Sisseton, South Dakota climate: Normal weather by month, frost dates and records
Sisseton's normal year runs from 4°F January nights to 83°F July afternoons, with 22.9 inches of precipitation and 36 inches of snow a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 6.7°C, January lows of −15°C, July highs of 28°C, 583 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationSisseton Municipal Airport
- Station IDUSW00094993
- Location45.67°N 96.99°W
- Elevation1,161 ft (354 m)
- From the center3 miles
- Population2,432
On October 22, the normal high in Sisseton is 55°F and the normal low 33°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 26%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Sisseton.
- Jan 23° 4°
- Feb 27° 8°
- Mar 40° 20°
- Apr 55° 33°
- May 69° 45°
- Jun 78° 56°
- Jul 83° 60°
- Aug 81° 57°
- Sep 74° 48°
- Oct 58° 36°
- Nov 42° 22°
- Dec 28° 10°
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 Sisseton each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 83°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of 4°F. The most precipitation falls in June (3.50 in), the least in December (0.60 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 23°F | 4°F | 13.3°F | 0.63 | 6.2 | 9 | <1 | 30 | 9 h |
| February | 27°F | 8°F | 17.6°F | 0.70 | 7.3 | 8 | <1 | 27 | 10 h 20 min |
| March | 40°F | 20°F | 29.9°F | 1.11 | 6.1 | 8 | <1 | 27 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 55°F | 33°F | 43.8°F | 2.09 | 5.6 | 9 | <1 | 15 | 13 h 30 min |
| May | 69°F | 45°F | 57.3°F | 2.79 | 0.0 | 11 | 1 | 2 | 14 h 50 min |
| June | 78°F | 56°F | 67.2°F | 3.50 | 0.0 | 12 | 2 | <1 | 15 h 40 min |
| July | 83°F | 60°F | 71.4°F | 3.49 | 0.0 | 11 | 5 | <1 | 15 h 20 min |
| August | 81°F | 57°F | 68.9°F | 2.61 | 0.0 | 10 | 3 | <1 | 14 h 10 min |
| September | 74°F | 48°F | 60.8°F | 2.45 | 0.0 | 8 | 2 | 1 | 12 h 40 min |
| October | 58°F | 36°F | 46.8°F | 2.33 | 1.0 | 9 | <1 | 12 | 11 h |
| November | 42°F | 22°F | 31.9°F | 0.64 | 4.6 | 6 | <1 | 25 | 9 h 30 min |
| December | 28°F | 10°F | 19.1°F | 0.60 | 5.5 | 8 | <1 | 31 | 8 h 40 min |
| Year (annual) | 55°F | 33°F | 44.0°F | 22.94 | 36.3 | 108 | 13 | 170 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | −5°C | −15°C | −10.4°C | 16 mm | 16 cm |
| February | −3°C | −13°C | −8.0°C | 18 mm | 19 cm |
| March | 4°C | −6°C | −1.2°C | 28 mm | 15 cm |
| April | 13°C | 0°C | 6.6°C | 53 mm | 14 cm |
| May | 21°C | 7°C | 14.1°C | 71 mm | 0 cm |
| June | 26°C | 13°C | 19.6°C | 89 mm | 0 cm |
| July | 28°C | 15°C | 21.9°C | 89 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 27°C | 14°C | 20.5°C | 66 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 23°C | 9°C | 16.0°C | 62 mm | 0 cm |
| October | 14°C | 2°C | 8.2°C | 59 mm | 3 cm |
| November | 5°C | −5°C | −0.1°C | 16 mm | 12 cm |
| December | −2°C | −12°C | −7.2°C | 15 mm | 14 cm |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USW00094993; 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 Sisseton?
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 USW00094993.
When is the last frost in Sisseton?
In Sisseton, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after May 3 in half of years and after May 16 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before September 30 in half of years and before September 17 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 31 year in 10 after May 16; 9 in 10 after April 21
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- September 301 year in 10 before September 17; 9 in 10 before October 13
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 149 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 168 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after April 24 in half of springs and before October 10 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Sisseton in zone 4b in ZIP code 57262, the nearest ZIP area. By the map's own method, the average of each year's coldest night over 1991-2020, Sisseton's NOAA station is in zone 4b: the coldest night of a typical year reaches −22°F (22 complete years).
Frost dates for every NOAA station in South Dakota · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USW00094993; USDA 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map, ZIP listings: PRISM Group, Oregon State University, https://prism.oregonstate.edu, accessed October 8, 2026; the station zone: ACIS daily lows, 1991-2020. 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 Sisseton?
In a normal year in Sisseton, 13 days a year reach 90°F, 170 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 108 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 13a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- fewer than 1a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 170a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 80high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 108a normal year
- Days with 1 inch of snow or more
- 13a normal year
The highest temperature in Sisseton's official record (kept by the National Weather Service since 1931) is 113°F, on May 30, 1934; the lowest is −37°F, on January 24, 1936.
The wettest calendar year on that record is 2019, with 35.04 in; the snowiest season is 2018–19, with 88.4 inches.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USW00094993; records: ACIS (NOAA Regional Climate Centers), NWS threaded record 8D3thr. Records use complete months only; a month missing more than three days is left out.
How sunny is Sisseton?
Over a year 76% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds in the area around Sisseton, 4.0 kWh per square metre a day. July is the sunniest month (83%) and December the cloudiest (65%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 78% | 1.9 |
| February | 82% | 3.0 |
| March | 73% | 3.9 |
| April | 72% | 4.9 |
| May | 71% | 5.6 |
| June | 76% | 6.3 |
| July | 83% | 6.6 |
| August | 81% | 5.5 |
| September | 78% | 4.2 |
| October | 70% | 2.7 |
| November | 70% | 1.8 |
| December | 65% | 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 Sisseton need?
A normal year in Sisseton brings 8,179 heating degree days, 52% more than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 566 cooling degree days, 38% 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 2,501 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 1,601 | 0 |
| February | 1,327 | 0 |
| March | 1,087 | 0 |
| April | 638 | 1 |
| May | 270 | 30 |
| June | 52 | 118 |
| July | 11 | 211 |
| August | 28 | 149 |
| September | 180 | 53 |
| October | 571 | 5 |
| November | 992 | 0 |
| December | 1,423 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 8,179 | 566 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USW00094993. 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.
Has Sisseton been warmer than normal lately?
2025 averaged 45.2°F, 1.2°F above the 1991-2020 normal of 44.0°F. 5 of the 5 complete years since 2021 ran warmer than the normal.
| Year | Mean | Against normal | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 48.0°F | +4.0°F | 28.98 | 30.6 |
| 2022 | 44.1°F | +0.1°F | 21.09 | 54.9 |
| 2023 | 45.8°F | +1.8°F | 28.23 | 58.2 |
| 2024 | 47.8°F | +3.8°F | 22.57 | 13.6 |
| 2025 | 45.2°F | +1.2°F | 24.99 | 28.3 |
Source: observed years: ACIS, station USW00094993. A year counts only with all twelve months complete.
How does Sisseton's climate compare?
Sisseton is warmer than 22 of the other 99 places with their own NOAA record in South Dakota, and wetter than 53. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 44.0°F is warmer than 15%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Sisseton 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.
What do Sisseton's other NOAA stations record?
One more NOAA station keeps 1991-2020 normals in or near Sisseton. This page uses Sisseton Municipal Airport; the other differs by site and elevation:
| Station | From the center | Elevation | Year | Jan low | Jul high | Precip. | Snow | Last frost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sisseton station USC00397742 | in town | 1,209 ft | 44.0°F | 5°F | 82°F | 25.4 | 48 | May 4 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 normals for each station. Last frost: the median last spring date of 32°F.
Questions about Sisseton's climate
What is the coldest month in Sisseton?
January, with a normal high of 23°F and a normal low of 4°F. The warmest is July (83°F by day, 60°F at night).
Does it snow in Sisseton?
Yes: 36 inches in a normal year, falling on 24 days with 0.1 inch or more, the most in February (7.3 inches).
What is the rainiest month in Sisseton?
June, with 3.50 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is December with 0.60 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Sisseton in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Sisseton in zone 4b in ZIP code 57262, the nearest ZIP area. By the same method at Sisseton's NOAA station, the coldest night of a typical year reaches −22°F (22 years, 1991-2020): zone 4b.
How late can frost come in Sisseton?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after May 3; in one year in ten it comes after May 16. Waiting until May 16 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- South Dakota climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Browns Valley, MN9 miles from this station, 43.0°F a year
- Victor (4 mi N), SD19 miles from this station, 42.3°F a year
- Wilmot, SD19 miles from this station, 43.2°F a year
- Roy Lake, SD22 miles from this station, 43.5°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made