Nanjing weather in May

In May, Nanjing sees average daytime highs of 26°C and overnight lows near 17°C, with 121 mm of rain across 9.8 wet days and about 13.6 hours of daylight. It is the 5th-warmest and 4th-wettest month of the year here.

Highs climb over the month, from about 24°C in the first days to 27°C by the end. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 25% of the time in May, and the air most often feels humid.

Daylight stretches from about 13 h 12 min at the start of May to 13 h 54 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, May is Nanjing's 9th-clearest and 3rd-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Nanjing's year-round climate.

Daytime high
26°
5th warmest
Overnight low
17°
8th coldest
Rainfall
121 mm
9.8 wet days
Daylight
13 h 36 min
5:12 AM – 6:50 PM
Cloud cover
67%
9th clearest
Wind
11 km/h
3rd windiest
Solar energy
5.28 kWh/m²
Travel score
6.6
out of 10

Nanjing is capital city of Jiangsu Province, China, former capital of the Republic of China and China's Ming dynasty.

Air quality
Very high
PM2.5 44.7 µg/m³ · 2018
Density
1,414/km²
people per km²
Founded
~494 BCE

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 24°C in the first days to 27°C by the end.

A typical May day in Nanjing reaches about 26°C in the afternoon and slips back to 17°C overnight — a 9°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 21°C and 31°C. Set against its neighbours, May runs about 5°C warmer than April and about 3°C cooler than June.

10°15°20°25°30°35°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
12415
22415
32415
42415
52416
62516
72516
82516
92516
102516
112516
122517
132517
142517
152617
162617
172617
182617
192618
202618
212618
222718
232718
242718
252718
262719
272719
282719
292719
302819
312819

How May really feels in Nanjing

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.

Nanjing 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 / 558210.11.0
Feb10° / 558.31.310.82.2
Mar15° / 80100.411.84.3
Apr21° / 12°949.1012.86.4
May26° / 17°1219.8013.66.6
Jun29° / 22°22211.9014.15.2
Jul32° / 25°21015.1013.93.5
Aug31° / 25°17414.4013.23.9
Sep27° / 20°818.4012.26.4
Oct22° / 14°546.3011.27.4
Nov16° / 536.80.110.45.5
Dec10° / 345.60.49.92.4

Cloud cover in May

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 25% of the time in May.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 11% of May, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 63%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
13961
23961
33961
43862
53961
63862
73862
83862
93763
103763
113763
123763
133664
143565
153664
163664
173664
183763
193763
203763
213763
223664
233565
243565
253565
263565
273565
283466
293466
303466
313367

Chance of precipitation in May

Any precipitation

Nanjing gets around 121 mm of rain over 9.8 wet days in May. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Day to day, the chance of measurable rain averages around 31% and peaks near 34% on the wettest days.

0%10%20%30%40%151015202531
Rain chance (%)
131
231
332
432
533
633
734
834
934
1034
1134
1234
1334
1433
1533
1633
1732
1832
1931
2031
2130
2230
2329
2429
2529
2629
2729
2829
2929
3029
3129

Humidity in May

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

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

By dew point, May lands in the humid band about 30% of days. Sticky, muggy-or-worse air turns up on roughly 23% of them.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Dry (%)Comfortable (%)Humid (%)Muggy (%)Oppressive (%)
143262092
2412721102
3392722102
4372823112
5352824112
6332825122
7322825122
8302826133
9292926133
10282927133
11272927143
12253028143
13243029153
14223029153
15213030164
16193030174
17183031174
18162932184
19152932195
20142833205
21122834215
22112734225
23102635236
2492535256
2582435266
2682336277
2772236287
2862136298
2952036309
30519353110
31418353310

Wind in May

Winds average 11 km/h in May.

Across May, daily wind ranges from about 10 km/h on the calmest days to 11 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

051015151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
111calm
211calm
311calm
411calm
511calm
611calm
711calm
811calm
911calm
1011calm
1111calm
1211calm
1311calm
1411calm
1511calm
1611calm
1711calm
1811calm
1911calm
2011calm
2111calm
2211calm
2310calm
2410calm
2510calm
2610calm
2710calm
2810calm
2910calm
3010calm
3110calm

Sunrise & sunset in May

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 13 h 12 min at the start of May to 13 h 54 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 42 minutes over May. Sunrise moves from 5:25 AM to 5:05 AM, and sunset from 6:39 PM to 7:00 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
113.25:256:39
213.35:246:40
313.35:236:41
413.35:226:42
513.45:216:42
613.45:206:43
713.45:196:44
813.45:186:44
913.55:176:45
1013.55:176:46
1113.55:166:47
1213.55:156:47
1313.65:146:48
1413.65:146:49
1513.65:136:49
1613.65:126:50
1713.75:116:51
1813.75:116:52
1913.75:106:52
2013.75:106:53
2113.75:096:54
2213.85:086:54
2313.85:086:55
2413.85:076:56
2513.85:076:56
2613.85:066:57
2713.95:066:58
2813.95:066:58
2913.95:056:59
3013.95:056:59
3113.95:057:00

Solar energy in May

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in May, about 5.28 kWh/m² — the sunniest month for solar.

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 2.53 kWh/m² to a high of 5.28 kWh/m² in May across the year — May's 5.28 kWh/m² sits near the top of that range.

0246151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
15.2Bright
25.2Bright
35.2Bright
45.2Bright
55.2Bright
65.2Bright
75.2Bright
85.2Bright
95.2Bright
105.2Bright
115.2Bright
125.2Bright
135.2Bright
145.2Bright
155.2Bright
165.2Bright
175.3Bright
185.3Bright
195.3Bright
205.3Bright
215.3Bright
225.3Bright
235.3Bright
245.3Bright
255.3Bright
265.3Bright
275.3Bright
285.3Bright
295.3Bright
305.3Bright
315.3Bright
Planning a trip in May

Hazard calendar for Nanjing

In seasonPeak

In May, Nanjing sits inside its pacific typhoon and rainy season season. The full year is below, with each hazard's peak months called out.

Nanjing sits in the Pacific typhoon belt; the season peaks July–October.

Nanjing's rainy season runs May–August, when most of the year's rain falls.

Pacific typhoon
Rainy season
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec

Is May a good time to visit Nanjing?

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

6.6
Sightseeing
2nd-best month of the year
6.2
Beach & pool
3rd-best month of the year

May is a reasonable time to visit Nanjing for sightseeing. The water and warmth also suit a beach or pool day.

What to pack for Nanjing in May

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

In May, Nanjing sees daytime highs around 26°C and nights near 17°C. Worth packing: light clothes, rain gear and sun protection. About 10 days see rain.

light clothesrain gearsun protection

UV index in Nanjing 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 Nanjing peaks around July 21 at about 9 (very high) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 17 at about 3 (moderate).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 11 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModerateHighVery highModerateJul 21UV 9Dec 17UV 3
UV index (midday)Level
Jan3Moderate
Feb5Moderate
Mar6High
Apr6High
May7High
Jun6High
Jul9Very high
Aug8Very high
Sep9Very high
Oct5Moderate
Nov3Moderate
Dec3Moderate

Air quality in Nanjing 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 Nanjing is worst in January — around 59 µg/m³ PM2.5 (unhealthy), about 2.0× the cleanest month (August, 29 µg/m³).

Seasonal pattern from CAMS reanalysis, scaled to Nanjing's WHO annual average of 44.7 µg/m³.

020406080JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecUnhealthyPoorModeratePoorUnhealthyJan 1059 µg/m³Aug 929 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan59Unhealthy
Feb55Poor
Mar53Poor
Apr48Poor
May42Poor
Jun36Poor
Jul29Moderate
Aug29Moderate
Sep35Poor
Oct44Poor
Nov49Poor
Dec58Unhealthy
Location & terrain

Where is Nanjing?

Nanjing sits at 32.1°N, 118.8°E, 22 m above sea level, in China. The nearest listed city is Wuxi, 153 km away.

NingboWuhan

Topography around Nanjing

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Nanjing has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 59 m around an average of 15 m above sea level; within 16 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 514 m; within 80 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 611 m.

The land around Nanjing is covered by artificial surfaces (66%) and trees (22%) within 3 km, artificial surfaces (46%) and trees (28%) within 16 km, and cropland (51%) and trees (28%) within 80 km.

3 km
59 m
16 km
514 m
80 km
611 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater
May weather nearby: Wuxi 153 km · Suzhou 192 km · Pingyao 216 km · Hangzhou 237 km · Tunxi 265 km · Shanghai 270 km · Ningbo 359 km · Wuhan 459 km

China travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 2
Exercise Increased Caution
Power plugs
Type A / I
220 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 47% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$13,862
2025
Happiness
6.1 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Homicide rate
0.5
per 100k, 2020
Road deaths
17.4
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
Upper middle
World Bank
English
Low
EF EPI 464
Religion
unaffiliated 52%folk religion 22%Buddhist 18%Christian 5%

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 Nanjing (32.0617°, 118.7778°, elevation 22 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. Tropical-cyclone seasons are the published climatological basin seasons (NOAA National Hurricane Center / regional warning centres). 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).