Medicine Lodge, KS Climate: Temperature & Rain by Month
Annual temperature and rainfall from NOAA NCEI's 1991–2020 normals →; comfort score computed by PlainClimate
30-year climate normals (1991-2020) from Medicine Lodge's primary NOAA station, MEDICINE LODGE.
The climate verdict for Medicine Lodge
Medicine Lodge, Kansas has a mixed annual climate rather than one dominant extreme. Its NOAA normal shows an annual average of 58°F. It scores 78/100 for climate comfort (good), putting it in the top third of station-mapped location scores and exceeding 72% of them.
- 58°F
- yearly average temperature, NOAA normal
- 78/100
- comfort score, above 72% of station-mapped location scores
- 27.8"
- annual precipitation · 9" snow
- 193 days
- frost-free growing season
Medicine Lodge: NOAA 1991-2020 normals describe a typical year, not a forecast. Method: /methodology.
Normals record plate
Sheet USW00003957 · Medicine Lodge, KS 58°F mean · 27.8" precip
TEMP-MILD · RANK-UPPER · PHOTO-FINISH · PRCP-MID · SWING-WIDE · COMF-TOP · LOAD-HEAT · STN-1 · BOOK-FULL
- TEMP-MILD 58°F
- RANK-UPPER #4,734
- PHOTO-FINISH ≈ Kiowa
- PRCP-MID 27.8"
- SWING-WIDE 48°F
- COMF-TOP 78/100
- LOAD-HEAT 4,389 HDD
- STN-1 USW00003957
- BOOK-FULL 6/6 fields
Nearest mean-temperature peer: Kiowa, KS ( -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 KS station list.
- Medicine Lodge (this station) 58°F
- Cold Gate, OK 58°F
- Hot Mexican Hat, UT 58°F
- Near Kiowa, KS 58°F
- Near Wichita, KS 58°F
Climate Living Index · Medicine Lodge
Medicine Lodge: 53/100 · grade D
Medicine Lodge publishes all six Living Index dimensions from NOAA annual/seasonal normals · NOAA daily multivariate normals · NOAA hourly normals.
PlainClimate-derived for Medicine Lodge, not an official NOAA rating. Rankings still use Comfort Score 78/100 (separate formula). Breakpoints and limits.
| Dimension | Station value | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Precipitation balance | 27.8 in · 7.3 from 35 in | 74/100 · B |
| Annual temperature balance | 57.9°F · 9.6° from 67.5°F | 69/100 · C |
| Snowfall burden | 9.4 inches/year | 64/100 · C |
| Frost-free season | 193 days/year | 59/100 · C |
| Summer moisture balance | 62.6°F mean dew point | 46/100 · D |
| Normal heat + freeze calendar | 189 calendar days | 20/100 · F |
Medicine Lodge · 2026-08-04 · NOAA NCEI Climate Normals · method · Comfort Score method.
Medicine Lodge is a temperate Köppen climate: Cfa
Coldest-month mean 34.1°F and warmest-month mean 82.0°F place this station in temperate, no dry season, hot summer climates (Cfa). Class Cfa is the Peel et al. (2007) label for this station's monthly mean temperature and precipitation normals: temperate, specifically temperate, no dry season, hot summer.
- Köppen code
- Cfa
- Group
- Temperate
- Warmest month
- 82.0°F
- Coldest month
- 34.1°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 Medicine Lodge sits across the climate record
Three NOAA fields for Medicine Lodge's primary station, temperature, precipitation, and seasonal swing, are ranked against every station-mapped normal that carries the same field.
- Annual temperature
- 69th percentile warmth
- Mid-pack annual mean versus 6,861 station normals.
- Annual precipitation
- 37th percentile wetness
- Neither arid nor torrential versus 6,352 station totals.
- Seasonal temperature swing
- Wider than 72%
- Warmest-to-coldest month gap for Medicine Lodge is large versus 6,861 complete station-years.
How Medicine Lodge compares across U.S. station-mapped locations
Medicine Lodge's comfort score vs. all station-mapped locations
PlainClimate composite comfort index (1–100), NOAA 1991–2020 normals
78 Top 28% score exceeds 72% 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%). Below this entry.
- 60–70: 1,236 station-mapped locations (20%). Below this entry.
- 70–80: 650 station-mapped locations (11%). This entry sits in this band.
- 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 | 46°F (8°C) | 22°F (-6°C) | 34°F (1°C) | 0.8" | 2.1" | 27.7 | 0.0 |
| February | 50°F (10°C) | 26°F (-4°C) | 38°F (3°C) | 1.0" | 4.0" | 22.0 | 0.0 |
| March | 60°F (16°C) | 35°F (2°C) | 48°F (9°C) | 2.0" | 0.8" | 12.4 | 0.0 |
| April | 70°F (21°C) | 44°F (7°C) | 57°F (14°C) | 2.4" | 0.1" | 3.6 | 1.0 |
| May | 79°F (26°C) | 55°F (13°C) | 67°F (19°C) | 3.6" | 0.0" | 0.2 | 5.7 |
| June | 90°F (32°C) | 65°F (18°C) | 78°F (25°C) | 3.9" | 0.0" | 0.0 | 17.1 |
| July | 94°F (35°C) | 70°F (21°C) | 82°F (28°C) | 3.1" | 0.0" | 0.0 | 23.9 |
| August | 92°F (34°C) | 68°F (20°C) | 80°F (27°C) | 3.5" | 0.0" | 0.0 | 20.2 |
| September | 84°F (29°C) | 59°F (15°C) | 72°F (22°C) | 2.6" | 0.0" | 0.0 | 10.0 |
| October | 72°F (22°C) | 45°F (7°C) | 59°F (15°C) | 2.4" | 0.0" | 2.7 | 1.3 |
| November | 58°F (15°C) | 33°F (0°C) | 46°F (8°C) | 1.1" | 0.3" | 14.5 | 0.0 |
| December | 47°F (8°C) | 24°F (-4°C) | 36°F (2°C) | 1.1" | 2.1" | 26.8 | 0.0 |
The year, day by day
Medicine Lodge works both ends of the calendar. Normal highs climb to 95°F by July 17 and hold at or above 90°F on 77 dates, then normal lows drop to freezing or below on 112 dates, bottoming at 22°F around January 2.
When the heat sits
Normal highs reach 90°F from June 14 through August 29, covering 77 dates. The broader mild season, normal highs of 70°F or more, runs April 16 to October 20.
This counts calendar dates whose 1991–2020 normal high reaches 90°F. It is a smaller number than the 90°F+ day counts in the monthly table above, which measure how often the threshold was actually crossed in a typical year. A date can average 88°F and still exceed 90°F in half of all years.
The freezing stretch
The normal low stays at or below 32°F into March 8, then returns to freezing around November 18, covering 112 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 31, when 30% of years recorded at least a hundredth of an inch. The driest is January 1 at 14%. Summed across the calendar, that is about 80 wet dates a year.
The widest day
October 21 carries the biggest normal gap between afternoon and dawn, 27°F between the normal high and the normal low.
Look up any date
Any date's 1991–2020 normal for Medicine Lodge.
Where Medicine Lodge Stands Nationally
Heat is a defining feature of the normals calendar — the normal daily high reaches 90°F on roughly 77 days a year, more than four out of five ranked stations record.
Medicine Lodge 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 and snowfall
Snow: 2.1"
4.3 days with precipitation
Snow: 4.0"
5.6 days with precipitation
Snow: 0.8"
6.8 days with precipitation
Snow: 0.1"
8.2 days with precipitation
9.0 days with precipitation
8.7 days with precipitation
6.7 days with precipitation
8.6 days with precipitation
5.8 days with precipitation
7.2 days with precipitation
Snow: 0.3"
4.4 days with precipitation
Snow: 2.1"
4.8 days with precipitation
Medicine Lodge runs a summer-peaked wet season
38% of Medicine Lodge'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 3.9", on a wide 47.9°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, August, taking 40% of the annual total between them.
- Driest month: January at 0.8".
- Winter share: 11% 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 Medicine Lodge's precipitation splits across the calendar
About 80 days a year record measurable precipitation here, carrying 27.8" between them, or roughly 0.35 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.
Snow reaches Medicine Lodge, but rarely amounts to much
The normals record 9.4 inches of snow a year here, most likely in February. That is a real but marginal amount: enough that snow is part of the local record, not enough to define the winter.
A figure in this range usually reflects a handful of events that melt quickly rather than a season of accumulation; about 5 days a year record any measurable snow at all.
NOAA 1991-2020 normals. An average across thirty years can smooth away a single heavy winter, so a small annual figure does not mean a significant snowfall is impossible.
Frost Dates & Growing Season
First Fall Freeze
October 23
50% probability date
Last Spring Freeze
April 13
50% probability date
Growing Season
193 days
Heating & Cooling Degree Days
Annual totals indicate energy demand for heating and cooling
Heating Degree Days
4,389
Higher = more heating needed
Cooling Degree Days
1,820
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 | 62% | 8.8 | N/A | N/A |
| February | 57% | 10.2 | N/A | N/A |
| March | 58% | 11.2 | N/A | N/A |
| April | 61% | 10.6 | N/A | N/A |
| May | 63% | 9.2 | N/A | N/A |
| June | 58% | 9.3 | N/A | N/A |
| July | 57% | 8.1 | N/A | N/A |
| August | 59% | 8.0 | N/A | N/A |
| September | 58% | 9.0 | N/A | N/A |
| October | 59% | 8.9 | N/A | N/A |
| November | 62% | 9.1 | N/A | N/A |
| December | 65% | 8.5 | N/A | N/A |
Nationwide similar cities
Other rankable U.S. places outside KS closest to Medicine Lodge 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 (58°F here).
- Albuquerque, NM 58°F · 0.0°F off
- Brentwood, TN 58°F · 0.0°F off
- Buffalo, OK 58°F · 0.0°F off
- Lenoir, NC 58°F · 0.0°F off
Closest by annual precipitation
Nearest out-of-state peers by annual precipitation (27.8" here), excluding temperature-peer places.
- Abilene, TX 27.8" · 0.0" off
- Canton, SD 27.8" · 0.1" off
- Genoa, NE 27.7" · 0.1" off
- Warroad, MN 27.7" · 0.1" off
Data-derived climate profile
How Medicine Lodge's climate pattern fits together
heating led · moderate · mid swing
Medicine Lodge's energy balance leans toward cold weather: 4,389 annual heating degree days against 1,820 for cooling. Its 47.9°F seasonal range still makes the monthly rows more useful than the annual average alone.
Medicine Lodge's frost-free season lasts about 193 days, a middle-length window whose endpoints matter more than the annual average. It describes freeze probability, not year-specific planting conditions.
July and January mark the typical warm and cold ends of the calendar in Medicine Lodge's middle-range seasonal profile. The measured spread is 47.9°F. The annual average is 58°F. Neither the annual mean nor one extreme month represents the full calendar on its own.
Medicine Lodge's 27.8 inches of annual precipitation falls in PlainClimate's middle band, so “wet” or “dry” is not the leading description. Annual snowfall totals 9.4 inches. Temperature balance and the calendar distribution carry more information than the annual moisture label alone.
These labels group NOAA 1991-2020 normals from Medicine Lodge'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 Medicine Lodge, not an official NOAA class or a year-ahead forecast.
Questions about Medicine Lodge's climate
How much rain does Medicine Lodge get? ▼
How many days above 90°F does Medicine Lodge get? ▼
How much energy does heating and cooling require in Medicine Lodge? ▼
Data Sources
Data source: NOAA U.S. Climate Normals v1.0.1 (1991-2020). All figures on this page are from Medicine Lodge's primary station: MEDICINE LODGE (USW00003957). 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 2045500). Match rule for Medicine Lodge: 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 Medicine Lodge 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.