Wind Chill Calculator — Feels-Like Temperature
Enter the air temperature and wind speed to find the wind-chill temperature — how cold the air feels on exposed skin. Uses the official joint NWS / Environment Canada formula adopted in November 2001, valid for temperatures at or below 10 °C (50 °F) and wind speeds above 4.8 km/h (3 mph).
Units
°C
km/h
Equivalent still-air temperature that produces the same rate of heat loss from exposed skin
- 1
Wind power factor
30 km/h ^ 0.16 = 1.7232Represents the convective cooling effect of wind speed on exposed skin. - 2
Wind-speed adjustment
(−11.37 + 0.3965 × -10) × 1.7232 = -26.425 - 3
Wind chill
13.12 + 0.6215 × -10 + -26.425 = -19.5
How does this calculator work?
Wind chill (°C) = 13.12 + 0.6215·T − 11.37·V^0.16 + 0.3965·T·V^0.16 (NWS/Environment Canada 2001). Enter air temperature (≤ 10 °C) and wind speed (≥ 4.8 km/h) to get the equivalent still-air temperature felt on exposed skin. Also available in °F / mph. Frostbite risk times from Environment Canada guidelines are shown for reference.
Formula
How this is calculated
Wind chill describes how much colder air feels on exposed skin when wind is blowing. Wind speeds up convective heat loss from the skin surface and accelerates evaporation of moisture, increasing the effective cooling rate. The wind-chill temperature is the still-air temperature that would produce the same rate of heat loss.
The formula currently in use across North America was developed jointly by the US National Weather Service (NWS) and Environment and Climate Change Canada and adopted in November 2001. It was derived from human-subject experiments under controlled conditions and represents a significant improvement over earlier formulas (such as the Siple–Passel equation) that used non-human models. In metric units: WC = 13.12 + 0.6215·T − 11.37·V^0.16 + 0.3965·T·V^0.16, where T is air temperature in °C and V is wind speed in km/h. An equivalent formula exists for °F and mph.
The formula is valid only when air temperature is at or below 10 °C (50 °F) and wind speed is at least 4.8 km/h (3 mph). Above these thresholds the wind-chill effect is negligible. The formula assumes a human face as the reference surface; it does not account for sunshine (solar radiation can offset several degrees of wind chill), clothing, or individual physiology. Frostbite risk estimates shown here are based on Environment Canada's published exposure guidelines for unprotected skin.
Frequently asked questions
Yes — for example, at 5 °C with a 50 km/h wind the formula gives a wind chill around −3 °C, which means your skin loses heat as fast as it would in still air at −3 °C. This does not mean water freezes faster; freezing is governed by actual temperature. Wind chill affects only heat loss from living surfaces like skin.
Environment Canada and NWS publish guidelines based on laboratory and field studies: at wind-chill temperatures between −27 °C and −35 °C, exposed skin can freeze in 10–30 minutes; below −35 °C in under 10 minutes; below −45 °C in under 2 minutes. These thresholds assume moderate activity levels and are approximate — wet skin, alcohol use, or poor circulation significantly increase risk.
The NWS/EC formula is calibrated for cold conditions. At warmer temperatures the mechanism driving wind chill — accelerated convective cooling — is minimal because the body's heat regulation is in a different regime. Applying the formula above 10 °C produces misleading numbers, so the calculator flags it as out of range.
Also known as
TG we-Calculate Editorial Team. (2026). Wind Chill Calculator — Feels-Like Temperature [Online calculator]. TG we-Calculate. https://we-calculate.com/calculator/wind-chill-calculator
TG we-Calculate Editorial Team. "Wind Chill Calculator — Feels-Like Temperature." TG we-Calculate. 2026. https://we-calculate.com/calculator/wind-chill-calculator.
TG we-Calculate Editorial Team, "Wind Chill Calculator — Feels-Like Temperature," TG we-Calculate, 2026. [Online]. Available: https://we-calculate.com/calculator/wind-chill-calculator
@misc{wecalculate_wind_chill_calculator, title = {Wind Chill Calculator — Feels-Like Temperature}, author = {{TG we-Calculate Editorial Team}}, howpublished = {\url{https://we-calculate.com/calculator/wind-chill-calculator}}, year = {2026}, note = {TG we-Calculate} }
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