Lodgepole, SD Climate: Temperature & Rain by Month
Average temperature and precipitation from NOAA NCEI 1991–2020 normals →, with a derived climate comfort score
30-year climate normals (1991-2020) from Lodgepole's primary NOAA station, LODGEPOLE 5SW.
The climate verdict for Lodgepole
Dryness leads the climate profile for Lodgepole, South Dakota, with 16.9 inches of precipitation a year. NOAA records an annual average of 41°F. At 40/100 (moderate) the climate comfort score falls in the bottom third of the station-mapped U.S. score corpus, exceeding only 6% of scores.
- 41°F
- average temperature, NOAA 1991-2020 normal
- 40/100
- comfort score, above 6% of station-mapped location scores
- 16.9"
- annual precipitation
- 104 days
- frost-free days per growing season
Lodgepole: NOAA 1991-2020 normals describe a typical year, not a forecast. Method: /methodology.
Normals record plate
Sheet USC00394956 · Lodgepole, SD 41°F mean · 16.9" precip
TEMP-COOL · RANK-COOL · PHOTO-FINISH · PRCP-DRY · SWING-WIDE · COMF-LOW · LOAD-HEAT · STN-1 · BOOK-FULL
- TEMP-COOL 41°F
- RANK-COOL #480
- PHOTO-FINISH ≈ Port Wing
- PRCP-DRY 16.9"
- SWING-WIDE 51°F
- COMF-LOW 40/100
- LOAD-HEAT 8,942 HDD
- STN-1 USC00394956
- BOOK-FULL 6/6 fields
Nearest mean-temperature peer: Port Wing, WI (+ 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 SD station list.
- Lodgepole (this station) 41°F
- Cold Baraga, MI 41°F
- Hot Port Wing, WI 41°F
- Near Millinocket Was…, ME 41°F
- Near Dunkirk, MT 41°F
Climate Living Index · Lodgepole
Lodgepole: 12/100 · grade F
Lodgepole publishes 4 of 6 Living Index dimensions (NOAA annual/seasonal normals · NOAA daily multivariate normals); 2 missing weights rescale to 100.
PlainClimate-derived for Lodgepole, not an official NOAA rating. Rankings still use Comfort Score 40/100 (separate formula). Breakpoints and limits.
| Dimension | Station value | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Precipitation balance | 16.9 in · 18.1 from 35 in | 35/100 · F |
| Annual temperature balance | 41.1°F · 26.4° from 67.5°F | 7/100 · F |
| Normal heat + freeze calendar | 215 calendar days | 7/100 · F |
| Frost-free season | 104 days/year | 0/100 · F |
Lodgepole · 2026-08-04 · NOAA NCEI Climate Normals · method · Comfort Score method.
Lodgepole is a continental Köppen climate: Dwb
Coldest-month mean 16.4°F and warmest-month mean 66.9°F place this station in continental, dry-winter, warm summer climates (Dwb). Class Dwb is the Peel et al. (2007) label for this station's monthly mean temperature and precipitation normals: continental, specifically continental, dry-winter, warm summer.
- Köppen code
- Dwb
- Group
- Continental
- Warmest month
- 66.9°F
- Coldest month
- 16.4°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 Lodgepole sits across the climate record
Three NOAA fields for Lodgepole's primary station, temperature, precipitation, and seasonal swing, are ranked against every station-mapped normal that carries the same field.
- Annual temperature
- Cooler than 93%
- Among 6,861 stations, Lodgepole sits in the cooler third of annual means.
- Annual precipitation
- Drier than 78%
- Lodgepole's annual total ranks in the drier third of 6,352 measured normals.
- Seasonal temperature swing
- Wider than 82%
- Warmest-to-coldest month gap for Lodgepole is large versus 6,861 complete station-years.
How Lodgepole compares across U.S. station-mapped locations
Lodgepole's comfort score vs. all station-mapped locations
PlainClimate composite comfort index (1–100), NOAA 1991–2020 normals
40 6th percentile score exceeds 6% 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
Monthly Temperatures
Average daily high and low temperatures by month
| Month | Avg High | Avg Low | Mean | Precip | Freeze Days | 90°F+ Days |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 28°F (-2°C) | 5°F (-15°C) | 16°F (-9°C) | 0.2" | 30.9 | 0.0 |
| February | 31°F (-1°C) | 7°F (-14°C) | 19°F (-7°C) | 0.3" | 27.7 | 0.0 |
| March | 43°F (6°C) | 16°F (-9°C) | 29°F (-1°C) | 0.7" | 30.1 | 0.0 |
| April | 54°F (12°C) | 25°F (-4°C) | 40°F (4°C) | 1.4" | 24.4 | 0.2 |
| May | 65°F (18°C) | 36°F (2°C) | 51°F (10°C) | 2.5" | 11.1 | 0.0 |
| June | 74°F (24°C) | 47°F (8°C) | 61°F (16°C) | 3.5" | 0.5 | 1.1 |
| July | 82°F (28°C) | 52°F (11°C) | 67°F (19°C) | 2.3" | 0.0 | 5.0 |
| August | 82°F (28°C) | 49°F (10°C) | 66°F (19°C) | 2.1" | 0.2 | 5.9 |
| September | 73°F (23°C) | 40°F (4°C) | 56°F (14°C) | 1.5" | 5.0 | 1.7 |
| October | 57°F (14°C) | 27°F (-3°C) | 42°F (5°C) | 1.6" | 23.1 | 0.2 |
| November | 42°F (6°C) | 14°F (-10°C) | 28°F (-2°C) | 0.5" | 29.7 | 0.0 |
| December | 31°F (-1°C) | 7°F (-14°C) | 19°F (-7°C) | 0.3" | 31.0 | 0.0 |
The year, day by day
Summer here tops out rather than builds: the warmest normal high is 84°F around July 27, short of 90°F on every date, while 215 dates carry a normal low at or below freezing, the coldest 5°F near January 6.
The freezing stretch
The normal low stays at or below 32°F into May 7, then returns to freezing around October 6, covering 215 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 1, when 30% of years recorded at least a hundredth of an inch. The driest is November 24 at 7%. Summed across the calendar, that is about 58 wet dates a year.
The widest day
September 5 carries the biggest normal gap between afternoon and dawn, 35°F between the normal high and the normal low.
Look up any date
Any date's 1991–2020 normal for Lodgepole.
Where Lodgepole Stands Nationally
Winters bite deep and often: the normal nightly low dips to freezing or below on around 215 nights a year, placing this among the most frost-prone tenth of ranked stations.
Daily temperature swings run wider than most of the country, peaking near 35°F between the normal high and low.
Lodgepole earns 2 nationally notable standings (outer quintiles) against 6,860 NOAA 1991–2020 normals stations; only those extremes render.
Monthly Precipitation
Average monthly rainfall
2.2 days with precipitation
3.0 days with precipitation
4.0 days with precipitation
6.1 days with precipitation
8.3 days with precipitation
8.5 days with precipitation
6.1 days with precipitation
5.8 days with precipitation
3.6 days with precipitation
5.4 days with precipitation
1.9 days with precipitation
3.3 days with precipitation
Lodgepole runs a summer-peaked wet season
47% of Lodgepole'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 3.5", on a wide 50.5°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 49% of the annual total between them.
- Driest month: January at 0.2".
- Winter share: 5% 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 Lodgepole's precipitation splits across the calendar
About 58 days a year record measurable precipitation here, carrying 16.9" between them, or roughly 0.29 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.
Frost Dates & Growing Season
First Fall Freeze
September 11
50% probability date
Last Spring Freeze
May 30
50% probability date
Growing Season
104 days
Heating & Cooling Degree Days
Annual totals indicate energy demand for heating and cooling
Heating Degree Days
8,942
Higher = more heating needed
Cooling Degree Days
249
Higher = more cooling needed
Warmest Month
July
Coldest Month
January
Nationwide similar cities
Other rankable U.S. places outside SD closest to Lodgepole 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 (41°F here).
- Brainerd, MN 41°F · 0.0°F off
- Island Pond, VT 41°F · 0.0°F off
- Port Wing, WI 41°F · 0.0°F off
- Sundance, WY 41°F · 0.0°F off
Closest by annual precipitation
Nearest out-of-state peers by annual precipitation (16.9" here), excluding temperature-peer places.
- Rawlins, WY 16.9" · 0.0" off
- Geraldine, MT 16.9" · 0.0" off
- Sequim, WA 16.9" · 0.0" off
- Beulah, ND 16.9" · 0.0" off
Data-derived climate profile
How Lodgepole's climate pattern fits together
heating led · dry · mid swing
Lodgepole's energy balance leans toward cold weather: 8,942 annual heating degree days against 249 for cooling. Its 50.5°F seasonal range still makes the monthly rows more useful than the annual average alone.
Only about 104 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.
July and January mark the typical warm and cold ends of the calendar in Lodgepole's middle-range seasonal profile. The measured spread is 50.5°F. The annual average is 41°F. Neither the annual mean nor one extreme month represents the full calendar on its own.
Lodgepole's cold-season load does not imply a wet climate. Annual precipitation is 16.9 inches, which places the station in PlainClimate's dry range. Snowfall is not added to the interpretation because its annual value is missing. The snowfall and rainfall fields should be read separately rather than inferred from temperature.
These labels group NOAA 1991-2020 normals from Lodgepole's primary station, so the winter figures are a thirty-year average and not a floor: a single hard season can run well below them. Treat each band as a descriptive range for Lodgepole, not an official NOAA class or a year-ahead forecast.
Questions about Lodgepole's climate
How much rain does Lodgepole get? ▼
How cold does Lodgepole get in winter? ▼
How much energy does heating and cooling require in Lodgepole? ▼
Data Sources
Data source: NOAA U.S. Climate Normals v1.0.1 (1991-2020). All figures on this page are from Lodgepole's primary station: LODGEPOLE 5SW (USC00394956). 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 Lodgepole; 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 Lodgepole 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.