 The European Center for Medium Range Weather Forecasts, ECMWF, recently released their newest re-analysis dataset, ERA5. This dataset is significantly improved from their previous version, ERAinterim, with higher resolution, more data sources, and a more advanced assimilation system. ECMWF's ERA5 dataset can be used as a proxy for observations in hydrologic modeling, as it provides similar results to observations in most areas of North America. However, there are some areas where observations provide better results than ERA5, such as the eastern United States. Precipitation and temperature differences between ERA5 and ERAinterim are consistent across all regions, but tend to favor ERA5 in terms of accuracy. Overall, this study demonstrates that ERA5 can be used as a reliable proxy for observations in hydrologic modeling, especially when compared to ERAinterim. This article was authored by M. Tariq, F. P. Brissette and Arsenault. We are article.tv, links in the description below.