Planning tool
The best place to see the northern lights, by month
For sky alone, a North American place tops every month, and from November to April all three do. Among the European places the answer changes with the calendar.
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Places are ordered by how often a five-night stay included at least one dark night with a usable sky.
Best places in September
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| Destination | Dark hours per night | Nights with a usable sky | At least one in 3 nights | At least one in 5 nights | At least one in 7 nights | Kp for overhead aurora | Night temperature |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1YellowknifeCanada | 8.3 h | 82% | 94% | 99% | Kp 1 | 6 °C | |
| 2WhitehorseCanada | 8.6 h | 70% | 85% | 92% | Kp 3 | 1 °C | |
| 3LuleåSweden | 7.8 h | 70% | 84% | 90% | Kp 3 | 9 °C | |
| 4KirunaSweden | 7.3 h | 67% | 79% | 86% | Kp 2 | 4 °C | |
| 5FairbanksAlaska, USA | 7.9 h | 60% | 79% | 89% | Kp 2 | 4 °C | |
| 6RovaniemiFinland | 7.7 h | 66% | 78% | 86% | Kp 3 | 7 °C | |
| 7LeviFinland | 7.3 h | 64% | 78% | 86% | Kp 2 | 5 °C | |
| 8SaariselkäFinland | 7.2 h | 60% | 75% | 84% | Kp 2 | 5 °C | |
| 9ReykjavíkIceland | 8.1 h | 51% | 68% | 79% | Kp 2 | 7 °C | |
| 10AkureyriIceland | 7.8 h | 40% | 57% | 69% | Kp 2 | 1 °C | |
| 11TromsøNorway | 6.9 h | 38% | 53% | 65% | Kp 1 | 6 °C | |
| 12AbiskoSweden | 7.3 h | 38% | 52% | 65% | Kp 2 | 2 °C |
Best places in October
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| Destination | Dark hours per night | Nights with a usable sky | At least one in 3 nights | At least one in 5 nights | At least one in 7 nights | Kp for overhead aurora | Night temperature |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1LuleåSweden | 11.3 h | 69% | 83% | 91% | Kp 3 | 2 °C | |
| 2WhitehorseCanada | 11.4 h | 66% | 83% | 91% | Kp 3 | -5 °C | |
| 3KirunaSweden | 11.4 h | 61% | 77% | 87% | Kp 2 | -3 °C | |
| 4YellowknifeCanada | 11.3 h | 62% | 76% | 85% | Kp 1 | -5 °C | |
| 5FairbanksAlaska, USA | 11.4 h | 58% | 74% | 85% | Kp 2 | -5 °C | |
| 6ReykjavíkIceland | 11.4 h | 56% | 73% | 83% | Kp 2 | 4 °C | |
| 7RovaniemiFinland | 11.3 h | 51% | 68% | 80% | Kp 3 | 0 °C | |
| 8LeviFinland | 11.3 h | 47% | 63% | 75% | Kp 2 | -1 °C | |
| 9SaariselkäFinland | 11.3 h | 48% | 63% | 73% | Kp 2 | -1 °C | |
| 10AbiskoSweden | 11.3 h | 40% | 54% | 66% | Kp 2 | -4 °C | |
| 11AkureyriIceland | 11.4 h | 34% | 48% | 59% | Kp 2 | -3 °C | |
| 12TromsøNorway | 11.3 h | 34% | 47% | 56% | Kp 1 | 0 °C |
Best places in November
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| Destination | Dark hours per night | Nights with a usable sky | At least one in 3 nights | At least one in 5 nights | At least one in 7 nights | Kp for overhead aurora | Night temperature |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1FairbanksAlaska, USA | 14.3 h | 75% | 88% | 94% | Kp 2 | -15 °C | |
| 2WhitehorseCanada | 13.8 h | 72% | 85% | 92% | Kp 3 | -14 °C | |
| 3YellowknifeCanada | 14 h | 65% | 79% | 87% | Kp 1 | -20 °C | |
| 4ReykjavíkIceland | 14.2 h | 57% | 74% | 84% | Kp 2 | 2 °C | |
| 5KirunaSweden | 14.8 h | 58% | 73% | 80% | Kp 2 | -9 °C | |
| 6LuleåSweden | 14.3 h | 57% | 72% | 80% | Kp 3 | -3 °C | |
| 7AbiskoSweden | 14.8 h | 51% | 68% | 79% | Kp 2 | -8 °C | |
| 8RovaniemiFinland | 14.5 h | 49% | 65% | 74% | Kp 3 | -6 °C | |
| 9SaariselkäFinland | 14.8 h | 50% | 65% | 75% | Kp 2 | -8 °C | |
| 10LeviFinland | 14.7 h | 47% | 60% | 68% | Kp 2 | -8 °C | |
| 11AkureyriIceland | 14.3 h | 38% | 52% | 63% | Kp 2 | -5 °C | |
| 12TromsøNorway | 15.1 h | 36% | 49% | 59% | Kp 1 | -4 °C |
Best places in December
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| Destination | Dark hours per night | Nights with a usable sky | At least one in 3 nights | At least one in 5 nights | At least one in 7 nights | Kp for overhead aurora | Night temperature |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1FairbanksAlaska, USA | 15.8 h | 87% | 96% | 99% | Kp 2 | -18 °C | |
| 2YellowknifeCanada | 15.3 h | 88% | 95% | 98% | Kp 1 | -27 °C | |
| 3WhitehorseCanada | 15 h | 82% | 94% | 98% | Kp 3 | -16 °C | |
| 4ReykjavíkIceland | 15.7 h | 61% | 76% | 85% | Kp 2 | 0 °C | |
| 5KirunaSweden | 16.6 h | 57% | 74% | 83% | Kp 2 | -11 °C | |
| 6AbiskoSweden | 16.7 h | 55% | 71% | 81% | Kp 2 | -11 °C | |
| 7SaariselkäFinland | 16.7 h | 55% | 71% | 83% | Kp 2 | -11 °C | |
| 8RovaniemiFinland | 16.2 h | 56% | 70% | 79% | Kp 3 | -10 °C | |
| 9LuleåSweden | 15.9 h | 57% | 69% | 78% | Kp 3 | -6 °C | |
| 10LeviFinland | 16.5 h | 46% | 60% | 71% | Kp 2 | -11 °C | |
| 11AkureyriIceland | 16 h | 42% | 57% | 68% | Kp 2 | -7 °C | |
| 12TromsøNorway | 17.1 h | 35% | 50% | 60% | Kp 1 | -6 °C |
Best places in January
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| Destination | Dark hours per night | Nights with a usable sky | At least one in 3 nights | At least one in 5 nights | At least one in 7 nights | Kp for overhead aurora | Night temperature |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1FairbanksAlaska, USA | 14.9 h | 89% | 97% | 99% | Kp 2 | -20 °C | |
| 2YellowknifeCanada | 14.6 h | 89% | 97% | 99% | Kp 1 | -30 °C | |
| 3WhitehorseCanada | 14.4 h | 82% | 93% | 98% | Kp 3 | -17 °C | |
| 4KirunaSweden | 15.5 h | 65% | 80% | 88% | Kp 2 | -13 °C | |
| 5AbiskoSweden | 15.7 h | 61% | 77% | 87% | Kp 2 | -13 °C | |
| 6SaariselkäFinland | 15.7 h | 60% | 76% | 85% | Kp 2 | -13 °C | |
| 7RovaniemiFinland | 15.3 h | 57% | 72% | 83% | Kp 3 | -13 °C | |
| 8LeviFinland | 15.6 h | 53% | 69% | 80% | Kp 2 | -13 °C | |
| 9LuleåSweden | 15.1 h | 51% | 67% | 77% | Kp 3 | -9 °C | |
| 10ReykjavíkIceland | 14.8 h | 50% | 65% | 76% | Kp 2 | 0 °C | |
| 11TromsøNorway | 16 h | 43% | 57% | 67% | Kp 1 | -8 °C | |
| 12AkureyriIceland | 15.1 h | 34% | 47% | 56% | Kp 2 | -7 °C |
Best places in February
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| Destination | Dark hours per night | Nights with a usable sky | At least one in 3 nights | At least one in 5 nights | At least one in 7 nights | Kp for overhead aurora | Night temperature |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1YellowknifeCanada | 12.3 h | 94% | 98% | 99% | Kp 1 | -28 °C | |
| 2WhitehorseCanada | 12.3 h | 85% | 96% | 99% | Kp 3 | -16 °C | |
| 3FairbanksAlaska, USA | 12.4 h | 84% | 95% | 98% | Kp 2 | -17 °C | |
| 4KirunaSweden | 12.5 h | 65% | 80% | 87% | Kp 2 | -13 °C | |
| 5SaariselkäFinland | 12.5 h | 60% | 77% | 87% | Kp 2 | -13 °C | |
| 6AbiskoSweden | 12.5 h | 58% | 75% | 85% | Kp 2 | -12 °C | |
| 7RovaniemiFinland | 12.4 h | 58% | 74% | 84% | Kp 3 | -12 °C | |
| 8LeviFinland | 12.5 h | 52% | 68% | 79% | Kp 2 | -13 °C | |
| 9ReykjavíkIceland | 12.3 h | 52% | 67% | 76% | Kp 2 | 0 °C | |
| 10LuleåSweden | 12.4 h | 49% | 66% | 77% | Kp 3 | -9 °C | |
| 11AkureyriIceland | 12.4 h | 36% | 50% | 59% | Kp 2 | -7 °C | |
| 12TromsøNorway | 12.7 h | 36% | 48% | 56% | Kp 1 | -8 °C |
Best places in March
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| Destination | Dark hours per night | Nights with a usable sky | At least one in 3 nights | At least one in 5 nights | At least one in 7 nights | Kp for overhead aurora | Night temperature |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1YellowknifeCanada | 9.5 h | 90% | 95% | 98% | Kp 1 | -19 °C | |
| 2WhitehorseCanada | 9.8 h | 86% | 95% | 99% | Kp 3 | -14 °C | |
| 3FairbanksAlaska, USA | 9.3 h | 83% | 92% | 95% | Kp 2 | -16 °C | |
| 4KirunaSweden | 9 h | 72% | 87% | 94% | Kp 2 | -11 °C | |
| 5RovaniemiFinland | 9.1 h | 66% | 82% | 89% | Kp 3 | -8 °C | |
| 6SaariselkäFinland | 8.9 h | 63% | 78% | 85% | Kp 2 | -9 °C | |
| 7LeviFinland | 9 h | 58% | 74% | 83% | Kp 2 | -9 °C | |
| 8AbiskoSweden | 8.8 h | 54% | 69% | 79% | Kp 2 | -11 °C | |
| 9ReykjavíkIceland | 9.4 h | 45% | 60% | 69% | Kp 2 | 0 °C | |
| 10AkureyriIceland | 9.3 h | 25% | 37% | 46% | Kp 2 | -7 °C | |
| 11LuleåSweden | 9.3 h | 27% | 37% | 44% | Kp 3 | -6 °C | |
| 12TromsøNorway | 8.7 h | 21% | 31% | 39% | Kp 1 | -6 °C |
Best places in April
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| Destination | Dark hours per night | Nights with a usable sky | At least one in 3 nights | At least one in 5 nights | At least one in 7 nights | Kp for overhead aurora | Night temperature |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1WhitehorseCanada | 6.3 h | 79% | 91% | 96% | Kp 3 | -7 °C | |
| 2FairbanksAlaska, USA | 5 h | 75% | 84% | 87% | Kp 2 | -6 °C | |
| 3YellowknifeCanada | 5.8 h | 69% | 80% | 86% | Kp 1 | -7 °C | |
| 4ReykjavíkIceland | 5.2 h | 33% | 44% | 52% | Kp 2 | 2 °C |
A usable sky means at least two dark hours in a row with half the sky or more free of cloud, over an area of about 110 km. It says nothing about solar activity, so it is not the chance of seeing the aurora. How we calculate this
How the ranking works
Pick a month above and we rank twelve places by the share of five-night stays that month with at least one usable night. A usable night means at least two dark hours in a row with half the sky or more free of cloud, averaged over a satellite cell about 110 km across. The data are NASA POWER hourly values for 2001 to 2024, counted over the real day sequences, so runs of bad weather are included. It measures darkness and cloud. It does not measure solar activity.
The headline: North America has far more usable nights
From November to April, Yellowknife, Fairbanks and Whitehorse hold the top three places in our ranking. Only in September and October does a European place break in: Luleå in both months and Kiruna in October. In February, 98% of five-night stays in Yellowknife, 96% in Whitehorse and 95% in Fairbanks had a usable night, against 80% for the best European place and 48% for the weakest. A second test on ERA5 reanalysis data, run for our first six places only, gives the same broad order, though it puts Abisko lower and Tromsø a little higher than we do.
Among the European places, it changes by month
- September and October: Luleå leads on 84% and 83%, ahead of Kiruna (79% and 77%).
- November and December: Reykjavík leads, at 74% and 76%, a point or two ahead of Kiruna.
- January and February: Kiruna leads on 80% in both, ahead of Abisko (77%) in January and Saariselkä (77%) in February.
- March: Kiruna leads on 87%, ahead of Rovaniemi (82%), while Luleå falls to 37% and Tromsø to 31%.
Kiruna is first or second among the nine Nordic places in every month from September to March, the strongest Nordic sky in our data. Tromsø and Akureyri are the cloudiest: they take the bottom two places of the twelve in every month from October to February, and in March Luleå drops down to join them. Levi is the lowest of the three Finnish places from November to March. Our pick for Europe depends on the month: Luleå in September or October, Reykjavík or Kiruna in November and December, Kiruna from January to March. Compare Tromsø and Rovaniemi, Iceland and Norway and Fairbanks and Yellowknife.
Why best also depends on flights and budget
The best sky is useless if the trip does not fit. Yellowknife is typically reached via Edmonton, Calgary or Vancouver, and Fairbanks via Seattle or Anchorage. Tromsø is typically via Oslo, with seasonal direct flights from several European cities. Reykjavík is an Icelandair hub linking Europe and North America. Whitehorse is typically reached via Vancouver, and Kiruna and Luleå via Stockholm. Aggregator hotel snapshots, in different currencies, are not directly comparable: roughly EUR 238 a night in Tromsø and USD 201 in Reykjavík in February, USD 100 to 180 in Fairbanks and CAD 140 to 200 in Yellowknife in winter.
Position under the oval
The UAF Geophysical Institute puts the average auroral oval at around 67 to 68 degrees geomagnetic latitude. Our approximate figures put Yellowknife at about 68.8 and Tromsø at 66.6, then a group between 64.0 and 65.3 (Abisko, Akureyri, Saariselkä, Fairbanks, Kiruna, Levi and Reykjavík), with Whitehorse at 63.5, Rovaniemi at 63.0 and Luleå at 62.2. The Kp typically needed for an overhead display is 1 for Yellowknife and Tromsø, 2 for the middle group and 3 for Whitehorse, Rovaniemi and Luleå. Most of the latitudes come from tables for magnetometer stations in or near each town, and the Kp values are our own derivation, so treat all of this as indicative. Our reading is that low Kp is usually enough at most of the twelve, so cloud and darkness matter more. See the Kp guide.
Claims in circulation
Explore Fairbanks says a stay of at least three nights, out late each evening, raises the chance of seeing the aurora to more than 90%. Spectacular NWT says up to 240 nights of active lights a year in the Northwest Territories and 98% over three nights. Neither publishes data. Our February three-night sky figures are 84% for Fairbanks and 94% for Yellowknife. Plan your length with the nights calculator.
Common questions
What is the best place to see the northern lights?
By our sky figures, Yellowknife, Fairbanks or Whitehorse. From December to March, 92% to 98% of five-night stays in those three had at least one usable night. That is a measure of sky, not a promise of a display.
Is Tromsø or Rovaniemi better?
Rovaniemi has the higher five-night sky figure in every month from September to March, by 15 to 51 points. Tromsø has more darkness in midwinter and a true polar night, so the choice also depends on what else you want from the trip.
Is Fairbanks or Yellowknife better?
They are close. Yellowknife is ahead in September, October, February and March, Fairbanks in November, December and April, and January is level at 97%. Yellowknife is colder, with a mean of -30C during January dark hours.
How far north do you need to go?
Every place on our list is close enough to the auroral oval that low or moderate activity is normally enough, so you do not need to go further north. Luleå, Rovaniemi and Whitehorse are the most southerly in magnetic terms and need a little more activity. Treat that as indicative.