January 4° · ☂ 9 February 6° · ☂ 8 March 10° · ☂ 9 April 17° · ☂ 9 May 22° · ☂ 10 June 27° · ☂ 9 July 30° · ☂ 10 August 29° · ☂ 8 ★ September25° · ☂ 7 October 18° · ☂ 8 November 12° · ☂ 7 December 7° · ☂ 10 New York in May:cool and fresh, rain on many days New York, United States · Records from 2006 to 2025. Not a forecast.
Mean high 22° Hottest day 34° (2013)
Mean low 13° Coldest night 2° (2020)
Rain days 10 days 5-14 by year
Rainfall 105mm Daylight 14.0 → 14.9 h
New York's 12 months i Best: September
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
Trip types Sightseeing on foot Goodmild
Humidity 67% 0 muggy days
Clear days 5 days 12 overcast days
Mean wind 11 km/h Rarely windy
Sunrise / sunset (15th) 05:39 / 20:05 Daylight 14.0 → 14.9 h
New York in May Often the most pleasant month. Central Park turns green and outdoor terraces reopen. Memorial Day weekend at month end starts the summer mood. One or two sudden hot days are normal.
May was mild: 22°C by day, 13°C at night, the kind of range where you stop checking the thermometer. About 10 days a month saw rain, enough that a wet-weather plan was worth having. The driest year, 2006, had 5 rain days; the wettest, 2025, had 14.
Long days, up to 14.9 hours of light, left room for a late stroll after dinner. Highs passed 30°C on 1 day on average. May 2015 averaged 24.6°C by day, 2.7°C above the 20-year mean. The lowest night on record was 2°C in 2020.
Hurricanes i Hurricanes: July to October
Date by date i Sun
Mon
Tue
Wed
Thu
Fri
Sat
Week
May 1 Saturday 1 rain in 7 of 20 yrs 7/20 19° 10° May 1 rain on 35% of days 19° 10°
May 2 Sunday 2 rain in 9 of 20 yrs 9/20 21° 11° May 3 Monday 3 rain in 7 of 20 yrs 7/20 20° 11° May 4 Tuesday 4 rain in 9 of 20 yrs 9/20 20° 11° May 5 Wednesday 5 rain in 7 of 20 yrs 7/20 19° 11° May 6 Thursday 6 rain in 7 of 20 yrs 7/20 19° 11° May 7 Friday 7 rain in 4 of 20 yrs 4/20 20° 10° May 8 Saturday 8 rain in 8 of 20 yrs 8/20 20° 11° 2-8 rain on 36% of days 20° 11°
May 9 Sunday 9 rain in 7 of 20 yrs 7/20 19° 11° May 10 Monday 10 rain in 5 of 20 yrs 5/20 21° 11° May 11 Tuesday 11 rain in 3 of 20 yrs 3/20 21° 12° May 12 Wednesday 12 rain in 6 of 20 yrs 6/20 20° 11° May 13 Thursday 13 rain in 6 of 20 yrs 6/20 19° 11° May 14 Friday 14 rain in 7 of 20 yrs 7/20 20° 11° May 15 Saturday 15 rain in 8 of 20 yrs 8/20 23° 13° 9-15 rain on 30% of days 20° 11°
May 16 Sunday 16 rain in 10 of 20 yrs 10/20 22° 14° May 17 Monday 17 rain in 8 of 20 yrs 8/20 23° 13° May 18 Tuesday 18 rain in 5 of 20 yrs 5/20 21° 13° May 19 Wednesday 19 rain in 6 of 20 yrs 6/20 21° 12° May 20 Thursday 20 rain in 4 of 20 yrs 4/20 23° 13° May 21 Friday 21 rain in 2 of 20 yrs 2/20 22° 13° May 22 Saturday 22 rain in 8 of 20 yrs 8/20 22° 14° 16-22 rain on 31% of days 22° 13°
May 23 Sunday 23 rain in 8 of 20 yrs 8/20 23° 14° May 24 Monday 24 rain in 4 of 20 yrs 4/20 23° 14° May 25 Tuesday 25 rain in 2 of 20 yrs 2/20 24° 14° May 26 Wednesday 26 rain in 6 of 20 yrs 6/20 26° 16° May 27 Thursday 27 rain in 8 of 20 yrs 8/20 26° 16° May 28 Friday 28 rain in 7 of 20 yrs 7/20 24° 16° May 29 Saturday 29 rain in 6 of 20 yrs 6/20 25° 15° 23-29 rain on 29% of days 24° 15°
May 30 Sunday 30 rain in 8 of 20 yrs 8/20 25° 16° May 31 Monday 31 rain in 4 of 20 yrs 4/20 26° 17°
30-31 rain on 30% of days 26° 16°
May 1 rain on 35% of days 19° 10° 2-8 rain on 36% of days 20° 11° 9-15 rain on 30% of days 20° 11° 16-22 rain on 31% of days 22° 13° 23-29 rain on 29% of days 24° 15° 30-31 rain on 30% of days 26° 16°
Sun
Mon
Tue
Wed
Thu
Fri
Sat
Week
May 1 Monday 1 rain in 7 of 20 yrs 7/20 19° 10° May 2 Tuesday 2 rain in 9 of 20 yrs 9/20 21° 11° May 3 Wednesday 3 rain in 7 of 20 yrs 7/20 20° 11° May 4 Thursday 4 rain in 9 of 20 yrs 9/20 20° 11° May 5 Friday 5 rain in 7 of 20 yrs 7/20 19° 11° May 6 Saturday 6 rain in 7 of 20 yrs 7/20 19° 11° 1-6 rain on 38% of days 20° 11°
May 7 Sunday 7 rain in 4 of 20 yrs 4/20 20° 10° May 8 Monday 8 rain in 8 of 20 yrs 8/20 20° 11° May 9 Tuesday 9 rain in 7 of 20 yrs 7/20 19° 11° May 10 Wednesday 10 rain in 5 of 20 yrs 5/20 21° 11° May 11 Thursday 11 rain in 3 of 20 yrs 3/20 21° 12° May 12 Friday 12 rain in 6 of 20 yrs 6/20 20° 11° May 13 Saturday 13 rain in 6 of 20 yrs 6/20 19° 11° 7-13 rain on 28% of days 20° 11°
May 14 Sunday 14 rain in 7 of 20 yrs 7/20 20° 11° May 15 Monday 15 rain in 8 of 20 yrs 8/20 23° 13° May 16 Tuesday 16 rain in 10 of 20 yrs 10/20 22° 14° May 17 Wednesday 17 rain in 8 of 20 yrs 8/20 23° 13° May 18 Thursday 18 rain in 5 of 20 yrs 5/20 21° 13° May 19 Friday 19 rain in 6 of 20 yrs 6/20 21° 12° May 20 Saturday 20 rain in 4 of 20 yrs 4/20 23° 13° 14-20 rain on 34% of days 22° 13°
May 21 Sunday 21 rain in 2 of 20 yrs 2/20 22° 13° May 22 Monday 22 rain in 8 of 20 yrs 8/20 22° 14° May 23 Tuesday 23 rain in 8 of 20 yrs 8/20 23° 14° May 24 Wednesday 24 rain in 4 of 20 yrs 4/20 23° 14° May 25 Thursday 25 rain in 2 of 20 yrs 2/20 24° 14° May 26 Friday 26 rain in 6 of 20 yrs 6/20 26° 16° May 27 Saturday 27 rain in 8 of 20 yrs 8/20 26° 16° 21-27 rain on 27% of days 24° 14°
May 28 Sunday 28 rain in 7 of 20 yrs 7/20 24° 16° May 29 Monday 29 rain in 6 of 20 yrs 6/20 25° 15° May 30 Tuesday 30 rain in 8 of 20 yrs 8/20 25° 16° May 31 Wednesday 31 rain in 4 of 20 yrs 4/20 26° 17°
28-31 rain on 31% of days 25° 16°
1-6 rain on 38% of days 20° 11° 7-13 rain on 28% of days 20° 11° 14-20 rain on 34% of days 22° 13° 21-27 rain on 27% of days 24° 14° 28-31 rain on 31% of days 25° 16°
Tap another date to change
2006 17mm
2007 18mm
2008 24mm
2009 none
2010 none
2011 9mm
2012 none
2013 none
2014 27mm
2015 10mm
2016 none
2017 none
2018 19mm
2019 none
2020 2mm
2021 none
2022 8mm
2023 none
2024 1mm
2025 none
Holidays in May (2027) 1 Local public holiday or break (busier, pricier)
Day by day temperature i 8° 17° 26° 35° 1 8 15 22 29 31
Your trip dates, the past 20 years Trip dates May 1 (Sat) 2 (Sun) 3 (Mon) 4 (Tue) 5 (Wed) 6 (Thu) 7 (Fri) 8 (Sat) 9 (Sun) 10 (Mon) 11 (Tue) 12 (Wed) 13 (Thu) 14 (Fri) 15 (Sat) 16 (Sun) 17 (Mon) 18 (Tue) 19 (Wed) 20 (Thu) 21 (Fri) 22 (Sat) 23 (Sun) 24 (Mon) 25 (Tue) 26 (Wed) 27 (Thu) 28 (Fri) 29 (Sat) 30 (Sun) 31 (Mon) ~ May 1 (Sat) 2 (Sun) 3 (Mon) 4 (Tue) 5 (Wed) 6 (Thu) 7 (Fri) 8 (Sat) 9 (Sun) 10 (Mon) 11 (Tue) 12 (Wed) 13 (Thu) 14 (Fri) 15 (Sat) 16 (Sun) 17 (Mon) 18 (Tue) 19 (Wed) 20 (Thu) 21 (Fri) 22 (Sat) 23 (Sun) 24 (Mon) 25 (Tue) 26 (Wed) 27 (Thu) 28 (Fri) 29 (Sat) 30 (Sun) 31 (Mon) 1-7 8-14 15-21 22-end Whole month
You can also click two dates on the axis. Hover a cell to see that day's rain. By year Driest trips first
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31
Trip rain days Month rain days Tap a date to start, tap another to end. Each cell is that date in one year. '06 '07 '08 '09 '10 '11 '12 '13 '14 '15 '16 '17 '18 '19 '20 '21 '22 '23 '24 '25
of 20 Dates outside your trip are dimmed.
One row per year, one cell per day. 2006 had 5 rain days, 2025 had 14.
New York through the year What to pack Shirt sleeves were fine at midday. A cardigan or thin jacket was welcome after dark.
Rainy days were mixed in often enough that shoes you cannot get wet are a bad bet.
Common questions Does it rain a lot in New York in May? Over the past 20 years May averaged 10 rain days (1 mm or more) out of 31. Individual years ran from 5 in the driest to 14 in the wettest.
What should I wear in New York in May? Days averaged 22°C and nights 13°C. Pack a compact umbrella, a waterproof jacket, a light layer for the evenings, and T-shirts.
Is May a good time to visit New York? On warmth and rain days alone, New York's easiest month was September. May ranked 2 of 12, close to the top.
How many clear days does New York get in May? About 5 clear days (under 30% cloud on average) and 12 overcast days (80% or more).
Previous month New York in April Next month New York in June Whole year New York weather by month Where to go May By country United States: all cities this month Compare Compare with Los Angeles