Santa Maria weather in May

In May, Santa Maria sees average daytime highs of 64°F and overnight lows near 53°F, with 0.4 in of rain across 1.6 wet days and about 13.8 hours of daylight. It is the 6th-warmest and 8th-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 64°F through the month. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 68% of the time in May, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 13 h 24 min at the start of May to 14 h 12 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, May is Santa Maria's 6th-clearest and 2nd-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Santa Maria's year-round climate.

Daytime high
64°
6th warmest
Overnight low
53°
7th coldest
Rainfall
0.4 in
1.6 wet days
Daylight
13 h 48 min
5:03 AM – 6:53 PM
Cloud cover
31%
6th clearest
Wind
8 mph
2nd windiest
Solar energy
7.8 kWh/m²
Travel score
7.3
out of 10

Santa Maria is city in southern California, United States.

Density
1,734/km²
people per km²
Founded
1874

Air quality: WHO Ambient Air Quality Database. Density & description: Wikidata (CC0), GeoNames.

Temperature in May

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 64°F through the month.

A typical May day in Santa Maria reaches about 64°F in the afternoon and slips back to 53°F overnight — a 11°F spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 58°F and 70°F. Set against its neighbours, May runs about 2°F warmer than April and about 3°F cooler than June.

40°50°60°70°80°151015202531
Avg high (°F)Avg low (°F)
16352
26352
36352
46352
56352
66352
76352
86352
96352
106352
116352
126352
136352
146352
156353
166353
176353
186353
196353
206453
216453
226453
236453
246453
256453
266453
276453
286453
296454
306454
316454

Santa Maria weather by month

How May compares with the rest of the year at a glance. May is the 6th-warmest and 8th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°F)Rainfall (inches)Wet daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan59° / 47°3.87.29.95.1
Feb59° / 48°3.67.810.74.9
Mar60° / 49°2.86.311.75.5
Apr62° / 50°1.03.312.96.4
May64° / 53°0.41.613.87.3
Jun66° / 56°0.10.414.38.2
Jul69° / 59°0.00.214.18.5
Aug70° / 59°0.00.113.38.8
Sep70° / 59°0.00.412.28.7
Oct68° / 56°0.81.811.18.3
Nov64° / 51°1.43.710.26.9
Dec59° / 47°2.86.19.75.2

Cloud cover in May

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 68% 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 19%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
17822
27822
37822
47921
58020
68020
77921
87921
97921
108020
118020
128020
138119
148119
158218
168218
178218
188218
198317
208317
218317
228317
238317
248416
258416
268317
278416
288416
298416
308416
318416

Chance of precipitation in May

Any precipitation

Santa Maria gets around 0.4 in of rain over 1.6 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 5% and peaks near 7% on the wettest days.

0%10%20%30%151015202531
Rain chance (%)
17
27
37
47
57
66
77
87
97
107
117
127
136
146
156
166
175
185
195
205
214
224
234
243
253
262
272
282
292
302
312

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 95% of days. It rarely turns muggy — the humid and sticky bands barely register.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Dry (%)Comfortable (%)
1991
2991
3982
4982
5982
6982
7973
8973
9973
10973
11964
12964
13964
14964
15964
16955
17955
18955
19955
20955
21955
22946
23946
24946
25937
26937
27937
28928
29928
30928
31919

Wind in May

Winds average 8 mph in May.

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

051015151015202531
Wind speed (mph)Feels
18light breeze
28light breeze
38light breeze
48light breeze
58light breeze
68light breeze
78light breeze
88light breeze
98light breeze
108light breeze
118light breeze
128light breeze
138light breeze
148light breeze
158light breeze
168light breeze
178light breeze
188light breeze
198light breeze
208light breeze
218light breeze
228light breeze
238light breeze
248light 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 24 min at the start of May to 14 h 12 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 48 minutes over May. Sunrise moves from 5:17 AM to 4:55 AM, and sunset from 6:41 PM to 7:04 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
113.45:176:41
213.45:166:41
313.55:156:42
413.55:146:43
513.55:136:44
613.55:126:45
713.65:116:46
813.65:106:46
913.65:096:47
1013.75:086:48
1113.75:076:49
1213.75:066:50
1313.75:066:50
1413.85:056:51
1513.85:046:52
1613.85:036:53
1713.95:026:54
1813.95:026:54
1913.95:016:55
2013.95:006:56
2114.05:006:57
2214.04:596:57
2314.04:586:58
2414.04:586:59
2514.04:577:00
2614.14:577:00
2714.14:567:01
2814.14:567:02
2914.14:557:02
3014.14:557:03
3114.24:557:04

Solar energy in May

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in May, about 7.8 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 2.84 kWh/m² to a high of 8.24 kWh/m² in June across the year — May's 7.8 kWh/m² sits near the top of that range.

02468151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
17.5Intense
27.5Intense
37.5Intense
47.6Intense
57.6Intense
67.6Intense
77.6Intense
87.7Intense
97.7Intense
107.7Intense
117.7Intense
127.8Intense
137.8Intense
147.8Intense
157.8Intense
167.8Intense
177.8Intense
187.8Intense
197.9Intense
207.9Intense
217.9Intense
227.9Intense
237.9Intense
247.9Intense
258.0Intense
268.0Intense
278.0Intense
288.0Intense
298.0Intense
308.0Intense
318.1Intense
Planning a trip in May

Is May a good time to visit Santa Maria?

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

7.3
Sightseeing
6th-best month of the year
2.1
Beach & pool
6th-best month of the year

May is one of the better times to visit Santa Maria for general sightseeing.

What to pack for Santa Maria in May

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

In May, Santa Maria sees daytime highs around 64°F and nights near 53°F. Pack sun protection.

sun protection

Sea temperature near Santa Maria in May

The nearest coast averages about 54°F 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 12 mi away) is warmest in October at about 60°F and coldest in April near 54°F.

The water stays below 68°F all year — cool enough that most swimmers want a wetsuit.

52°54°56°58°60°62°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbracingcool
Sea temperature (°F)Comfort
Jan56Bracing
Feb56Bracing
Mar55Bracing
Apr54Bracing
May54Bracing
Jun56Bracing
Jul58Bracing
Aug59Cool
Sep60Cool
Oct60Cool
Nov59Bracing
Dec57Bracing

UV index in Santa Maria in May

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in May peaks around 8 (very high — sun protection essential). The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Santa Maria peaks around June 22 at about 11 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 15 at about 3 (moderate).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 11 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModerateHighVery highExtremeVery highHighModerateJun 22UV 11Dec 15UV 3
UV index (midday)Level
Jan3Moderate
Feb4Moderate
Mar5Moderate
Apr7Very high
May8Very high
Jun11Extreme
Jul10Extreme
Aug10Extreme
Sep8Very high
Oct6High
Nov3Moderate
Dec3Moderate

Air quality in Santa Maria 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 Santa Maria is worst in August — around 19 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 4.5× the cleanest month (June, 4 µg/m³).

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

0102030JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecGoodModerateGoodAug 2218 µg/m³Jun 124 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan7Good
Feb6Good
Mar7Good
Apr6Good
May5Good
Jun4Good
Jul7Good
Aug19Moderate
Sep17Moderate
Oct7Good
Nov6Good
Dec5Good
Location & terrain

Where is Santa Maria?

Santa Maria sits at 35.0°N, 120.4°W, 220 ft above sea level, in United States. The nearest listed city is Orcutt, 6.2 mi away.

Topography around Santa Maria

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

Within 2 miles, the terrain around Santa Maria has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 108 ft around an average of 220 ft above sea level; within 10 miles, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,657 ft; within 50 miles, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 6,713 ft.

The land around Santa Maria is covered by artificial surfaces (65%) and cropland (21%) within 2 miles, grassland (44%) and cropland (26%) within 10 miles, and grassland (42%) and water (31%) within 50 miles.

2 miles
108 ft
10 miles
2,657 ft
50 miles
6,713 ft
treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater
May weather nearby: Orcutt 6.2 mi · Nipomo 6.8 mi · Arroyo Grande 14 mi · Lompoc 22 mi · San Luis Obispo 26 mi · Atascadero 39 mi · Paso Robles 48 mi · Isla Vista 50 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 Santa Maria (34.953°, -120.4357°, elevation 220 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. 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. 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).