Rock Falls, NE climate
Rock Falls has cold, snowy winters and warm summers. A typical July afternoon reaches 87°, a January night drops to 12°, and about 31 inches of snow falls in a normal winter.
NOAA 1991-2020 climate normals Updated once a decade6° cooler than normal today. The forecast high is 63°, and a typical Oct 2 in Rock Falls peaks around 69°.Live forecast: National Weather Service · Normal: NOAA 1991–2020
What a year in Rock Falls feels like
Winter
Spring
Summer
Fall
Rock Falls weather by month
Average highs, lows, rain and snow for every month, from NOAA’s 1991–2020 normals.
| Month | High | Low | Rain + melt | Snow | Wet days | Snow on ground | 30-yr range |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 33° | 12° | 0.5" | 4.9" | 3 | 13 | 15° – 37° |
| February | 37° | 15° | 0.7" | 6.2" | 4 | 10 | 14° – 35° |
| March | 48° | 25° | 1.3" | 6.4" | 5 | 6 | 27° – 50° |
| April | 59° | 35° | 3.0" | 3.7" | 7 | 2 | 39° – 53° |
| May | 70° | 46° | 4.1" | 0 | 9 | 0 | 53° – 64° |
| June | 81° | 57° | 3.8" | 0 | 9 | 0 | 64° – 74° |
| July | 87° | 62° | 3.2" | 0 | 8 | 0 | 66° – 82° |
| August | 84° | 60° | 3.2" | 0 | 7 | 0 | 67° – 76° |
| September | 77° | 51° | 2.5" | 0 | 6 | 0 | 58° – 69° |
| October | 62° | 37° | 2.2" | 1.0" | 6 | 1 | 43° – 55° |
| November | 47° | 25° | 0.8" | 3.8" | 4 | 4 | 26° – 45° |
| December | 35° | 15° | 0.6" | 4.9" | 3 | 11 | 14° – 31° |
| Year | 60° | 37° | 26.0" | 30.9" | 72 | 47 |
“Wet days” have at least 0.01" of rain or melted snow. “Snow on ground” counts days with 1" or more. The 30-year range is the coldest and warmest that month’s average temperature got between 1991 and 2020.
Rain and snow in Rock Falls
Rock Falls gets 26 inches of rain and melted snow a year. May is the wettest month and January the driest. Rain or snow falls on about 72 days a year. Snow covers the ground about 47 days of the year.
About 155 frost-free days a year
In half of years the last 32° night comes by May 3 and the first one by October 5. That leaves about 155 frost-free days for gardens, shorter than 76% of U.S. towns.
Heating and cooling a home in Rock Falls
Engineers use “degree days” to estimate how hard a furnace or air conditioner works. In Rock Falls, 89% of that work is heating and 11% is cooling, so the furnace matters far more than the air conditioner.
Degree days measure how far each day’s average temperature falls below or rises above 65°, added up over a year. Source: NOAA station normals.
Rock Falls and its neighbors
Rock Falls borders 4 towns with climate data. January nights across them vary by 0.8°. Coleman has both the coldest January nights (11°) and the hottest July afternoons (88°). Rock Falls’s January low is 12° and its July high 87°.
Temperatures and rain come from NOAA’s 5 km grid, so each town gets its own value.
How Rock Falls compares
Compared with every U.S. town and city on TownTapestry, each counted once.
Warmer than it used to be
The last 30 years in Rock Falls averaged 0.9° warmer than the 1900s. The biggest change is in January (+3.0°). The shift is smaller than in 80% of U.S. towns.
Change by month1991–2020 average minus 1901–2000 average, at Rock Falls’s spot on NOAA’s grid
How much a month can swing
A normal is an average, and real years wander around it. March swings the most: between 1991 and 2020 its average temperature ranged from 27° to 50°. August is the most reliable, staying within 9°.
Common questions about Rock Falls’s climate
What is the coldest month in Rock Falls?
January, with a typical high of 33° and a low of 12°.
What is the hottest month in Rock Falls?
July, with a typical high of 87° and a low of 62°. About 32 days a year reach 90°.
How much snow does Rock Falls get?
About 31 inches in a normal winter, most of it in March.
When is the first frost in Rock Falls?
In half of years the first 32° night comes by October 5, and the last spring frost by May 3.
What is the rainiest month in Rock Falls?
May, with 4.1 inches of rain and melted snow. The year totals 26 inches.
Temperatures and rainfall come from NOAA’s gridded climate normals for Rock Falls itself (about a 3-mile square). Snow, frost dates and day counts come from NOAA’s weather station at Spencer 6 Sse, NE (11 mi, snow) and O'neill, NE (14 mi, frost, heat and degree days). Normals are 30-year averages, not a forecast. Source: NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020 and 1901–2000.