Climate and average weather in Shawnee

In Shawnee, the summers are humid, hot, showery, and mostly clear and the winters are cold, snowy, and partly cloudy.

Best: early September to late October

Over the course of the year, the temperature in Shawnee typically varies from 22°F to 88°F, and is rarely below 3°F or above 97°F. July is the hottest month of the year, while January is the coldest.

Based on the travel score, the best times of year to visit Shawnee for warm-weather activities are from early May to early June and early September to late October.

Hottest
Jul
88°
Coldest
Jan
22°
Wettest
May
5.7 in
Driest
Jan
1.4 in
Rain / yr
39.6 in
102 wet days
Daylight
9.3–14.7 h
shortest–longest
Elevation
1,066 ft
39.0°N
Clearest
Sep
43% cloud

Shawnee is city in Johnson County, Kansas, United States.

Density
586/km²
people per km²

Air quality: WHO Ambient Air Quality Database. Density & description: Wikidata (CC0), GeoNames.

Shawnee weather by month, at a glance

The whole year in one picture — sky, rain, humidity, temperature and travel score. Click any band to jump to its full chart.

Each stripe is one measure across the whole year, stacked so a single day reads top to bottom. The sky band runs overcast grey on top down to clear blue at the base — more blue means sunnier — followed by the rainfall curve, the humidity band, a temperature strip that tints each stretch of the year by how warm its average high is, and the travel-score line at the foot. Scan straight down any date to read that day across every measure at once; the score climbs highest around early September to late October.

Temperature through the year

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Daily average highs and lows in Shawnee, from 1991–2020 of climate data. The shaded bands show the range most days fall in — 10th to 90th percentile.

The hot season lasts 4.1 months, from May 21 to September 23, with daily high temperatures above 76°F. The hottest month of the year in Shawnee is July, with an average high of 88°F and low of 70°F.

The cool season lasts 3.0 months, from November 29 to February 28, with daily high temperatures below 48°F. The coldest month of the year in Shawnee is January, with an average low of 22°F and high of 39°F.

Days typically run about 18°F warmer than nights year-round.

20°40°60°80°100°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Avg high (°F)Avg low (°F)
Jan3922
Feb4426
Mar5536
Apr6546
May7456
Jun8366
Jul8870
Aug8668
Sep7859
Oct6647
Nov5336
Dec4226

How hot and cold Shawnee really feels

Feels-like highFeels-like lowactual air temp

The felt-temperature range through the year — heat index on the day's high (summer humidity), wind chill on the night's low (winter wind). The dashed lines are the plain thermometer; the gap is how much hotter or colder it really feels.

On the hottest afternoons, once humidity is folded in, Shawnee feels like about 92°F (around July 17). About 27 days a year carry some heat stress, peaking in July.

On the coldest nights, wind chill pulls the feels-like down to about 12°F (around January 11), with roughly 133 freezing days a year (feels-like at or below 32°F) 31 of them bitterly cold — worst in January.

20°40°60°80°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Feels-like high (°F)Air high (°F)Feels-like low (°F)Air low (°F)
Jan39391322
Feb44441726
Mar55552936
Apr65654146
May74745656
Jun85836666
Jul91887070
Aug88866868
Sep79785959
Oct66664447
Nov53532936
Dec42421826

Average hourly temperature in Shawnee

A compact picture of the whole year, hour by hour: each column is a day, each row an hour, and the color is the modeled average temperature. Darker overlays mark night, lighter ones the civil-twilight hours around sunrise and sunset.

Read left to right for the day of the year and top to bottom for the hour of the day; the color is the modeled temperature, cool blues through to hot reds on the same scale as the other charts. A vertical slice is a single day's swing — coolest just before dawn, warmest in the mid-afternoon — while a horizontal slice follows one hour across the seasons. The darker overlay marks night and the lighter one the twilight around sunrise and sunset. Colors run warmest on July afternoons, near 88°F, and coldest before dawn in January, near 22°F.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec12 AM2 AM4 AM6 AM8 AM10 AM12 PM2 PM4 PM6 PM8 PM10 PM12 AM

Shawnee weather by month

Every month at a glance. Click a month for its detailed page.

MonthHigh / Low (°F)Rainfall (inches)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan39° / 22°1.45.63.49.60.0
Feb44° / 26°1.85.92.810.50.7
Mar55° / 36°3.09.11.911.73.5
Apr65° / 46°4.711.10.3135.7
May74° / 56°5.712.70.114.16.3
Jun83° / 66°4.811.3014.75.6
Jul88° / 70°3.69.4014.54.7
Aug86° / 68°3.79013.55.2
Sep78° / 59°3.68.1012.37.1
Oct66° / 47°3.380.2116.6
Nov53° / 36°2.36.40.99.93.4
Dec42° / 26°1.85.62.59.30.5

Chance of rain

How likely it is to rain on a typical day, and how that shifts across the wetter and drier seasons.

Shawnee gets about 39.6 in of precipitation a year. On a typical day the chance of rain is some rain, but that rises and falls sharply with the seasons.

The wetter season lasts 4.1 months, from around Mar 15 to Jul 17, peaking in May at about 43% chance on a given day. The drier stretch runs the rest of the year, bottoming out around Jan 18.

May is the wettest month by volume, with 5.7 in over about 13 wet days; January is the driest, with 1.4 in. Some of the cold-season precipitation falls as snow.

0%10%20%30%40%50%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecdrierwetterdriermostly drysome rainoften wetvery wetMay 28 · 43%Jan 18 · 17%
Rain on a day (%)Rain days
Jan186
Feb216
Mar299
Apr3711
May4113
Jun3911
Jul309
Aug299
Sep288
Oct258
Nov216
Dec196

Monthly rainfall

Over a full year, Shawnee collects about 39.6 in of rain across 102 wet days — roughly 3.3 in in an average month.

It doesn’t fall evenly. May is the wettest month with 5.7 in, while January is the driest at just 1.4 in. The three wettest months alone bring about 38% of the year’s total, and some of the cold-season precipitation falls as snow.

01234567JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec1.41.83.04.75.74.83.63.73.63.32.31.8
Rainfall (in)Rain daysSnow days
Jan1.463
Feb1.863
Mar3.092
Apr4.7110
May5.7130
Jun4.8110
Jul3.690
Aug3.790
Sep3.680
Oct3.380
Nov2.361
Dec1.863

Snow in Shawnee

Average snowy days through the year, the snow-season span, and estimated snowfall — for ski trips and the perennial 'will there be snow at Christmas?' question.

Shawnee averages about 12 snowy days a year. Snow season runs roughly Nov 1 to Apr 11 — about 5.3 months.

January is snowiest, with roughly 3 days of snow and an estimated 6 in of snowfall. Over the year that adds up to an estimated 22 in of snow.

0246JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecsnow seasonsnow seasonJan 29
Snow daysSnowfall (in)
Jan36
Feb36
Mar23
Apr00
May00
Jun00
Jul00
Aug00
Sep00
Oct01
Nov11
Dec35

Clouds and sunshine

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

How often the daytime sky is clear, partly cloudy or overcast.

In Shawnee, the average share of the sky covered by clouds shows moderate seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The clearer part of the year begins around June 10 and lasts for 4.7 months, ending around October 31. The clearest month is September, when the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 64% of the time on average.

The cloudier part of the year begins around December 5 and lasts for 6.1 months, ending around June 9. The cloudiest month is March, when it is overcast or mostly cloudy 56% of the time.

0%100%10%90%20%80%30%70%40%60%50%50%60%40%70%30%80%20%90%10%100%0%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecSep 30 · 67%Apr 29 · 42%clearmostly clearpartly cloudymostly cloudyovercastcloudierclearercloudier
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
Jan4852
Feb4555
Mar4456
Apr4654
May4654
Jun5644
Jul6436
Aug6337
Sep6436
Oct6040
Nov5446
Dec5050

Daylight, sunrise and sunset

DaylightNight

Hours of daylight through the year, with sunrise and sunset times.

The gold band is daylight — sunrise runs along its lower edge, sunset along the upper — so it widens toward summer and pinches toward winter, with night the dark area above and below. The longest day, around June 9, brings about 14 h 42 min of light; the shortest, around January 1, only 9 h 18 min — a swing of roughly 5 h 24 min.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AMJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
Jan9.67:425:14
Feb10.57:195:48
Mar11.76:386:19
Apr13.05:496:50
May14.15:117:19
Jun14.74:577:41
Jul14.55:107:39
Aug13.55:377:09
Sep12.36:066:21
Oct11.06:355:33
Nov9.97:094:59
Dec9.37:374:53

Sunny days

How many genuinely sunny days each month brings — days the sky stays clear or mostly clear — banded into plain-language zones.

Shawnee averages about 12 sunny days a month — counting the days the sky stays clear or mostly clear — with a clear seasonal swing between 9 and 16 days.

The sunnier stretch runs 5.4 months, from around Jun 17 to Nov 27. The sunniest month is October, with roughly 15 sunny days (mixed).

The greyest month is May, down near 9 sunny days — about 37% fewer than the October peak.

05101520JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecgreyersunniergreyergloomymixedbrightOct 216 daysMay 259 days
Sunny daysSky
Jan11Mixed
Feb9Mixed
Mar10Mixed
Apr9Mixed
May10Mixed
Jun11Mixed
Jul14Mixed
Aug14Mixed
Sep15Bright
Oct15Mixed
Nov13Mixed
Dec11Mixed

Humidity comfort

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

Share of days at each humidity comfort level, based on the dew point — the measure that tracks how muggy it actually feels.

Humidity comfort is graded by the dew point — the temperature at which the air would be fully saturated — because it tracks how muggy it actually feels far better than relative humidity does. A low dew point feels dry and crisp; a high one feels sticky and oppressive no matter the reading on a humidity gauge.

In Shawnee, how humid it feels changes dramatically over the year.

The more humid part of the year lasts 4.4 months, from around May 14 to September 24. The muggiest month is July, when the air feels humid, muggy or worse about 90% of the time.

The most comfortable stretch runs from around September 25 to May 13, and February is the most comfortable month — the air is dry or comfortable 100% of the time.

0%10%20%30%40%50%60%70%80%90%100%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecFeb 22 · 100%Jul 15 · 8%oppressivehumidmuggydrycomfortablecomfortablehumidcomfortable
Dry (%)Comfortable (%)Humid (%)Muggy (%)Oppressive (%)Miserable (%)
Jan10000000
Feb10000000
Mar9631000
Apr8694000
May5019201200
Jun12152338120
Jul282133351
Aug5132240190
Sep3719192240
Oct80116200
Nov9730000
Dec10000000

Wind

Average wind speed through the year, banded into plain-language speed zones so a number reads as 'breezy' or 'calm' without knowing the scale.

This is the average sustained wind speed at the standard 10 metres above open ground — the steady flow a weather station reports, not the sharper gusts that come and go, which can run half again as fast. It's the number that says whether a place is generally breezy or calm.

Across the year, average wind speed in Shawnee is typically light breeze, near 8 mph, and varies moderately with the seasons.

The windier part of the year lasts 7.4 months, from around Oct 7 to May 20. The windiest month is April, averaging about 9 mph (light breeze).

The calmer part of the year runs from around May 21 to Oct 6, with August the calmest month at about 6 mph.

051015JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecwindiercalmerwindiercalmlight breezebreezyApr 10 · 9 mphAug 6 · 6 mph
Wind speed (mph)Feels
Jan8light breeze
Feb8light breeze
Mar9light breeze
Apr9light breeze
May8light breeze
Jun7calm
Jul6calm
Aug6calm
Sep7calm
Oct8light breeze
Nov8light breeze
Dec8light breeze

Best time to visit Shawnee

TravelBeach/poolTemperatureCloudsPrecipitation

To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Shawnee throughout the year, we compute two travel scores — one for general sightseeing, one for beach and pool weather.

Around mid October, Shawnee is still near the tail of its best-weather window — great conditions with the peak-season crowds already thinning.

Inferred from the travel-score curve; month-by-month visitor numbers are a planned addition.

The travel score favors clear, rainless days with daytime highs between 64°F and 82°F. Based on this score, the best times of year to visit Shawnee for general outdoor tourist activities run from early May to early June and again from early September to late October, with a peak score in the last week of September.

0246810JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbest timebest timetravel scoretemperaturecloudsprecipitationSep 27 · 7.6

The travel score (filled area), and its constituents: the temperature score (red line), the cloud cover score (blue line), and the precipitation score (green line).

Travel score (0–10)Rating
Jan0.0poor
Feb0.8poor
Mar3.5poor
Apr5.6good
May6.3good
Jun5.5good
Jul4.8fair
Aug5.3fair
Sep7.0good
Oct6.5good
Nov3.4poor
Dec0.5poor

The beach/pool score favors clear, rainless days with daytime highs between 75°F and 93°F. Based on this score, the best time of year to visit Shawnee for hot-weather activities is from late May to late September, with a peak score in the last week of August.

024681012JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbest timebeach/pool scoretemperaturecloudsprecipitationAug 29 · 7.3

The beach/pool score (filled area), and its constituents: the temperature score (red line), the cloud cover score (blue line), and the precipitation score (green line).

What to pack for Shawnee, by month

EssentialRecommendedOptional

Month by month, what's worth putting in the bag — from the temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind. Tap a month for a quick packing note.

For a warm-season trip around July (highs near 88°F), the essentials are light clothes, rain gear and sun protection. In the cold season around January (highs near 39°F), pack a warm layer and a heavy coat.

Light clothing
Warm layer
Winter coat
Rain gear
Sun protection
Windbreaker

In July, Shawnee sees daytime highs around 88°F and nights near 70°F. Pack light clothes and sun protection. Worth having: rain gear. About 9 days see rain.

UV index (midday) in Shawnee by month

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV index through the year, shaded by the WHO exposure levels — how much sun protection each month calls for.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Shawnee peaks around June 22 at about 10 (very high) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near January 1 at about 2 (low).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 10 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModerateHighVery highHighModerateJun 22UV 10Jan 1UV 2
UV index (midday)Level
Jan2Low
Feb3Moderate
Mar5Moderate
Apr7High
May7High
Jun10Very high
Jul9Very high
Aug8Very high
Sep7High
Oct5Moderate
Nov3Moderate
Dec2Low

Average hourly UV index in Shawnee

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Modeled clear-sky UV for every hour of every day — when in the day sun protection actually matters.

The whole year hour by hour: each column is a day, each row an hour, and the color is the modeled clear-sky UV index — the midday peak scaled down as the sun sits lower in the sky. Darker overlays mark night, lighter ones the civil-twilight hours around sunrise and sunset.

UV falls off far faster than brightness as the sun drops, so even in June the burn window is concentrated in the middle of the day: about 8.5 hours a day reach index 3 (protection recommended), and 5.5 hours reach 6 or more. Mornings and late afternoons stay comparatively gentle year round.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec12 AM2 AM4 AM6 AM8 AM10 AM12 PM2 PM4 PM6 PM8 PM10 PM12 AM
UV ≥ 3 (h/day)UV ≥ 6 (h/day)
Jan00
Feb20
Mar50
Apr6.52.5
May7.53.5
Jun8.55.5
Jul8.55.5
Aug7.54.5
Sep6.53
Oct4.50
Nov1.50
Dec00

Air quality in Shawnee by month

GoodModeratePoorUnhealthyVery unhealthy

Average fine-particle pollution (PM2.5) through the year — so you can see which months the air is worst, not just the yearly average.

Air quality in Shawnee is worst in July — around 16 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 2.4× the cleanest month (October, 7 µg/m³).

Modeled monthly averages (CAMS reanalysis, 2015–2024).

01020JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecGoodModerateGoodJul 1716 µg/m³Oct 237 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan10Good
Feb12Good
Mar12Good
Apr11Good
May12Good
Jun14Moderate
Jul16Moderate
Aug14Moderate
Sep11Good
Oct7Good
Nov7Good
Dec8Good
Almanac & agriculture

Growing season

Chance of a frost-free dayTypical season (≥50%)

The growing season in Shawnee typically lasts about 264 days, from around March 8 to November 26 — the span where a frost-free day is more likely than not. It is reliably frost-free from April 14 to October 23.

0%25%50%75%100%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecgrowing seasonMar 850%Apr 1490%Oct 2390%Nov 2650%
Frost-free chance (%)Frost nights
Jan1931
Feb3028
Mar6331
Apr9112
May1000
Jun1000
Jul1000
Aug1000
Sep1000
Oct937
Nov6430
Dec3031

Growing degree days

Degree days (base 50°F)Frost-free shaded

Growing degree days tally heat above 50°F: each day adds however many degrees its average temperature runs over that threshold, and cold days add nothing. Shawnee banks about 3,891 degree days a year, and the running total — which growers use to time plantings and predict maturity — climbs fastest around July.

01,0002,0003,0004,000JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Growing degree days (°F·days)
Jan0
Feb0
Mar1
Apr159
May472
Jun747
Jul900
Aug837
Sep566
Oct210
Nov0
Dec0

Solar energy

Average daily shortwave solar energy reaching the ground, banded into brightness zones so the number means something at a glance.

Solar energy is how much sunlight actually reaches the ground each day, measured in kilowatt-hours per square metre (kWh/m²) — the combined effect of how long the sun is up, how high it climbs, and how much cloud gets in the way. It's the raw fuel a solar panel has to work with: for scale, 1 kWh/m² a day is dim and wintry, while 7+ is desert-bright.

Shawnee receives about 4.4 kWh/m² a day of solar energy on average — bright — with a clear seasonal swing between 2.0 and 6.7 kWh/m².

The brighter stretch of the year lasts 6.2 months, from around Mar 23 to Sep 27. The brightest month is July, averaging about 6.5 kWh/m² (intense).

The dimmest month is December, down near 2.1 kWh/m² — roughly 69% less than the July peak.

012345678JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecdimmerbrighterdimmerdimmoderatebrightintenseJul 76.7 kWhDec 182.0 kWh
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
Jan2.3Moderate
Feb3.2Moderate
Mar4.2Bright
Apr5.1Bright
May5.8Bright
Jun6.5Intense
Jul6.6Intense
Aug5.8Bright
Sep4.9Bright
Oct3.5Moderate
Nov2.5Moderate
Dec2.0Moderate

Where is Shawnee?

Shawnee sits at 39.0°N, 94.7°W, 1,066 ft above sea level, in United States. The nearest listed city is Overland Park, 5.0 mi away.

Topography around Shawnee

How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 2, 10 and 50 miles of Shawnee.

Within 2 miles, the terrain around Shawnee has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 335 ft around an average of 981 ft above sea level; within 10 miles, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 397 ft; within 50 miles, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 551 ft.

The land around Shawnee is covered by trees (73%) within 2 miles, trees (54%) and artificial surfaces (23%) within 10 miles, and trees (33%), grassland (32%) and cropland (30%) within 50 miles.

2 miles
335 ft
10 miles
397 ft
50 miles
551 ft
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater
Nearby: Overland Park 5.0 mi · Prairie Village 5.6 mi · Lenexa 6.2 mi · Kansas City 6.8 mi · Leawood 7.5 mi · Kansas City 8.7 mi · Olathe 12 mi · Raytown 14 mi

United States travel facts

Power plugs
Type A / B
120 V · 60 Hz
Prices
≈ 100% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$90,027
2025
Happiness
6.8 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
98%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
5.8
per 100k, 2023
Road deaths
12.7
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
High
World Bank
Religion
Protestant 47%unaffiliated 23%Roman Catholic 21%Jewish 2%

Sources: World Bank, US State Department, World Happiness Report, WHO/UNICEF, EF EPI, CIA World Factbook.

Data sources

Temperature, precipitation, cloud, humidity, wind and solar figures are a 1991–2020 climatology for Shawnee (39.0417°, -94.7202°, elevation 1,066 ft), computed from hourly ERA5 reanalysis — contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information. Sun figures are astronomical calculations, not observations. City data © GeoNames, CC BY 4.0. Map outlines from Natural Earth (public domain); interactive map © Google. UV index is derived from CAMS (Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service) clear-sky UV data — contains modified Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service information. Monthly air-quality (PM2.5) seasonality is from the CAMS EAC4 reanalysis (Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service), scaled to the WHO annual mean where available. Topography is sampled from the Copernicus DEM GLO-90 elevation model (© ESA/Airbus) and ESA WorldCover 2021 land cover (CC BY 4.0).