Yellowknife weather in May

In May, Yellowknife sees average daytime highs of 10°C and overnight lows near 0°C, with 19 mm of precipitation across 4.6 wet days and about 17.4 hours of daylight. It is the 5th-warmest and 6th-wettest month of the year here.

Highs climb over the month, from about 6°C in the first days to 14°C by the end. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 35% of the time in May, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 16 hours at the start of May to 18 h 36 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, May is Yellowknife's 1st-clearest and 3rd-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Yellowknife's year-round climate.

Daytime high
10°
5th warmest
Overnight low
8th coldest
Precipitation
19 mm
4.6 wet days
Daylight
17 h 24 min
3:52 AM – 9:16 PM
Cloud cover
58%
1st clearest
Wind
13 km/h
3rd windiest
Solar energy
5.96 kWh/m²
Travel score
2.5
out of 10

Yellowknife is capital and largest city of the Northwest Territories, Canada.

Air quality
Excellent
PM2.5 4 µg/m³ · 2019
Density
149/km²
people per km²
Founded
1970

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 6°C in the first days to 14°C by the end.

A typical May day in Yellowknife reaches about 10°C in the afternoon and slips back to 0°C overnight — a 10°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 3°C and 17°C. Set against its neighbours, May runs about 11°C warmer than April and about 8°C cooler than June.

-10°10°20°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
15-5
25-4
36-4
46-4
57-3
67-3
77-2
87-2
98-2
108-2
118-1
129-1
139-1
1490
15100
16100
17100
18111
19111
20111
21122
22122
23122
24122
25133
26133
27133
28144
29144
30144
31155

How May really feels in Yellowknife

Once humidity and wind are folded in, May averages 0 days that feel above 32°C and 26 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
26
wind chill below the day's low

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

Yellowknife 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-22° / -28°103.44.45.60.0
Feb-19° / -26°62.12.88.20.0
Mar-12° / -21°103.24.211.30.0
Apr-1° / -11°113.12.514.40.0
May10° / 194.61.417.42.5
Jun18° / 255.3019.36.2
Jul21° / 13°377.3018.56.8
Aug18° / 11°469.2015.85.7
Sep11° / 408.20.512.62.5
Oct / -3°246.44.39.50.0
Nov-10° / -16°154.666.50.0
Dec-18° / -24°103.44.54.70.0

Cloud cover in May

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 35% of the time in May, the clearest month of the year.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 13% of May, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 52%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
14555
24555
34555
44555
54654
64753
74753
84753
94654
104654
114753
124753
134753
144753
154852
164951
174951
184951
194951
204951
215050
225050
234951
244951
254951
264951
275050
284951
295050
304951
315050

Chance of precipitation in May

Any precipitationSnow

Yellowknife gets around 19 mm of rain and snow over 4.6 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 15% and peaks near 16% on the wettest days, and about 1 day brings snow.

0%10%20%30%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
1126
2126
3126
4136
5136
6136
7146
8146
9156
10156
11156
12166
13165
14165
15165
16165
17164
18164
19164
20164
21163
22163
23153
24152
25152
26152
27152
28151
29151
30151
31151

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 13 km/h in May.

Across May, daily wind ranges from about 13 km/h on the calmest days to 13 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

05101520151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
113light breeze
213light breeze
313light breeze
413light breeze
513light breeze
613light breeze
713light breeze
813light breeze
913light breeze
1013light breeze
1113light breeze
1213light breeze
1313light breeze
1413light breeze
1513light breeze
1613light breeze
1713light breeze
1813light breeze
1913light breeze
2013light breeze
2113light breeze
2213light breeze
2313light breeze
2413light breeze
2513light breeze
2613light breeze
2713light breeze
2813light breeze
2913light breeze
3013light breeze
3113light breeze

Sunrise & sunset in May

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 16 hours at the start of May to 18 h 36 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 156 minutes over May. Sunrise moves from 4:36 AM to 3:16 AM, and sunset from 8:34 PM to 9:54 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
116.04:368:34
216.14:338:36
316.24:308:39
416.34:268:42
516.44:238:45
616.54:208:48
716.64:178:51
816.74:148:54
916.74:118:56
1016.84:098:59
1116.94:069:02
1217.04:039:05
1317.14:009:08
1417.23:579:10
1517.33:549:13
1617.43:529:16
1717.53:499:19
1817.63:469:21
1917.73:449:24
2017.83:419:27
2117.83:399:29
2217.93:369:32
2318.03:349:34
2418.13:319:37
2518.23:299:40
2618.33:279:42
2718.33:249:45
2818.43:229:47
2918.53:209:49
3018.63:189:52
3118.63:169:54

Solar energy in May

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in May, about 5.96 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 0.13 kWh/m² to a high of 6.39 kWh/m² in June across the year — May's 5.96 kWh/m² sits near the top of that range.

0246151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
15.4Bright
25.5Bright
35.5Bright
45.5Bright
55.6Bright
65.6Bright
75.6Bright
85.7Bright
95.7Bright
105.7Bright
115.8Bright
125.8Bright
135.8Bright
145.9Bright
155.9Bright
165.9Bright
176.0Bright
186.0Intense
196.0Intense
206.1Intense
216.1Intense
226.1Intense
236.2Intense
246.2Intense
256.2Intense
266.3Intense
276.3Intense
286.3Intense
296.3Intense
306.3Intense
316.3Intense
Planning a trip in May

Is May a good time to visit Yellowknife?

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

2.5
Sightseeing
4th-best month of the year
0.0
Beach & pool
4th-best month of the year

May is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Yellowknife.

What to pack for Yellowknife in May

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

In May, Yellowknife sees daytime highs around 10°C and nights near 0°C. Pack a warm layer. Worth having: sun protection. About 5 days see rain.

a warm layersun protection

UV index in Yellowknife in May

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in May peaks around 4 — enough to warrant sun protection. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Yellowknife peaks around June 15 at about 4 (moderate) — a little sun protection helps at midday. It bottoms out near January 1 at about 0 (low).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 4 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLowModerateLowJun 15UV 4Jan 1UV 0
UV index (midday)Level
Jan0Low
Feb1Low
Mar1Low
Apr3Moderate
May4Moderate
Jun4Moderate
Jul4Moderate
Aug3Moderate
Sep2Low
Oct1Low
Nov0Low
Dec0Low

Air quality in Yellowknife 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 Yellowknife is worst in August — around 22 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 224.0× the cleanest month (January, 0 µg/m³).

Seasonal pattern from CAMS reanalysis, scaled to Yellowknife's WHO annual average of 4 µg/m³.

0102030JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecGoodModerateGoodAug 1421 µg/m³Jan 10 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan0Good
Feb0Good
Mar1Good
Apr2Good
May2Good
Jun4Good
Jul13Moderate
Aug22Moderate
Sep3Good
Oct0Good
Nov0Good
Dec0Good
Location & terrain

Where is Yellowknife?

Yellowknife sits at 62.5°N, 114.4°W, 252 m above sea level, in Canada. The nearest listed city is Fort McMurray, 659 km away.

Fort McMurrayFort St. JohnGrande PrairieSt. AlbertEdmontonWîhkwêntôwinStony PlainSpruce Grove

Topography around Yellowknife

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Yellowknife has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 56 m around an average of 180 m above sea level; within 16 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 97 m; within 80 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 220 m.

The land around Yellowknife is covered by trees (43%) and water (31%) within 3 km, trees (60%) and water (29%) within 16 km, and trees (50%) and water (40%) within 80 km.

3 km
56 m
16 km
97 m
80 km
220 m
treesshrubsgrasslandartificial surfacesbare terrainwatermoss and lichen
May weather nearby: Fort McMurray 659 km · Fort St. John 781 km · Grande Prairie 849 km · St. Albert 982 km · Edmonton 991 km · Wîhkwêntôwin 992 km · Stony Plain 992 km · Spruce Grove 992 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 Yellowknife (62.4541°, -114.3725°, elevation 252 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).