 The European Center for Medium Range Weather Forecasts, ECMWF, recently released their newest reanalysis dataset, ERA5. This dataset provides higher resolution data than the previous version, ERA interim, and incorporates additional sources of data. ECMWF's ERA5 reanalysis is a promising reference dataset for hydrological modeling, as it can be used to replace observations in many areas of North America. ERA5 performs similarly to observations in most areas, but has lower accuracy in the eastern United States due to differences in precipitation. Temperature biases are also reduced when compared to ERA interim, which suggests that ERA5 may provide improved results for hydrologic simulations. This article was authored by M. Tarek, F. P. Brissette and R. Arsenault.