Mzuzu weather in May

In May, Mzuzu sees average daytime highs of 22°C and overnight lows near 14°C, with 50 mm of rain across 13.5 wet days and about 11.5 hours of daylight. It is the 9th-warmest and 7th-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 46% of the time in May, and the air most often feels comfortable.

Daylight stretches from about 11 h 36 min at the start of May to 11 h 24 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, May is Mzuzu's 6th-clearest and 8th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Mzuzu's year-round climate.

Daytime high
22°
9th warmest
Overnight low
14°
4th coldest
Rainfall
50 mm
13.5 wet days
Daylight
11 h 30 min
5:56 AM – 5:24 PM
Cloud cover
45%
6th clearest
Wind
8 km/h
8th windiest
Solar energy
5.16 kWh/m²
Travel score
6.5
out of 10

Mzuzu is city in Malawi.

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 22°C through the month.

A typical May day in Mzuzu 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 24°C. Set against its neighbours, May runs about 1°C cooler than April and about 2°C warmer than June.

10°15°20°25°30°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
12315
22315
32315
42315
52315
62315
72315
82315
92314
102314
112314
122314
132314
142314
152214
162214
172214
182214
192214
202214
212214
222213
232213
242213
252213
262213
272213
282213
292213
302213
312213

Mzuzu weather by month

How May compares with the rest of the year at a glance. May is the 9th-warmest and 7th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan25° / 18°30028.512.63.7
Feb25° / 18°25124.812.43.9
Mar25° / 18°22329.112.13.8
Apr24° / 16°14024.211.84.7
May22° / 14°5013.511.56.5
Jun21° / 12°227.611.37.1
Jul20° / 11°196.811.47.3
Aug22° / 12°165.211.68.1
Sep25° / 15°123.611.98.5
Oct26° / 17°438.612.37.4
Nov27° / 18°10414.412.56.0
Dec26° / 18°24625.912.74.3

Cloud cover in May

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 46% of the time in May.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 32% of May, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 23%. Skies tend to open up as the month goes on.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
17525
27525
37525
47624
57624
67624
77624
87624
97624
107624
117624
127624
137624
147525
157525
167525
177525
187525
197624
207624
217624
227723
237723
247921
257921
268119
278119
288119
298317
308416
318416

Chance of precipitation in May

Any precipitation

Mzuzu gets around 50 mm of rain over 13.5 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 43% and peaks near 59% on the wettest days. The odds ease toward the end of the month.

0%20%40%60%151015202531
Rain chance (%)
159
258
356
455
553
652
750
848
947
1046
1145
1244
1343
1442
1542
1641
1741
1841
1940
2040
2140
2239
2339
2438
2538
2637
2736
2835
2934
3033
3132

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 51% of days. It rarely turns muggy — the humid and sticky bands barely register.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Dry (%)Comfortable (%)Humid (%)Muggy (%)
1437545
2539515
3641494
4743474
5744453
6846433
7947413
81049392
91150382
101251361
111352341
121453321
131553311
141655290
151755280
161756270
171856260
181956250
191957240
202057230
212156230
222256220
232356210
242456200
252654200
262755180
272954170
283153160
293352150
303552130
313850120

Wind in May

Winds average 8 km/h in May.

Across May, daily wind ranges from about 8 km/h on the calmest days to 8 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

0246810151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
18calm
28calm
38calm
48calm
58calm
68calm
78calm
88calm
98calm
108calm
118calm
128calm
138calm
148calm
158calm
168calm
178calm
188calm
198calm
208calm
218calm
228calm
238calm
248calm
258calm
268calm
278calm
288calm
298calm
308calm
318calm

Sunrise & sunset in May

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 11 h 36 min at the start of May to 11 h 24 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days shrink by about 12 minutes over May. Sunrise moves from 5:53 AM to 6:00 AM, and sunset from 5:29 PM to 5:23 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
111.65:535:29
211.65:535:29
311.65:535:28
411.65:545:28
511.65:545:28
611.65:545:27
711.55:545:27
811.55:545:27
911.55:545:26
1011.55:555:26
1111.55:555:26
1211.55:555:25
1311.55:555:25
1411.55:555:25
1511.55:565:25
1611.55:565:24
1711.55:565:24
1811.55:565:24
1911.55:575:24
2011.45:575:24
2111.45:575:24
2211.45:575:23
2311.45:585:23
2411.45:585:23
2511.45:585:23
2611.45:585:23
2711.45:595:23
2811.45:595:23
2911.45:595:23
3011.46:005:23
3111.46:005:23

Solar energy in May

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in May, about 5.16 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 4.95 kWh/m² to a high of 7.17 kWh/m² in October across the year — May's 5.16 kWh/m² falls in the middle.

0246151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
15.3Bright
25.3Bright
35.3Bright
45.3Bright
55.3Bright
65.3Bright
75.3Bright
85.3Bright
95.3Bright
105.3Bright
115.2Bright
125.2Bright
135.2Bright
145.2Bright
155.2Bright
165.2Bright
175.2Bright
185.1Bright
195.1Bright
205.1Bright
215.1Bright
225.1Bright
235.1Bright
245.1Bright
255.1Bright
265.0Bright
275.0Bright
285.0Bright
295.0Bright
305.0Bright
315.0Bright
Planning a trip in May

Hazard calendar for Mzuzu

In seasonPeak

None of Mzuzu's seasonal hazards are active in May. The full-year calendar below shows when the rainy season, cyclone risk and dust haze do peak.

Mzuzu sits in the South Indian Ocean cyclone belt; the season peaks January–March.

Mzuzu's monsoon runs December–April, when most of the year's rain falls.

Cyclone
Monsoon
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec

Is May a good time to visit Mzuzu?

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

6.5
Sightseeing
6th-best month of the year
4.7
Beach & pool
5th-best month of the year

May is a reasonable time to visit Mzuzu for sightseeing.

What to pack for Mzuzu in May

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

In May, Mzuzu sees daytime highs around 22°C and nights near 14°C. Worth packing: light clothes, rain gear and sun protection. About 14 days see rain.

light clothesrain gearsun protection

UV index in Mzuzu in May

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in May peaks around 10 (very high — sun protection essential). The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Mzuzu peaks around February 15 at about 16 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near June 16 at about 9 (very high).

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

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecExtremeVery highExtremeFeb 15UV 16Jun 16UV 9
UV index (midday)Level
Jan16Extreme
Feb17Extreme
Mar16Extreme
Apr13Extreme
May10Very high
Jun9Very high
Jul10Very high
Aug11Extreme
Sep12Extreme
Oct13Extreme
Nov13Extreme
Dec14Extreme

Air quality in Mzuzu 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 Mzuzu is worst in October — around 57 µg/m³ PM2.5 (unhealthy), about 6.1× the cleanest month (December, 9 µg/m³).

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

0204060JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecGoodModeratePoorModerateOct 1553 µg/m³Dec 2210 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan11Good
Feb12Good
Mar11Good
Apr11Good
May12Good
Jun16Moderate
Jul21Moderate
Aug28Moderate
Sep32Moderate
Oct57Unhealthy
Nov24Moderate
Dec9Good
Location & terrain

Where is Mzuzu?

Mzuzu sits at 11.5°S, 34.0°E, 1,275 m above sea level, in Malawi. The nearest listed city is Nkhata Bay, 33 km away.

RumphiMzimbaTingiMbingaMatiriLundaziKigonsera

Topography around Mzuzu

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Mzuzu has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 193 m around an average of 1,267 m above sea level; within 16 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 972 m; within 80 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,043 m.

The land around Mzuzu is covered by artificial surfaces (36%) and shrubs (29%) within 3 km, trees (42%) and shrubs (31%) within 16 km, and water (34%), trees (23%) and shrubs (21%) within 80 km.

3 km
193 m
16 km
972 m
80 km
2,043 m
treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaceswater
May weather nearby: Nkhata Bay 33 km · Rumphi 53 km · Mzimba 67 km · Tingi 112 km · Mbinga 124 km · Matiri 125 km · Lundazi 130 km · Kigonsera 134 km

Malawi travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 2
Exercise Increased Caution
Power plugs
Type G
230 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 53% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$672
2025
Happiness
3.3 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
18%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
1.8
per 100k, 2012
Road deaths
33.4
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
Low
World Bank
English
Low
EF EPI 465
Religion
Protestant 34%other Christian 27%Roman Catholic 17%Muslim 14%

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 Mzuzu (-11.4656°, 34.0207°, elevation 1,275 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).