McLeod, 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 McLeod's primary NOAA station, MC LEOD 3 E.
The climate verdict for McLeod
Winter sets the terms in McLeod, North Dakota. A pronounced 62.2°F seasonal swing and heating demand above twice the cooling total frame an annual average of 42°F. At 52/100 (moderate) the climate comfort score falls in the bottom third of the station-mapped U.S. score corpus, exceeding only 24% of scores.
- 42°F
- annual average temperature (NOAA normal)
- 52/100
- comfort score, above 24% of station-mapped location scores
- 24.0"
- precipitation, annual total
- 146 days
- growing season, frost-free days
McLeod: NOAA 1991-2020 normals describe a typical year, not a forecast. Method: /methodology.
Normals record plate
Sheet USC00325754 · McLeod, ND 42°F mean · 24.0" 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 ≈ Moorhead
- PRCP-DRY 24.0"
- SWING-WIDE 62°F
- COMF-LOW 52/100
- LOAD-HEAT 8,811 HDD
- STN-1 USC00325754
- BOOK-FULL 6/6 fields
Nearest mean-temperature peer: Moorhead, MN (+ 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.
- McLeod (this station) 42°F
- Cold Breckenridge, MN 42°F
- Hot Fargo Hector, ND 42°F
- Near Moorhead, MN 42°F
- Near Georgetown, MN 42°F
McLeod 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 · McLeod
McLeod: 27/100 · grade F
McLeod publishes 4 of 6 Living Index dimensions (NOAA annual/seasonal normals · NOAA daily multivariate normals); 2 missing weights rescale to 100.
PlainClimate-derived for McLeod, not an official NOAA rating. Rankings still use Comfort Score 52/100 (separate formula). Breakpoints and limits.
| Dimension | Station value | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Precipitation balance | 24.0 in · 11.0 from 35 in | 61/100 · C |
| Normal heat + freeze calendar | 180 calendar days | 25/100 · F |
| Frost-free season | 146 days/year | 22/100 · F |
| Annual temperature balance | 42.2°F · 25.3° from 67.5°F | 10/100 · F |
McLeod · 2026-08-04 · NOAA NCEI Climate Normals · method · Comfort Score method.
McLeod is a continental Köppen climate: Dfb
Coldest-month mean 8.9°F and warmest-month mean 71.1°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
- 71.1°F
- Coldest month
- 8.9°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 McLeod sits across the climate record
Three NOAA fields for McLeod'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, McLeod 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 McLeod is large versus 6,861 complete station-years.
How McLeod compares across U.S. station-mapped locations
McLeod's comfort score vs. all station-mapped locations
PlainClimate composite comfort index (1–100), NOAA 1991–2020 normals
52 24th percentile score exceeds 24% 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
McLeod's measured station temperature trend
MethodologyAcross 85 complete annual observations from 1913 to 2025, MC LEOD 3 E warmed at a fitted rate of 0.15°C per decade. The line shows the fitted change relative to its first year, not raw year-to-year temperatures or a forecast.
- McLeod primary station fitted change +0.15 °C/decade
Monthly Temperatures
Average daily high and low temperatures by month
| Month | Avg High | Avg Low | Mean | Precip | Freeze Days | 90°F+ Days |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 19°F (-7°C) | -1°F (-18°C) | 9°F (-13°C) | 0.6" | 31.0 | 0.0 |
| February | 24°F (-4°C) | 3°F (-16°C) | 14°F (-10°C) | 0.7" | 27.6 | 0.0 |
| March | 38°F (3°C) | 17°F (-8°C) | 27°F (-3°C) | 1.0" | 28.0 | 0.0 |
| April | 55°F (13°C) | 31°F (0°C) | 43°F (6°C) | 1.7" | 15.6 | 0.1 |
| May | 69°F (20°C) | 45°F (7°C) | 57°F (14°C) | 2.9" | 2.9 | 0.8 |
| June | 78°F (26°C) | 56°F (13°C) | 67°F (19°C) | 4.5" | 0.0 | 2.0 |
| July | 83°F (28°C) | 60°F (15°C) | 71°F (22°C) | 3.5" | 0.0 | 4.6 |
| August | 81°F (27°C) | 57°F (14°C) | 69°F (21°C) | 2.6" | 0.0 | 3.7 |
| September | 73°F (23°C) | 48°F (9°C) | 60°F (16°C) | 2.6" | 1.2 | 1.0 |
| October | 57°F (14°C) | 34°F (1°C) | 45°F (7°C) | 2.2" | 13.1 | 0.1 |
| November | 39°F (4°C) | 20°F (-7°C) | 30°F (-1°C) | 0.8" | 26.7 | 0.0 |
| December | 25°F (-4°C) | 6°F (-14°C) | 16°F (-9°C) | 0.9" | 30.9 | 0.0 |
The year, day by day
Summer here tops out rather than builds: the warmest normal high is 83°F around July 27, short of 90°F on every date, while 180 dates carry a normal low at or below freezing, the coldest -2°F near January 18.
The freezing stretch
The normal low stays at or below 32°F into April 16, then returns to freezing around October 20, covering 180 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 18, when 30% of years recorded at least a hundredth of an inch. The driest is November 16 at 11%. Summed across the calendar, that is about 66 wet dates a year.
The widest day
September 18 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 McLeod.
Where McLeod Stands Nationally
Freezing is routine here by normals standards — the normal low reaches 32°F or colder on about 180 nights a year, more than most ranked stations.
McLeod earns one nationally notable standing (outer quintile) against 6,860 NOAA 1991–2020 normals stations, middle-of-the-pack metrics stay silent here.
Monthly Precipitation
Average monthly rainfall
3.4 days with precipitation
4.0 days with precipitation
3.8 days with precipitation
4.6 days with precipitation
7.6 days with precipitation
9.0 days with precipitation
7.8 days with precipitation
6.6 days with precipitation
5.5 days with precipitation
5.7 days with precipitation
3.2 days with precipitation
4.1 days with precipitation
McLeod runs a summer-peaked wet season
44% of McLeod'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 4.5", on a wide 62.2°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 45% of the annual total between them.
- Driest month: January at 0.6".
- Winter share: 9% 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 McLeod, it arrives in quantity
24.0" of precipitation falls across only about 65 wet days here, averaging 0.37 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 65 a year, 18% of all days
- Average depth per wet day
- 0.37 inches
- Most wet days
- June, about 9
- Fewest wet days
- November, 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.
Frost Dates & Growing Season
First Fall Freeze
September 29
50% probability date
Last Spring Freeze
May 6
50% probability date
Growing Season
146 days
Heating & Cooling Degree Days
Annual totals indicate energy demand for heating and cooling
Heating Degree Days
8,811
Higher = more heating needed
Cooling Degree Days
557
Higher = more cooling needed
Warmest Month
July
Coldest Month
January
Nationwide similar cities
Other rankable U.S. places outside ND closest to McLeod 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 (24.0" here), excluding temperature-peer places.
- Andover, SD 24.0" · 0.0" off
- Kamiah, ID 24.0" · 0.0" off
- Oxford, NE 24.0" · 0.0" off
- Silverton, CO 23.9" · 0.1" off
Data-derived climate profile
How McLeod's climate pattern fits together
heating led · moderate · high swing
Winter and seasonal range jointly define this record. McLeod logs 8,811 heating degree days, more than twice its 557 cooling total, while the typical coldest-to-warmest-month gap reaches 62.2°F. The annual mean therefore compresses two materially different seasons.
Only about 146 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.
McLeod's calendar has a pronounced split: July and January mark the typical warm and cold ends of the calendar, with 62.2°F between them. The annual average is 42°F. That average is context, while the monthly highs, lows, and precipitation totals describe the lived parts of the year.
McLeod's 24.0 inches of annual precipitation falls in PlainClimate's middle band, so “wet” or “dry” is not the leading description. Snowfall is not added to the interpretation because its annual value is missing. Temperature balance and the calendar distribution carry more information than the annual moisture label alone.
These labels group NOAA 1991-2020 normals from McLeod'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 McLeod, not an official NOAA class or a year-ahead forecast.
Questions about McLeod's climate
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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 McLeod's primary station: MC LEOD 3 E (USC00325754). 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 a census-designated place (GEOID 3849540), not an incorporated municipality. Match rule for McLeod: 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 McLeod 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.