Thun weather in May

In May, Thun sees average daytime highs of 15°C and overnight lows near 6°C, with 183 mm of precipitation across 18.3 wet days and about 14.8 hours of daylight. It is the 5th-warmest and 2nd-wettest month of the year here.

Highs climb over the month, from about 14°C in the first days to 17°C by the end. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 20% of the time in May, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 14 h 06 min at the start of May to 15 h 18 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, May is Thun's 11th-clearest and 7th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Thun's year-round climate.

Daytime high
15°
5th warmest
Overnight low
8th coldest
Precipitation
183 mm
18.3 wet days
Daylight
14 h 48 min
5:01 AM – 7:50 PM
Cloud cover
65%
11th clearest
Wind
6 km/h
7th windiest
Solar energy
5.37 kWh/m²
Travel score
3.8
out of 10
Air quality
Excellent
PM10 12.4 µg/m³ · 2020

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 14°C in the first days to 17°C by the end.

A typical May day in Thun reaches about 15°C in the afternoon and slips back to 6°C overnight — a 9°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 9°C and 21°C. Set against its neighbours, May runs about 4°C warmer than April and about 4°C cooler than June.

10°15°20°25°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
1134
2134
3144
4145
5145
6145
7145
8145
9145
10145
11145
12155
13156
14156
15156
16156
17156
18156
19166
20166
21166
22166
23167
24167
25167
26177
27177
28177
29177
30178
31178

How May really feels in Thun

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.

Thun weather by month

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

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan / -5°10712.911.48.80.0
Feb / -5°10011.710.4100.0
Mar / -1°10814.19.511.61.0
Apr11° / 12014.86.713.32.4
May15° / 18318.32.614.83.8
Jun19° / 10°182180.415.64.9
Jul21° / 11°19316.80.215.35.6
Aug20° / 11°180160.1145.6
Sep16° / 13713.7112.44.8
Oct12° / 11212.42.810.63.1
Nov / -1°11713.27.99.20.6
Dec / -4°12213.711.48.40.0

Cloud cover in May

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 20% of the time in May.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 18% of May, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 62%. Skies tend to open up as the month goes on.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
13466
23367
33367
43268
53367
63367
73466
83466
93466
103565
113565
123565
133664
143763
153763
163862
173961
183961
194060
204159
214159
224258
234357
244357
254357
264456
274357
284357
294357
304258
314258

Chance of precipitation in May

Any precipitationSnow

Thun gets around 183 mm of rain and snow over 18.3 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 59% and peaks near 61% on the wettest days, and about 3 days bring snow.

0%20%40%60%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
15813
25913
35913
46012
56112
66112
76111
86111
96111
106110
116110
126110
13619
14619
15619
16608
17608
18598
19587
20587
21577
22577
23566
24566
25566
26575
27575
28585
29584
30594
31604

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 100% of days. It rarely turns muggy — the humid and sticky bands barely register.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Dry (%)Comfortable (%)
11000
21000
31000
41000
51000
61000
71000
81000
91000
101000
111000
121000
131000
141000
151000
161000
171000
181000
191000
201000
211000
221000
231000
241000
25991
26991
27991
28982
29982
30973
31973

Wind in May

Winds average 6 km/h in May.

Across May, daily wind ranges from about 5 km/h on the calmest days to 6 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

0246810151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
16calm
26calm
36calm
46calm
56calm
66calm
76calm
86calm
96calm
106calm
116calm
126calm
136calm
146calm
156calm
166calm
176calm
186calm
196calm
206calm
216calm
226calm
236calm
246calm
256calm
266calm
276calm
285calm
295calm
305calm
315calm

Sunrise & sunset in May

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 14 h 06 min at the start of May to 15 h 18 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 5:23 AM to 4:47 AM, and sunset from 7:31 PM to 8:07 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
114.15:237:31
214.25:217:32
314.25:207:33
414.35:187:35
514.35:177:36
614.45:157:37
714.45:147:39
814.55:127:40
914.55:117:41
1014.65:097:43
1114.65:087:44
1214.65:067:45
1314.75:057:46
1414.75:047:48
1514.85:037:49
1614.85:017:50
1714.95:007:51
1814.94:597:53
1914.94:587:54
2015.04:577:55
2115.04:567:56
2215.04:557:57
2315.14:547:59
2415.14:538:00
2515.24:528:01
2615.24:518:02
2715.24:508:03
2815.34:498:04
2915.34:488:05
3015.34:478:06
3115.34:478:07

Solar energy in May

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in May, about 5.37 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 1.17 kWh/m² to a high of 5.73 kWh/m² in July across the year — May's 5.37 kWh/m² sits near the top of that range.

0246151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
15.1Bright
25.1Bright
35.1Bright
45.1Bright
55.1Bright
65.1Bright
75.1Bright
85.2Bright
95.2Bright
105.2Bright
115.2Bright
125.3Bright
135.3Bright
145.3Bright
155.3Bright
165.4Bright
175.4Bright
185.4Bright
195.5Bright
205.5Bright
215.5Bright
225.5Bright
235.5Bright
245.6Bright
255.6Bright
265.6Bright
275.6Bright
285.6Bright
295.6Bright
305.6Bright
315.5Bright
Planning a trip in May

Is May a good time to visit Thun?

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

3.8
Sightseeing
5th-best month of the year
0.3
Beach & pool
5th-best month of the year

May is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Thun.

What to pack for Thun in May

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

In May, Thun sees daytime highs around 15°C and nights near 6°C. Pack rain gear. Worth having: a warm layer and sun protection. About 18 days see rain.

rain geara warm layersun protection

UV index in Thun in May

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in May peaks around 7 — enough to warrant sun protection. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Thun peaks around July 15 at about 9 (very high) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near January 1 at about 1 (low).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 8 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLowModerateHighVery highHighModerateLowJul 15UV 9Jan 1UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan1Low
Feb2Moderate
Mar5Moderate
Apr6High
May7Very high
Jun8Very high
Jul9Very high
Aug7Very high
Sep5High
Oct3Moderate
Nov2Low
Dec1Low
Location & terrain

Where is Thun?

Thun sits at 46.8°N, 7.6°E, 560 m above sea level, in Switzerland. The nearest listed city is Steffisburg, 3.0 km away.

InterlakenKönizBernLauterbrunnenBurgdorfGrindelwaldFribourg

Topography around Thun

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Thun has significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 456 m around an average of 603 m above sea level; within 16 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,858 m; within 80 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 4,156 m.

The land around Thun is covered by trees (39%) and artificial surfaces (23%) within 3 km, trees (43%) and grassland (43%) within 16 km, and trees (39%) and grassland (36%) within 80 km.

3 km
456 m
16 km
1,858 m
80 km
4,156 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainsnow and icewatermoss and lichen
May weather nearby: Steffisburg 3.0 km · Interlaken 20 km · Köniz 25 km · Bern 26 km · Lauterbrunnen 28 km · Burgdorf 34 km · Grindelwald 35 km · Fribourg 36 km

Switzerland travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 1
Exercise Normal Precautions
Power plugs
Type C / J
230 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 112% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$114,769
2025
Happiness
7.0 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
97%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
0.6
per 100k, 2023
Road deaths
2.2
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
High
World Bank
English
High
EF EPI 564
Religion
Roman Catholic 34%none 29%Protestant 23%other Christian 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 Thun (46.7512°, 7.6217°, elevation 560 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).