Kitale weather in May

In May, Kitale sees average daytime highs of 23°C and overnight lows near 14°C, with 220 mm of rain across 23.9 wet days and about 12 hours of daylight. It is the 8th-warmest and 2nd-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 23°C through the month. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 17% of the time in May, and the air most often feels comfortable.

Daylight stretches from about 12 hours at the start of May to 12 h 06 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, May is Kitale's 6th-clearest and 9th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Kitale's year-round climate.

Daytime high
23°
8th warmest
Overnight low
14°
11th coldest
Rainfall
220 mm
23.9 wet days
Daylight
12 hours
6:35 AM – 6:38 PM
Cloud cover
67%
6th clearest
Wind
3 km/h
9th windiest
Solar energy
4.96 kWh/m²
Travel score
4.6
out of 10

Kitale is city.

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

Temperature in May

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 23°C through the month.

A typical May day in Kitale reaches about 23°C in the afternoon and slips back to 14°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 25°C. Set against its neighbours, May runs about 1°C cooler than April and about 1°C warmer than June.

10°15°20°25°30°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
12314
22314
32314
42314
52314
62314
72314
82314
92314
102314
112314
122314
132314
142314
152314
162314
172314
182314
192314
202314
212314
222314
232314
242314
252314
262314
272314
282314
292214
302213
312213

Kitale weather by month

How May compares with the rest of the year at a glance. May is the 8th-warmest and 2nd-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan25° / 13°527.311.97.4
Feb26° / 13°486.6127.2
Mar26° / 14°9512.6126.4
Apr24° / 14°18920.7125.0
May23° / 14°22023.9124.6
Jun22° / 13°19922.212.14.7
Jul21° / 13°17221.812.14.6
Aug21° / 12°22423.7124.5
Sep22° / 13°17418.6125.4
Oct23° / 13°15820.5125.1
Nov23° / 14°14119.5125.2
Dec24° / 13°7110.811.96.9

Cloud cover in May

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 17% of the time in May.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 19% of May, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 64%. Skies tend to open up as the month goes on.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
12278
22278
32278
42476
52476
62476
72674
82773
92872
103070
113070
123268
133367
143466
153565
163664
173763
183961
194060
204159
214357
224456
234555
244555
254753
264753
274852
284951
294951
304951
314852

Chance of precipitation in May

Any precipitation

Kitale gets around 220 mm of rain over 23.9 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 77% and peaks near 83% on the wettest days. The odds ease toward the end of the month.

0%20%40%60%80%151015202531
Rain chance (%)
182
283
383
483
583
683
782
882
982
1081
1180
1279
1379
1478
1577
1676
1775
1874
1974
2073
2173
2273
2372
2472
2572
2673
2773
2873
2974
3075
3175

Humidity in May

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

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

By dew point, May lands in the comfortable band about 81% of days. It rarely turns muggy — the humid and sticky bands barely register.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Dry (%)Comfortable (%)Humid (%)
118820
217830
316840
416831
515841
614851
714851
814851
913870
1013870
1113870
1213870
1314860
1414860
1514860
1615850
1716840
1817830
1918820
2019810
2121790
2222780
2323770
2424760
2526740
2627730
2728720
2829710
2930700
3031690
3132680

Wind in May

Winds average 3 km/h in May.

Across May, daily wind ranges from about 3 km/h on the calmest days to 4 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

0246810151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
14calm
24calm
34calm
43calm
53calm
63calm
73calm
83calm
93calm
103calm
113calm
123calm
133calm
143calm
153calm
163calm
173calm
183calm
193calm
203calm
213calm
223calm
233calm
243calm
253calm
263calm
273calm
283calm
293calm
303calm
313calm

Sunrise & sunset in May

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 12 hours at the start of May to 12 h 06 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 6 minutes over May. Sunrise moves from 6:36 AM to 6:36 AM, and sunset from 6:38 PM to 6:39 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
112.06:366:38
212.06:366:38
312.06:366:38
412.06:366:38
512.06:366:38
612.06:356:38
712.06:356:38
812.06:356:38
912.06:356:38
1012.06:356:38
1112.06:356:38
1212.06:356:38
1312.06:356:38
1412.06:356:38
1512.06:356:38
1612.06:356:38
1712.06:356:38
1812.06:356:38
1912.06:356:38
2012.06:356:38
2112.06:356:38
2212.06:356:38
2312.16:356:38
2412.16:356:38
2512.16:356:38
2612.16:356:38
2712.16:356:38
2812.16:356:39
2912.16:366:39
3012.16:366:39
3112.16:366:39

Solar energy in May

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in May, about 4.96 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 4.51 kWh/m² to a high of 6.49 kWh/m² in February across the year — May's 4.96 kWh/m² falls in the middle.

0246151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
14.8Bright
24.8Bright
34.8Bright
44.8Bright
54.8Bright
64.8Bright
74.8Bright
84.8Bright
94.9Bright
104.9Bright
114.9Bright
124.9Bright
134.9Bright
144.9Bright
155.0Bright
165.0Bright
175.0Bright
185.0Bright
195.0Bright
205.0Bright
215.0Bright
225.0Bright
235.0Bright
245.0Bright
255.0Bright
265.0Bright
275.0Bright
285.0Bright
295.0Bright
305.0Bright
315.0Bright
Planning a trip in May

Is May a good time to visit Kitale?

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

4.6
Sightseeing
10th-best month of the year
3.5
Beach & pool
9th-best month of the year

May is a reasonable time to visit Kitale for sightseeing.

What to pack for Kitale in May

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

In May, Kitale sees daytime highs around 23°C and nights near 14°C. Pack rain gear. Worth having: light clothes and sun protection. About 24 days see rain.

rain gearlight clothessun protection

UV index in Kitale in May

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in May peaks around 13 (very high — sun protection essential). The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Kitale peaks around March 15 at about 16 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near June 18 at about 11 (extreme).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — every month of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecExtremeMar 15UV 16Jun 18UV 11
UV index (midday)Level
Jan15Extreme
Feb16Extreme
Mar17Extreme
Apr15Extreme
May13Extreme
Jun11Extreme
Jul12Extreme
Aug12Extreme
Sep14Extreme
Oct15Extreme
Nov13Extreme
Dec12Extreme

Air quality in Kitale 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 Kitale is worst in June — around 64 µg/m³ PM2.5 (unhealthy), and holds fairly steady the rest of the year.

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

020406080JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecPoorUnhealthyPoorJun 1963 µg/m³Mar 1140 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan45Poor
Feb41Poor
Mar40Poor
Apr45Poor
May54Poor
Jun64Unhealthy
Jul60Unhealthy
Aug56Unhealthy
Sep57Unhealthy
Oct50Poor
Nov45Poor
Dec44Poor
Location & terrain

Where is Kitale?

Kitale sits at 1.0°N, 35.0°E, 1,900 m above sea level, in Kenya. The nearest listed city is Kiminini, 16 km away.

Iten

Topography around Kitale

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Kitale has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 113 m around an average of 1,868 m above sea level; within 16 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 333 m; within 80 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 3,396 m.

The land around Kitale is covered by trees (46%) and artificial surfaces (20%) within 3 km, cropland (48%) and trees (27%) within 16 km, and cropland (32%), trees (27%) and shrubs (26%) within 80 km.

3 km
113 m
16 km
333 m
80 km
3,396 m
treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaces
May weather nearby: Kiminini 16 km · Moi‘s Bridge 21 km · Kapenguria 27 km · Makutano 29 km · Kimilili 41 km · Webuye 53 km · Eldoret 62 km · Iten 68 km

Kenya travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 2
Exercise Increased Caution
Power plugs
Type G
240 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 34% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$2,363
2025
Happiness
4.7 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Homicide rate
4.9
per 100k, 2022
Road deaths
28.3
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
Lower middle
World Bank
English
High
EF EPI 593
Religion
Christian 86%Muslim 11%other 2%none 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 Kitale (1.0157°, 35.0062°, elevation 1,900 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).