Counties in South Dakota by average annual temperature

Charles Mix County had the highest average annual temperature of 66 counties in 2021, at 50.6 °F. Marshall County had the lowest, at 44.6 °F. The median was 48.2 °F and the figure for South Dakota was 48 °F. Source: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information.

Keep it in a collection in your library.
Lowest44.6Marshall County
Median48.266 counties
South Dakota48History

Map of counties, 2021

Aurora County: 49.1 °FBeadle County: 48.1 °FBennett County: 49.4 °FBon Homme County: 50.5 °FBrookings County: 46.3 °FBrown County: 46.2 °FBrule County: 49.9 °FBuffalo County: 48.6 °FButte County: 48 °FCampbell County: 46.2 °FCharles Mix County: 50.6 °FClark County: 46.1 °FClay County: 49.8 °FCodington County: 45.2 °FCorson County: 46.7 °FCuster County: 47 °FDavison County: 48.7 °FDay County: 45 °FDeuel County: 45.8 °FDewey County: 48 °FDouglas County: 49.7 °FEdmunds County: 46.1 °FFall River County: 48.8 °FFaulk County: 46.7 °FGrant County: 46.2 °FGregory County: 50.3 °FHaakon County: 49.1 °FHamlin County: 45.8 °FHand County: 47.6 °FHanson County: 48.4 °FHarding County: 47.1 °FHughes County: 49 °FHutchinson County: 49.6 °FHyde County: 47.4 °FJackson County: 49.9 °FJerauld County: 48.1 °FJones County: 49.9 °FKingsbury County: 46.7 °FLake County: 47 °FLawrence County: 44.7 °FLincoln County: 48.9 °FLyman County: 49.9 °FMcCook County: 48.5 °FMcPherson County: 45.3 °FMarshall County: 44.6 °FMeade County: 48.6 °FMellette County: 50.4 °FMiner County: 47.7 °FMinnehaha County: 48.7 °FMoody County: 46.9 °FOglala Lakota County: 50 °FPennington County: 47.8 °FPerkins County: 47 °FPotter County: 46.9 °FRoberts County: 46 °FSanborn County: 48.3 °FSpink County: 47.5 °FStanley County: 49.6 °FSully County: 48.3 °FTodd County: 50 °FTripp County: 50.4 °FTurner County: 49.4 °FUnion County: 49.6 °FWalworth County: 46.5 °FYankton County: 50.2 °FZiebach County: 48.4 °F
  • Under 46
  • 46 to 47
  • 47 to 48
  • 48 to 49
  • 49 to 50
  • 50 and over
°F, 2021. Source: NOAA NCEI, NOAA Climate at a Glance, January to December average temperature, counties. Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

Top 40 counties, 2021

Charles Mix County: 50.6 °FCharles Mix County50.6Bon Homme County: 50.5 °FBon Homme County50.5Mellette County: 50.4 °FMellette County50.4Tripp County: 50.4 °FTripp County50.4Gregory County: 50.3 °FGregory County50.3Yankton County: 50.2 °FYankton County50.2Oglala Lakota County: 50 °FOglala Lakota County50Todd County: 50 °FTodd County50Brule County: 49.9 °FBrule County49.9Jackson County: 49.9 °FJackson County49.9Jones County: 49.9 °FJones County49.9Lyman County: 49.9 °FLyman County49.9Clay County: 49.8 °FClay County49.8Douglas County: 49.7 °FDouglas County49.7Hutchinson County: 49.6 °FHutchinson County49.6Stanley County: 49.6 °FStanley County49.6Union County: 49.6 °FUnion County49.6Bennett County: 49.4 °FBennett County49.4Turner County: 49.4 °FTurner County49.4Aurora County: 49.1 °FAurora County49.1Haakon County: 49.1 °FHaakon County49.1Hughes County: 49 °FHughes County49Lincoln County: 48.9 °FLincoln County48.9Fall River County: 48.8 °FFall River County48.8Davison County: 48.7 °FDavison County48.7Minnehaha County: 48.7 °FMinnehaha County48.7Buffalo County: 48.6 °FBuffalo County48.6Meade County: 48.6 °FMeade County48.6McCook County: 48.5 °FMcCook County48.5Hanson County: 48.4 °FHanson County48.4Ziebach County: 48.4 °FZiebach County48.4Sanborn County: 48.3 °FSanborn County48.3Sully County: 48.3 °FSully County48.3Beadle County: 48.1 °FBeadle County48.1Jerauld County: 48.1 °FJerauld County48.1Butte County: 48 °FButte County48Dewey County: 48 °FDewey County48Pennington County: 47.8 °FPennington County47.8Miner County: 47.7 °FMiner County47.7Hand County: 47.6 °FHand County47.6Charles Mix County: 50.6 °FCharles Mix County50.6Bon Homme County: 50.5 °FBon Homme County50.5Mellette County: 50.4 °FMellette County50.4Tripp County: 50.4 °FTripp County50.4Gregory County: 50.3 °FGregory County50.3Yankton County: 50.2 °FYankton County50.2Oglala Lakota County: 50 °FOglala Lakota County50Todd County: 50 °FTodd County50Brule County: 49.9 °FBrule County49.9Jackson County: 49.9 °FJackson County49.9Jones County: 49.9 °FJones County49.9Lyman County: 49.9 °FLyman County49.9Clay County: 49.8 °FClay County49.8Douglas County: 49.7 °FDouglas County49.7Hutchinson County: 49.6 °FHutchinson County49.6Stanley County: 49.6 °FStanley County49.6Union County: 49.6 °FUnion County49.6Bennett County: 49.4 °FBennett County49.4Turner County: 49.4 °FTurner County49.4Aurora County: 49.1 °FAurora County49.1Haakon County: 49.1 °FHaakon County49.1Hughes County: 49 °FHughes County49Lincoln County: 48.9 °FLincoln County48.9Fall River County: 48.8 °FFall River County48.8Davison County: 48.7 °FDavison County48.7Minnehaha County: 48.7 °FMinnehaha County48.7Buffalo County: 48.6 °FBuffalo County48.6Meade County: 48.6 °FMeade County48.6McCook County: 48.5 °FMcCook County48.5Hanson County: 48.4 °FHanson County48.4Ziebach County: 48.4 °FZiebach County48.4Sanborn County: 48.3 °FSanborn County48.3Sully County: 48.3 °FSully County48.3Beadle County: 48.1 °FBeadle County48.1Jerauld County: 48.1 °FJerauld County48.1Butte County: 48 °FButte County48Dewey County: 48 °FDewey County48Pennington County: 47.8 °FPennington County47.8Miner County: 47.7 °FMiner County47.7Hand County: 47.6 °FHand County47.6
°F. Source: NOAA NCEI, NOAA Climate at a Glance, January to December average temperature, counties. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankCounties2021
°F
Change on 2020
1Charles Mix County50.6+2.2%
2Bon Homme County50.5+2.4%
3Mellette County50.4+1.8%
3Tripp County50.4+2.4%
5Gregory County50.3+2%
6Yankton County50.2+2%
7Oglala Lakota County50+0.8%
7Todd County50+1.6%
9Brule County49.9+2.5%
9Jackson County49.9+1.4%
9Jones County49.9+2.7%
9Lyman County49.9+2.3%
13Clay County49.8+2%
14Douglas County49.7+2.7%
15Hutchinson County49.6+2.9%
15Stanley County49.6+3.3%
15Union County49.6+1.8%
18Bennett County49.4+1.2%
18Turner County49.4+2.7%
20Aurora County49.1+2.5%
20Haakon County49.1+2.5%
22Hughes County49+2.7%
23Lincoln County48.9+2.7%
24Fall River County48.8-0.8%
25Davison County48.7+3%
25Minnehaha County48.7+3.6%
27Buffalo County48.6+2.5%
27Meade County48.6+2.1%
29McCook County48.5+3.2%
30Hanson County48.4+3.2%
30Ziebach County48.4+3.4%
32Sanborn County48.3+3.4%
32Sully County48.3+3.6%
34Beadle County48.1+3.9%
34Jerauld County48.1+3.2%
36Butte County48+1.9%
36Dewey County48+3.7%
38Pennington County47.8+1.1%
39Miner County47.7+3.7%
40Hand County47.6+3.5%
41Spink County47.5+3.9%
42Hyde County47.4+3.3%
43Harding County47.1+2.2%
44Custer County47-0.2%
44Lake County47+3.5%
44Perkins County47+3.5%
47Moody County46.9+3.3%
47Potter County46.9+4%
49Corson County46.7+3.8%
49Faulk County46.7+4.2%
49Kingsbury County46.7+3.8%
52Walworth County46.5+3.6%
53Brookings County46.3+3.6%
54Brown County46.2+4.3%
54Campbell County46.2+4.5%
54Grant County46.2+3.6%
57Clark County46.1+4.1%
57Edmunds County46.1+4.3%
59Roberts County46+4.1%
60Deuel County45.8+3.6%
60Hamlin County45.8+3.9%
62McPherson County45.3+5.1%
63Codington County45.2+3.9%
64Day County45+4.2%
65Lawrence County44.7+1.1%
66Marshall County44.6+4.7%

Other periods

About this ranking

Mean air temperature from January to December, in degrees Fahrenheit: the average of the 12 monthly mean temperatures. NOAA computes it from its climate divisional dataset (nClimDiv): station readings interpolated onto a 5 km grid and averaged over the area.

Values are area averages, so a county with mountains and valleys has one value for very different local climates. NOAA revises the last two years every month.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the counties are compared on one definition. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Climate at a Glance. NOAA Climate at a Glance, January to December average temperature, counties. From the NOAA Monthly U.S. Climate Divisional Database (nClimDiv), doi:10.7289/V5M32STR. https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/monitoring/climate-at-a-glance/county/mapping. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Citation styles

The publisher is the author. Invokely is named only as the place the figures were read, where a style asks for it.

APA 7

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. (2026). NOAA Climate at a Glance, January to December average temperature, counties (Counties in South Dakota by average annual temperature, 2021) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/monitoring/climate-at-a-glance/county/mapping

MLA 9

NOAA Climate at a Glance, January to December average temperature, counties, Counties in South Dakota by average annual temperature, 2021. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, 6 Oct. 2026, https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/monitoring/climate-at-a-glance/county/mapping. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/average-annual-temperature/south-dakota-counties?period=2021. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. 2026. NOAA Climate at a Glance, January to December average temperature, counties. Counties in South Dakota by average annual temperature, 2021. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/monitoring/climate-at-a-glance/county/mapping. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/average-annual-temperature/south-dakota-counties?period=2021.

Harvard

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (2026) NOAA Climate at a Glance, January to December average temperature, counties, Counties in South Dakota by average annual temperature, 2021 [Dataset]. Available at: https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/monitoring/climate-at-a-glance/county/mapping, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/average-annual-temperature/south-dakota-counties?period=2021 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{noaa_counties_in_south_dakota_2021,
  author = {{NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information}},
  title = {{NOAA Climate at a Glance, January to December average temperature, counties: Counties in South Dakota by average annual temperature, 2021}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/monitoring/climate-at-a-glance/county/mapping},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/average-annual-temperature/south-dakota-counties?period=2021. Publisher attribution: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Climate at a Glance. NOAA Climate at a Glance, January to December average temperature, counties. From the NOAA Monthly U.S. Climate Divisional Database (nClimDiv), doi:10.7289/V5M32STR. https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/monitoring/climate-at-a-glance/county/mapping. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information
TI  - NOAA Climate at a Glance, January to December average temperature, counties: Counties in South Dakota by average annual temperature, 2021
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/10/06
PB  - NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/monitoring/climate-at-a-glance/county/mapping
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/average-annual-temperature/south-dakota-counties?period=2021
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/average-annual-temperature/south-dakota-counties?period=2021.
N1  - Publisher attribution: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Climate at a Glance. NOAA Climate at a Glance, January to December average temperature, counties. From the NOAA Monthly U.S. Climate Divisional Database (nClimDiv), doi:10.7289/V5M32STR. https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/monitoring/climate-at-a-glance/county/mapping. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  - 
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Rank Counties in South Dakota by average annual temperature using official data, and cite the source.
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Questions

Which county has the highest average annual temperature?

Charles Mix County, with 50.6 °F in 2021, according to NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information.

Which county has the lowest average annual temperature?

Marshall County, with 44.6 °F in 2021.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, NOAA Climate at a Glance, January to December average temperature, counties. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Average annual temperature: other rankings

Counties in South Dakota: more rankings