Fortuna, ND Climate: Temperature & Rain by Month
Explore NOAA NCEI's 1991–2020 climate normals → and a clearly labeled PlainClimate comfort calculation
30-year climate normals (1991-2020) from Fortuna's primary NOAA station, FORTUNA 1 W.
The climate verdict for Fortuna
Winter sets the terms in Fortuna, North Dakota. A pronounced 59.5°F seasonal swing and heating demand above twice the cooling total frame an annual average of 38°F. At 39/100 (below average) the climate comfort score falls in the bottom third of the station-mapped U.S. score corpus, exceeding only 4% of scores.
- 38°F
- annual average temperature (NOAA normal)
- 39/100
- comfort score, above 4% of station-mapped location scores
- 15.3"
- annual precipitation · 37" snow
- 121 days
- frost-free days per growing season
Fortuna: NOAA 1991-2020 normals describe a typical year, not a forecast. Method: /methodology.
Normals record plate
Sheet USC00323196 · Fortuna, ND 38°F mean · 15.3" precip
TEMP-COLD · RANK-COOL · PHOTO-FINISH · PRCP-DRY · SWING-WIDE · COMF-LOW · LOAD-HEAT · STN-1 · BOOK-FULL
- TEMP-COLD 38°F
- RANK-COOL #206
- PHOTO-FINISH ≈ Belcourt Keya R…
- PRCP-DRY 15.3"
- SWING-WIDE 60°F
- COMF-LOW 39/100
- LOAD-HEAT 9,958 HDD
- STN-1 USC00323196
- BOOK-FULL 6/6 fields
Nearest mean-temperature peer: Belcourt Keya Radio, ND ( -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 ND station list.
- Hot Bottineau, ND 39°F
- Fortuna (this station) 38°F
- Cold Cavalier, ND 38°F
- Near Belcourt Keya R…, ND 38°F
- Near Pembina, ND 38°F
Fortuna 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 · Fortuna
Fortuna: 13/100 · grade F
Fortuna publishes 5 of 6 Living Index dimensions (NOAA annual/seasonal normals · NOAA daily multivariate normals); 1 missing weight rescale to 100.
PlainClimate-derived for Fortuna, not an official NOAA rating. Rankings still use Comfort Score 39/100 (separate formula). Breakpoints and limits.
| Dimension | Station value | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Snowfall burden | 36.5 inches/year | 32/100 · F |
| Precipitation balance | 15.3 in · 19.7 from 35 in | 30/100 · F |
| Normal heat + freeze calendar | 207 calendar days | 10/100 · F |
| Frost-free season | 121 days/year | 7/100 · F |
| Annual temperature balance | 38.3°F · 29.2° from 67.5°F | 0/100 · F |
Fortuna · 2026-08-04 · NOAA NCEI Climate Normals · method · Comfort Score method.
Fortuna is a continental Köppen climate: Dfb
Coldest-month mean 7.3°F and warmest-month mean 66.8°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
- 66.8°F
- Coldest month
- 7.3°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 Fortuna sits across the climate record
Three NOAA fields for Fortuna's primary station, temperature, precipitation, and seasonal swing, are ranked against every station-mapped normal that carries the same field.
- Annual temperature
- Cooler than 97%
- Among 6,861 stations, Fortuna sits in the cooler third of annual means.
- Annual precipitation
- Drier than 82%
- Fortuna's annual total ranks in the drier third of 6,352 measured normals.
- Seasonal temperature swing
- Wider than 97%
- Warmest-to-coldest month gap for Fortuna is large versus 6,861 complete station-years.
How Fortuna compares across U.S. station-mapped locations
Fortuna's comfort score vs. all station-mapped locations
PlainClimate composite comfort index (1–100), NOAA 1991–2020 normals
39 4th percentile score exceeds 4% 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%). This entry sits in this band.
- 40–50: 1,113 station-mapped locations (18%). Above this entry.
- 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
Fortuna's measured station temperature trend
MethodologyAcross 31 complete annual observations from 1964 to 2021, FORTUNA 1 W warmed at a fitted rate of 0.26°C per decade. The line shows the fitted change relative to its first year, not raw year-to-year temperatures or a forecast.
- Fortuna primary station fitted change +0.26 °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 | 17°F (-8°C) | -2°F (-19°C) | 7°F (-14°C) | 0.6" | 6.6" | 31.0 | 0.0 |
| February | 21°F (-6°C) | 2°F (-17°C) | 12°F (-11°C) | 0.5" | 5.7" | 27.9 | 0.0 |
| March | 34°F (1°C) | 14°F (-10°C) | 24°F (-4°C) | 0.6" | 7.0" | 30.0 | 0.0 |
| April | 52°F (11°C) | 27°F (-3°C) | 39°F (4°C) | 1.1" | 3.4" | 22.3 | 0.0 |
| May | 65°F (18°C) | 39°F (4°C) | 52°F (11°C) | 2.1" | 0.9" | 7.3 | 0.1 |
| June | 73°F (23°C) | 49°F (10°C) | 61°F (16°C) | 3.3" | 0.0" | 0.1 | 0.8 |
| July | 80°F (26°C) | 54°F (12°C) | 67°F (19°C) | 2.4" | 0.0" | 0.0 | 3.5 |
| August | 80°F (27°C) | 52°F (11°C) | 66°F (19°C) | 1.5" | 0.0" | 0.1 | 4.5 |
| September | 69°F (21°C) | 41°F (5°C) | 55°F (13°C) | 1.2" | 0.0" | 4.3 | 1.1 |
| October | 53°F (11°C) | 28°F (-2°C) | 40°F (5°C) | 1.0" | 2.2" | 21.4 | 0.0 |
| November | 35°F (1°C) | 15°F (-10°C) | 25°F (-4°C) | 0.5" | 4.3" | 29.1 | 0.0 |
| December | 22°F (-5°C) | 3°F (-16°C) | 13°F (-11°C) | 0.5" | 6.4" | 31.0 | 0.0 |
The year, day by day
Summer here tops out rather than builds: the warmest normal high is 82°F around August 1, short of 90°F on every date, while 207 dates carry a normal low at or below freezing, the coldest -3°F near January 15.
The freezing stretch
The normal low stays at or below 32°F into April 30, then returns to freezing around October 7, covering 207 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 15, when 31% of years recorded at least a hundredth of an inch. The driest is November 21 at 6%. Summed across the calendar, that is about 48 wet dates a year.
The widest day
August 30 carries the biggest normal gap between afternoon and dawn, 29°F between the normal high and the normal low.
Look up any date
Any date's 1991–2020 normal for Fortuna.
Where Fortuna Stands Nationally
Winters bite deep and often: the normal nightly low dips to freezing or below on around 207 nights a year, placing this among the most frost-prone tenth of ranked stations.
A drier-than-most normal water year — around 15 inches, below what four out of five ranked stations collect.
Fortuna earns 2 nationally notable standings (outer quintiles) against 6,860 NOAA 1991–2020 normals stations; only those extremes render.
Monthly Precipitation
Average monthly rainfall and snowfall
Snow: 6.6"
2.4 days with precipitation
Snow: 5.7"
2.2 days with precipitation
Snow: 7.0"
2.7 days with precipitation
Snow: 3.4"
3.2 days with precipitation
Snow: 0.9"
5.7 days with precipitation
9.7 days with precipitation
6.7 days with precipitation
4.7 days with precipitation
3.3 days with precipitation
Snow: 2.2"
2.7 days with precipitation
Snow: 4.3"
1.7 days with precipitation
Snow: 6.4"
2.5 days with precipitation
Fortuna runs a summer-peaked wet season
47% of Fortuna'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 3.3", on a wide 59.5°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, July, May, taking 51% of the annual total between them.
- Driest month: February at 0.5".
- 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 Fortuna's precipitation splits across the calendar
About 48 days a year record measurable precipitation here, carrying 15.3" between them, or roughly 0.32 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 Fortuna
Fortuna averages 36.5 inches of snowfall a year, with March the snowiest month on the normals, spread across roughly 13 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: 36.5 inches of depth.
- Days recording measurable snow: about 13 a year.
- At a rough ten-to-one melt ratio, snow accounts for on the order of 24% 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 17
50% probability date
Last Spring Freeze
May 19
50% probability date
Growing Season
121 days
Heating & Cooling Degree Days
Annual totals indicate energy demand for heating and cooling
Heating Degree Days
9,958
Higher = more heating needed
Cooling Degree Days
278
Higher = more cooling needed
Warmest Month
July
Coldest Month
January
Nationwide similar cities
Other rankable U.S. places outside ND closest to Fortuna 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 (38°F here).
- Northome, MN 38°F · 0.1°F off
- Baudette, MN 38°F · 0.1°F off
- Floodwood, MN 38°F · 0.1°F off
- Van Buren, ME 38°F · 0.1°F off
Closest by annual precipitation
Nearest out-of-state peers by annual precipitation (15.3" here), excluding temperature-peer places.
- Bynum, MT 15.3" · 0.0" off
- Carpenter, WY 15.3" · 0.0" off
- Fallbrook, CA 15.3" · 0.0" off
- Hugo, CO 15.3" · 0.0" off
Snow and freeze rhythm
When cold and snow define Fortuna
heating led · dry · high swing
Winter and seasonal range jointly define this record. Fortuna logs 9,958 heating degree days, more than twice its 278 cooling total, while the typical coldest-to-warmest-month gap reaches 59.5°F. The annual mean therefore compresses two materially different seasons.
Only about 121 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. Fortuna coldest normal
January
Averaging 7°F (-14°C), this month sits below freezing for the month as a whole, not merely overnight.
-
2. Fortuna typical freeze period
January through December
The station reports average freezing days from January through December.
-
3. Fortuna snow peak
March
Fortuna averages 36.5 inches of snow a year, with March the snowiest month on the normals.
Questions about Fortuna's climate
How much snow does Fortuna get? ▼
How cold does Fortuna get in winter? ▼
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Data Sources
Data source: NOAA U.S. Climate Normals v1.0.1 (1991-2020). All figures on this page are from Fortuna's primary station: FORTUNA 1 W (USC00323196). 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 3827820). Match rule for Fortuna: 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 Fortuna 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.