Fort Portal weather in May

In May, Fort Portal sees average daytime highs of 27°C and overnight lows near 17°C, with 134 mm of rain across 21.6 wet days and about 12 hours of daylight. It is the 5th-warmest and 6th-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 27°C through the month. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 14% of the time in May, and the air most often feels humid.

Daylight stretches from about 12 hours at the start of May to 12 hours by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, May is Fort Portal's 7th-clearest and 3rd-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Fort Portal's year-round climate.

Daytime high
27°
5th warmest
Overnight low
17°
10th coldest
Rainfall
134 mm
21.6 wet days
Daylight
12 hours
6:54 AM – 6:56 PM
Cloud cover
72%
7th clearest
Wind
4 km/h
3rd windiest
Solar energy
5.44 kWh/m²
Travel score
4.7
out of 10

Fort Portal is town in Western Uganda.

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 27°C through the month.

A typical May day in Fort Portal reaches about 27°C in the afternoon and slips back to 17°C overnight — a 10°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 25°C and 29°C. Set against its neighbours, May runs on par with April and on par with June.

15°20°25°30°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
12717
22717
32717
42717
52717
62717
72717
82717
92717
102717
112717
122717
132717
142717
152717
162717
172717
182717
192717
202717
212717
222717
232717
242717
252717
262717
272717
282717
292717
302717
312717

Fort Portal weather by month

How May compares with the rest of the year at a glance. May is the 5th-warmest and 6th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan28° / 16°346.7126.5
Feb29° / 17°377125.6
Mar28° / 17°10817.2124.7
Apr27° / 17°16424.1124.1
May27° / 17°13421.6124.7
Jun27° / 16°10316.1125.4
Jul26° / 16°10416.9125.5
Aug26° / 16°16722.6124.7
Sep26° / 16°18625.8124.1
Oct26° / 16°23928.2123.8
Nov26° / 16°20425.7124.1
Dec26° / 16°8513.5125.9

Cloud cover in May

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 14% 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 68%. Skies tend to open up as the month goes on.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
11783
21783
31882
41882
52080
62080
72278
82278
92476
102575
112674
122872
133070
143169
153169
163367
173466
183664
193763
203961
213961
223961
234159
244159
254159
264258
274258
284258
294258
304258
314258

Chance of precipitation in May

Any precipitation

Fort Portal gets around 134 mm of rain over 21.6 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 70% and peaks near 83% on the wettest days. The odds ease toward the end of the month.

0%20%40%60%80%151015202531
Rain chance (%)
183
283
383
483
582
682
781
881
980
1079
1178
1276
1375
1473
1572
1670
1768
1867
1965
2064
2162
2261
2360
2458
2557
2657
2756
2856
2955
3055
3155

Humidity in May

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

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

By dew point, May lands in the humid band about 80% of days. Sticky, muggy-or-worse air turns up on roughly 14% of them.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Comfortable (%)Humid (%)Muggy (%)
117623
217623
317623
417623
517623
617623
717722
817722
917821
1017821
1127820
1227820
1327919
1437918
1538017
1638215
1748214
1858213
1958312
2068410
216859
227858
238857
248857
259856
2610855
2711845
2812835
2913825
3013825
3114815

Wind in May

Winds average 4 km/h in May.

Across May, daily wind ranges from about 4 km/h on the calmest days to 5 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

0246810151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
14calm
24calm
34calm
44calm
54calm
64calm
74calm
84calm
94calm
104calm
114calm
124calm
134calm
144calm
154calm
164calm
175calm
185calm
195calm
205calm
215calm
225calm
235calm
244calm
254calm
264calm
274calm
284calm
294calm
304calm
314calm

Sunrise & sunset in May

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 12 hours at the start of May to 12 hours by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 0 minutes over May. Sunrise moves from 6:55 AM to 6:55 AM, and sunset from 6:57 PM to 6:57 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
112.06:556:57
212.06:556:57
312.06:556:57
412.06:556:56
512.06:556:56
612.06:556:56
712.06:556:56
812.06:556:56
912.06:556:56
1012.06:546:56
1112.06:546:56
1212.06:546:56
1312.06:546:56
1412.06:546:56
1512.06:546:56
1612.06:546:56
1712.06:546:56
1812.06:546:56
1912.06:546:56
2012.06:546:56
2112.06:546:56
2212.06:546:56
2312.06:546:56
2412.06:556:57
2512.06:556:57
2612.06:556:57
2712.06:556:57
2812.06:556:57
2912.06:556:57
3012.06:556:57
3112.06:556:57

Solar energy in May

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in May, about 5.44 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 5.14 kWh/m² to a high of 6.02 kWh/m² in February across the year — May's 5.44 kWh/m² falls in the middle.

0246151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
15.4Bright
25.4Bright
35.4Bright
45.4Bright
55.4Bright
65.4Bright
75.4Bright
85.4Bright
95.4Bright
105.4Bright
115.4Bright
125.4Bright
135.4Bright
145.4Bright
155.5Bright
165.5Bright
175.5Bright
185.5Bright
195.5Bright
205.5Bright
215.5Bright
225.5Bright
235.5Bright
245.5Bright
255.5Bright
265.5Bright
275.5Bright
285.5Bright
295.4Bright
305.4Bright
315.4Bright
Planning a trip in May

Hazard calendar for Fort Portal

In seasonPeak

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

Fort Portal's rainy season runs August–November, 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 Fort Portal?

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

4.7
Sightseeing
6th-best month of the year
4.8
Beach & pool
7th-best month of the year

May is a reasonable time to visit Fort Portal for sightseeing.

What to pack for Fort Portal in May

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

In May, Fort Portal sees daytime highs around 27°C and nights near 17°C. Pack light clothes and rain gear. Worth having: sun protection. About 22 days see rain.

light clothesrain gearsun protection

UV index in Fort Portal in May

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in May peaks around 12 (very high — sun protection essential). The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Fort Portal peaks around March 16 at about 15 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near June 22 at about 10 (extreme).

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

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecExtremeMar 16UV 15Jun 22UV 10
UV index (midday)Level
Jan11Extreme
Feb14Extreme
Mar15Extreme
Apr14Extreme
May12Extreme
Jun10Extreme
Jul10Extreme
Aug12Extreme
Sep13Extreme
Oct14Extreme
Nov11Extreme
Dec10Extreme

Air quality in Fort Portal 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 Fort Portal is worst in February — around 66 µg/m³ PM2.5 (unhealthy), about 2.6× the cleanest month (April, 26 µg/m³).

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

020406080JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecUnhealthyPoorModeratePoorModeratePoorFeb 966 µg/m³Apr 2226 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan64Unhealthy
Feb66Unhealthy
Mar39Poor
Apr26Moderate
May27Moderate
Jun35Poor
Jul42Poor
Aug33Moderate
Sep28Moderate
Oct26Moderate
Nov28Moderate
Dec44Poor
Location & terrain

Where is Fort Portal?

Fort Portal sits at 0.7°N, 30.3°E, 1,518 m above sea level, in Uganda. The nearest listed city is Buhesi, 12 km away.

KyenjojoKatokeRwamwanja Refugee Camp

Topography around Fort Portal

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Fort Portal has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 114 m around an average of 1,527 m above sea level; within 16 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,902 m; within 80 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 4,373 m.

The land around Fort Portal is covered by trees (64%) within 3 km, trees (60%) within 16 km, and trees (62%) and grassland (21%) within 80 km.

3 km
114 m
16 km
1,902 m
80 km
4,373 m
treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaceswaterwetland
May weather nearby: Buhesi 12 km · Bundibugyo 24 km · Nyahuka 31 km · Kyarusozi 32 km · Rwiimi 32 km · Kyenjojo 39 km · Katoke 47 km · Rwamwanja Refugee Camp 55 km

Uganda travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 4
Do Not Travel
Power plugs
Type G
240 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 35% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$1,206
2025
Happiness
4.5 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
18%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
9
per 100k, 2023
Road deaths
29.4
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
Low
World Bank
English
Moderate
EF EPI 518
Religion
Protestant 45%Roman Catholic 39%Muslim 14%other 2%

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 Fort Portal (0.6617°, 30.2748°, elevation 1,518 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).