Leighton Buzzard weather in May

In May, Leighton Buzzard sees average daytime highs of 16°C and overnight lows near 8°C, with 58 mm of rain across 10.7 wet days and about 15.4 hours of daylight. It is the 5th-warmest and 6th-wettest month of the year here.

Highs climb over the month, from about 15°C in the first days to 17°C by the end. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 14% of the time in May, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 14 h 36 min at the start of May to 16 h 06 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, May is Leighton Buzzard's 3rd-clearest and 8th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Leighton Buzzard's year-round climate.

Daytime high
16°
5th warmest
Overnight low
8th coldest
Rainfall
58 mm
10.7 wet days
Daylight
15 h 24 min
4:16 AM – 7:41 PM
Cloud cover
71%
3rd clearest
Wind
15 km/h
8th windiest
Solar energy
4.91 kWh/m²
Travel score
4.8
out of 10

Leighton Buzzard is town in Bedfordshire, England.

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 15°C in the first days to 17°C by the end.

A typical May day in Leighton Buzzard reaches about 16°C in the afternoon and slips back to 8°C overnight — a 8°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 12°C and 22°C. Set against its neighbours, May runs about 3°C warmer than April and about 3°C cooler than June.

10°15°20°25°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
1157
2157
3157
4157
5157
6157
7157
8157
9157
10157
11167
12167
13168
14168
15168
16168
17168
18168
19168
20178
21179
22179
23179
24179
25179
26179
27179
28179
29179
301810
311810

How May really feels in Leighton Buzzard

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.

Leighton Buzzard 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 daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan / 5311.418.10.8
Feb / 419.51.49.61.1
Mar10° / 4510.20.911.52.2
Apr13° / 5111.20.213.63.4
May16° / 5810.7015.44.8
Jun19° / 11°5910.2016.45.8
Jul21° / 13°61110166.3
Aug21° / 13°6110.7014.46.2
Sep18° / 11°549.4012.45.7
Oct14° / 6111010.43.9
Nov10° / 5911.40.28.62.1
Dec / 5611.10.97.61.0

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 15% of May, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 71%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
13169
23169
33169
43169
53169
63070
73070
83070
92971
103070
112971
122971
132971
142872
152773
162773
172773
182773
192773
202773
212773
222773
232773
242971
252971
262872
272971
282971
293070
303070
313070

Chance of precipitation in May

Any precipitation

Leighton Buzzard gets around 58 mm of rain over 10.7 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 35% and peaks near 38% on the wettest days.

0%10%20%30%40%50%151015202531
Rain chance (%)
138
237
337
436
535
634
734
833
933
1033
1134
1234
1334
1435
1535
1635
1735
1835
1935
2035
2136
2236
2336
2436
2535
2635
2735
2835
2936
3036
3136

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 96% of days. It rarely turns muggy — the humid and sticky bands barely register.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Dry (%)Comfortable (%)
11000
2991
3991
4991
5991
6982
7982
8982
9982
10973
11973
12973
13973
14973
15973
16964
17964
18964
19964
20955
21955
22955
23946
24946
25946
26937
27937
28928
29928
30919
31919

Wind in May

Winds average 15 km/h in May.

Across May, daily wind ranges from about 14 km/h on the calmest days to 15 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

05101520151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
115light breeze
215light breeze
315light breeze
415light breeze
515light breeze
615light breeze
715light breeze
815light breeze
915light breeze
1015light breeze
1115light breeze
1215light breeze
1315light breeze
1415light breeze
1515light breeze
1615light breeze
1715light breeze
1814light breeze
1914light breeze
2014light breeze
2114light breeze
2214light breeze
2314light breeze
2414light breeze
2514light breeze
2614light breeze
2714light breeze
2814light breeze
2914light breeze
3014light breeze
3114light breeze

Sunrise & sunset in May

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 14 h 36 min at the start of May to 16 h 06 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 90 minutes over May. Sunrise moves from 4:43 AM to 3:58 AM, and sunset from 7:17 PM to 8:02 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
114.64:437:17
214.64:417:19
314.74:397:20
414.84:377:22
514.84:357:24
614.94:337:25
714.94:317:27
815.04:307:29
915.04:287:30
1015.14:267:32
1115.24:247:33
1215.24:237:35
1315.34:217:37
1415.34:197:38
1515.44:187:40
1615.44:167:41
1715.54:157:43
1815.54:137:44
1915.64:127:46
2015.64:117:47
2115.74:097:49
2215.74:087:50
2315.84:077:52
2415.84:057:53
2515.84:047:54
2615.94:037:56
2715.94:027:57
2816.04:017:58
2916.04:008:00
3016.03:598:01
3116.13:588:02

Solar energy in May

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in May, about 4.91 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 0.62 kWh/m² to a high of 5.11 kWh/m² in June across the year — May's 4.91 kWh/m² sits near the top of that range.

024151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
14.6Bright
24.7Bright
34.7Bright
44.7Bright
54.8Bright
64.8Bright
74.8Bright
84.8Bright
94.8Bright
104.9Bright
114.9Bright
124.9Bright
134.9Bright
144.9Bright
154.9Bright
164.9Bright
174.9Bright
184.9Bright
194.9Bright
204.9Bright
214.9Bright
224.9Bright
234.9Bright
244.9Bright
254.9Bright
265.0Bright
275.0Bright
285.0Bright
295.0Bright
305.0Bright
315.0Bright
Planning a trip in May

Is May a good time to visit Leighton Buzzard?

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

4.8
Sightseeing
5th-best month of the year
0.7
Beach & pool
5th-best month of the year

May is a reasonable time to visit Leighton Buzzard for sightseeing.

What to pack for Leighton Buzzard in May

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

In May, Leighton Buzzard sees daytime highs around 16°C and nights near 8°C. Worth packing: a warm layer, rain gear and sun protection. About 11 days see rain.

a warm layerrain gearsun protection

UV index in Leighton Buzzard in May

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in May peaks around 5 — enough to warrant sun protection. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Leighton Buzzard peaks around August 11 at about 6 (high) — sunscreen and a hat are worth it in the middle of the day. 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 6 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLowModerateHighModerateLowAug 11UV 6Jan 1UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan1Low
Feb1Low
Mar3Moderate
Apr3Moderate
May5High
Jun6High
Jul6High
Aug6High
Sep4Moderate
Oct2Moderate
Nov1Low
Dec1Low
Location & terrain

Where is Leighton Buzzard?

Leighton Buzzard sits at 51.9°N, 0.7°W, 97 m above sea level, in United Kingdom. The nearest listed city is Dunstable, 10 km away.

Topography around Leighton Buzzard

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Leighton Buzzard has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 71 m around an average of 99 m above sea level; within 16 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 224 m; within 80 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 320 m.

The land around Leighton Buzzard is covered by grassland (36%) and trees (24%) within 3 km, grassland (37%), cropland (32%) and trees (20%) within 16 km, and cropland (41%) and grassland (30%) within 80 km.

3 km
71 m
16 km
224 m
80 km
320 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater
May weather nearby: Dunstable 10 km · Bletchley 10 km · Milton Keynes 15 km · Aylesbury 16 km · Ampthill 17 km · Luton 17 km · Berkhamsted 19 km · Newport Pagnell 19 km

United Kingdom travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 2
Exercise Increased Caution
Power plugs
Type D / G / M
230 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 89% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$57,602
2025
Happiness
6.7 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
100%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
1.1
per 100k, 2021
Road deaths
3.2
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
High
World Bank
Religion
Christian 60%none 26%Muslim 4%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 Leighton Buzzard (51.9172°, -0.658°, elevation 97 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).