985,” citing Environment and Climate Change Canada (secondary)
Last verified: October 2026
Cite this page
APA: History of Toronto. (2026, October 25). Toronto Weather and Climate Records. https://historyoftoronto.ca/blog/toronto-snowfall-data-a-comprehensive-look-at-historical-accumulation-in-the-city
MLA: “Toronto Weather and Climate Records.” History of Toronto, 25 Oct. 2026, https://historyoftoronto.ca/blog/toronto-snowfall-data-a-comprehensive-look-at-historical-accumulation-in-the-city. Accessed .
Chicago: History of Toronto. “Toronto Weather and Climate Records.” Last modified October 25, 2026. https://historyoftoronto.ca/blog/toronto-snowfall-data-a-comprehensive-look-at-historical-accumulation-in-the-city.
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