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Coldest sea in North America

5,500 coastal locations in North America ranked by year-round average sea temperature, coldest first. The regional average is 15.2°C. The top of the list is where the water stays cold all year. The contrast list at the bottom shows the warmest coasts for context.

Coldest location

Wrangel Bay

Year-round average -1.6°C in Canada

Regional average

15.2°C

across all 5,500 North America coastal locations

Coldest month

February

9.3°C region-wide average

North America monthly average 9.3°C to 21.6°C
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  • Warmest month August 21.6°C
  • Coldest month February 9.3°C
  • Annual mean 15.2°C
  • Months above 20°C 3 of 12

Month by month across North America

Sea temperatures in North America swing from 9.3°C in February to 21.6°C in August on average across every coast we track. That spread of 12°C hides much bigger swings at individual locations.

Want a specific month? Pick one for a dedicated ranking:

North America sea temperature map

Today's pin colours show the latest daily reading at every North America location we track. Cool blues cluster around the high-latitude coasts.

Zoom in to see individual locations. Click a pin for water temperatures. View list →
°C -2 0 1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 24 27 30 35

Top 50 coldest locations in North America

Coastal locations across North America sorted by year-round average, coldest first. Honest cold-water swimming country. Click any place for its 30-day chart, monthly profile, and 10-year history.

# Location Annual mean
1 Wrangel Bay Nunavut -1.6°C
2 Cameron Island Nunavut -1.6°C
3 Alert Nunavut -1.6°C
4 Cape Sheridan Nunavut -1.6°C
5 Discovery Harbour Nunavut -1.6°C
6 Iceberg Point Nunavut -1.6°C
7 Airstrip Point Nunavut -1.6°C
8 Isachsen Nunavut -1.5°C
9 Hamilton Island Nunavut -1.4°C
10 Pim Island Nunavut -1.4°C
11 Cape Capel Nunavut -1.4°C
12 Grise Fiord Nunavut -1.3°C
13 Little Cornwallis Island Nunavut -1.3°C
14 Cape Barclay Nunavut -1.3°C
15 Greely Fiord Nunavut -1.3°C
16 Crown Prince Frederick Island Nunavut -1.3°C
17 Cape Kater Nunavut -1.2°C
18 Entrance Island Nunavut -1.2°C
19 Crown Prince Frederick Nunavut -1.2°C
20 Dease Peninsula Nunavut -1.2°C
21 Resolute Nunavut -1.2°C
22 Cape Sibbald Nunavut -1.1°C
23 Cape Skogn Nunavut -1.1°C
24 Peel Point Northwest Territories -1.1°C
25 Beechey Island Nunavut -1.1°C
Show 25 more ▸
26 Erebus Bay Nunavut -1.1°C
27 Radstock Bay Nunavut -1.1°C
28 Bay of Woe Nunavut -1.0°C
29 Martin Islands Nunavut -1.0°C
30 False Strait Nunavut -0.9°C
31 Fury Point Nunavut -0.9°C
32 Rigby Bay Nunavut -0.9°C
33 Lavoie Islands (Bernier Bay) Nunavut -0.8°C
34 Arctic Bay Nunavut -0.8°C
35 Winter Harbour Northwest Territories -0.8°C
36 Natkusiak Peninsula Northwest Territories -0.8°C
37 Sévigny Point Nunavut -0.8°C
38 Baffin Nunavut -0.8°C
39 Fort Ross Nunavut -0.8°C
40 Bellot Strait East Nunavut -0.8°C
41 Bonne Island Nunavut -0.8°C
42 Purfur Cove Nunavut -0.7°C
43 Dundas Harbour Nunavut -0.6°C
44 King Charles Cape Nunavut -0.6°C
45 Cape Dyer Nunavut -0.5°C
46 Cambridge Bay Nunavut -0.5°C
47 Iqaluit Nunavut -0.5°C
48 Oscar Bay Nunavut -0.5°C
49 Frobisher's Farthest Nunavut -0.5°C
50 Iqaluit (Frobisher Bay) Nunavut -0.5°C

Coldest countries in North America

Country-level averages across every coastal location in each country (minimum 5 locations to be listed), coldest first.

# Country Annual mean
1 Canada 7.0°C
2 United States 16.2°C
3 Mexico 26.1°C

Warmest 10 in North America for contrast

Same data flipped. Useful if you want to know which North America coasts stay warmest year-round before you commit to a cold-water swim trip.

# Location Annual mean
1 Puerto Chiapas Chiapas 29.8°C
2 Puerto Arista Chiapas 29.7°C
3 Maldonado Guerrero 29.5°C
4 Brisas de Zicatela Oaxaca 29.5°C
5 Puerto Escondido Oaxaca 29.5°C
6 Mazunte Oaxaca 29.4°C
7 San Agustinillo Oaxaca 29.4°C
8 Zipolite beach Oaxaca 29.4°C
9 Acapulco Guerrero 29.4°C
10 Tecoanapa Guerrero 29.4°C

More on this region