30-year climate normals

Hand County Climate and Weather Averages

Hottest month — July

84.8°

average daily high. The coldest month is January, averaging a low of 7.0°F.

Hand County gets 22.32" of precipitation a year and 43.7" of snow, and 47% of it falls in May, Jun, Jul.

Temperature through the year

Each bar spans the average daily low to the average daily high for that month.

Month	Avg high	Avg low	Precip	Snow
January	26.2°	7.0°	0.42"	7.0"
February	30.6°	9.9°	0.77"	10.7"
March	42.6°	20.7°	0.91"	6.8"
April	56.3°	31.9°	2.21"	5.1"
May	68.2°	44.7°	3.51"	0.0"
June	78.2°	55.6°	3.86"	0.0"
July	84.8°	60.7°	3.01"	0.0"
August	82.6°	58.1°	2.46"	0.0"
September	74.4°	49.1°	1.95"	0.0"
October	58.9°	35.4°	2.02"	1.1"
November	43.5°	22.3°	0.61"	4.3"
December	30.4°	12.1°	0.59"	8.7"

Rainfall by month

Hand County has a distinct wet season. 47% of the year's precipitation arrives in May, Jun, Jul.

January 0.42"

February 0.77"

March 0.91"

April 2.21"

May 3.51"

June 3.86"

July 3.01"

August 2.46"

September 1.95"

October 2.02"

November 0.61"

December 0.59"

Annual total 22.32"

What this climate costs you

Degree days measure how hard a building has to work to stay comfortable. They are the reason two identical houses have very different power bills, and they are the link between the weather here and what you pay every month.

Cooling degree days How much air conditioning the climate demands 653

Heating degree days How much heating the climate demands 7,840

Approximate annual cooling cost At 15.73¢/kWh, South Dakota average $103

Approximate annual electric heating cost Lower where heating is gas rather than electric $432

These are rough planning figures from degree days and the state electricity price, not a bill estimate. House size, insulation and fuel type move them a lot. See the full cost of owning a home in Hand County, where electricity is one line of eight.

Common questions

What is the weather like in Hand County?

Hand County averages a high of 84.8°F in July and a low of 7.0°F in January. Annual precipitation is 22.32 inches, including 43.7 inches of snow.

When is the rainy season in Hand County?

The wettest stretch is May, Jun, Jul, which accounts for 47% of the year's precipitation. That is a pronounced wet season rather than rain spread evenly through the year.

How hot does it get in Hand County?

The average daily high in July, the hottest month, is 84.8°F. That drives 653 cooling degree days a year, which is what your air conditioning has to work against.

Does it snow in Hand County?

Yes. Hand County averages 43.7 inches of snow a year.

Sources

Temperature, precipitation and snowfall normals — NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, 1991–2020 Monthly Climate Normals, station MILLER, SD US (USC00395561), 2.3 miles from the county centroid.
Heating and cooling degree days — NOAA, same station and period.
Electricity price — US Energy Information Administration, Electric Power Monthly Table 5.6.A, South Dakota residential average.
Wet-season share is the wettest three consecutive months as a percentage of annual precipitation, calculated from the monthly normals.