Climate averages 1991–2020
Des Moines weather
in November.
A cool, moderately wet month: the 9th warmest and the 4th driest of the year.
Long-term climate patterns, not a forecast for a particular trip.
November is a cool month in Des Moines: daytime highs average 8.6°C and nights cool to about 0.1°C. By daytime temperature it is the 9th warmest of the 12 months.
Expect about 52 mm of rain on roughly 7 days, which makes November a moderately wet month (the 4th driest of the 12 months). Daylight, from sunrise to sunset, lasts about 9 h 53 min on an average November day.
The nearest other city in this atlas is Cedar Rapids (169 km away). In November its highs average 8.0°C, 0.6°C cooler than Des Moines, with 59 mm of rain.
Among the 498 cities listed in the United States, Des Moines ranks joint 425th of 498 for the warmest November highs and joint 195th of 498 for the driest November (rainfall, lowest first). The mean November high of those 498 cities is 15.2°C; Des Moines is 6.6°C cooler than that mean.
From November to December, average highs fall by 7.1°C to 1.5°C, and monthly precipitation falls from 52 mm to 41 mm.
The annual picture
November in context
Monthly precipitation
Average total · mmAverages from hourly ERA5 reanalysis data. Actual weather varies from year to year. How these numbers are calculated
Every month, side by side
Des Moines climate table
| Month | Average highHigh / low | Average low | Precipitation mm/month | Wet days ≥1 mm/day | Daylight hours/dayDaylight h/day |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | -1.3°C-10.1°C | -10.1°C | 31 | 6.3 | 9.510 h |
| February | 1.4°C-8.1°C | -8.1°C | 40 | 6.5 | 10.611 h |
| March | 8.9°C-1.6°C | -1.6°C | 67 | 8.8 | 11.912 h |
| April | 15.6°C5.1°C | 5.1°C | 107 | 11.2 | 13.313 h |
| May | 21.3°C11.7°C | 11.7°C | 135 | 13.6 | 14.515 h |
| June | 26.5°C17.2°C | 17.2°C | 126 | 11.5 | 15.115 h |
| July | 28.7°C19.7°C | 19.7°C | 91 | 9.4 | 14.915 h |
| August | 27.8°C18.6°C | 18.6°C | 94 | 9.5 | 13.814 h |
| September | 23.9°C14.3°C | 14.3°C | 90 | 8.0 | 12.513 h |
| October | 16.6°C7.5°C | 7.5°C | 71 | 7.8 | 11.111 h |
| November, selected | 8.6°C0.1°C | 0.1°C | 52 | 6.8 | 9.910 h |
| December | 1.5°C-6.5°C | -6.5°C | 41 | 5.9 | 9.29 h |
Precipitation (rain or snow, as water) is the average of the 30 separate monthly totals. A wet day is a local calendar day with at least 1 mm of precipitation. Daylight is the calculated sunrise-to-sunset length, not measured sunshine.
Compare places
November in nearby cities
- Cedar Rapids in NovemberUnited States · 169 kmHigh 8.0°C · Low -0.3°C · 59 mm rain
- Iowa City in NovemberUnited States · 173 kmHigh 8.7°C · Low 0.3°C · 59 mm rain
- Omaha in NovemberUnited States · 198 kmHigh 9.2°C · Low 0.2°C · 44 mm rain
- Saint Joseph in NovemberUnited States · 229 kmHigh 10.7°C · Low 2.1°C · 54 mm rain
- Sioux City in NovemberUnited States · 251 kmHigh 7.6°C · Low -1.3°C · 40 mm rain
- Davenport in NovemberUnited States · 252 kmHigh 8.8°C · Low 1.1°C · 61 mm rain
- Lincoln in NovemberUnited States · 271 kmHigh 10.0°C · Low 0.7°C · 41 mm rain
- Rochester (Minnesota), United States in NovemberUnited States · 285 kmHigh 5.3°C · Low -1.8°C · 49 mm rain
Read the numbers correctly
Climate, not a promise.
These patterns help compare months. They cannot tell you the weather on a specific day of your trip.
Sources, method and limitsHow these numbers are made (what the highs, lows and rain days mean, the sources and the model cell used for Des Moines) is explained once on the Des Moines year overview and on the Sources, method and limits page.