Saskatoon weather in May

In May, Saskatoon sees average daytime highs of 17°C and overnight lows near 4°C, with 46 mm of precipitation across 7.8 wet days and about 15.4 hours of daylight. It is the 5th-warmest and 4th-wettest month of the year here.

Highs climb over the month, from about 15°C in the first days to 20°C by the end. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 24% of the time in May, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 14 h 36 min at the start of May to 16 h 06 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, May is Saskatoon's 5th-clearest and 3rd-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Saskatoon's year-round climate.

Daytime high
17°
5th warmest
Overnight low
8th coldest
Precipitation
46 mm
7.8 wet days
Daylight
15 h 24 min
5:20 AM – 8:46 PM
Cloud cover
63%
5th clearest
Wind
15 km/h
3rd windiest
Solar energy
5.98 kWh/m²
Travel score
5.7
out of 10

Saskatoon is largest city in Saskatchewan, Canada.

Air quality
Good
PM2.5 8 µg/m³ · 2019
Density
1,558/km²
people per km²
Founded
1882

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 15°C in the first days to 20°C by the end.

A typical May day in Saskatoon reaches about 17°C in the afternoon and slips back to 4°C overnight — a 13°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 10°C and 25°C. Set against its neighbours, May runs about 8°C warmer than April and about 4°C cooler than June.

10°20°30°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
1141
2151
3151
4152
5152
6152
7162
8162
9163
10163
11163
12173
13174
14174
15174
16174
17185
18185
19185
20185
21186
22196
23196
24196
25197
26197
27197
28207
29208
30208
31208

How May really feels in Saskatoon

Once humidity and wind are folded in, May averages 0 days that feel above 32°C and 13 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
13
wind chill below the day's low

The story in May is cold — wind chill drags the overnight "feels like" below the raw low.

Saskatoon weather by month

How May compares with the rest of the year at a glance. May is the 5th-warmest and 4th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan-11° / -19°154.85.480.0
Feb-9° / -18°113.43.89.50.0
Mar-1° / -11°185.14.611.50.0
Apr10° / -2°316.92.813.62.2
May17° / 467.80.615.45.7
Jun21° / 10°8711.9016.46.1
Jul24° / 12°7010.80166.9
Aug24° / 11°507.6014.47.4
Sep18° / 385.70.212.46.3
Oct / -1°275.8210.42.1
Nov-1° / -9°194.74.78.50.0
Dec-8° / -17°123.94.57.60.0

Cloud cover in May

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 24% of the time in May.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 18% of May, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 58%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
13961
24060
34060
44159
54159
64258
74258
84357
94357
104357
114357
124357
134357
144357
154456
164456
174357
184357
194357
204357
214258
224258
234258
244258
254258
264258
274258
284159
294159
304159
314258

Chance of precipitation in May

Any precipitationSnow

Saskatoon gets around 46 mm of rain and snow over 7.8 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 26% and peaks near 29% on the wettest days, and about 1 day brings snow.

0%10%20%30%40%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
1277
2276
3276
4276
5265
6265
7254
8254
9244
10243
11243
12243
13243
14252
15252
16252
17252
18252
19261
20261
21261
22271
23271
24271
25271
26281
27280
28280
29280
30290
31290

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 99% of days. It rarely turns muggy — the humid and sticky bands barely register.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Dry (%)Comfortable (%)
11000
21000
31000
41000
51000
61000
71000
81000
91000
101000
111000
121000
131000
141000
151000
16991
17991
18991
19991
20991
21991
22991
23991
24991
25991
26991
27991
28991
29991
30991
31991

Wind in May

Winds average 15 km/h in May.

Across May, daily wind ranges from about 14 km/h on the calmest days to 15 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

05101520151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
115light breeze
215light breeze
315light breeze
415light breeze
515light breeze
615light breeze
715light breeze
815light breeze
915light breeze
1015light breeze
1115light breeze
1215light breeze
1315light breeze
1415light breeze
1515light breeze
1615light breeze
1715light breeze
1815light breeze
1915light breeze
2015light breeze
2115light breeze
2215light breeze
2315light breeze
2415light breeze
2515light breeze
2615light breeze
2715light breeze
2815light breeze
2915light breeze
3014light breeze
3114light breeze

Sunrise & sunset in May

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 14 h 36 min at the start of May to 16 h 06 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 90 minutes over May. Sunrise moves from 5:46 AM to 5:01 AM, and sunset from 8:22 PM to 9:07 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
114.65:468:22
214.75:448:23
314.75:428:25
414.85:408:27
514.85:388:28
614.95:378:30
715.05:358:32
815.05:338:33
915.15:318:35
1015.15:298:37
1115.25:288:38
1215.25:268:40
1315.35:248:42
1415.35:238:43
1515.45:218:45
1615.45:208:46
1715.55:188:48
1815.55:178:49
1915.65:158:51
2015.65:148:52
2115.75:128:54
2215.75:118:55
2315.85:108:57
2415.85:088:58
2515.95:079:00
2615.95:069:01
2716.05:059:02
2816.05:049:03
2916.05:039:05
3016.15:029:06
3116.15:019:07

Solar energy in May

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in May, about 5.98 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 0.89 kWh/m² to a high of 6.28 kWh/m² in July across the year — May's 5.98 kWh/m² sits near the top of that range.

0246151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
15.7Bright
25.7Bright
35.7Bright
45.8Bright
55.8Bright
65.8Bright
75.9Bright
85.9Bright
95.9Bright
105.9Bright
116.0Bright
126.0Bright
136.0Bright
146.0Intense
156.0Intense
166.0Intense
176.0Intense
186.0Intense
196.0Intense
206.0Intense
216.0Intense
226.0Intense
236.0Intense
246.0Intense
256.0Intense
266.0Intense
276.0Intense
286.0Intense
296.0Intense
306.0Intense
316.0Intense
Planning a trip in May

Is May a good time to visit Saskatoon?

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

5.7
Sightseeing
5th-best month of the year
1.6
Beach & pool
5th-best month of the year

May is a reasonable time to visit Saskatoon for sightseeing.

What to pack for Saskatoon in May

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

In May, Saskatoon sees daytime highs around 17°C and nights near 4°C. Worth packing: a warm layer and sun protection. About 8 days see rain.

a warm layersun protection

UV index in Saskatoon in May

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in May peaks around 5 — enough to warrant sun protection. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Saskatoon peaks around June 21 at about 6 (high) — sunscreen and a hat are worth it in the middle of the day. It bottoms out near December 17 at about 1 (low).

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

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLowModerateHighModerateLowJun 21UV 6Dec 17UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan1Low
Feb1Low
Mar3Moderate
Apr4Moderate
May5Moderate
Jun6High
Jul6High
Aug4Moderate
Sep4Moderate
Oct3Moderate
Nov1Low
Dec1Low

Air quality in Saskatoon 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 Saskatoon is worst in July — around 16 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 4.2× the cleanest month (December, 4 µg/m³).

Seasonal pattern from CAMS reanalysis, scaled to Saskatoon's WHO annual average of 8 µg/m³.

01020JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecGoodModerateGoodJul 2016 µg/m³Dec 224 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan4Good
Feb5Good
Mar9Good
Apr9Good
May9Good
Jun9Good
Jul16Moderate
Aug14Moderate
Sep8Good
Oct5Good
Nov5Good
Dec4Good
Location & terrain

Where is Saskatoon?

Saskatoon sits at 52.1°N, 106.7°W, 484 m above sea level, in Canada. The nearest listed city is Core Neighbourhoods, 0.0 km away.

Topography around Saskatoon

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Saskatoon has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 42 m around an average of 497 m above sea level; within 16 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 118 m; within 80 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 321 m.

The land around Saskatoon is covered by artificial surfaces (55%) and trees (23%) within 3 km, cropland (42%) and grassland (37%) within 16 km, and cropland (62%) and grassland (30%) within 80 km.

3 km
42 m
16 km
118 m
80 km
321 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater
May weather nearby: Core Neighbourhoods 0.0 km · Confederation 2.0 km · Lawson 4.0 km · Nutana Sector 4.0 km · Lakewood 6.0 km · Stonebridge 6.0 km · University Heights 6.0 km · North Battleford 132 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 Saskatoon (52.1324°, -106.6689°, elevation 484 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).