Lake Tahoe weather in May

In May, Lake Tahoe sees average daytime highs of 59°F and overnight lows near 36°F, with 2.1 in of precipitation across 8.4 wet days and about 14.1 hours of daylight. It is the 6th-warmest and 7th-wettest month of the year here.

Highs climb over the month, from about 55°F in the first days to 63°F by the end. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 44% of the time in May, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 13 h 36 min at the start of May to 14 h 30 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, May is Lake Tahoe's 6th-clearest and 5th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Lake Tahoe's year-round climate.

Daytime high
59°
6th warmest
Overnight low
36°
7th coldest
Precipitation
2.1 in
8.4 wet days
Daylight
14 h 06 min
4:53 AM – 7:00 PM
Cloud cover
48%
6th clearest
Wind
4 mph
5th windiest
Solar energy
7.52 kWh/m²
Travel score
4.8
out of 10

Lake Tahoe is city in El Dorado County, California, United States.

Density
505/km²
people per km²
Founded
1965

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 55°F in the first days to 63°F by the end.

A typical May day in Lake Tahoe reaches about 59°F in the afternoon and slips back to 36°F overnight — a 23°F spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 45°F and 71°F. Set against its neighbours, May runs about 10°F warmer than April and about 12°F cooler than June.

20°40°60°80°151015202531
Avg high (°F)Avg low (°F)
15432
25432
35533
45533
55533
65533
75634
85634
95634
105734
115735
125735
135835
145835
155835
165836
175936
185936
195936
206037
216037
226037
236137
246138
256238
266238
276238
286339
296339
306439
316440

How May really feels in Lake Tahoe

Once humidity and wind are folded in, May averages 0 days that feel above 90°F and 15 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
15
wind chill below the day's low

The story in May is cold — wind chill drags the overnight "feels like" below the raw low.

Lake Tahoe weather by month

How May compares with the rest of the year at a glance. May is the 6th-warmest and 7th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°F)Rainfall (inches)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan38° / 24°5.710.710.29.60.0
Feb40° / 25°5.211.21110.50.0
Mar44° / 27°4.911.110.711.70.7
Apr49° / 29°2.78.97.4132.0
May59° / 36°2.18.43.614.14.8
Jun70° / 44°0.84.30.714.77.9
Jul79° / 51°0.43.1014.48.4
Aug79° / 52°0.53.1013.58.5
Sep72° / 47°0.63.20.312.38.5
Oct61° / 38°1.74.82.1116.0
Nov47° / 28°3.27.96.79.91.6
Dec38° / 23°5.610.610.29.30.0

Cloud cover in May

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 44% of the time in May.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 17% of May, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 39%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
16139
26139
36238
46238
56238
66139
76139
86139
96139
106040
116040
125941
135941
145941
155941
165941
175842
185842
195842
205842
215941
225941
236040
246040
256238
266337
276337
286337
296535
306535
316634

Chance of precipitation in May

Any precipitationSnow

Lake Tahoe gets around 2.1 in of rain and snow over 8.4 wet days in May. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Day to day, the chance of measurable precipitation averages around 27% and peaks near 30% on the wettest days, and about 4 days bring snow.

0%10%20%30%40%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
12416
22415
32415
42414
52414
62414
72514
82514
92614
102714
112714
122814
132814
142813
152913
162913
172912
182912
193012
203012
213011
223011
232910
24289
25289
26278
27268
28257
29257
30246
31236

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 100% of days. It rarely turns muggy — the humid and sticky bands barely register.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Dry (%)
1100
2100
3100
4100
5100
6100
7100
8100
9100
10100
11100
12100
13100
14100
15100
16100
17100
18100
19100
20100
21100
22100
23100
24100
25100
26100
27100
28100
29100
30100
31100

Wind in May

Winds average 4 mph in May.

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

0246810151015202531
Wind speed (mph)Feels
14calm
24calm
34calm
44calm
54calm
64calm
74calm
84calm
94calm
104calm
114calm
124calm
134calm
144calm
154calm
164calm
174calm
184calm
194calm
204calm
214calm
224calm
234calm
244calm
254calm
264calm
274calm
284calm
294calm
304calm
314calm

Sunrise & sunset in May

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 13 h 36 min at the start of May to 14 h 30 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 5:09 AM to 4:42 AM, and sunset from 6:45 PM to 7:12 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
113.65:096:45
213.65:086:46
313.75:066:47
413.75:056:48
513.85:046:49
613.85:036:50
713.85:026:51
813.95:016:52
913.95:006:53
1013.94:586:54
1114.04:576:55
1214.04:566:56
1314.04:556:57
1414.14:546:58
1514.14:546:59
1614.14:537:00
1714.14:527:01
1814.24:517:02
1914.24:507:02
2014.24:497:03
2114.34:487:04
2214.34:487:05
2314.34:477:06
2414.34:467:07
2514.44:467:08
2614.44:457:08
2714.44:447:09
2814.44:447:10
2914.54:437:11
3014.54:437:12
3114.54:427:12

Solar energy in May

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in May, about 7.52 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 2.4 kWh/m² to a high of 8.26 kWh/m² in June across the year — May's 7.52 kWh/m² sits near the top of that range.

02468151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
17.3Intense
27.3Intense
37.3Intense
47.3Intense
57.4Intense
67.4Intense
77.4Intense
87.4Intense
97.4Intense
107.4Intense
117.4Intense
127.5Intense
137.5Intense
147.5Intense
157.5Intense
167.5Intense
177.5Intense
187.5Intense
197.5Intense
207.5Intense
217.6Intense
227.6Intense
237.6Intense
247.6Intense
257.7Intense
267.7Intense
277.7Intense
287.8Intense
297.8Intense
307.8Intense
317.8Intense
Planning a trip in May

Hazard calendar for Lake Tahoe

In seasonPeak

None of Lake Tahoe's seasonal hazards are active in May. The full-year calendar below shows when the rainy season, cyclone risk and dust haze do peak.

Lake Tahoe's rainy season runs November–April, 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 Lake Tahoe?

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

4.8
Sightseeing
6th-best month of the year
0.5
Beach & pool
6th-best month of the year

May is a reasonable time to visit Lake Tahoe for sightseeing.

What to pack for Lake Tahoe in May

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

In May, Lake Tahoe sees daytime highs around 59°F and nights near 36°F. Pack sun protection. Worth having: a warm layer and rain gear. About 8 days see rain.

sun protectiona warm layerrain gear

UV index in Lake Tahoe in May

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in May peaks around 10 (very high — sun protection essential). The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Lake Tahoe peaks around June 23 at about 12 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 13 at about 2 (moderate).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 10 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModerateHighVery highExtremeVery highHighModerateJun 23UV 12Dec 13UV 2
UV index (midday)Level
Jan3Moderate
Feb4Moderate
Mar5High
Apr8Very high
May10Very high
Jun12Extreme
Jul12Extreme
Aug10Extreme
Sep7Very high
Oct6High
Nov3Moderate
Dec2Moderate

Air quality in Lake Tahoe 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 Lake Tahoe is worst in August — around 85 µg/m³ PM2.5 (unhealthy), about 16.6× the cleanest month (December, 5 µg/m³).

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

0306090JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecGoodModerateUnhealthyModerateGoodAug 1679 µg/m³Dec 165 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan6Good
Feb8Good
Mar9Good
Apr9Good
May9Good
Jun14Moderate
Jul45Poor
Aug85Unhealthy
Sep34Moderate
Oct11Good
Nov6Good
Dec5Good
Location & terrain

Where is Lake Tahoe?

Lake Tahoe sits at 38.9°N, 120.0°W, 6,237 ft above sea level, in United States. The nearest listed city is Carson City, 20 mi away.

Topography around Lake Tahoe

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

Within 2 miles, the terrain around Lake Tahoe has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 427 ft around an average of 6,270 ft above sea level; within 10 miles, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 6,181 ft; within 50 miles, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 10,850 ft.

The land around Lake Tahoe is covered by trees (50%) and water (29%) within 2 miles, trees (57%) and water (24%) within 10 miles, and trees (60%) and grassland (24%) within 50 miles.

2 miles
427 ft
10 miles
6,181 ft
50 miles
10,850 ft
treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater
May weather nearby: Carson City 20 mi · Truckee 29 mi · Reno 42 mi · Sparks 43 mi · Sun Valley 47 mi · Spanish Springs 52 mi · Cameron Park 57 mi · Fernley 61 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 Lake Tahoe (38.9332°, -119.9844°, elevation 6,237 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).