Zalău weather in May

In May, Zalău sees average daytime highs of 21°C and overnight lows near 10°C, with 79 mm of rain across 13.7 wet days and about 14.8 hours of daylight. It is the 5th-warmest and 3rd-wettest month of the year here.

Highs climb over the month, from about 20°C in the first days to 22°C by the end. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 28% of the time in May, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 14 h 12 min at the start of May to 15 h 24 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, May is Zalău's 7th-clearest and 6th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Zalău's year-round climate.

Daytime high
21°
5th warmest
Overnight low
10°
8th coldest
Rainfall
79 mm
13.7 wet days
Daylight
14 h 54 min
4:58 AM – 7:50 PM
Cloud cover
60%
7th clearest
Wind
8 km/h
6th windiest
Solar energy
5.55 kWh/m²
Travel score
5.9
out of 10

Zalău is locality in Sălaj County, Romania.

Air quality
Good
PM10 21.9 µg/m³ · 2018
Founded
1210

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 20°C in the first days to 22°C by the end.

A typical May day in Zalău reaches about 21°C in the afternoon and slips back to 10°C overnight — a 11°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 15°C and 26°C. Set against its neighbours, May runs about 5°C warmer than April and about 4°C cooler than June.

10°20°30°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
1198
2209
3209
4209
5209
6209
7209
8209
9209
10209
11209
122010
132010
142110
152110
162110
172110
182110
192110
202110
212111
222111
232111
242111
252211
262211
272211
282211
292212
302212
312212

How May really feels in Zalău

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.

Zalău weather by month

How May compares with the rest of the year at a glance. May is the 5th-warmest and 3rd-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan / -4°449.66.68.70.0
Feb / -3°459.75.4100.1
Mar10° / 5510.62.811.62.1
Apr16° / 6311.40.713.34.8
May21° / 10°7913.7014.85.9
Jun24° / 14°9413.8015.66.3
Jul26° / 15°9012.7015.36.4
Aug26° / 15°6610.90146.7
Sep21° / 11°7210.1012.46.6
Oct16° / 609.50.210.64.9
Nov / 519.42.29.11.8
Dec / -3°549.958.40.0

Cloud cover in May

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 28% 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 53%. Skies tend to cloud over as the month goes on.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
15248
25149
35149
45050
55050
64951
74951
84852
94852
104753
114753
124753
134753
144852
154654
164654
174654
184654
194654
204654
214654
224654
234654
244654
254555
264654
274654
284654
294753
304753
314753

Chance of precipitation in May

Any precipitation

Zalău gets around 79 mm of rain over 13.7 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 44% and peaks near 47% on the wettest days. The odds climb toward the end of the month.

0%20%40%60%151015202531
Rain chance (%)
139
239
339
440
540
641
741
842
942
1042
1143
1243
1343
1443
1544
1644
1744
1845
1945
2045
2146
2246
2346
2446
2547
2647
2747
2847
2947
3047
3146

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 83% of days. It rarely turns muggy — the humid and sticky bands barely register.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Dry (%)Comfortable (%)Humid (%)
19640
29550
39550
49460
59460
69460
79370
89370
99280
109280
119190
129190
1390100
1489110
1588120
1687130
1786140
1883161
1982171
2080191
2179201
2277221
2375241
2474251
2572262
2670282
2768293
2867303
2965314
3064324
3162335

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 9 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

051015151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
19calm
29calm
39calm
49calm
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 14 h 12 min at the start of May to 15 h 24 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 72 minutes over May. Sunrise moves from 5:20 AM to 4:43 AM, and sunset from 7:30 PM to 8:07 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
114.25:207:30
214.25:187:31
314.35:177:33
414.35:157:34
514.45:147:35
614.45:127:37
714.55:117:38
814.55:097:39
914.65:087:41
1014.65:067:42
1114.65:057:43
1214.75:037:45
1314.75:027:46
1414.85:017:47
1514.84:597:49
1614.94:587:50
1714.94:577:51
1814.94:567:52
1915.04:557:54
2015.04:537:55
2115.14:527:56
2215.14:517:57
2315.14:507:58
2415.24:498:00
2515.24:488:01
2615.24:478:02
2715.34:478:03
2815.34:468:04
2915.34:458:05
3015.44:448:06
3115.44:438:07

Solar energy in May

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in May, about 5.55 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 0.99 kWh/m² to a high of 5.86 kWh/m² in June across the year — May's 5.55 kWh/m² sits near the top of that range.

0246151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
15.4Bright
25.4Bright
35.5Bright
45.5Bright
55.5Bright
65.5Bright
75.5Bright
85.5Bright
95.5Bright
105.5Bright
115.5Bright
125.5Bright
135.5Bright
145.5Bright
155.5Bright
165.5Bright
175.5Bright
185.5Bright
195.5Bright
205.5Bright
215.5Bright
225.5Bright
235.6Bright
245.6Bright
255.6Bright
265.6Bright
275.6Bright
285.6Bright
295.7Bright
305.7Bright
315.7Bright
Planning a trip in May

Is May a good time to visit Zalău?

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

5.9
Sightseeing
5th-best month of the year
3.5
Beach & pool
5th-best month of the year

May is a reasonable time to visit Zalău for sightseeing.

What to pack for Zalău in May

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

In May, Zalău sees daytime highs around 21°C and nights near 10°C. Worth packing: rain gear and sun protection. About 14 days see rain.

rain gearsun protection

UV index in Zalău in May

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in May peaks around 6 — enough to warrant sun protection. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Zalău peaks around July 15 at about 8 (very high) — sunscreen and a hat are worth it in the middle of the day. It bottoms out near December 22 at about 1 (low).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 7 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLowModerateHighVery highModerateLowJul 15UV 8Dec 22UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan1Low
Feb2Low
Mar3Moderate
Apr7High
May6High
Jun8Very high
Jul8Very high
Aug7Very high
Sep5Moderate
Oct3Moderate
Nov2Low
Dec1Low
Location & terrain

Where is Zalău?

Zalău sits at 47.2°N, 23.1°E, 261 m above sea level, in Romania. The nearest listed city is Şimleu Silvaniei, 19 km away.

DejCluj-NapocaBaia MareSatu MareGherlaCareiBaia Sprie

Topography around Zalău

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Zalău has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 202 m around an average of 288 m above sea level; within 16 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 701 m; within 80 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,725 m.

The land around Zalău is covered by trees (38%), grassland (33%) and artificial surfaces (21%) within 3 km, trees (41%) and grassland (39%) within 16 km, and trees (43%), grassland (32%) and cropland (23%) within 80 km.

3 km
202 m
16 km
701 m
80 km
1,725 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaces
May weather nearby: Şimleu Silvaniei 19 km · Dej 62 km · Cluj-Napoca 64 km · Baia Mare 64 km · Satu Mare 68 km · Gherla 68 km · Carei 69 km · Baia Sprie 71 km

Romania travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 1
Exercise Normal Precautions
Power plugs
Type C / F
230 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 44% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$22,538
2025
Happiness
6.6 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
82%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
1.1
per 100k, 2023
Road deaths
10.3
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
High
World Bank
English
Very high
EF EPI 605
Religion
Romanian Orthodox 85%other 5%Roman Catholic 5%Reformed 3%

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 Zalău (47.2°, 23.05°, elevation 261 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. Topography is sampled from the Copernicus DEM GLO-90 elevation model (© ESA/Airbus) and ESA WorldCover 2021 land cover (CC BY 4.0).