Fargo Hector, ND 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 Fargo Hector's primary NOAA station, FARGO HECTOR INTL AP.
The climate verdict for Fargo Hector
Winter sets the terms in Fargo Hector, North Dakota. A pronounced 61.5°F seasonal swing and heating demand above twice the cooling total frame an annual average of 42°F. At 44/100 (moderate) the climate comfort score falls in the bottom third of the station-mapped U.S. score corpus, exceeding only 10% of scores.
- 42°F
- average temperature, NOAA 1991-2020 normal
- 44/100
- comfort score, above 10% of station-mapped location scores
- 23.9"
- annual precipitation · 51" snow
- 143 days
- frost-free growing season
Fargo Hector: NOAA 1991-2020 normals describe a typical year, not a forecast. Method: /methodology.
Normals record plate
Sheet USW00014914 · Fargo Hector, ND 42°F mean · 23.9" precip
TEMP-COOL · RANK-COOL · PHOTO-FINISH · PRCP-DRY · SWING-WIDE · COMF-LOW · LOAD-HEAT · STN-1 · BOOK-FULL
- TEMP-COOL 42°F
- RANK-COOL #617
- PHOTO-FINISH ≈ McLeod
- PRCP-DRY 23.9"
- SWING-WIDE 62°F
- COMF-LOW 44/100
- LOAD-HEAT 8,806 HDD
- STN-1 USW00014914
- BOOK-FULL 6/6 fields
Nearest mean-temperature peer: McLeod, ND (+ 0 °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 ND station list.
- Fargo Hector (this station) 42°F
- Cold Breckenridge, MN 42°F
- Hot Moorhead, MN 42°F
- Near McLeod, ND 42°F
- Near Georgetown, MN 42°F
Fargo Hector sits in North Dakota, the #2 coldest U.S. state at 41.0°F statewide annual average - see all 50 coldest states ranked by NOAA normals
Climate Living Index · Fargo Hector
Fargo Hector: 35/100 · grade F
Fargo Hector publishes all six Living Index dimensions from NOAA annual/seasonal normals · NOAA daily multivariate normals · NOAA hourly normals.
PlainClimate-derived for Fargo Hector, not an official NOAA rating. Rankings still use Comfort Score 44/100 (separate formula). Breakpoints and limits.
| Dimension | Station value | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Summer moisture balance | 57.5°F mean dew point | 80/100 · B |
| Precipitation balance | 23.9 in · 11.1 from 35 in | 61/100 · C |
| Normal heat + freeze calendar | 175 calendar days | 29/100 · F |
| Frost-free season | 143 days/year | 20/100 · F |
| Snowfall burden | 51.4 inches/year | 20/100 · F |
| Annual temperature balance | 42.2°F · 25.3° from 67.5°F | 10/100 · F |
Fargo Hector · 2026-08-04 · NOAA NCEI Climate Normals · method · Comfort Score method.
Fargo Hector is a continental Köppen climate: Dfb
Coldest-month mean 9.2°F and warmest-month mean 70.7°F place this station in continental, no dry season, warm summer climates (Dfb). Class Dfb is the Peel et al. (2007) label for this station's monthly mean temperature and precipitation normals: continental, specifically continental, no dry season, warm summer.
- Köppen code
- Dfb
- Group
- Continental
- Warmest month
- 70.7°F
- Coldest month
- 9.2°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 Fargo Hector sits across the climate record
Three NOAA fields for Fargo Hector's primary station, temperature, precipitation, and seasonal swing, are ranked against every station-mapped normal that carries the same field.
- Annual temperature
- Cooler than 91%
- Among 6,861 stations, Fargo Hector sits in the cooler third of annual means.
- Annual precipitation
- 33rd percentile wetness
- Neither arid nor torrential versus 6,352 station totals.
- Seasonal temperature swing
- Wider than 99%
- Warmest-to-coldest month gap for Fargo Hector is large versus 6,861 complete station-years.
How Fargo Hector compares across U.S. station-mapped locations
Fargo Hector's comfort score vs. all station-mapped locations
PlainClimate composite comfort index (1–100), NOAA 1991–2020 normals
44 10th percentile score exceeds 10% 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%). This entry sits in this band.
- 50–60: 1,329 station-mapped locations (21%). Above this entry.
- 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
Fargo Hector's measured station temperature trend
MethodologyAcross 143 complete annual observations from 1881 to 2025, FARGO HECTOR INTL AP warmed at a fitted rate of 0.31°C per decade. The line shows the fitted change relative to its first year, not raw year-to-year temperatures or a forecast.
- Fargo Hector primary station fitted change +0.31 °C/decade
Monthly Temperatures
Average daily high and low temperatures by month
| Month | Avg High | Avg Low | Mean | Precip | Snow | Freeze Days | 90°F+ Days |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 18°F (-8°C) | 0°F (-18°C) | 9°F (-13°C) | 0.7" | 10.3" | 30.8 | 0.0 |
| February | 23°F (-5°C) | 4°F (-15°C) | 13°F (-10°C) | 0.7" | 8.1" | 27.3 | 0.0 |
| March | 36°F (2°C) | 18°F (-8°C) | 27°F (-3°C) | 1.3" | 9.2" | 26.7 | 0.0 |
| April | 54°F (12°C) | 32°F (0°C) | 43°F (6°C) | 1.5" | 4.1" | 15.6 | 0.1 |
| May | 69°F (20°C) | 44°F (7°C) | 57°F (14°C) | 3.1" | 0.0" | 2.8 | 0.9 |
| June | 78°F (26°C) | 56°F (13°C) | 67°F (19°C) | 4.3" | 0.0" | 0.0 | 2.1 |
| July | 82°F (28°C) | 59°F (15°C) | 71°F (22°C) | 3.1" | 0.0" | 0.0 | 3.9 |
| August | 81°F (27°C) | 57°F (14°C) | 69°F (20°C) | 2.6" | 0.0" | 0.0 | 3.1 |
| September | 72°F (22°C) | 48°F (9°C) | 60°F (16°C) | 2.7" | 0.0" | 0.9 | 1.1 |
| October | 56°F (13°C) | 35°F (2°C) | 46°F (8°C) | 2.2" | 1.2" | 12.0 | 0.1 |
| November | 38°F (3°C) | 21°F (-6°C) | 30°F (-1°C) | 1.0" | 6.8" | 25.5 | 0.0 |
| December | 24°F (-4°C) | 8°F (-14°C) | 16°F (-9°C) | 0.9" | 11.7" | 30.8 | 0.0 |
The year, day by day
Summer here tops out rather than builds: the warmest normal high is 83°F around July 21, short of 90°F on every date, while 175 dates carry a normal low at or below freezing, the coldest -1°F near January 20.
The freezing stretch
The normal low stays at or below 32°F into April 15, then returns to freezing around October 24, covering 175 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 June 13, when 39% of years recorded at least a hundredth of an inch. The driest is March 21 at 25%. Summed across the calendar, that is about 109 wet dates a year.
The widest day
May 10 carries the biggest normal gap between afternoon and dawn, 25°F between the normal high and the normal low.
Look up any date
Any date's 1991–2020 normal for Fargo Hector.
Monthly Precipitation
Average monthly rainfall and snowfall
Snow: 10.3"
8.9 days with precipitation
Snow: 8.1"
7.5 days with precipitation
Snow: 9.2"
7.7 days with precipitation
Snow: 4.1"
8.2 days with precipitation
11.4 days with precipitation
11.8 days with precipitation
9.7 days with precipitation
8.6 days with precipitation
8.7 days with precipitation
Snow: 1.2"
8.5 days with precipitation
Snow: 6.8"
7.6 days with precipitation
Snow: 11.7"
10.0 days with precipitation
Fargo Hector runs a summer-peaked wet season
42% of Fargo Hector'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 June at 4.3", on a wide 61.5°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: June, May, July, taking 44% of the annual total between them.
- Driest month: February at 0.7".
- Winter share: 10% 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.
How Fargo Hector's precipitation splits across the calendar
About 109 days a year record measurable precipitation here, carrying 24.0" between them, or roughly 0.22 inches on a typical wet day. That sits in the middle band: neither the many-light-days pattern of the Pacific Northwest and the Great Lakes, nor the few-heavy-events pattern of the Gulf and the desert Southwest.
A wet day is one recording at least 0.01 inches. These are 1991-2020 normals: they describe an average year and say nothing about the heaviest single storm on record.
Winter brings real snow to Fargo Hector
Fargo Hector averages 51.4 inches of snowfall a year, with December the snowiest month on the normals, spread across roughly 42 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: 51.4 inches of depth.
- Days recording measurable snow: about 42 a year.
- At a rough ten-to-one melt ratio, snow accounts for on the order of 21% 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
September 30
50% probability date
Last Spring Freeze
May 10
50% probability date
Growing Season
143 days
Heating & Cooling Degree Days
Annual totals indicate energy demand for heating and cooling
Heating Degree Days
8,806
Higher = more heating needed
Cooling Degree Days
542
Higher = more cooling needed
Warmest Month
July
Coldest Month
January
Humidity & Wind
Monthly averages from hourly observations
| Month | Humidity | Wind (mph) | Clear Sky % | Overcast % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 78% | 11.2 | 45% | 40% |
| February | 76% | 11.5 | 44% | 39% |
| March | 68% | 12.4 | 48% | 33% |
| April | 55% | 12.0 | 52% | 29% |
| May | 59% | 10.8 | 48% | 25% |
| June | 67% | 10.0 | 57% | 17% |
| July | 68% | 8.8 | 62% | 10% |
| August | 68% | 10.0 | 64% | 15% |
| September | 64% | 11.0 | 59% | 23% |
| October | 71% | 11.5 | 47% | 39% |
| November | 77% | 11.2 | 45% | 43% |
| December | 78% | 10.9 | 44% | 43% |
Nationwide similar cities
Other rankable U.S. places outside ND closest to Fargo Hector 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 (42°F here).
- Altamont, UT 42°F · 0.0°F off
- Chama, NM 42°F · 0.0°F off
- Driggs, ID 42°F · 0.0°F off
- Elk City, ID 42°F · 0.0°F off
Closest by annual precipitation
Nearest out-of-state peers by annual precipitation (23.9" here), excluding temperature-peer places.
- Oxford, NE 24.0" · 0.0" off
- Silverton, CO 23.9" · 0.0" off
- Wakeeney, KS 23.9" · 0.0" off
- Andover, SD 24.0" · 0.0" off
Snow and freeze rhythm
When cold and snow define Fargo Hector
heating led · moderate · high swing
Winter and seasonal range jointly define this record. Fargo Hector logs 8,806 heating degree days, more than twice its 542 cooling total, while the typical coldest-to-warmest-month gap reaches 61.5°F. The annual mean therefore compresses two materially different seasons.
Only about 143 days are frost-free in a normal year. That short interval is consistent with the cold-season signal, but the measure does not predict the exact first or last freeze in any one year.
-
1. Fargo Hector coldest normal
January
Averaging 9°F (-13°C), this month sits below freezing for the month as a whole, not merely overnight.
-
2. Fargo Hector typical freeze period
January through December
The station reports average freezing days from January through December.
-
3. Fargo Hector snow peak
December
Fargo Hector averages 51.4 inches of snow a year, with December the snowiest month on the normals.
Questions about Fargo Hector's climate
How much snow does Fargo Hector get? ▼
How cold does Fargo Hector get in winter? ▼
How much energy does heating and cooling require in Fargo Hector? ▼
Data Sources
Data source: NOAA U.S. Climate Normals v1.0.1 (1991-2020). All figures on this page are from Fargo Hector's primary station: FARGO HECTOR INTL AP (USW00014914). For informational purposes only.
Place identity: U.S. Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer places. The conservative exact name-and-state crosswalk finds no Census place match, so PlainClimate treats this as a station-mapped location and does not claim it is a municipality. No exact Gazetteer row for Fargo Hector; facility counts that depend on place identity are therefore an upper bound, not a municipal census.
On this page every temperature, precipitation, and derived score for Fargo Hector 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.