Wisconsin Annual Temperatures and Extremes

City

Avg High Temp

Avg Low Temp 

Avg Annual Temp

 Avg # days > 90F Avg # days < 32F  Record High Temp Record Low Temp
Green Bay 53.9 34.5 44.2 7 161 103 / 1995 -31 / 1951
La Crosse 56.5 36.9 46.7 17 149 108 / 1995 -37 / 1951
Madison 56.5 35.6 46.1 13 158 104 / 1976 -37 / 1951
Milwaukee 57.7 38.8 48.2 17 139 108 / 1988 -27 / 1951
  • Wisconsin's annual average temperature - 43.12 degrees, 43rd warmest state in the U.S.
  • Record Hottest year in Wisconsin - 1931 / Avg temperature 47.55 degrees
  • Record Coldest year in Wisconsin - 1917 / Avg temperature 38.42 degrees
  • Wisconsin average Summer temperature (June, July, August)  66.8 F degrees,36th warmest U.S. summer state

Wisconsin's Temperature Records 

  • Hottest temperature ever recorded: 114 F, Wisconsin Dells, south-central Wisconsin, 7/13/1936
  • Coldest temperature ever recorded: -55 F, Couderay, northwestern Wisconsin, 2/4/1996
  • Hottest location ranked by highest average annual temperature: Lake Geneva, southeastern Wisconsin, 48.4 F
  • Coldest location ranked by lowest average annual temperature: Winter, northern Wisconsin, 39.2 F
  • Wisconsin's hottest year ever was 1931 with an annual average of 47.6. The coldest year was 1917 with an annual
    average of 38.4 degrees. With records dating back to 1895, five of the Top 20 hottest years have occurred since 2000.

Across Wisconsin, average annual temperatures varies from about 40 degrees Fahrenheit (º F) in the north to 48 in the south. 

During more than one-half of the winters, temperatures fall to -40 or lower, and almost every winter temperatures of -30º F or lower are reported from northern stations. Summer temperatures above 90º F average two to four days in northern counties and about 14 days in southern districts. During marked cool outbreaks in the summer months, the central lowlands occasionally report freezing temperatures.

The freeze-free season ranges from nearly 100 days per year in the northeast and north-central lowlands to slightly more 180 days in the Milwaukee area. The pronounced moderating effect of Lake Michigan is well illustrated by the fact that the growing season of 150 to 170 days along the east-central shoreline is of the same duration as in the State’s southwestern valleys. The short growing season in the central Wisconsin is attributed to a number of factors, among them, an inward cold air drainage and the low heat capacities of the peat and sandy soils. The median date of last spring freeze ranges from early May along the Lake Michigan coastal area and southern counties to early June in the northernmost counties. The first fall freezes occur in late August and early September in the northern and central lowlands to mid-October along the Lake Michigan coastline. However, a July freeze is not unusual in the north and central lowlands.

 

Wisconsin precipitation averages and extremes, Milwaukee climate extremes/averages, precipitation and temperature data for all U.S. states
 and Top 10 U.S. climate extremes
Data source: National Climatic Data Center