Penticton weather in May

In May, Penticton sees average daytime highs of 16°C and overnight lows near 5°C, with 55 mm of precipitation across 10.1 wet days and about 15.1 hours of daylight. It is the 5th-warmest and 6th-wettest month of the year here.

Highs climb over the month, from about 14°C in the first days to 18°C by the end. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 23% of the time in May, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 14 h 18 min at the start of May to 15 h 42 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, May is Penticton's 6th-clearest and 8th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Penticton's year-round climate.

Daytime high
16°
5th warmest
Overnight low
8th coldest
Precipitation
55 mm
10.1 wet days
Daylight
15 h 06 min
4:21 AM – 7:28 PM
Cloud cover
64%
6th clearest
Wind
5 km/h
8th windiest
Solar energy
6.13 kWh/m²
Travel score
5.0
out of 10

Penticton is city in British Columbia, Canada.

Density
802/km²
people per km²
Founded
1908

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

Temperature in May

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Highs climb over the month, from about 14°C in the first days to 18°C by the end.

A typical May day in Penticton reaches about 16°C in the afternoon and slips back to 5°C overnight — a 11°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 10°C and 23°C. Set against its neighbours, May runs about 6°C warmer than April and about 3°C cooler than June.

10°20°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
1133
2143
3143
4143
5143
6154
7154
8154
9154
10154
11164
12165
13165
14165
15165
16165
17175
18176
19176
20176
21176
22176
23176
24176
25186
26186
27186
28186
29187
30187
31187

How May really feels in Penticton

Once humidity and wind are folded in, May averages 0 days that feel above 32°C and 0 that feel at or below 0°C — the comfort signal a plain temperature reading hides.

Days feeling ≥ 32°C
0
heat index over the day's high
Days feeling ≤ C
0
wind chill below the day's low

May sits comfortably in between — no days that feel dangerously hot or drop to a hard freeze once humidity and wind are folded in.

Penticton weather by month

How May compares with the rest of the year at a glance. May is the 5th-warmest and 6th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan-1° / -6°5812.612.98.40.0
Feb / -5°4410.49.59.80.0
Mar / -2°6112.28.811.50.4
Apr10° / 5010.23.913.42.4
May16° / 5510.10.815.15.0
Jun19° / 549.80.1166.1
Jul24° / 11°275.1015.67.9
Aug24° / 12°224.8014.28.0
Sep19° / 366.60.112.46.5
Oct10° / 62111.910.52.4
Nov / -2°8414.810.98.90.0
Dec-1° / -6°6713.814.680.0

Cloud cover in May

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 23% of the time in May.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 17% of May, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 60%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
13862
23862
33961
44060
54159
64159
74159
84258
94258
104258
114159
124159
134159
144159
154159
164159
173961
184060
194060
203961
213961
223862
233862
243961
253961
263961
273862
284060
294060
304060
313862

Chance of precipitation in May

Any precipitationSnow

Penticton gets around 55 mm of rain and snow over 10.1 wet days in May. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Day to day, the chance of measurable precipitation averages around 32% and peaks near 36% on the wettest days, and about 1 day brings snow. The odds climb toward the end of the month.

0%10%20%30%40%50%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
1305
2295
3295
4294
5294
6294
7294
8294
9294
10303
11303
12303
13303
14313
15312
16312
17322
18332
19332
20342
21342
22352
23351
24351
25351
26351
27351
28351
29351
30361
31361

Humidity in May

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

Most of May feels dry — the stacked bands show each day's mix of comfort levels, read off the dew point.

By dew point, May lands in the dry band about 100% of days. It rarely turns muggy — the humid and sticky bands barely register.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Dry (%)
1100
2100
3100
4100
5100
6100
7100
8100
9100
10100
11100
12100
13100
14100
15100
16100
17100
18100
19100
20100
21100
22100
23100
24100
25100
26100
27100
28100
29100
30100
31100

Wind in May

Winds average 5 km/h in May.

Across May, daily wind ranges from about 5 km/h on the calmest days to 6 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

0246810151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
16calm
26calm
35calm
45calm
55calm
65calm
75calm
85calm
95calm
105calm
115calm
125calm
135calm
145calm
155calm
165calm
175calm
185calm
195calm
205calm
215calm
225calm
235calm
245calm
255calm
265calm
275calm
285calm
295calm
305calm
315calm

Sunrise & sunset in May

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 14 h 18 min at the start of May to 15 h 42 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 84 minutes over May. Sunrise moves from 4:45 AM to 4:05 AM, and sunset from 7:06 PM to 7:47 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
114.34:457:06
214.44:437:08
314.54:427:09
414.54:407:11
514.64:387:12
614.64:367:14
714.74:357:15
814.74:337:17
914.84:327:18
1014.84:307:19
1114.94:287:21
1214.94:277:22
1315.04:257:24
1415.04:247:25
1515.14:237:27
1615.14:217:28
1715.24:207:29
1815.24:187:31
1915.24:177:32
2015.34:167:33
2115.34:157:35
2215.44:147:36
2315.44:127:37
2415.54:117:39
2515.54:107:40
2615.54:097:41
2715.64:087:42
2815.64:077:43
2915.64:067:45
3015.74:067:46
3115.74:057:47

Solar energy in May

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in May, about 6.13 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 1.06 kWh/m² to a high of 6.93 kWh/m² in July across the year — May's 6.13 kWh/m² sits near the top of that range.

0246151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
15.9Bright
25.9Bright
35.9Bright
46.0Bright
56.0Bright
66.0Intense
76.0Intense
86.0Intense
96.1Intense
106.1Intense
116.1Intense
126.1Intense
136.1Intense
146.1Intense
156.1Intense
166.1Intense
176.1Intense
186.1Intense
196.1Intense
206.1Intense
216.1Intense
226.2Intense
236.2Intense
246.2Intense
256.2Intense
266.2Intense
276.2Intense
286.2Intense
296.3Intense
306.3Intense
316.3Intense
Planning a trip in May

Is May a good time to visit Penticton?

Our two travel scores rate May for general sightseeing and for beach or pool weather — 0 (poor) to 10 (ideal).

5.0
Sightseeing
5th-best month of the year
0.9
Beach & pool
5th-best month of the year

May is a reasonable time to visit Penticton for sightseeing.

What to pack for Penticton in May

From May's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.

In May, Penticton sees daytime highs around 16°C and nights near 5°C. Pack sun protection. Worth having: a warm layer and rain gear. About 10 days see rain.

sun protectiona warm layerrain gear

UV index in Penticton in May

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in May peaks around 7 — enough to warrant sun protection. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Penticton peaks around July 17 at about 8 (very high) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 15 at about 1 (low).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 7 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLowModerateHighVery highHighModerateLowJul 17UV 8Dec 15UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan1Low
Feb1Low
Mar4Moderate
Apr5High
May7High
Jun6High
Jul8Very high
Aug7High
Sep4Moderate
Oct3Moderate
Nov1Low
Dec1Low

Air quality in Penticton in May

GoodModeratePoorUnhealthyVery unhealthy

Average fine-particle pollution (PM2.5) through the year — so you can see where May falls, not just the annual average.

Air quality in Penticton is worst in August — around 62 µg/m³ PM2.5 (unhealthy), about 12.8× the cleanest month (January, 5 µg/m³).

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

0204060JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecGoodModeratePoorModeratePoorAug 1657 µg/m³Jan 215 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan5Good
Feb5Good
Mar7Good
Apr7Good
May8Good
Jun8Good
Jul29Moderate
Aug62Unhealthy
Sep22Moderate
Oct39Poor
Nov44Poor
Dec6Good
Location & terrain

Where is Penticton?

Penticton sits at 49.5°N, 119.6°W, 357 m above sea level, in Canada. The nearest listed city is Okanagan Mission, 38 km away.

Topography around Penticton

How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Penticton.

Within 3 km, the terrain around Penticton has significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 439 m around an average of 410 m above sea level; within 16 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,680 m; within 80 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,336 m.

The land around Penticton is covered by artificial surfaces (40%) and grassland (34%) within 3 km, trees (66%) and grassland (23%) within 16 km, and trees (75%) and grassland (21%) within 80 km.

3 km
439 m
16 km
1,680 m
80 km
2,336 m
treesgrasslandartificial surfacesbare terrainwatermoss and lichen
May weather nearby: Okanagan Mission 38 km · West Kelowna 42 km · Kelowna 45 km · Rutland 49 km · Lake Country 60 km · Vernon 90 km · Salmon Arm 137 km · Kamloops 142 km

Canada travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 1
Exercise Normal Precautions
Power plugs
Type A / B
120 V · 60 Hz
Prices
≈ 83% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$55,698
2025
Happiness
6.7 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
97%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
2
per 100k, 2023
Road deaths
5.3
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
High
World Bank
Religion
Christian 53%none 35%Muslim 5%Hindu 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 Penticton (49.4806°, -119.5858°, elevation 357 m), 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).