It was not organized at that time, but was attached to Traill for administrative and judicial purposes.

The Sheyenne River flows south near and into the county's west boundary line.

The Goose River flows southeast through the northeastern part of the county.

[4] The terrain slopes to the south and east; its highest point is near its northwestern corner, at 1,562 ft (476 m) ASL.

Steele County was a Democratic-leaning swing county in presidential elections until 2016, when Hillary Clinton lost to Donald Trump by nearly 20 points, an almost total flip from Barack Obama's 20 point win in 2008.

In 2020, Joe Biden fared even worse despite a national increase for the Democratic Party from 2016.

Since 1964 Steele County has favored the Democratic presidential candidate in 64% of elections.