Ripon, Wisconsin climate: Normal weather by month, frost dates and records
Ripon's normal year runs from 10°F January nights to 80°F July afternoons, with 31.5 inches of precipitation and 38 inches of snow a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 7.3°C, January lows of −12°C, July highs of 27°C, 800 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationRipon (5 mi NE)
- Station IDUSC00477209
- Location43.89°N 88.74°W
- Elevation930 ft (284 m)
- From the center6 miles
- Population7,716
On October 22, the normal high in Ripon is 55°F and the normal low 37°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 27%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Ripon.
- Jan 25° 10°
- Feb 28° 12°
- Mar 40° 22°
- Apr 54° 34°
- May 67° 46°
- Jun 76° 57°
- Jul 80° 60°
- Aug 78° 59°
- Sep 72° 51°
- Oct 58° 39°
- Nov 43° 28°
- Dec 30° 16°
Each month: normal high (large) and low, °F. Fill: the month's normal mean, colder blue to hotter red.
What is the weather like in Ripon each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 80°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of 10°F. The most precipitation falls in June (4.80 in), the least in February (0.93 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 25°F | 10°F | 17.3°F | 0.98 | 11.0 | 7 | <1 | 30 | 9 h 10 min |
| February | 28°F | 12°F | 19.7°F | 0.93 | 8.2 | 6 | <1 | 28 | 10 h 30 min |
| March | 40°F | 22°F | 30.9°F | 1.67 | 5.6 | 7 | <1 | 25 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 54°F | 34°F | 44.0°F | 2.89 | 1.4 | 9 | <1 | 13 | 13 h 20 min |
| May | 67°F | 46°F | 56.3°F | 3.92 | 0.0 | 10 | <1 | 1 | 14 h 40 min |
| June | 76°F | 57°F | 66.4°F | 4.80 | 0.0 | 10 | 1 | <1 | 15 h 30 min |
| July | 80°F | 60°F | 70.0°F | 3.92 | 0.0 | 9 | 2 | <1 | 15 h 10 min |
| August | 78°F | 59°F | 68.4°F | 3.23 | 0.0 | 8 | 1 | <1 | 14 h |
| September | 72°F | 51°F | 61.1°F | 3.23 | 0.0 | 8 | <1 | <1 | 12 h 40 min |
| October | 58°F | 39°F | 48.3°F | 2.69 | 0.1 | 9 | <1 | 7 | 11 h 10 min |
| November | 43°F | 28°F | 35.1°F | 1.85 | 1.8 | 7 | <1 | 20 | 9 h 40 min |
| December | 30°F | 16°F | 23.2°F | 1.37 | 9.5 | 7 | <1 | 29 | 9 h |
| Year (annual) | 54°F | 36°F | 45.1°F | 31.48 | 37.6 | 97 | 5 | 153 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | −4°C | −12°C | −8.2°C | 25 mm | 28 cm |
| February | −2°C | −11°C | −6.8°C | 24 mm | 21 cm |
| March | 4°C | −5°C | −0.6°C | 42 mm | 14 cm |
| April | 12°C | 1°C | 6.7°C | 73 mm | 4 cm |
| May | 19°C | 8°C | 13.5°C | 100 mm | 0 cm |
| June | 25°C | 14°C | 19.1°C | 122 mm | 0 cm |
| July | 27°C | 16°C | 21.1°C | 100 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 26°C | 15°C | 20.2°C | 82 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 22°C | 10°C | 16.2°C | 82 mm | 0 cm |
| October | 14°C | 4°C | 9.1°C | 68 mm | 0 cm |
| November | 6°C | −2°C | 1.7°C | 47 mm | 5 cm |
| December | −1°C | −9°C | −4.9°C | 35 mm | 24 cm |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00477209; annual normals. Wet days: 0.01 inch or more; 90°F days and freezing nights: NOAA's day counts. Daylight: sunrise to sunset on the 15th, computed from the latitude.
When is the best weather to visit Ripon?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in May, June, July, August and September. Of those, September has the fewest days with rain (8).
That is a measurement, not a recommendation: it counts the months whose normal afternoon high sits between 65°F and 85°F, where a light layer is enough by day.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00477209.
When is the last frost in Ripon?
In Ripon, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after May 1 in half of years and after May 14 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before October 11 in half of years and before September 26 in one year in ten.
Frost-free in half of yearsFrost in 1 to 9 years out of 10Frost most years
- Last spring frost, half of years after
- May 11 year in 10 after May 14; 9 in 10 after April 16
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- October 111 year in 10 before September 26; 9 in 10 before October 26
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 163 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 187 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after April 19 in half of springs and before October 24 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Ripon in zone 5a in ZIP code 54971, the nearest ZIP area.
Frost dates for every NOAA station in Wisconsin · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USC00477209; USDA 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map, ZIP listings: PRISM Group, Oregon State University, https://prism.oregonstate.edu, accessed October 8, 2026. A 10% date means one year in ten has a frost after it in spring or before it in autumn.
How hot and how cold does it get in Ripon?
In a normal year in Ripon, 5 days a year reach 90°F, 153 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 97 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 5a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- fewer than 1a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 153a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 76high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 97a normal year
- Days with 1 inch of snow or more
- 15a normal year
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USC00477209.
How sunny is Ripon?
Over a year 72% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds in the area around Ripon, 3.8 kWh per square metre a day. July is the sunniest month (80%) and December the cloudiest (59%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 63% | 1.6 |
| February | 70% | 2.7 |
| March | 70% | 3.7 |
| April | 68% | 4.6 |
| May | 71% | 5.5 |
| June | 76% | 6.1 |
| July | 80% | 6.3 |
| August | 78% | 5.3 |
| September | 77% | 4.2 |
| October | 68% | 2.7 |
| November | 66% | 1.8 |
| December | 59% | 1.3 |
Source: NASA POWER solar climatology, 2001-2020 (CERES SYN1deg). Satellite-based, for the 1-degree cell (about 100 km across) around the station, so it describes the area rather than the airport.
How much heating and cooling does Ripon need?
A normal year in Ripon brings 7,706 heating degree days, 43% more than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 480 cooling degree days, 47% fewer than the median (908). Seven months need 300 or more heating degree days, a monthly mean of about 55°F or colder. For gardens and crops, NOAA counts 2,409 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 1,480 | 0 |
| February | 1,267 | 0 |
| March | 1,058 | 1 |
| April | 629 | 0 |
| May | 290 | 21 |
| June | 60 | 103 |
| July | 16 | 171 |
| August | 27 | 132 |
| September | 164 | 47 |
| October | 522 | 4 |
| November | 897 | 0 |
| December | 1,297 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 7,706 | 480 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00477209. A degree day is one degree of a day's mean temperature below 65°F (heating) or above it (cooling); utilities use them to estimate energy use.
How does Ripon's climate compare?
Ripon is warmer than 81 of the other 164 places with their own NOAA record in Wisconsin, and wetter than 19. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 45.1°F is warmer than 20%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Ripon is Dfb: continental, no dry season, warm summer. What the classes mean.
Places with the most similar year elsewhere
Measured month by month on the normal high, low and precipitation, among places of 20,000 or more people in other states:
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 normals for every station PlainClimate covers. Similarity: the root-mean-square difference of the 36 monthly figures, precipitation weighted so an inch counts like 6°F.
Which places near Ripon share this climate record?
3 places have no NOAA station with 1991-2020 normals of their own, and this station is the nearest full record. A place's own climate can differ from these figures, by several degrees where it sits much higher or lower than the station, nearer the coast, or inside a large city's heat; for the larger places the next nearest records are named with their yearly mean, so the spread around them is visible, and places of 50,000 or more have their own page with NOAA's gridded normals.
- Rosendale, WI1,037 people · 6 mi SE
- Brandon, WI877 people · 11 mi S
- Waukau, WI332 people · 7 mi N
Source: Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer (place centers) and Vintage 2024 population estimates. Distance and direction from the station to each place's center.
Questions about Ripon's climate
What is the coldest month in Ripon?
January, with a normal high of 25°F and a normal low of 10°F. The warmest is July (80°F by day, 60°F at night).
Does it snow in Ripon?
Yes: 38 inches in a normal year, falling on 21 days with 0.1 inch or more, the most in January (11.0 inches).
What is the rainiest month in Ripon?
June, with 4.80 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is February with 0.93 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Ripon in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Ripon in zone 5a in ZIP code 54971, the nearest ZIP area.
How late can frost come in Ripon?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after May 1; in one year in ten it comes after May 14. Waiting until May 14 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- Wisconsin climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Oshkosh, WI12 miles from this station, 46.3°F a year
- Berlin, WI12 miles from this station, 45.0°F a year
- Fond du Lac, WI15 miles from this station, 46.5°F a year
- Markesan, WI18 miles from this station, 45.1°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made