Sterling, IL Weather & Climate Normals
What a normal year in Sterling actually looks like
On the 30-year record NOAA keeps for Sterling, IL, the comfort score comes out to 44/100, strongly seasonal: Comfortable weather is limited to a shorter window; summers, winters, or precipitation swing wide. Only 5 months a year land in the 55–75°F range this site treats as mild.
How much Sterling's weather actually swings
Average temperatures in Sterling run from 21°F in Jan up to 74°F in Jul, a 52.2°F seasonal swing, one of the widest gaps in this dataset.
Sterling, month by month
| Month | Avg high | Avg low | Precip | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 29°F | 14°F | 1.97in | 13in |
| Feb | 34°F | 17°F | 1.81in | 5.7in |
| Mar | 46°F | 28°F | 2.63in | 4.5in |
| Apr | 60°F | 39°F | 3.98in | 0.6in |
| May | 71°F | 51°F | 4.82in | 0in |
| Jun | 80°F | 61°F | 5.59in | 0in |
| Jul | 83°F | 64°F | 4.29in | 0in |
| Aug | 81°F | 62°F | 4.19in | 0in |
| Sep | 75°F | 54°F | 3.69in | 0in |
| Oct | 63°F | 42°F | 2.96in | 0in |
| Nov | 48°F | 31°F | 2.43in | 1.8in |
| Dec | 35°F | 20°F | 2.17in | 5.6in |
If you're timing a visit, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, and Sep are Sterling's mildest stretch; if you're moving there, you should plan around Jan's cold instead.
How wet Sterling actually gets
Over a typical year, Sterling sees about 40.53in of precipitation a year across roughly 97 days with measurable rain or snow, with 31.2in of snow a year.
Sterling against the rest of the country
Out of 4876 cities scored here, Sterling comes in at 3793; within IL alone it ranks 202 of 330. Population is about 14,535.
Checking the actual forecast
These figures come from Dixon 1w, IL US, the NOAA station 9.7 miles from Sterling, averaged over 30 years, not tomorrow's forecast.
More on how this is worked out
Why some cities show no snow or rain figure · What a 30-year climate normal actually is