Lafayette weather in May

In May, Lafayette sees average daytime highs of 72°F and overnight lows near 54°F, with 4.3 in of rain across 13.3 wet days and about 14.2 hours of daylight. It is the 5th-warmest and 2nd-wettest month of the year here.

Highs climb over the month, from about 68°F in the first days to 76°F by the end. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 25% of the time in May, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 13 h 42 min at the start of May to 14 h 36 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, May is Lafayette's 7th-clearest and 8th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Lafayette's year-round climate.

Daytime high
72°
5th warmest
Overnight low
54°
8th coldest
Rainfall
4.3 in
13.3 wet days
Daylight
14 h 12 min
5:37 AM – 7:51 PM
Cloud cover
65%
7th clearest
Wind
9 mph
8th windiest
Solar energy
5.74 kWh/m²
Travel score
6.1
out of 10

Lafayette is city in and the county seat of Tippecanoe County, Indiana, United States.

Density
932/km²
people per km²
Founded
1853

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 68°F in the first days to 76°F by the end.

A typical May day in Lafayette reaches about 72°F in the afternoon and slips back to 54°F overnight — a 19°F spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 60°F and 84°F. Set against its neighbours, May runs about 10°F warmer than April and about 8°F cooler than June.

40°60°80°151015202531
Avg high (°F)Avg low (°F)
16748
26849
36849
46850
56950
66950
76951
87051
97051
107152
117152
127152
137153
147253
157253
167253
177354
187354
197355
207355
217455
227456
237456
247556
257557
267557
277657
287658
297658
307658
317759

How May really feels in Lafayette

Once humidity and wind are folded in, May averages 0 days that feel above 90°F and 0 that feel at or below 32°F — the comfort signal a plain temperature reading hides.

Days feeling ≥ 90°F
0
heat index over the day's high
Days feeling ≤ 32°F
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.

Lafayette weather by month

How May compares with the rest of the year at a glance. May is the 5th-warmest and 2nd-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°F)Rainfall (inches)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan34° / 20°2.79.14.99.40.0
Feb39° / 23°2.38.14.210.40.1
Mar50° / 32°3.310.42.411.72.2
Apr62° / 43°4.311.70.4135.0
May72° / 54°4.313.3014.26.1
Jun80° / 63°4.312.8014.86.0
Jul83° / 66°3.611.2014.65.7
Aug82° / 64°3.29.8013.66.5
Sep77° / 56°2.78.1012.37.1
Oct64° / 45°3.190.110.95.9
Nov50° / 35°3.18.51.29.82.4
Dec39° / 26°2.59.23.79.20.1

Cloud cover in May

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 25% of the time in May.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 14% of May, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 61%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
13466
23466
33466
43466
53565
63565
73565
83664
93664
103664
113664
123763
133862
143862
153862
163961
174060
184060
194159
204159
214159
224258
234159
244258
254258
264357
274357
284357
294456
304357
314357

Chance of precipitation in May

Any precipitation

Lafayette gets around 4.3 in of rain over 13.3 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 (%)
144
244
344
444
544
644
743
843
943
1043
1142
1242
1342
1442
1542
1642
1742
1842
1942
2042
2143
2243
2343
2443
2544
2644
2744
2844
2944
3044
3144

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 65% of days. Sticky, muggy-or-worse air turns up on roughly 6% of them.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Dry (%)Comfortable (%)Humid (%)Muggy (%)Oppressive (%)
18410510
28410510
38211610
48112610
57912720
67713820
77713820
87414930
973141030
1072151030
1170151140
1269161140
1368161240
1466161350
1566161350
1665161450
1764161460
1863161560
1962161660
2060161770
2159161870
2258161871
2356161981
2454162091
2554162091
26521720101
27511721101
28501721111
29491721111
30481821121
31471822121

Wind in May

Winds average 9 mph in May.

Across May, daily wind ranges from about 8 mph on the calmest days to 10 mph at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

051015151015202531
Wind speed (mph)Feels
110light breeze
210light breeze
39light breeze
49light breeze
59light breeze
69light breeze
79light breeze
89light breeze
99light breeze
109light breeze
119light breeze
129light breeze
139light breeze
149light breeze
159light breeze
169light breeze
179light breeze
189light breeze
199light breeze
209light breeze
219light breeze
229light breeze
239light breeze
249light breeze
258light breeze
268light breeze
278light breeze
288light breeze
298light breeze
308light breeze
318light breeze

Sunrise & sunset in May

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 13 h 42 min at the start of May to 14 h 36 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 54 minutes over May. Sunrise moves from 5:54 AM to 5:26 AM, and sunset from 7:36 PM to 8:04 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
113.75:547:36
213.75:527:37
313.85:517:38
413.85:507:39
513.95:497:40
613.95:477:41
713.95:467:42
814.05:457:43
914.05:447:44
1014.05:437:45
1114.15:427:46
1214.15:417:47
1314.15:407:48
1414.25:397:49
1514.25:387:50
1614.25:377:51
1714.35:367:52
1814.35:357:53
1914.35:347:54
2014.45:337:55
2114.45:327:56
2214.45:317:57
2314.45:317:57
2414.55:307:58
2514.55:297:59
2614.55:298:00
2714.55:288:01
2814.65:278:02
2914.65:278:03
3014.65:268:03
3114.65:268:04

Solar energy in May

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in May, about 5.74 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 1.7 kWh/m² to a high of 6.32 kWh/m² in June across the year — May's 5.74 kWh/m² sits near the top of that range.

0246151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
15.3Bright
25.4Bright
35.4Bright
45.4Bright
55.4Bright
65.5Bright
75.5Bright
85.5Bright
95.5Bright
105.6Bright
115.6Bright
125.6Bright
135.7Bright
145.7Bright
155.7Bright
165.7Bright
175.8Bright
185.8Bright
195.8Bright
205.8Bright
215.9Bright
225.9Bright
235.9Bright
245.9Bright
256.0Bright
266.0Bright
276.0Intense
286.0Intense
296.0Intense
306.1Intense
316.1Intense
Planning a trip in May

Is May a good time to visit Lafayette?

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

6.1
Sightseeing
3rd-best month of the year
4.4
Beach & pool
5th-best month of the year

May is a reasonable time to visit Lafayette for sightseeing.

What to pack for Lafayette in May

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

In May, Lafayette sees daytime highs around 72°F and nights near 54°F. Worth packing: light clothes, rain gear and sun protection. About 13 days see rain.

light clothesrain gearsun protection

UV index in Lafayette in May

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in May peaks around 8 — enough to warrant sun protection. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Lafayette peaks around July 10 at about 9 (very high) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 23 at about 2 (low).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 8 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModerateHighVery highHighModerateLowJul 10UV 9Dec 23UV 2
UV index (midday)Level
Jan2Low
Feb3Moderate
Mar5Moderate
Apr6High
May8Very high
Jun9Very high
Jul9Very high
Aug8Very high
Sep6High
Oct3Moderate
Nov3Moderate
Dec2Low

Air quality in Lafayette 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 Lafayette is worst in July — around 16 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 2.1× the cleanest month (October, 7 µg/m³).

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

01020JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecGoodModerateModerateGoodJul 1516 µg/m³Oct 218 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan10Good
Feb13Moderate
Mar13Moderate
Apr12Good
May13Moderate
Jun15Moderate
Jul16Moderate
Aug14Moderate
Sep11Good
Oct7Good
Nov8Good
Dec9Good
Location & terrain

Where is Lafayette?

Lafayette sits at 40.4°N, 86.9°W, 692 ft above sea level, in United States. The nearest listed city is West Lafayette, 1.9 mi away.

Topography around Lafayette

How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 2, 10 and 50 miles of Lafayette.

Within 2 miles, the terrain around Lafayette has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 246 ft around an average of 630 ft above sea level; within 10 miles, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 322 ft; within 50 miles, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 627 ft.

The land around Lafayette is covered by artificial surfaces (49%) and trees (34%) within 2 miles, cropland (49%) and trees (28%) within 10 miles, and cropland (77%) within 50 miles.

2 miles
246 ft
10 miles
322 ft
50 miles
627 ft
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaceswater
May weather nearby: West Lafayette 1.9 mi · Frankfort 21 mi · Crawfordsville 26 mi · Lebanon 34 mi · Logansport 36 mi · Kokomo 39 mi · Danville 45 mi · Zionsville 45 mi

United States travel facts

Power plugs
Type A / B
120 V · 60 Hz
Prices
≈ 100% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$90,027
2025
Happiness
6.8 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
98%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
5.8
per 100k, 2023
Road deaths
12.7
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
High
World Bank
Religion
Protestant 47%unaffiliated 23%Roman Catholic 21%Jewish 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 Lafayette (40.4167°, -86.8753°, elevation 692 ft), 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).