Wisconsin Rapids, WI 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 Wisconsin Rapids's primary NOAA station, WISCONSIN RAPIDS.
The climate verdict for Wisconsin Rapids
Winter sets the terms in Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin. A pronounced 55.1°F seasonal swing and heating demand above twice the cooling total frame an annual average of 44°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.
- 44°F
- annual average temperature (NOAA normal)
- 52/100
- comfort score, above 24% of station-mapped location scores
- 33.4"
- annual precipitation
- 144 days
- frost-free days per growing season
Wisconsin Rapids: NOAA 1991-2020 normals describe a typical year, not a forecast. Method: /methodology.
Normals record plate
Sheet USC00479335 · Wisconsin Rapids, WI 44°F mean · 33.4" precip
TEMP-COOL · RANK-COOL · PHOTO-FINISH · PRCP-MID · SWING-WIDE · COMF-LOW · LOAD-HEAT · STN-1 · BOOK-FULL
- TEMP-COOL 44°F
- RANK-COOL #961
- PHOTO-FINISH ≈ Preston
- PRCP-MID 33.4"
- SWING-WIDE 55°F
- COMF-LOW 52/100
- LOAD-HEAT 8,158 HDD
- STN-1 USC00479335
- BOOK-FULL 6/6 fields
Nearest mean-temperature peer: Preston, 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 WI station list.
- Wisconsin Rapids (this station) 44°F
- Cold Wausau Dwtn, WI 44°F
- Hot Ladner, SD 44°F
- Near Preston, MN 44°F
- Near Swea City, IA 44°F
Climate Living Index · Wisconsin Rapids
Wisconsin Rapids: 36/100 · grade F
Wisconsin Rapids publishes 4 of 6 Living Index dimensions (NOAA annual/seasonal normals · NOAA daily multivariate normals); 2 missing weights rescale to 100.
PlainClimate-derived for Wisconsin Rapids, not an official NOAA rating. Rankings still use Comfort Score 52/100 (separate formula). Breakpoints and limits.
| Dimension | Station value | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Precipitation balance | 33.4 in · 1.6 from 35 in | 92/100 · A |
| Normal heat + freeze calendar | 175 calendar days | 29/100 · F |
| Frost-free season | 144 days/year | 21/100 · F |
| Annual temperature balance | 43.8°F · 23.7° from 67.5°F | 15/100 · F |
Wisconsin Rapids · 2026-08-04 · NOAA NCEI Climate Normals · method · Comfort Score method.
Wisconsin Rapids is a continental Köppen climate: Dfb
Coldest-month mean 14.8°F and warmest-month mean 69.9°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
- 69.9°F
- Coldest month
- 14.8°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 Wisconsin Rapids sits across the climate record
Three NOAA fields for Wisconsin Rapids's primary station, temperature, precipitation, and seasonal swing, are ranked against every station-mapped normal that carries the same field.
- Annual temperature
- Cooler than 86%
- Among 6,861 stations, Wisconsin Rapids sits in the cooler third of annual means.
- Annual precipitation
- 45th percentile wetness
- Neither arid nor torrential versus 6,352 station totals.
- Seasonal temperature swing
- Wider than 92%
- Warmest-to-coldest month gap for Wisconsin Rapids is large versus 6,861 complete station-years.
How Wisconsin Rapids compares across U.S. station-mapped locations
Wisconsin Rapids'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
Monthly Temperatures
Average daily high and low temperatures by month
| Month | Avg High | Avg Low | Mean | Precip | Freeze Days | 90°F+ Days |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 24°F (-4°C) | 5°F (-15°C) | 15°F (-10°C) | 1.1" | 30.5 | 0.0 |
| February | 29°F (-2°C) | 8°F (-13°C) | 18°F (-8°C) | 1.1" | 27.3 | 0.0 |
| March | 41°F (5°C) | 19°F (-7°C) | 30°F (-1°C) | 1.8" | 26.0 | 0.0 |
| April | 56°F (13°C) | 31°F (0°C) | 43°F (6°C) | 3.3" | 14.8 | 0.0 |
| May | 68°F (20°C) | 44°F (6°C) | 56°F (13°C) | 3.9" | 2.7 | 0.4 |
| June | 78°F (25°C) | 54°F (12°C) | 66°F (19°C) | 4.8" | 0.0 | 2.2 |
| July | 81°F (27°C) | 59°F (15°C) | 70°F (21°C) | 3.8" | 0.0 | 4.5 |
| August | 79°F (26°C) | 56°F (13°C) | 68°F (20°C) | 4.0" | 0.0 | 2.2 |
| September | 71°F (22°C) | 47°F (8°C) | 59°F (15°C) | 3.4" | 1.3 | 0.5 |
| October | 58°F (14°C) | 36°F (2°C) | 47°F (8°C) | 2.8" | 10.2 | 0.0 |
| November | 42°F (6°C) | 23°F (-5°C) | 33°F (0°C) | 1.8" | 23.6 | 0.0 |
| December | 30°F (-1°C) | 12°F (-11°C) | 21°F (-6°C) | 1.5" | 29.9 | 0.0 |
The year, day by day
Summer here tops out rather than builds: the warmest normal high is 82°F around July 11, short of 90°F on every date, while 175 dates carry a normal low at or below freezing, the coldest 4°F near January 26.
The freezing stretch
The normal low stays at or below 32°F into April 17, then returns to freezing around October 26, covering 175 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 3, when 37% of years recorded at least a hundredth of an inch. The driest is February 16 at 25%. Summed across the calendar, that is about 113 wet dates a year.
The widest day
April 30 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 Wisconsin Rapids.
Monthly Precipitation
Average monthly rainfall
9.0 days with precipitation
6.8 days with precipitation
7.9 days with precipitation
10.4 days with precipitation
11.3 days with precipitation
11.0 days with precipitation
10.0 days with precipitation
9.0 days with precipitation
10.3 days with precipitation
9.1 days with precipitation
7.8 days with precipitation
9.2 days with precipitation
Wisconsin Rapids runs a summer-peaked wet season
38% of Wisconsin Rapids'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 4.8", on a wide 55.1°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, August, May, taking 38% of the annual total between them.
- Driest month: February at 1.1".
- 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 Wisconsin Rapids's precipitation splits across the calendar
About 112 days a year record measurable precipitation here, carrying 33.4" between them, or roughly 0.30 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 30
50% probability date
Last Spring Freeze
May 9
50% probability date
Growing Season
144 days
Heating & Cooling Degree Days
Annual totals indicate energy demand for heating and cooling
Heating Degree Days
8,158
Higher = more heating needed
Cooling Degree Days
460
Higher = more cooling needed
Warmest Month
July
Coldest Month
January
Nationwide similar cities
Other rankable U.S. places outside WI closest to Wisconsin Rapids 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 (44°F here).
- Bridgton, ME 44°F · 0.0°F off
- Buffalo, MN 44°F · 0.0°F off
- Choteau, MT 44°F · 0.0°F off
- Hamer, ID 44°F · 0.0°F off
Closest by annual precipitation
Nearest out-of-state peers by annual precipitation (33.4" here), excluding temperature-peer places.
- Bridgeport, TX 33.3" · 0.0" off
- Sandstone, MN 33.3" · 0.0" off
- Jordan, MN 33.3" · 0.0" off
- St Ignace, MI 33.4" · 0.0" off
Data-derived climate profile
How Wisconsin Rapids's climate pattern fits together
heating led · moderate · high swing
Winter and seasonal range jointly define this record. Wisconsin Rapids logs 8,158 heating degree days, more than twice its 460 cooling total, while the typical coldest-to-warmest-month gap reaches 55.1°F. The annual mean therefore compresses two materially different seasons.
Only about 144 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.
Wisconsin Rapids's calendar has a pronounced split: July and January mark the typical warm and cold ends of the calendar, with 55.1°F between them. The annual average is 44°F. That average is context, while the monthly highs, lows, and precipitation totals describe the lived parts of the year.
Wisconsin Rapids's 33.4 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 Wisconsin Rapids'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 Wisconsin Rapids, not an official NOAA class or a year-ahead forecast.
Questions about Wisconsin Rapids's climate
How much rain does Wisconsin Rapids get? ▼
How cold does Wisconsin Rapids get in winter? ▼
How much energy does heating and cooling require in Wisconsin Rapids? ▼
Data Sources
Data source: NOAA U.S. Climate Normals v1.0.1 (1991-2020). All figures on this page are from Wisconsin Rapids's primary station: WISCONSIN RAPIDS (USC00479335). 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 5588200). Match rule for Wisconsin Rapids: 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 Wisconsin Rapids 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.