Skegness weather in May

In May, Skegness sees average daytime highs of 13°C and overnight lows near 9°C, with 51 mm of rain across 9.7 wet days and about 15.5 hours of daylight. It is the 6th-warmest and 9th-wettest month of the year here.

Highs climb over the month, from about 12°C in the first days to 14°C by the end. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 19% 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 Skegness's 1st-clearest and 9th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Skegness's year-round climate.

Daytime high
13°
6th warmest
Overnight low
7th coldest
Rainfall
51 mm
9.7 wet days
Daylight
15 h 36 min
4:07 AM – 7:42 PM
Cloud cover
66%
1st clearest
Wind
20 km/h
9th windiest
Solar energy
5.22 kWh/m²
Travel score
3.6
out of 10

Skegness is seaside town and civil parish in the East Lindsey district of Lincolnshire, 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 12°C in the first days to 14°C by the end.

A typical May day in Skegness reaches about 13°C in the afternoon and slips back to 9°C overnight — a 4°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 10°C and 16°C. Set against its neighbours, May runs about 3°C warmer than April and about 3°C cooler than June.

10°15°20°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
1128
2128
3128
4128
5128
6128
7128
8128
9128
10128
11138
12138
13139
14139
15139
16139
17139
18139
19139
20149
21149
221410
231410
241410
251410
261410
271410
281410
291410
301410
311510

How May really feels in Skegness

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.

Skegness weather by month

How May compares with the rest of the year at a glance. May is the 6th-warmest and 9th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan / 5912.50.87.90.7
Feb / 4610.61.29.50.8
Mar / 4610.70.611.51.4
Apr10° / 4610.3013.62.3
May13° / 519.7015.53.6
Jun16° / 12°6211.4016.64.7
Jul18° / 14°6411.3016.25.7
Aug19° / 14°6311.5014.55.8
Sep17° / 12°6410.3012.45.1
Oct13° / 10°7212010.33.6
Nov10° / 6712.90.28.42.0
Dec / 6211.90.87.41.0

Cloud cover in May

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 19% 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 65%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
13565
23565
33565
43664
53763
63763
73763
83664
93664
103763
113565
123664
133664
143664
153664
163565
173565
183565
193565
203565
213466
223466
233466
243466
253466
263565
273565
283565
293466
303466
313367

Chance of precipitation in May

Any precipitation

Skegness gets around 51 mm of rain over 9.7 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 33% and peaks near 37% on the wettest days.

0%10%20%30%40%50%151015202531
Rain chance (%)
134
234
333
432
532
631
731
831
931
1031
1131
1231
1332
1432
1532
1632
1732
1832
1932
2032
2133
2233
2333
2434
2534
2634
2734
2835
2935
3036
3137

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 99% 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
14991
15991
16991
17991
18991
19991
20991
21991
22982
23982
24982
25982
26973
27973
28973
29964
30964
31964

Wind in May

Winds average 20 km/h in May.

Across May, daily wind ranges from about 19 km/h on the calmest days to 20 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

0510152025151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
120breezy
220breezy
320breezy
420breezy
520breezy
620breezy
720breezy
820breezy
920light breeze
1020light breeze
1120light breeze
1220light breeze
1320light breeze
1420light breeze
1519light breeze
1619light breeze
1719light breeze
1819light breeze
1919light breeze
2019light breeze
2119light breeze
2219light breeze
2319light breeze
2419light breeze
2519light breeze
2619light breeze
2719light breeze
2819light breeze
2919light breeze
3019light breeze
3119light 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 4:35 AM to 3:48 AM, and sunset from 7:17 PM to 8:04 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
114.74:357:17
214.84:337:18
314.84:317:20
414.94:297:22
514.94:277:24
615.04:257:25
715.14:237:27
815.14:217:29
915.24:197:31
1015.24:187:32
1115.34:167:34
1215.44:147:36
1315.44:127:37
1415.54:117:39
1515.54:097:41
1615.64:077:42
1715.64:067:44
1815.74:047:46
1915.74:037:47
2015.84:017:49
2115.84:007:50
2215.93:587:52
2315.93:577:53
2416.03:567:55
2516.03:547:56
2616.13:537:58
2716.13:527:59
2816.23:518:00
2916.23:508:02
3016.23:498:03
3116.33:488:04

Solar energy in May

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in May, about 5.22 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 0.57 kWh/m² to a high of 5.29 kWh/m² in June across the year — May's 5.22 kWh/m² sits near the top of that range.

0246151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
14.9Bright
24.9Bright
35.0Bright
45.0Bright
55.0Bright
65.1Bright
75.1Bright
85.1Bright
95.2Bright
105.2Bright
115.2Bright
125.2Bright
135.2Bright
145.2Bright
155.2Bright
165.2Bright
175.2Bright
185.2Bright
195.2Bright
205.2Bright
215.2Bright
225.2Bright
235.2Bright
245.2Bright
255.2Bright
265.2Bright
275.2Bright
285.2Bright
295.2Bright
305.2Bright
315.2Bright
Planning a trip in May

Is May a good time to visit Skegness?

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

3.6
Sightseeing
5th-best month of the year
0.0
Beach & pool
6th-best month of the year

May is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Skegness.

What to pack for Skegness in May

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

In May, Skegness sees daytime highs around 13°C and nights near 9°C. Worth packing: a warm layer, rain gear and sun protection. About 10 days see rain.

a warm layerrain gearsun protection

Sea temperature near Skegness 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 offshore is warmest in August at about 17°C and coldest in February near 5°C.

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

5°10°15°20°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbracingcoolrefreshing
Sea temperature (°C)Comfort
Jan6Bracing
Feb5Bracing
Mar6Bracing
Apr8Bracing
May11Bracing
Jun14Bracing
Jul16Cool
Aug17Cool
Sep16Cool
Oct13Bracing
Nov10Bracing
Dec7Bracing

UV index in Skegness 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 Skegness 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
Oct2Low
Nov1Low
Dec1Low
Location & terrain

Where is Skegness?

Skegness sits at 53.1°N, 0.3°E, 6 m above sea level, in United Kingdom. The nearest listed city is Boston, 31 km away.

Topography around Skegness

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Skegness has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 14 m around an average of 2 m above sea level; within 16 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 100 m; within 80 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 193 m.

The land around Skegness is covered by water (33%) and cropland (25%) within 3 km, water (56%) and cropland (29%) within 16 km, and cropland (50%) and water (30%) within 80 km.

3 km
14 m
16 km
100 m
80 km
193 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwaterwetland
May weather nearby: Boston 31 km · Louth 34 km · King's Lynn 44 km · Spalding 51 km · Sleaford 52 km · Cleethorpes 52 km · Grimsby 54 km · Wisbech 54 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 Skegness (53.1436°, 0.3363°, elevation 6 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).