Mai weather in May

In May, Mai sees average daytime highs of 22°C and overnight lows near 14°C, with 115 mm of rain across 18.4 wet days and about 12 hours of daylight. It is the 9th-warmest and 2nd-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 22°C through the month. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 8% of the time in May, and the air most often feels comfortable.

Daylight stretches from about 12 hours at the start of May to 11 h 54 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, May is Mai's 9th-clearest and 9th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Mai's year-round climate.

Daytime high
22°
9th warmest
Overnight low
14°
11th coldest
Rainfall
115 mm
18.4 wet days
Daylight
12 hours
6:31 AM – 6:29 PM
Cloud cover
71%
9th clearest
Wind
7 km/h
9th windiest
Solar energy
4.99 kWh/m²
Travel score
5.2
out of 10

Temperature in May

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 22°C through the month.

A typical May day in Mai reaches about 22°C in the afternoon and slips back to 14°C overnight — a 8°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 20°C and 23°C. Set against its neighbours, May runs about 2°C cooler than April and about 1°C warmer than June.

10°15°20°25°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
12214
22214
32214
42214
52214
62214
72214
82214
92214
102214
112214
122214
132214
142214
152214
162214
172214
182214
192214
202214
212214
222213
232213
242213
252213
262213
272113
282113
292113
302113
312113

Mai weather by month

How May compares with the rest of the year at a glance. May is the 9th-warmest and 2nd-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan25° / 13°536.712.17.5
Feb26° / 13°395.1127.4
Mar25° / 14°718.6127.1
Apr23° / 14°11717.7125.5
May22° / 14°11518.4125.2
Jun21° / 13°5412.511.95.7
Jul20° / 12°267.711.96.1
Aug21° / 12°358.3126.3
Sep22° / 12°306.8127.0
Oct23° / 13°5411126.6
Nov23° / 13°9215.7125.7
Dec24° / 13°689.412.17.1

Cloud cover in May

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 8% of the time in May.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 21% of May, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 71%. Skies tend to open up as the month goes on.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
12476
22476
32476
42476
52575
62575
72575
82674
92674
102872
112872
122872
132971
142971
152872
163070
173070
183070
193070
203169
213268
223268
233268
243268
253367
263367
273367
283367
293367
303367
313169

Chance of precipitation in May

Any precipitation

Mai gets around 115 mm of rain over 18.4 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 59% and peaks near 73% on the wettest days. The odds ease toward the end of the month.

0%20%40%60%80%151015202531
Rain chance (%)
172
272
372
473
572
672
772
871
970
1069
1168
1267
1365
1464
1562
1660
1759
1857
1955
2053
2151
2250
2348
2447
2546
2645
2744
2843
2943
3043
3143

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 68% of days. It rarely turns muggy — the humid and sticky bands barely register.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Dry (%)Comfortable (%)Humid (%)
116786
216786
316786
416795
515805
615805
715805
816804
916804
1017794
1118793
1219783
1321763
1422762
1524742
1626722
1727712
1829701
1932671
2034651
2136631
2238611
2341581
2443561
2545541
2647521
2748520
2849510
2951490
3052480
3152480

Wind in May

Winds average 7 km/h in May.

Across May, daily wind ranges from about 6 km/h on the calmest days to 7 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

0246810151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
17calm
26calm
36calm
46calm
56calm
66calm
76calm
86calm
96calm
106calm
117calm
127calm
137calm
147calm
157calm
167calm
177calm
187calm
197calm
207calm
217calm
227calm
237calm
247calm
257calm
267calm
276calm
286calm
296calm
306calm
316calm

Sunrise & sunset in May

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 12 hours at the start of May to 11 h 54 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days shrink by about 6 minutes over May. Sunrise moves from 6:32 AM to 6:33 AM, and sunset from 6:30 PM to 6:29 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
112.06:326:30
212.06:326:30
312.06:326:30
412.06:326:29
512.06:316:29
612.06:316:29
712.06:316:29
812.06:316:29
912.06:316:29
1012.06:316:29
1112.06:316:29
1212.06:316:29
1312.06:316:29
1412.06:316:29
1512.06:316:29
1612.06:316:29
1712.06:316:29
1812.06:316:29
1912.06:316:29
2012.06:316:29
2112.06:316:29
2212.06:326:29
2312.06:326:29
2412.06:326:29
2512.06:326:29
2612.06:326:29
2711.96:326:29
2811.96:326:29
2911.96:326:29
3011.96:326:29
3111.96:336:29

Solar energy in May

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in May, about 4.99 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 4.22 kWh/m² to a high of 6.81 kWh/m² in February across the year — May's 4.99 kWh/m² falls in the middle.

0246151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
15.0Bright
25.0Bright
35.0Bright
45.0Bright
55.0Bright
65.0Bright
75.0Bright
85.0Bright
95.0Bright
105.0Bright
115.0Bright
125.0Bright
135.0Bright
145.0Bright
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
304.9Bright
314.9Bright
Planning a trip in May

Is May a good time to visit Mai?

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

5.2
Sightseeing
12th-best month of the year
3.5
Beach & pool
10th-best month of the year

May is a reasonable time to visit Mai for sightseeing.

What to pack for Mai in May

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

In May, Mai sees daytime highs around 22°C and nights near 14°C. Pack rain gear. Worth having: sun protection. About 18 days see rain.

rain gearsun protection

UV index in Mai in May

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in May peaks around 12 (very high — sun protection essential). The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Mai peaks around March 15 at about 17 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near June 19 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 17Jun 19UV 11
UV index (midday)Level
Jan16Extreme
Feb16Extreme
Mar17Extreme
Apr16Extreme
May12Extreme
Jun11Extreme
Jul12Extreme
Aug13Extreme
Sep14Extreme
Oct14Extreme
Nov14Extreme
Dec13Extreme

Air quality in Mai 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 Mai is worst in June — around 65 µg/m³ PM2.5 (unhealthy), and holds fairly steady the rest of the year.

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

020406080JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecUnhealthyPoorUnhealthyJun 1864 µg/m³Sep 2348 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan62Unhealthy
Feb59Unhealthy
Mar56Unhealthy
Apr56Unhealthy
May57Unhealthy
Jun65Unhealthy
Jul60Unhealthy
Aug51Poor
Sep48Poor
Oct48Poor
Nov60Unhealthy
Dec64Unhealthy
Location & terrain

Where is Mai?

Mai sits at 1.0°S, 36.6°E, 1,891 m above sea level, in Kenya. The nearest listed city is Maai Mahiu, 1.0 km away.

Topography around Mai

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Mai has significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 501 m around an average of 1,913 m above sea level; within 16 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,184 m; within 80 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 3,293 m.

The land around Mai is covered by grassland (29%), trees (22%) and cropland (20%) within 3 km, grassland (37%) and trees (32%) within 16 km, and grassland (33%), shrubs (27%) and trees (22%) within 80 km.

3 km
501 m
16 km
1,184 m
80 km
3,293 m
treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater
May weather nearby: Maai Mahiu 1.0 km · Limuru 16 km · Githunguri 23 km · Karuri 29 km · Kikuyu 31 km · Naivasha 34 km · Kiambu 35 km · Nairobi 42 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 Mai (-0.9817°, 36.5864°, elevation 1,891 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).