Sale weather in May

In May, Sale sees average daytime highs of 15°C and overnight lows near 7°C, with 69 mm of rain across 12.8 wet days and about 15.6 hours of daylight. It is the 5th-warmest and 11th-wettest month of the year here.

Highs climb over the month, from about 14°C in the first days to 16°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 42 min at the start of May to 16 h 18 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, May is Sale's 1st-clearest and 8th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Sale's year-round climate.

Daytime high
15°
5th warmest
Overnight low
8th coldest
Rainfall
69 mm
12.8 wet days
Daylight
15 h 36 min
4:17 AM – 7:54 PM
Cloud cover
70%
1st clearest
Wind
15 km/h
8th windiest
Solar energy
4.79 kWh/m²
Travel score
4.1
out of 10

Sale is town within the Metropolitan Borough of Trafford, in Greater Manchester, 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 14°C in the first days to 16°C by the end.

A typical May day in Sale reaches about 15°C in the afternoon and slips back to 7°C overnight — a 8°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 11°C and 20°C. Set against its neighbours, May runs about 3°C warmer than April and about 2°C cooler than June.

10°15°20°25°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
1146
2146
3146
4146
5146
6146
7146
8146
9146
10146
11147
12157
13157
14157
15157
16157
17157
18157
19157
20158
21158
22158
23168
24168
25168
26168
27168
28168
29169
30169
31169

How May really feels in Sale

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.

Sale weather by month

How May compares with the rest of the year at a glance. May is the 5th-warmest and 11th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan / 88151.87.80.5
Feb / 7713.32.19.40.8
Mar / 7413.11.311.51.7
Apr12° / 6612.90.513.72.8
May15° / 6912.8015.64.1
Jun17° / 10°8413.9016.74.9
Jul19° / 12°8415.2016.25.3
Aug19° / 12°8915.2014.65.2
Sep16° / 10°7612.4012.54.6
Oct13° / 9014.5010.33.1
Nov / 8815.30.28.41.6
Dec / 99151.57.30.7

Cloud cover in May

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 14% of the time in May, the clearest month of the year.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 16% of May, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 70%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
12971
22971
32971
43070
53070
63169
73169
83169
93169
103268
113268
123070
133070
143070
153070
163070
173070
183070
192971
202971
212971
222872
232872
242971
252971
262971
272971
282971
292971
302971
312971

Chance of precipitation in May

Any precipitation

Sale gets around 69 mm of rain over 12.8 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 43% and peaks near 44% on the wettest days.

0%10%20%30%40%50%151015202531
Rain chance (%)
143
243
343
443
543
642
742
842
943
1043
1143
1244
1344
1444
1544
1643
1743
1842
1942
2042
2142
2242
2342
2442
2542
2642
2742
2842
2942
3043
3143

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.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Dry (%)Comfortable (%)
11000
21000
31000
41000
51000
61000
71000
81000
91000
101000
11991
12991
13991
14991
15991
16991
17991
18982
19982
20982
21982
22982
23973
24973
25973
26973
27973
28964
29964
30964
31964

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
1815light breeze
1915light breeze
2015light breeze
2115light breeze
2215light breeze
2315light 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 42 min at the start of May to 16 h 18 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 96 minutes over May. Sunrise moves from 4:45 AM to 3:57 AM, and sunset from 7:28 PM to 8:16 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
114.74:457:28
214.84:437:30
314.84:417:32
414.94:397:34
515.04:377:35
615.04:357:37
715.14:337:39
815.24:317:41
915.24:297:42
1015.34:277:44
1115.34:257:46
1215.44:247:48
1315.54:227:49
1415.54:207:51
1515.64:187:53
1615.64:177:54
1715.74:157:56
1815.74:147:58
1915.84:127:59
2015.84:118:01
2115.94:098:02
2215.94:088:04
2316.04:068:05
2416.04:058:07
2516.14:048:08
2616.14:028:10
2716.24:018:11
2816.24:008:13
2916.23:598:14
3016.33:588:15
3116.33:578:16

Solar energy in May

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in May, about 4.79 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 0.49 kWh/m² to a high of 4.83 kWh/m² in June across the year — May's 4.79 kWh/m² sits near the top of that range.

024151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
14.5Bright
24.5Bright
34.6Bright
44.6Bright
54.6Bright
64.7Bright
74.7Bright
84.7Bright
94.7Bright
104.7Bright
114.8Bright
124.8Bright
134.8Bright
144.8Bright
154.8Bright
164.8Bright
174.8Bright
184.8Bright
194.8Bright
204.8Bright
214.8Bright
224.8Bright
234.8Bright
244.8Bright
254.8Bright
264.8Bright
274.8Bright
284.8Bright
294.8Bright
304.8Bright
314.8Bright
Planning a trip in May

Is May a good time to visit Sale?

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

4.1
Sightseeing
5th-best month of the year
0.2
Beach & pool
5th-best month of the year

May is a reasonable time to visit Sale for sightseeing.

What to pack for Sale in May

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

In May, Sale sees daytime highs around 15°C and nights near 7°C. Worth packing: a warm layer, rain gear and sun protection. About 13 days see rain.

a warm layerrain gearsun protection

Sea temperature near Sale in May

The nearest coast averages about 11°C in May — the other half of the beach question. The full-year curve and swim-comfort zones are below.

The sea at the nearest coast (about 53 km away) is warmest in August at about 17°C and coldest in February near 6°C.

The water stays below 20°C all year — cool enough that most swimmers want a wetsuit.

5°10°15°20°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbracingcool
Sea temperature (°C)Comfort
Jan7Bracing
Feb6Bracing
Mar7Bracing
Apr9Bracing
May11Bracing
Jun14Bracing
Jul16Cool
Aug17Cool
Sep16Cool
Oct14Bracing
Nov11Bracing
Dec9Bracing

UV index in Sale in May

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in May peaks around 6 — enough to warrant sun protection. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Sale peaks around August 12 at about 6 (high) — a little sun protection helps at midday. 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 12UV 6Jan 1UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan1Low
Feb1Low
Mar3Moderate
Apr3Moderate
May6High
Jun5High
Jul5High
Aug6High
Sep4Moderate
Oct2Low
Nov1Low
Dec1Low
Location & terrain

Where is Sale?

Sale sits at 53.4°N, 2.3°W, 30 m above sea level, in United Kingdom. The nearest listed city is Stretford, 3.0 km away.

Topography around Sale

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Sale has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 33 m around an average of 26 m above sea level; within 16 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 194 m; within 80 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 664 m.

The land around Sale is covered by trees (46%) and artificial surfaces (36%) within 3 km, trees (34%), artificial surfaces (30%) and grassland (26%) within 16 km, and grassland (52%) within 80 km.

3 km
33 m
16 km
194 m
80 km
664 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaceswater
May weather nearby: Stretford 3.0 km · Urmston 3.0 km · Old Trafford 4.0 km · Altrincham 4.0 km · Hale 5.0 km · Eccles 6.0 km · Irlam 7.0 km · Salford 7.0 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 Sale (53.4252°, -2.3244°, elevation 30 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. Sea temperatures are the NOAA OISST v2.1 1991–2020 monthly climatology (public domain), sampled at the nearest ocean point. 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).