Karlstad weather in May

In May, Karlstad sees average daytime highs of 16°C and overnight lows near 6°C, with 61 mm of precipitation across 10.8 wet days and about 16.6 hours of daylight. It is the 4th-warmest and 6th-wettest month of the year here.

Highs climb over the month, from about 14°C in the first days to 18°C by the end. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 22% of the time in May, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 15 h 30 min at the start of May to 17 h 36 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, May is Karlstad's 1st-clearest and 9th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Karlstad's year-round climate.

Daytime high: 16°; 4th warmest
Overnight low: 6°; 8th coldest
Precipitation: 61 mm; 10.8 wet days
Daylight: 16 h 42 min; 3:42 AM – 8:22 PM
Cloud cover: 63%; 1st clearest
Wind: 11 km/h; 9th windiest
Solar energy: 5.35 kWh/m²
Travel score: 4.7; out of 10

Karlstad is urban area in Karlstad Municipality, Sweden.

Air quality: Good; PM10 17.2 µg/m³ · 2019

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

← April Karlstad year-round climate June →Best places to visit in May

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

Temperature in May

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Highs climb over the month, from about 14°C in the first days to 18°C by the end.

A typical May day in Karlstad reaches about 16°C in the afternoon and slips back to 6°C overnight — a 10°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 10°C and 23°C. Set against its neighbours, May runs about 5°C warmer than April and about 4°C cooler than June.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Avg high (°C)	13	13	14	14	14	14	14	14	15	15	15	15	15	15	15	16	16	16	16	16	16	17	17	17	17	17	18	18	18	18	18
Avg low (°C)	4	4	4	4	4	4	5	5	5	5	5	5	6	6	6	6	6	6	7	7	7	7	7	7	8	8	8	8	8	8	8

	Avg high (°C)	Avg low (°C)
1	13	4
2	13	4
3	14	4
4	14	4
5	14	4
6	14	4
7	14	5
8	14	5
9	15	5
10	15	5
11	15	5
12	15	5
13	15	6
14	15	6
15	15	6
16	16	6
17	16	6
18	16	6
19	16	7
20	16	7
21	16	7
22	17	7
23	17	7
24	17	7
25	17	8
26	17	8
27	18	8
28	18	8
29	18	8
30	18	8
31	18	8

How May really feels in Karlstad

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

heat index over the day's high

Days feeling ≤ 0°C

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.

Karlstad weather by month

How May compares with the rest of the year at a glance. May is the 4th-warmest and 6th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

Month	High / Low (°C)	Rainfall (mm)	Wet days	Snow days	Daylight (hours)	Travel score
Jan	-0° / -5°	52	10.3	7.5	6.6	0.0
Feb	0° / -5°	40	8.2	6.7	8.7	0.0
Mar	5° / -3°	37	7.8	4.8	11.3	0.3
Apr	10° / 1°	41	8.5	1.8	14.1	2.4
May	16° / 6°	61	10.8	0.2	16.6	4.7
Jun	19° / 10°	77	11.6	0	18.1	5.8
Jul	22° / 13°	78	12.4	0	17.5	6.1
Aug	20° / 12°	88	13.1	0	15.3	5.9
Sep	16° / 8°	64	9.9	0	12.6	4.7
Oct	10° / 4°	64	11.3	0.7	9.8	2.0
Nov	4° / 0°	59	11.1	3.1	7.3	0.1
Dec	1° / -4°	57	10.7	6.1	5.9	0.0

Cloud cover in May

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 22% of the time in May, the clearest month of the year.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 19% of May, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 58%.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Clearer (%)	39	39	40	41	41	42	43	43	43	44	44	44	43	43	42	41	41	40	40	40	40	40	40	40	41	41	42	42	43	43	43
Cloudier (%)	61	61	60	59	59	58	57	57	57	56	56	56	57	57	58	59	59	60	60	60	60	60	60	60	59	59	58	58	57	57	57

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	39	61
2	39	61
3	40	60
4	41	59
5	41	59
6	42	58
7	43	57
8	43	57
9	43	57
10	44	56
11	44	56
12	44	56
13	43	57
14	43	57
15	42	58
16	41	59
17	41	59
18	40	60
19	40	60
20	40	60
21	40	60
22	40	60
23	40	60
24	40	60
25	41	59
26	41	59
27	42	58
28	42	58
29	43	57
30	43	57
31	43	57

Chance of precipitation in May

Any precipitationSnow

Karlstad gets around 61 mm of rain and snow over 10.8 wet days in May. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Day to day, the chance of measurable precipitation averages around 35% and peaks near 37% on the wettest days, and about 0 day brings snow.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Rain chance (%)	33	33	33	33	34	34	34	34	34	35	35	35	36	36	36	37	37	37	37	37	36	36	36	35	35	34	34	33	33	33	33
Snow chance (%)	2	2	2	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

	Rain chance (%)	Snow chance (%)
1	33	2
2	33	2
3	33	2
4	33	1
5	34	1
6	34	1
7	34	1
8	34	1
9	34	1
10	35	1
11	35	1
12	35	1
13	36	1
14	36	1
15	36	1
16	37	1
17	37	1
18	37	1
19	37	1
20	37	1
21	36	0
22	36	0
23	36	0
24	35	0
25	35	0
26	34	0
27	34	0
28	33	0
29	33	0
30	33	0
31	33	0

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 98% of days. It rarely turns muggy — the humid and sticky bands barely register.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Dry (%)	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	99	99	99	99	98	98	98	98	98	97	97	97	97	97	97	97	97	97	97	97	97
Comfortable (%)	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	1	1	1	2	2	2	2	2	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3

	Dry (%)	Comfortable (%)
1	100	0
2	100	0
3	100	0
4	100	0
5	100	0
6	100	0
7	100	0
8	100	0
9	100	0
10	100	0
11	99	1
12	99	1
13	99	1
14	99	1
15	98	2
16	98	2
17	98	2
18	98	2
19	98	2
20	97	3
21	97	3
22	97	3
23	97	3
24	97	3
25	97	3
26	97	3
27	97	3
28	97	3
29	97	3
30	97	3
31	97	3

Wind in May

Winds average 11 km/h in May.

Across May, daily wind ranges from about 11 km/h on the calmest days to 11 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Wind speed (km/h)	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11
Feels	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm

	Wind speed (km/h)	Feels
1	11	calm
2	11	calm
3	11	calm
4	11	calm
5	11	calm
6	11	calm
7	11	calm
8	11	calm
9	11	calm
10	11	calm
11	11	calm
12	11	calm
13	11	calm
14	11	calm
15	11	calm
16	11	calm
17	11	calm
18	11	calm
19	11	calm
20	11	calm
21	11	calm
22	11	calm
23	11	calm
24	11	calm
25	11	calm
26	11	calm
27	11	calm
28	11	calm
29	11	calm
30	11	calm
31	11	calm

Sunrise & sunset in May

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 15 h 30 min at the start of May to 17 h 36 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 126 minutes over May. Sunrise moves from 4:20 AM to 3:14 AM, and sunset from 7:47 PM to 8:52 PM.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Daylight (h)	15.5	15.5	15.6	15.7	15.8	15.9	16.0	16.0	16.1	16.2	16.3	16.4	16.4	16.5	16.6	16.7	16.7	16.8	16.9	16.9	17.0	17.1	17.2	17.2	17.3	17.3	17.4	17.5	17.5	17.6	17.6
Sunrise (AM)	4:20	4:17	4:14	4:12	4:09	4:06	4:04	4:01	3:59	3:56	3:54	3:52	3:49	3:47	3:45	3:42	3:40	3:38	3:36	3:34	3:32	3:30	3:28	3:26	3:24	3:22	3:21	3:19	3:17	3:16	3:14
Sunset (PM)	7:47	7:49	7:52	7:54	7:56	7:59	8:01	8:04	8:06	8:08	8:11	8:13	8:15	8:17	8:20	8:22	8:24	8:26	8:29	8:31	8:33	8:35	8:37	8:39	8:41	8:43	8:45	8:47	8:49	8:51	8:52

	Daylight (h)	Sunrise (AM)	Sunset (PM)
1	15.5	4:20	7:47
2	15.5	4:17	7:49
3	15.6	4:14	7:52
4	15.7	4:12	7:54
5	15.8	4:09	7:56
6	15.9	4:06	7:59
7	16.0	4:04	8:01
8	16.0	4:01	8:04
9	16.1	3:59	8:06
10	16.2	3:56	8:08
11	16.3	3:54	8:11
12	16.4	3:52	8:13
13	16.4	3:49	8:15
14	16.5	3:47	8:17
15	16.6	3:45	8:20
16	16.7	3:42	8:22
17	16.7	3:40	8:24
18	16.8	3:38	8:26
19	16.9	3:36	8:29
20	16.9	3:34	8:31
21	17.0	3:32	8:33
22	17.1	3:30	8:35
23	17.2	3:28	8:37
24	17.2	3:26	8:39
25	17.3	3:24	8:41
26	17.3	3:22	8:43
27	17.4	3:21	8:45
28	17.5	3:19	8:47
29	17.5	3:17	8:49
30	17.6	3:16	8:51
31	17.6	3:14	8:52

Solar energy in May

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in May, about 5.35 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 0.2 kWh/m² to a high of 5.79 kWh/m² in June across the year — May's 5.35 kWh/m² sits near the top of that range.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Solar energy (kWh/m²)	4.7	4.8	4.8	4.9	4.9	5.0	5.0	5.1	5.1	5.2	5.2	5.3	5.3	5.3	5.3	5.4	5.4	5.4	5.5	5.5	5.5	5.5	5.6	5.6	5.6	5.7	5.7	5.7	5.7	5.8	5.8
Level	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright

	Solar energy (kWh/m²)	Level
1	4.7	Bright
2	4.8	Bright
3	4.8	Bright
4	4.9	Bright
5	4.9	Bright
6	5.0	Bright
7	5.0	Bright
8	5.1	Bright
9	5.1	Bright
10	5.2	Bright
11	5.2	Bright
12	5.3	Bright
13	5.3	Bright
14	5.3	Bright
15	5.3	Bright
16	5.4	Bright
17	5.4	Bright
18	5.4	Bright
19	5.5	Bright
20	5.5	Bright
21	5.5	Bright
22	5.5	Bright
23	5.6	Bright
24	5.6	Bright
25	5.6	Bright
26	5.7	Bright
27	5.7	Bright
28	5.7	Bright
29	5.7	Bright
30	5.8	Bright
31	5.8	Bright

Planning a trip in May

Is May a good time to visit Karlstad?

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

4.7

Sightseeing

4th-best month of the year

0.7

Beach & pool

4th-best month of the year

May is a reasonable time to visit Karlstad for sightseeing.

What to pack for Karlstad in May

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

In May, Karlstad sees daytime highs around 16°C and nights near 6°C. Worth packing: a warm layer, rain gear and sun protection. About 11 days see rain.

a warm layerrain gearsun protection

UV index in Karlstad in May

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in May peaks around 4 — enough to warrant sun protection. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Karlstad peaks around June 17 at about 5 (moderate) — a little sun protection helps at midday. It bottoms out near January 1 at about 0 (low).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 4 months of the year.

	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
UV index (midday)	0	1	2	3	4	5	4	4	3	1	0	0
Level	Low	Low	Low	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Low	Low	Low

	UV index (midday)	Level
Jan	0	Low
Feb	1	Low
Mar	2	Low
Apr	3	Moderate
May	4	Moderate
Jun	5	Moderate
Jul	4	Moderate
Aug	4	Moderate
Sep	3	Moderate
Oct	1	Low
Nov	0	Low
Dec	0	Low

Location & terrain

Where is Karlstad?

Karlstad sits at 59.4°N, 13.5°E, 58 m above sea level, in Sweden. The nearest listed city is Kristinehamn, 35 km away.

Topography around Karlstad

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Karlstad has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 48 m around an average of 51 m above sea level; within 16 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 113 m; within 80 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 434 m.

The land around Karlstad is covered by artificial surfaces (33%) and trees (30%) within 3 km, trees (41%) and water (36%) within 16 km, and trees (61%) and water (29%) within 80 km.

3 km

48 m

artificial surfaces 33%

16 km

113 m

trees 41%

80 km

434 m

trees 61%

treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwaterwetland

← April Karlstad year-round climate June →Best places to visit in May

May weather nearby: Kristinehamn 35 km · Karlskoga 58 km · Mariestad 77 km · Örebro 97 km · Kumla 97 km · Lidköping 99 km · Skövde 112 km · Halden 124 km

Sweden travel facts

Travel advisory: Level 2; Exercise Increased Caution
Power plugs: Type C / F; 230 V · 50 Hz
Prices: ≈ 87% of US; price level, 2025
GDP per capita: $63,133; 2025
Happiness: 7.3 / 10; World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water: 100%; of population, 2024
Homicide rate: 1.1; per 100k, 2023
Road deaths: 3.1; per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group: High; World Bank
English: Very high; EF EPI 609
Religion

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 Karlstad (59.3793°, 13.5036°, elevation 58 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).

	Avg high (°C)	Avg low (°C)
1	13	4
2	13	4
3	14	4
4	14	4
5	14	4
6	14	4
7	14	5
8	14	5
9	15	5
10	15	5
11	15	5
12	15	5
13	15	6
14	15	6
15	15	6
16	16	6
17	16	6
18	16	6
19	16	7
20	16	7
21	16	7
22	17	7
23	17	7
24	17	7
25	17	8
26	17	8
27	18	8
28	18	8
29	18	8
30	18	8
31	18	8

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	39	61
2	39	61
3	40	60
4	41	59
5	41	59
6	42	58
7	43	57
8	43	57
9	43	57
10	44	56
11	44	56
12	44	56
13	43	57
14	43	57
15	42	58
16	41	59
17	41	59
18	40	60
19	40	60
20	40	60
21	40	60
22	40	60
23	40	60
24	40	60
25	41	59
26	41	59
27	42	58
28	42	58
29	43	57
30	43	57
31	43	57

	Rain chance (%)	Snow chance (%)
1	33	2
2	33	2
3	33	2
4	33	1
5	34	1
6	34	1
7	34	1
8	34	1
9	34	1
10	35	1
11	35	1
12	35	1
13	36	1
14	36	1
15	36	1
16	37	1
17	37	1
18	37	1
19	37	1
20	37	1
21	36	0
22	36	0
23	36	0
24	35	0
25	35	0
26	34	0
27	34	0
28	33	0
29	33	0
30	33	0
31	33	0

	Dry (%)	Comfortable (%)
1	100	0
2	100	0
3	100	0
4	100	0
5	100	0
6	100	0
7	100	0
8	100	0
9	100	0
10	100	0
11	99	1
12	99	1
13	99	1
14	99	1
15	98	2
16	98	2
17	98	2
18	98	2
19	98	2
20	97	3
21	97	3
22	97	3
23	97	3
24	97	3
25	97	3
26	97	3
27	97	3
28	97	3
29	97	3
30	97	3
31	97	3

	Avg high (°C)	Avg low (°C)
1	13	4
2	13	4
3	14	4
4	14	4
5	14	4
6	14	4
7	14	5
8	14	5
9	15	5
10	15	5
11	15	5
12	15	5
13	15	6
14	15	6
15	15	6
16	16	6
17	16	6
18	16	6
19	16	7
20	16	7
21	16	7
22	17	7
23	17	7
24	17	7
25	17	8
26	17	8
27	18	8
28	18	8
29	18	8
30	18	8
31	18	8

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	39	61
2	39	61
3	40	60
4	41	59
5	41	59
6	42	58
7	43	57
8	43	57
9	43	57
10	44	56
11	44	56
12	44	56
13	43	57
14	43	57
15	42	58
16	41	59
17	41	59
18	40	60
19	40	60
20	40	60
21	40	60
22	40	60
23	40	60
24	40	60
25	41	59
26	41	59
27	42	58
28	42	58
29	43	57
30	43	57
31	43	57

	Rain chance (%)	Snow chance (%)
1	33	2
2	33	2
3	33	2
4	33	1
5	34	1
6	34	1
7	34	1
8	34	1
9	34	1
10	35	1
11	35	1
12	35	1
13	36	1
14	36	1
15	36	1
16	37	1
17	37	1
18	37	1
19	37	1
20	37	1
21	36	0
22	36	0
23	36	0
24	35	0
25	35	0
26	34	0
27	34	0
28	33	0
29	33	0
30	33	0
31	33	0

	Dry (%)	Comfortable (%)
1	100	0
2	100	0
3	100	0
4	100	0
5	100	0
6	100	0
7	100	0
8	100	0
9	100	0
10	100	0
11	99	1
12	99	1
13	99	1
14	99	1
15	98	2
16	98	2
17	98	2
18	98	2
19	98	2
20	97	3
21	97	3
22	97	3
23	97	3
24	97	3
25	97	3
26	97	3
27	97	3
28	97	3
29	97	3
30	97	3
31	97	3

	Avg high (°C)	Avg low (°C)
1	13	4
2	13	4
3	14	4
4	14	4
5	14	4
6	14	4
7	14	5
8	14	5
9	15	5
10	15	5
11	15	5
12	15	5
13	15	6
14	15	6
15	15	6
16	16	6
17	16	6
18	16	6
19	16	7
20	16	7
21	16	7
22	17	7
23	17	7
24	17	7
25	17	8
26	17	8
27	18	8
28	18	8
29	18	8
30	18	8
31	18	8

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	39	61
2	39	61
3	40	60
4	41	59
5	41	59
6	42	58
7	43	57
8	43	57
9	43	57
10	44	56
11	44	56
12	44	56
13	43	57
14	43	57
15	42	58
16	41	59
17	41	59
18	40	60
19	40	60
20	40	60
21	40	60
22	40	60
23	40	60
24	40	60
25	41	59
26	41	59
27	42	58
28	42	58
29	43	57
30	43	57
31	43	57

	Rain chance (%)	Snow chance (%)
1	33	2
2	33	2
3	33	2
4	33	1
5	34	1
6	34	1
7	34	1
8	34	1
9	34	1
10	35	1
11	35	1
12	35	1
13	36	1
14	36	1
15	36	1
16	37	1
17	37	1
18	37	1
19	37	1
20	37	1
21	36	0
22	36	0
23	36	0
24	35	0
25	35	0
26	34	0
27	34	0
28	33	0
29	33	0
30	33	0
31	33	0

	Dry (%)	Comfortable (%)
1	100	0
2	100	0
3	100	0
4	100	0
5	100	0
6	100	0
7	100	0
8	100	0
9	100	0
10	100	0
11	99	1
12	99	1
13	99	1
14	99	1
15	98	2
16	98	2
17	98	2
18	98	2
19	98	2
20	97	3
21	97	3
22	97	3
23	97	3
24	97	3
25	97	3
26	97	3
27	97	3
28	97	3
29	97	3
30	97	3
31	97	3