Kandy weather in May

In May, Kandy sees average daytime highs of 28°C and overnight lows near 21°C, with 125 mm of rain across 20 wet days and about 12.3 hours of daylight. It is the 2nd-warmest and 5th-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 28°C through the month. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 10% of the time in May, and the air most often feels muggy.

Daylight stretches from about 12 h 18 min at the start of May to 12 h 24 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, May is Kandy's 5th-clearest and 5th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Kandy's year-round climate.

Daytime high
28°
2nd warmest
Overnight low
21°
11th coldest
Rainfall
125 mm
20 wet days
Daylight
12 h 18 min
5:54 AM – 6:14 PM
Cloud cover
76%
5th clearest
Wind
8 km/h
5th windiest
Solar energy
5.63 kWh/m²
Travel score
4.5
out of 10

Kandy is capital city in Central Province, Sri Lanka.

Density
3,915/km²
people per km²
Founded
1350

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 28°C through the month.

A typical May day in Kandy reaches about 28°C in the afternoon and slips back to 21°C overnight — a 7°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 26°C and 30°C. Set against its neighbours, May runs on par with April and about 1°C warmer than June.

15°20°25°30°35°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
12821
22821
32821
42821
52821
62821
72821
82821
92821
102821
112821
122821
132821
142821
152821
162821
172821
182821
192821
202821
212821
222821
232821
242821
252821
262821
272821
282821
292821
302821
312821

Kandy weather by month

How May compares with the rest of the year at a glance. May is the 2nd-warmest and 5th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan24° / 18°11014.411.66.1
Feb26° / 18°861111.86.4
Mar28° / 19°8310.9126.0
Apr28° / 20°17118.312.24.6
May28° / 21°1252012.34.5
Jun27° / 21°7917.412.45.0
Jul27° / 21°8318.312.45.0
Aug27° / 20°9018.112.25.0
Sep27° / 20°12119.2124.9
Oct27° / 20°2572311.84.4
Nov25° / 19°27423.711.74.3
Dec24° / 19°21420.811.65.0

Cloud cover in May

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 10% of the time in May.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 15% of May, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 75%. Skies tend to cloud over as the month goes on.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
13070
22971
32971
42872
52971
62971
72971
82872
92674
102674
112674
122674
132575
142575
152575
162575
172476
182476
192476
202377
212377
222377
232278
242278
252278
262179
272179
282179
292080
301981
311882

Chance of precipitation in May

Any precipitation

Kandy gets around 125 mm of rain over 20 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 64% and peaks near 67% on the wettest days.

0%20%40%60%80%151015202531
Rain chance (%)
162
262
362
462
563
663
763
863
964
1064
1164
1264
1364
1464
1564
1664
1764
1864
1964
2064
2164
2265
2365
2465
2566
2666
2766
2867
2967
3067
3167

Humidity in May

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

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

By dew point, May lands in the muggy band about 75% of days. Sticky, muggy-or-worse air turns up on roughly 98% of them.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Humid (%)Muggy (%)Oppressive (%)
147521
247422
337324
437225
537126
637027
736928
836928
927028
1027028
1127028
1227127
1327127
1427226
1527226
1617425
1717524
1817524
1917623
2017722
2117722
2217821
2317920
2417920
2518019
2618118
2718217
2818316
2918415
3018514
3118613

Wind in May

Winds average 8 km/h in May.

Across May, daily wind ranges from about 5 km/h on the calmest days to 10 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

051015151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
15calm
25calm
35calm
46calm
56calm
66calm
76calm
86calm
96calm
107calm
117calm
127calm
137calm
148calm
158calm
168calm
178calm
188calm
198calm
209calm
219calm
229calm
239calm
249calm
259calm
2610calm
2710calm
2810calm
2910calm
3010calm
3110calm

Sunrise & sunset in May

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 12 h 18 min at the start of May to 12 h 24 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 5:57 AM to 5:53 AM, and sunset from 6:12 PM to 6:17 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
112.35:576:12
212.35:576:12
312.35:566:12
412.35:566:12
512.35:566:12
612.35:566:13
712.35:556:13
812.35:556:13
912.35:556:13
1012.35:556:13
1112.35:556:13
1212.35:546:13
1312.35:546:13
1412.35:546:13
1512.35:546:14
1612.35:546:14
1712.35:546:14
1812.35:546:14
1912.35:536:14
2012.35:536:14
2112.45:536:14
2212.45:536:15
2312.45:536:15
2412.45:536:15
2512.45:536:15
2612.45:536:15
2712.45:536:16
2812.45:536:16
2912.45:536:16
3012.45:536:16
3112.45:536:17

Solar energy in May

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in May, about 5.63 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 3.88 kWh/m² to a high of 6.28 kWh/m² in March across the year — May's 5.63 kWh/m² sits near the top of that range.

0246151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
15.8Bright
25.8Bright
35.7Bright
45.7Bright
55.7Bright
65.7Bright
75.7Bright
85.7Bright
95.7Bright
105.7Bright
115.7Bright
125.7Bright
135.7Bright
145.7Bright
155.7Bright
165.7Bright
175.7Bright
185.7Bright
195.7Bright
205.7Bright
215.6Bright
225.6Bright
235.6Bright
245.6Bright
255.6Bright
265.6Bright
275.6Bright
285.5Bright
295.5Bright
305.5Bright
315.5Bright
Planning a trip in May

Hazard calendar for Kandy

In seasonPeak

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

Kandy's rainy season runs October–December, when most of the year's rain falls.

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

Is May a good time to visit Kandy?

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

4.5
Sightseeing
10th-best month of the year
5.1
Beach & pool
6th-best month of the year

May is a reasonable time to visit Kandy for sightseeing.

What to pack for Kandy in May

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

In May, Kandy sees daytime highs around 28°C and nights near 21°C. Pack light clothes and rain gear. Worth having: sun protection. About 20 days see rain.

light clothesrain gearsun protection

UV index in Kandy in May

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in May peaks around 14 (very high — sun protection essential). The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Kandy peaks around April 16 at about 14 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 17 at about 11 (extreme).

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

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecExtremeApr 16UV 14Dec 17UV 11
UV index (midday)Level
Jan11Extreme
Feb14Extreme
Mar14Extreme
Apr14Extreme
May14Extreme
Jun12Extreme
Jul12Extreme
Aug13Extreme
Sep13Extreme
Oct13Extreme
Nov11Extreme
Dec11Extreme

Air quality in Kandy 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 Kandy is worst in April — around 46 µg/m³ PM2.5 (poor), and holds fairly steady the rest of the year.

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

0204060JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecPoorModeratePoorApr 1146 µg/m³Jul 1930 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan40Poor
Feb37Poor
Mar45Poor
Apr46Poor
May40Poor
Jun31Moderate
Jul30Moderate
Aug30Moderate
Sep34Moderate
Oct43Poor
Nov44Poor
Dec41Poor
Location & terrain

Where is Kandy?

Kandy sits at 7.3°N, 80.6°E, 500 m above sea level, in Sri Lanka. The nearest listed city is Gampola, 16 km away.

KegalleKurunegalaNuwara EliyaHattonBadullaDambulla

Topography around Kandy

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Kandy has significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 562 m around an average of 566 m above sea level; within 16 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,298 m; within 80 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,498 m.

The land around Kandy is covered by trees (78%) within 3 km, trees (91%) within 16 km, and trees (87%) within 80 km.

3 km
562 m
16 km
1,298 m
80 km
2,498 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaceswater
May weather nearby: Gampola 16 km · Matale 20 km · Kegalle 32 km · Kurunegala 36 km · Nuwara Eliya 39 km · Hatton 45 km · Badulla 58 km · Dambulla 63 km

Sri Lanka travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 2
Exercise Increased Caution
Power plugs
Type D / G / M
230 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 27% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$5,002
2025
Happiness
4.0 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
47%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
3.3
per 100k, 2019
Road deaths
19.7
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
Upper middle
World Bank
English
Low
EF EPI 486
Religion
Buddhist 70%Hindu 13%Muslim 10%Roman Catholic 6%

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 Kandy (7.2906°, 80.6336°, elevation 500 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).