SOUTH BEND, IN (SOUTH BEND INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT)

Overview:
South Bend is located on the Saint Joseph River in the northern portion of Saint Joseph County. It is situated on mostly level to gently rolling terrain and some former marshland. Bowman Creek runs through the developed area. South Bend is under the climatic influence of Lake Michigan with its nearest shore 20 miles to the northwest. The lake has a moderating effect on the temperature.

Temperatures of 90°F or higher occur occasionally, and cold waves are less severe than at many locations at the same latitude. Precipitation is fairly evenly distributed throughout the year with the greatest amounts during the summertime. Winter is marked by considerable cloudiness and frequent periods of snow. Heavy snowfalls from a cold northwest wind passing over Lake Michigan are not uncommon.

State/ Province ID: IN

Station ID: W00014848

Directory Name: SOUTH_BEND_MICHIANA_RGNL_AP__IN_W00014848

Elevation: 235.60m

The resources presented here were developed in cooperation with the Office of the Michigan State Climatologist using data from the National Centers for Environmental Information. For more information regarding our data sources, quality control, and methodology, please see our Historical Climatologies: Quality Control reference guide.

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Recent Climate Summary, 1991-2020


Average Temperature	50.2°F10.1°C
Average Low Temperature	41.1°F5.0°C
Average High Temperature	59.4°15.2°C
Days/Year that exceed 90°F	9.6
Days/Year that fall below 32°F	118.1
Lowest Annual Average Temperature	47.8°F8.8°C
Highest Annual Average Temperature	53.4°F11.9°C
Average Annual Total Precipitation	39.2 in99.6 cm
Lowest Annual Precipitation Total	27.3 in69.4 cm
Highest Annual Precipitation Total	50.1 in127.2 cm
Days/Year that exceed 1.25" of Precipitation	4.6

Temperature

Click on the following links to be taken to the corresponding portion of the page.

Monthly Average Temperature
How Temperatures are Changing
- Changes in Average Temperature – Includes a summary table of the average annual and seasonal temperature changes, and time series graphs of how the annual low, average, and high temperatures compare to the long term average plotted for every year on record.
- Cold Temperatures – View time series plots of the number of days per year below 32°F and the number of heating degree days per year to see how cold days are changing.
- Hot Temperatures – View time series plots of the number of days per year above 90°F and the number of cooling degree days per year to see how hot days are changing.
- Growing Season Changes – View a time series of the annual number of days in the freeze-free period.

Monthly Average Temperature

Changes in Average Temperature, 1951-2025.


	°F°C
Annual average temperature	2.11.1
Winter average temperature	2.91.6
Spring average temperature	2.61.4
Summer average temperature	1.60.9
Fall average temperature	1.40.8

Annual High and Low Temperature Departure

Cold Temperatures

¹Heating Degree Days (HDDs) are indexed units, not actual days, that roughly describe the demand to heat a building. HDDs accumulate on days colder than 65°F when heating is required. Every degree below 65°F is added to the annual total for an annual HDD value, which is plotted in the figure.

Hot Temperatures

²Cooling Degree Days (CDDs) are indexed units, not actual days, that roughly describe the demand to cool a building. CDDs accumulate on days warmer than 65°F when cooling is required. Every degree above 65°F is added to the annual total for an annual CDD value, which is plotted in the figure.

Growing Season Changes

Precipitation