Photo: Xnatedawgx · CC BY-SA 3.0Lame Deer is drier than 92% of U.S. towns: 16 inches of precipitation a year
Sunny July days climb to about 86°. The year swings widely: the coldest month’s nights and the warmest month’s afternoons are 74° apart. By January nights alone, it runs colder than 92% of U.S. towns. Seedlings are safe outdoors from about May 23, with the first autumn frost due around September 15.
A year in Lame Deer at a glance
Each month’s typical high and low, and what it brings.
What stands out about Lame Deer’s climate
Compared with towns across the U.S., with Lame Deer’s place in Montana beside it.
What a year in Lame Deer feels like
Typical highs and lows by season and by month, from NOAA’s 30-year normals.
About 113 frost-free days a year
In half of years the last 32° night comes by May 23 and the first by September 15. Frost and day counts come from NOAA’s station at Busby, MT, 18 miles from the town’s center, 390 ft lower.
The 2023 USDA map puts Lame Deer’s center in zone 5a: the coldest night of a typical winter, averaged over 1991–2020, reaches about −18°. Plant labels use the zone; frost dates tell you when to plant.
Freezing nights by month
Average nights at or below 32°
90° days by month
Average days at 90° or more
About 37 inches of snow a winter
Snow, measured at Colstrip, MT, is heaviest from January through February, about 7 inches a month. Precipitation (rain plus melted snow) adds up to 16 inches a year; May is the wettest month and January the driest. Rain or snow falls on about 90 days a year.
Rain + melted snow by month
Inches of water
Snowfall by month
Inches of snow
Heating and cooling a home in Lame Deer
95% of the work is heating, so the furnace matters far more than the air conditioner. Months averaging under 55° run from October through May.
Degree days add up how far each day’s average falls below (heating) or rises above (cooling) 65° over a year. NOAA normals at Busby, MT.
Living with Lame Deer’s climate
What the numbers mean for a garden, a free afternoon and a bad-weather day.
113 frost-free days in zone 5a. The last frost comes by May 23 in half of years, so many gardeners wait a week or two past that to set out tomatoes. The first fall frost comes by Sep 15.
Months with highs of 62–84° and lows of 40° or more: May, June and September. 61 miles of trails are waiting.
Parks & trails →Of the yearly building losses FEMA expects in Lame Deer from natural hazards, river flooding is the largest share (44%); heat waves, cold waves, winter storms and ice storms together are 21%. Normals are averages; the hazards page covers the extremes.
Natural hazards →Lame Deer and similar climates
TownRatings has no climate map of the towns around Lame Deer yet.
Climates most like Lame Deer’s, farther away
TownRatings’ own comparison of NOAA 1991–2020 normals, not a NOAA product: places of 5,000+ at least 150 miles away, one per state, closest on January low, July high, precipitation and snow.
| Town | Jan. low | July high | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lame Deer, MT | 12° | 86° | 16" | 37" |
| Gypsum, CO | 11° | 86° | 14" | 39" |
| Rapid City, SD | 14° | 86° | 19" | 36" |
| Alliance, NE | 13° | 88° | 17" | 45" |
| Taos, NM | 11° | 84° | 13" | 28" |
Temperatures and precipitation come from NOAA’s 5 km grid; snow and day counts from the stations named on this page.
Warmer than it used to be
The last 30 years in Lame Deer averaged 1.2° warmer than the 1900s. The biggest change is in January (+4.2°).
A smaller shift than in 61% of U.S. towns.
Change by month
The two periods overlap (1991–2000 is in both), which makes the gap a little smaller than it would be between separate periods.
How Lame Deer compares
Against 12,954 U.S. towns of 2,500 or more (one per 5 km climate cell), with Lame Deer’s place among Montana’s.
Lame Deer weather by month
Highs, lows and precipitation from NOAA’s grid at Lame Deer’s center; snow, wet days and snow on the ground from Colstrip, MT. 1991–2020 normals.
| Month | High | Low | Rain + melt | Snow | Wet days | Snow on ground | 30-yr range |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 35° | 12° | 0.5" | 7.4" | 7 | 18 | 13° – 34° |
| February | 37° | 13° | 0.6" | 7.3" | 6 | 14 | 7° – 36° |
| March | 48° | 23° | 1.0" | 5.5" | 8 | 9 | 23° – 45° |
| April | 56° | 31° | 1.7" | 3.3" | 9 | 3 | 37° – 48° |
| May | 65° | 40° | 3.1" | 0.5" | 12 | 0 | 48° – 58° |
| June | 76° | 49° | 2.3" | 0.0" | 11 | 0 | 56° – 67° |
| July | 86° | 55° | 1.7" | 0.0" | 7 | 0 | 60° – 77° |
| August | 85° | 53° | 1.0" | 0.0" | 6 | 0 | 63° – 75° |
| September | 74° | 43° | 1.4" | 0.2" | 6 | 0 | 53° – 65° |
| October | 58° | 32° | 1.4" | 2.3" | 7 | 2 | 37° – 51° |
| November | 45° | 22° | 0.6" | 3.9" | 6 | 6 | 23° – 44° |
| December | 36° | 13° | 0.6" | 6.2" | 6 | 13 | 14° – 31° |
| Year | 58° | 32° | 16.0" | 36.6" | 90 | 65 |
How much a month can swing
A normal is an average. February swings the most: from 1991 to 2020 its average ranged from 7° to 36°. May is the most reliable, staying within 10°.
Where Lame Deer’s numbers come from
Normals are 30-year averages, not a forecast. How TownRatings reads climate data →
- Temperatures and precipitation: NOAA’s gridded 1991–2020 normals for the 5 km cell at Lame Deer’s center.
- Snow: Colstrip, MT.
- Frost, freezing nights, 90° and 100° days, heating and cooling: Busby, MT, 18 miles from the town’s center, 390 ft lower; the nearest station that passes our checks for distance, height and agreement with the grid.
- Growing zone: USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map, 2023. USDA Agricultural Research Service and PRISM Group, Oregon State University, prism.oregonstate.edu/phzm, accessed 8 Oct 2026.
- Then and now: NOAA’s gridded normals for 1901–2000 at the same cell.
- Storms and extremes: FEMA National Risk Index (expected annual losses to buildings).
Common questions about Lame Deer’s climate
What is the weather like in Lame Deer?
A typical July afternoon reaches 86°, a January night drops to 12°, and about 37 inches of snow falls in a normal winter. Colder January nights than 92% of U.S. towns; hotter July afternoons than 55% of U.S. towns.
How cold does it get in Lame Deer in winter?
January nights average 12°. About 193 nights a year reach 32° or below and 25 reach 0° or below. In the coldest January of the last 30 years the month averaged 13°.
How much snow does Lame Deer get?
About 37 inches in a normal winter at Colstrip, MT, heaviest from January through February, about 7 inches a month, with snow on the ground about 65 days a year.
How hot does it get in Lame Deer?
July, with a typical high of 86° and a low of 55°. About 38 days a year reach 90° and 3 reach 100° (Busby, MT).
When is the first and last frost in Lame Deer?
In half of years the last spring frost (32°) comes by May 23 and the first fall frost by September 15, about 113 frost-free days, at Busby, MT.
What growing zone is Lame Deer in?
Zone 5a on the 2023 USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map: the coldest night of a typical winter reaches about −18°.
What is the best time of year to visit Lame Deer?
By one simple rule (highs of 62–84° and lows of 40° or more), May, June and September. The rule is ours, not NOAA’s; the month table has the numbers to judge by.
Is Lame Deer getting warmer?
Yes: 1991–2020 averaged 1.2° warmer than 1901–2000 on NOAA’s grid. A smaller shift than 61% of U.S. towns.
Neighbors talk weather
Gardens, snow, and the best days of the year in Lame Deer.
Source: NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020 and 1901–2000; USDA/PRISM 2023 hardiness zones; FEMA National Risk Index. Today’s forecast: National Weather Service.