In early October, snow was spotted piled up in drifts in the Laurentides Wildlife Reserve on the North Shore and in the Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean region at Mont Valin. With the first frost of the year came the first snowfall, and, alas, it looks like winter is arriving much sooner than expected.
For now, no snow is forecast for Montreal until the end of October 2026, but the ground in the city froze for the first time this year on Tuesday, October 6. And, given Quebec’s winter weather, we know you should never say never.
The Farmers’ Almanac had predicted a long and very mild fall, with the first snowfall arriving around the end-of-year holidays, and so far, that seems to be happening—except for a few very cold nights when it will snow in Montreal?
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MONTREAL WINTER 2026–2027: WEATHER FORECASTS AND A YEAR WITH LOTS OF SNOW
Montreal is located in southern Quebec. What’s immediately apparent is that winter will arrive fairly late. Last year, the first snowfall came in mid-November. This year, the forecast—for now—calls for snow around the end-of-year holidays.
The Almanac forecasts the following for the winter of 2026–2027:
- above-normal temperatures
- freezing spells in the first half of January and the second half of February
- less rain than usual—it’s listed as “precipitation,” but it’s different from snowfall
- there will be just a little bit more snow than usual
- the snowiest periods of the winter will be: the second half of December, the second half of January, the second half of February, and the first half of March
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AND FOR THE REST OF OCTOBER?
For the rest of October 2026 and through Halloween, Environment Canada isn’t forecasting any snow for Montreal, but temperatures are set to plummet to very low levels. During the day on Halloween, temperatures are expected to range between 10 and 12 degrees Celsius, and at night, between 2 and 0 degrees.
So, technically, we should expect a few snowflakes at night or late in the evening in Montreal this October, and we’ll just have to accept it…
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