Bonesteel, SD Climate: Temperature & Rain by Month
Temperature and precipitation from NOAA NCEI 1991–2020 normals →, plus PlainClimate's derived comfort score
30-year climate normals (1991-2020) from Bonesteel's primary NOAA station, BONESTEEL.
The climate verdict for Bonesteel
Bonesteel, South Dakota has a mixed annual climate rather than one dominant extreme. Its NOAA normal shows an annual average of 48°F. Its climate comfort score of 59/100 (moderate) lands mid-pack nationally, exceeding 37% of station-mapped location scores.
- 48°F
- yearly average temperature, NOAA normal
- 59/100
- comfort score, above 37% of station-mapped location scores
- 25.9"
- annual precipitation · 37" snow
- 160 days
- growing season, frost-free days
Bonesteel: NOAA 1991-2020 normals describe a typical year, not a forecast. Method: /methodology.
Normals record plate
Sheet USC00390778 · Bonesteel, SD 48°F mean · 25.9" precip
TEMP-COOL · RANK-COOL · PHOTO-FINISH · PRCP-MID · SWING-WIDE · COMF-MID · LOAD-HEAT · STN-1 · BOOK-FULL
- TEMP-COOL 48°F
- RANK-COOL #2,058
- PHOTO-FINISH ≈ O'neill
- PRCP-MID 25.9"
- SWING-WIDE 53°F
- COMF-MID 59/100
- LOAD-HEAT 7,112 HDD
- STN-1 USC00390778
- BOOK-FULL 6/6 fields
Nearest mean-temperature peer: O'neill, NE (+ 0.1 °F mean)
Instrument codes from this station's NOAA 1991–2020 normals, mean temperature, corpus warmth rank, photo-finish peer station, precipitation band, seasonal swing, comfort composite, degree-day load, and field book, not a livability rating.
Mean-temperature neighbourhood
Nationwide NOAA normal poles and nearest peers, not a reprint of every SD station list.
- Bonesteel (this station) 48°F
- Cold Butte, NE 48°F
- Hot Verdel, NE 48°F
- Near O'neill, NE 48°F
- Near Ida Grove, IA 48°F
Climate Living Index · Bonesteel
Bonesteel: 39/100 · grade F
Bonesteel publishes 5 of 6 Living Index dimensions (NOAA annual/seasonal normals · NOAA daily multivariate normals); 1 missing weight rescale to 100.
PlainClimate-derived for Bonesteel, not an official NOAA rating. Rankings still use Comfort Score 59/100 (separate formula). Breakpoints and limits.
| Dimension | Station value | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Precipitation balance | 25.9 in · 9.1 from 35 in | 68/100 · C |
| Normal heat + freeze calendar | 166 calendar days | 35/100 · F |
| Frost-free season | 160 days/year | 33/100 · F |
| Snowfall burden | 37.2 inches/year | 31/100 · F |
| Annual temperature balance | 47.6°F · 19.9° from 67.5°F | 30/100 · F |
Bonesteel · 2026-08-04 · NOAA NCEI Climate Normals · method · Comfort Score method.
Bonesteel is a continental Köppen climate: Dwa
Coldest-month mean 21.0°F and warmest-month mean 74.1°F place this station in continental, dry-winter, hot summer climates (Dwa). Class Dwa is the Peel et al. (2007) label for this station's monthly mean temperature and precipitation normals: continental, specifically continental, dry-winter, hot summer.
- Köppen code
- Dwa
- Group
- Continental
- Warmest month
- 74.1°F
- Coldest month
- 21.0°F
Source: official public datasets monthly normals (1991–2020) at the city’s primary station. This is a station classification, not a mapped regional consensus.
National standing · heating-led station
Where Bonesteel sits across the climate record
Three NOAA fields for Bonesteel's primary station, temperature, precipitation, and seasonal swing, are ranked against every station-mapped normal that carries the same field.
- Annual temperature
- Cooler than 70%
- Among 6,861 stations, Bonesteel sits in the cooler third of annual means.
- Annual precipitation
- 35th percentile wetness
- Neither arid nor torrential versus 6,352 station totals.
- Seasonal temperature swing
- Wider than 88%
- Warmest-to-coldest month gap for Bonesteel is large versus 6,861 complete station-years.
How Bonesteel compares across U.S. station-mapped locations
Bonesteel's comfort score vs. all station-mapped locations
PlainClimate composite comfort index (1–100), NOAA 1991–2020 normals
59 37th percentile score exceeds 37% of 6,189 station-mapped location scores
- 0–10: 0 station-mapped locations (0%). Below this entry.
- 10–20: 0 station-mapped locations (0%). Below this entry.
- 20–30: 96 station-mapped locations (2%). Below this entry.
- 30–40: 280 station-mapped locations (5%). Below this entry.
- 40–50: 1,113 station-mapped locations (18%). Below this entry.
- 50–60: 1,329 station-mapped locations (21%). This entry sits in this band.
- 60–70: 1,236 station-mapped locations (20%). Above this entry.
- 70–80: 650 station-mapped locations (11%). Above this entry.
- 80–90: 921 station-mapped locations (15%). Above this entry.
- 90–100: 564 station-mapped locations (9%). Above this entry.
Source NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, PlainClimate comfort index · 1991–2020
Monthly Temperatures
Average daily high and low temperatures by month
| Month | Avg High | Avg Low | Mean | Precip | Snow | Freeze Days | 90°F+ Days |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 31°F (0°C) | 11°F (-12°C) | 21°F (-6°C) | 0.4" | 5.5" | 30.7 | 0.0 |
| February | 36°F (2°C) | 14°F (-10°C) | 25°F (-4°C) | 0.7" | 5.9" | 26.7 | 0.0 |
| March | 47°F (8°C) | 23°F (-5°C) | 35°F (2°C) | 1.4" | 5.5" | 25.4 | 0.0 |
| April | 58°F (14°C) | 34°F (1°C) | 46°F (8°C) | 3.1" | 7.7" | 13.1 | 0.1 |
| May | 69°F (21°C) | 45°F (7°C) | 57°F (14°C) | 4.3" | 0.0" | 1.5 | 0.6 |
| June | 80°F (27°C) | 57°F (14°C) | 68°F (20°C) | 3.9" | 0.0" | 0.0 | 2.9 |
| July | 87°F (30°C) | 62°F (17°C) | 74°F (23°C) | 3.2" | 0.0" | 0.0 | 9.9 |
| August | 85°F (29°C) | 60°F (16°C) | 72°F (22°C) | 2.8" | 0.0" | 0.0 | 8.9 |
| September | 76°F (25°C) | 51°F (10°C) | 64°F (18°C) | 2.9" | 0.0" | 0.5 | 3.4 |
| October | 62°F (17°C) | 37°F (3°C) | 50°F (10°C) | 2.0" | 2.0" | 8.9 | 0.3 |
| November | 47°F (8°C) | 24°F (-4°C) | 36°F (2°C) | 0.9" | 6.9" | 24.8 | 0.0 |
| December | 34°F (1°C) | 15°F (-10°C) | 24°F (-4°C) | 0.3" | 3.7" | 30.3 | 0.0 |
The year, day by day
Summer here tops out rather than builds: the warmest normal high is 87°F around July 20, short of 90°F on every date, while 166 dates carry a normal low at or below freezing, the coldest 10°F near January 17.
The freezing stretch
The normal low stays at or below 32°F into April 11, then returns to freezing around October 29, covering 166 dates in all.
Derived from the normal daily minimum. This is a different measure from the 50%-probability frost dates shown elsewhere on this page, which come from NOAA’s frost product.
Where the wet dates fall
The likeliest wet date is May 1, when 28% of years recorded at least a hundredth of an inch. The driest is December 27 at 8%. Summed across the calendar, that is about 62 wet dates a year.
The widest day
September 15 carries the biggest normal gap between afternoon and dawn, 26°F between the normal high and the normal low.
Look up any date
Any date's 1991–2020 normal for Bonesteel.
Monthly Precipitation
Average monthly rainfall and snowfall
Snow: 5.5"
3.1 days with precipitation
Snow: 5.9"
3.5 days with precipitation
Snow: 5.5"
5.3 days with precipitation
Snow: 7.7"
7.3 days with precipitation
8.7 days with precipitation
7.5 days with precipitation
6.8 days with precipitation
5.0 days with precipitation
3.6 days with precipitation
Snow: 2.0"
4.6 days with precipitation
Snow: 6.9"
4.2 days with precipitation
Snow: 3.7"
2.5 days with precipitation
Bonesteel runs a summer-peaked wet season
38% of Bonesteel's yearly precipitation falls in June, July and August alone, against the 25% an evenly spread year would give those three months. The wettest month is May at 4.3", on a wide 53.1°F gap between its warmest and coldest month. Warm-season convection and, across the Southwest, the North American monsoon produce this shape: rain arrives in short heavy bursts during the hottest part of the year rather than as long cool-season soaking.
- Wettest three months: May, June, July, taking 44% of the annual total between them.
- Driest month: December at 0.3".
- Winter share: 6% falls in December, January and February.
Shares are computed from this station's own 1991-2020 monthly precipitation normals. A summer-peaked label means the June-August share reaches 35%; it describes timing across an average year, not any single season, and says nothing about how heavy an individual storm can be.
When it rains in Bonesteel, it arrives in quantity
25.9" of precipitation falls across only about 62 wet days here, averaging 0.42 inches each. Fewer days carry more water: the year's total is delivered in comparatively heavy events rather than persistent damp.
- Days with measurable precipitation
- about 62 a year, 17% of all days
- Average depth per wet day
- 0.42 inches
- Most wet days
- May, about 9
- Fewest wet days
- December, about 3
A wet day is one recording at least 0.01 inches. These are 1991-2020 normals: they describe an average year, and a per-day average is not a forecast of any individual storm.
Winter brings real snow to Bonesteel
Bonesteel averages 37.2 inches of snowfall a year, with April the snowiest month on the normals, spread across roughly 14 days that record measurable snow. That is depth accumulating on the ground, which is why it can exceed the annual precipitation figure: precipitation counts the liquid the snow melts down to, and fresh snow is mostly air.
- Annual snowfall: 37.2 inches of depth.
- Days recording measurable snow: about 14 a year.
- At a rough ten-to-one melt ratio, snow accounts for on the order of 14% of the year's precipitation.
NOAA 1991-2020 normals. The ten-to-one ratio is a convention, not a measurement: real ratios vary with temperature, so treat the share as an order of magnitude rather than an exact split.
Frost Dates & Growing Season
First Fall Freeze
October 10
50% probability date
Last Spring Freeze
May 3
50% probability date
Growing Season
160 days
Heating & Cooling Degree Days
Annual totals indicate energy demand for heating and cooling
Heating Degree Days
7,112
Higher = more heating needed
Cooling Degree Days
812
Higher = more cooling needed
Warmest Month
July
Coldest Month
January
Nationwide similar cities
Other rankable U.S. places outside SD closest to Bonesteel on two NOAA annual-normal axes (mean temperature and annual precipitation). Chip rows use distinct link sets.
Closest by average temperature
Nearest out-of-state peers by annual mean temperature (48°F here).
- Bend, OR 48°F · 0.0°F off
- Benton, PA 48°F · 0.0°F off
- Bonners Ferry, ID 48°F · 0.0°F off
- Burlington, VT 48°F · 0.0°F off
Closest by annual precipitation
Nearest out-of-state peers by annual precipitation (25.9" here), excluding temperature-peer places.
- Grand Marais, MN 25.9" · 0.0" off
- Elgin, OR 25.9" · 0.0" off
- Greensburg, KS 26.0" · 0.0" off
- Burwell, NE 25.9" · 0.1" off
Snow and freeze rhythm
When cold and snow define Bonesteel
heating led · moderate · mid swing
Bonesteel's energy balance leans toward cold weather: 7,112 annual heating degree days against 812 for cooling. Its 53.1°F seasonal range still makes the monthly rows more useful than the annual average alone.
Bonesteel's frost-free season lasts about 160 days, a middle-length window whose endpoints matter more than the annual average. It describes freeze probability, not year-specific planting conditions.
-
1. Bonesteel coldest normal
January
Averaging 21°F (-6°C), this month sits below freezing for the month as a whole, not merely overnight.
-
2. Bonesteel typical freeze period
January through December
The station reports average freezing days from January through December.
-
3. Bonesteel snow peak
April
Bonesteel averages 37.2 inches of snow a year, with April the snowiest month on the normals.
Questions about Bonesteel's climate
How much snow does Bonesteel get? ▼
How cold does Bonesteel get in winter? ▼
How much energy does heating and cooling require in Bonesteel? ▼
Data Sources
Data source: NOAA U.S. Climate Normals v1.0.1 (1991-2020). All figures on this page are from Bonesteel's primary station: BONESTEEL (USC00390778). For informational purposes only.
Place identity: U.S. Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer places. The 2024 Census Gazetteer identifies the exact name-and-state match as an incorporated place (GEOID 4606220). Match rule for Bonesteel: exact normalized name + state only, no fuzzy expansion, so nearby differently spelled facilities stay unmatched.
On this page every temperature, precipitation, and derived score for Bonesteel comes from its primary NOAA station record. No figure on this page is typed in by an editor - each value is rendered from NOAA 1991-2020 U.S. Climate Normals. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of 1991–2020 normals.