Kigoma weather in May

In May, Kigoma sees average daytime highs of 28°C and overnight lows near 21°C, with 104 mm of rain across 15.6 wet days and about 11.8 hours of daylight. It is the 6th-warmest and 8th-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 28% of the time in May, and the air most often feels muggy.

Daylight stretches from about 11 h 48 min at the start of May to 11 h 42 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, May is Kigoma's 5th-clearest and 6th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Kigoma's year-round climate.

Daytime high
28°
6th warmest
Overnight low
21°
7th coldest
Rainfall
104 mm
15.6 wet days
Daylight
11 h 48 min
7:04 AM – 6:51 PM
Cloud cover
61%
5th clearest
Wind
5 km/h
6th windiest
Solar energy
5.35 kWh/m²
Travel score
5.6
out of 10

Kigoma is city in Tanzania.

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 Kigoma reaches about 28°C in the afternoon and slips back to 21°C overnight — a 6°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 26°C and 29°C. Set against its neighbours, May runs about 1°C warmer than April and on par with June.

20°23°25°28°30°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
12721
22721
32721
42721
52721
62721
72721
82721
92721
102721
112721
122721
132721
142821
152821
162821
172821
182821
192821
202821
212821
222821
232821
242821
252821
262821
272821
282821
292821
302821
312821

Kigoma weather by month

How May compares with the rest of the year at a glance. May is the 6th-warmest and 8th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan26° / 21°2542812.33.7
Feb27° / 22°20123.812.24.0
Mar27° / 21°27127.9123.8
Apr27° / 21°26426.311.93.8
May28° / 21°10415.611.85.6
Jun28° / 21°112.211.77.1
Jul29° / 20°10.311.77.3
Aug30° / 21°61.211.86.5
Sep30° / 22°244.9125.5
Oct28° / 22°1421812.14.7
Nov26° / 21°2762712.23.7
Dec26° / 21°29829.512.33.6

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 open up as the month goes on.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
12971
23070
33268
43268
53367
63565
73664
83763
93862
103961
114159
124258
134456
144654
154753
164852
175050
185149
195248
205347
215446
225545
235545
245644
255842
265941
276040
286139
296238
306337
316337

Chance of precipitation in May

Any precipitation

Kigoma gets around 104 mm of rain over 15.6 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 50% and peaks near 81% on the wettest days. The odds ease toward the end of the month.

0%20%40%60%80%151015202531
Rain chance (%)
181
279
378
476
574
672
770
868
966
1064
1161
1258
1356
1453
1550
1648
1746
1844
1942
2040
2138
2236
2334
2432
2530
2628
2726
2825
2924
3023
3121

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 80% of days. Sticky, muggy-or-worse air turns up on roughly 85% of them.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Comfortable (%)Humid (%)Muggy (%)Oppressive (%)
102899
203898
303898
404888
504888
605878
705878
806868
906877
1007867
1108857
1209847
13010846
14011836
15012835
16013825
17014824
18015814
19016813
20017803
21018793
22020782
23021772
24122752
25124741
26125731
27226711
28228691
29329680
30331660
31332650

Wind in May

Winds average 5 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
15calm
25calm
35calm
45calm
55calm
65calm
75calm
85calm
95calm
105calm
115calm
125calm
135calm
145calm
155calm
165calm
175calm
185calm
195calm
205calm
216calm
226calm
236calm
246calm
256calm
266calm
276calm
286calm
296calm
306calm
316calm

Sunrise & sunset in May

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 11 h 48 min at the start of May to 11 h 42 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days shrink by about 6 minutes over May. Sunrise moves from 7:04 AM to 7:07 AM, and sunset from 6:54 PM to 6:51 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
111.87:046:54
211.87:046:53
311.87:046:53
411.87:046:53
511.87:046:53
611.87:046:53
711.87:046:52
811.87:046:52
911.87:046:52
1011.87:046:52
1111.87:046:52
1211.87:046:52
1311.87:046:51
1411.87:046:51
1511.87:046:51
1611.87:046:51
1711.87:046:51
1811.87:056:51
1911.87:056:51
2011.87:056:51
2111.87:056:51
2211.87:056:51
2311.87:056:51
2411.87:056:51
2511.87:066:51
2611.87:066:51
2711.77:066:51
2811.77:066:51
2911.77:066:51
3011.77:066:51
3111.77:076:51

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 5.06 kWh/m² to a high of 6.5 kWh/m² in September across the year — May's 5.35 kWh/m² falls in the middle.

0246151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
15.2Bright
25.2Bright
35.2Bright
45.2Bright
55.2Bright
65.2Bright
75.2Bright
85.3Bright
95.3Bright
105.3Bright
115.3Bright
125.3Bright
135.3Bright
145.3Bright
155.3Bright
165.4Bright
175.4Bright
185.4Bright
195.4Bright
205.4Bright
215.4Bright
225.5Bright
235.5Bright
245.5Bright
255.5Bright
265.5Bright
275.5Bright
285.5Bright
295.5Bright
305.5Bright
315.5Bright
Planning a trip in May

Hazard calendar for Kigoma

In seasonPeak

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

Kigoma's rainy season runs October–April, 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 Kigoma?

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

5.6
Sightseeing
4th-best month of the year
5.9
Beach & pool
5th-best month of the year

May is a reasonable time to visit Kigoma for sightseeing.

What to pack for Kigoma in May

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

In May, Kigoma sees daytime highs around 28°C and nights near 21°C. Pack light clothes and rain gear. Worth having: sun protection. About 16 days see rain.

light clothesrain gearsun protection

UV index in Kigoma in May

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in May peaks around 11 (very high — sun protection essential). The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Kigoma peaks around March 15 at about 15 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near August 14 at about 8 (very high).

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

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecExtremeVery highExtremeMar 15UV 15Aug 14UV 8
UV index (midday)Level
Jan13Extreme
Feb15Extreme
Mar15Extreme
Apr14Extreme
May11Extreme
Jun9Very high
Jul10Very high
Aug7Very high
Sep12Extreme
Oct13Extreme
Nov12Extreme
Dec12Extreme

Air quality in Kigoma 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 Kigoma is worst in August — around 51 µg/m³ PM2.5 (poor), about 5.5× the cleanest month (April, 9 µg/m³).

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

0204060JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModerateGoodModeratePoorModerateGoodAug 1450 µg/m³Apr 189 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan15Moderate
Feb15Moderate
Mar12Good
Apr9Good
May11Good
Jun25Moderate
Jul45Poor
Aug51Poor
Sep38Poor
Oct19Moderate
Nov12Moderate
Dec11Good
Location & terrain

Where is Kigoma?

Kigoma sits at 4.9°S, 29.6°E, 769 m above sea level, in Tanzania. The nearest listed city is Mwandiga, 6.0 km away.

VyandaUvinzaRumongeKalemieNgurukaGitega

Topography around Kigoma

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Kigoma has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 177 m around an average of 820 m above sea level; within 16 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 607 m; within 80 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,930 m.

The land around Kigoma is covered by artificial surfaces (38%) and water (32%) within 3 km, water (56%) within 16 km, and water (44%), grassland (24%) and trees (20%) within 80 km.

3 km
177 m
16 km
607 m
80 km
1,930 m
treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaceswater
May weather nearby: Mwandiga 6.0 km · Kasulu 62 km · Vyanda 86 km · Uvinza 88 km · Rumonge 103 km · Kalemie 128 km · Nguruka 159 km · Gitega 165 km

Tanzania travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 3
Reconsider Travel
Power plugs
Type D / G
230 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 29% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$1,319
2025
Happiness
3.9 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
31%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
3.7
per 100k, 2020
Road deaths
31.1
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
Lower middle
World Bank
English
Low
EF EPI 479
Religion
Christian 63%Muslim 34%folk religion 1%

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 Kigoma (-4.8769°, 29.6267°, elevation 769 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).