Chapel Hill weather in May: Chapel Hill, North Carolina: normal highs, lows, rain and records for May
Chapel Hill in May has a normal high of 79°F and a normal low of 57°F, a daily mean of 68°F, rising from 76°F on the 1st to 82°F by the 31st. Measurable precipitation falls on 12 days in a normal May, 3.46 inches in all. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a normal high of 26°C and low of 14°C, 88 mm of precipitation in May.
- NOAA stationChapel Hill Williams Airport
- Station IDUSW00093785
- Location35.93°N 79.06°W
- Elevation512 ft (156 m)
- From the center1 miles
- Population64,028
- Jan 51° 32°
- Feb 55° 34°
- Mar 63° 40°
- Apr 72° 48°
- May 79° 57°
- Jun 86° 65°
- Jul 90° 69°
- Aug 88° 68°
- Sep 82° 62°
- Oct 72° 50°
- Nov 62° 40°
- Dec 54° 35°
Each month: normal high (large) and low, °F. Fill: the month's normal mean, colder blue to hotter red.
How warm is Chapel Hill in May?
The normal high is 79°F and the normal low 57°F, for a daily mean of 68.1°F. May is 7.9°F warmer than April and 7.7°F cooler than June. May is the 5th warmest month of the year in Chapel Hill and the 7th wettest. Across the month the normal high rises 6°F, from 76°F on May 1 to 82°F on May 31. From one year to the next May's mean temperature typically moves about 3.1°F either way (NOAA's standard deviation), so roughly two Mays in three average between 65°F and 71°F.
Bars above: each day's normal high to low. Columns below: the chance of 0.01 inch or more of precipitation that day, on a scale of 0 to 100% (highest 38%).
| Day | High | Low | Chance of 0.01 in | Chance of 0.10 in |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 1 | 76°F | 53°F | 35% | 21% |
| May 8 | 78°F | 55°F | 37% | 22% |
| May 15 | 79°F | 57°F | 38% | 23% |
| May 22 | 80°F | 59°F | 38% | 23% |
| May 31 | 82°F | 61°F | 38% | 22% |
Every day of May: normal high, low and chance of precipitation (warmest afternoon May 31, coldest night May 1)
| Day | High | Low | Chance of 0.01 in | Chance of 0.10 in | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 1 | 76°F | 53°F | 35% | 21% | 13 h 40 min |
| May 2 | 76°F | 53°F | 36% | 21% | 13 h 40 min |
| May 3 | 77°F | 53°F | 36% | 22% | 13 h 40 min |
| May 4 | 77°F | 53°F | 36% | 22% | 13 h 40 min |
| May 5 | 77°F | 54°F | 36% | 22% | 13 h 40 min |
| May 6 | 77°F | 54°F | 36% | 22% | 13 h 50 min |
| May 7 | 77°F | 54°F | 37% | 22% | 13 h 50 min |
| May 8 | 78°F | 55°F | 37% | 22% | 13 h 50 min |
| May 9 | 78°F | 55°F | 37% | 22% | 13 h 50 min |
| May 10 | 78°F | 55°F | 37% | 22% | 13 h 50 min |
| May 11 | 78°F | 56°F | 37% | 22% | 14 h |
| May 12 | 78°F | 56°F | 37% | 22% | 14 h |
| May 13 | 78°F | 56°F | 37% | 22% | 14 h |
| May 14 | 79°F | 56°F | 38% | 23% | 14 h |
| May 15 | 79°F | 57°F | 38% | 23% | 14 h |
| May 16 | 79°F | 57°F | 38% | 23% | 14 h |
| May 17 | 79°F | 57°F | 38% | 23% | 14 h 10 min |
| May 18 | 79°F | 58°F | 38% | 23% | 14 h 10 min |
| May 19 | 80°F | 58°F | 38% | 23% | 14 h 10 min |
| May 20 | 80°F | 58°F | 38% | 23% | 14 h 10 min |
| May 21 | 80°F | 59°F | 38% | 23% | 14 h 10 min |
| May 22 | 80°F | 59°F | 38% | 23% | 14 h 10 min |
| May 23 | 81°F | 59°F | 38% | 23% | 14 h 10 min |
| May 24 | 81°F | 59°F | 38% | 22% | 14 h 20 min |
| May 25 | 81°F | 60°F | 38% | 22% | 14 h 20 min |
| May 26 | 81°F | 60°F | 38% | 22% | 14 h 20 min |
| May 27 | 81°F | 60°F | 38% | 22% | 14 h 20 min |
| May 28 | 82°F | 61°F | 38% | 22% | 14 h 20 min |
| May 29 | 82°F | 61°F | 38% | 22% | 14 h 20 min |
| May 30 | 82°F | 61°F | 38% | 22% | 14 h 20 min |
| May 31 | 82°F | 61°F | 38% | 22% | 14 h 20 min |
- Normal high
- 79°FMay average
- Normal low
- 57°FMay average
- Precipitation
- 3.46 inmonth total
- Days with precipitation
- 120.01 inch or more
- Days at 90°F or more
- 2
- Daylight
- 13 h 40 min to 14 h 20 minMay 1 to May 31
- Days at 70°F or more
- 27
- Days at 80°F or more
- 17
- Sunshine
- 77%of clear-sky sunlight (NASA)
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 daily normals, station USW00093785; monthly normals. Daylight is computed from the place's latitude with NOAA's solar equations.
Does it rain in Chapel Hill in May?
On a given May day the chance of 0.01 inch or more is 37% on average, highest around May 16 (38%). In all, 3.46 in falls on 12 days of a normal May, 1 of them with an inch or more.
In a normal May in Chapel Hill, 2 days reach 90°F.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 daily and monthly normals, station USW00093785.
How does May in Chapel Hill compare across North Carolina?
Across the 131 places PlainClimate covers in North Carolina, May normal highs run from 61°F in Beech Mountain to 83°F in Laurinburg; Chapel Hill's is 79°F.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals for every station in the state.
Other months and places
- Chapel Hill in April72°F by day, 48°F at night
- Chapel Hill in June86°F by day, 65°F at night
- Chapel Hill through the yearEvery month, frost dates, records and recent years
- North Carolina in MayThe statewide normal and the warmest and coolest places
- Laurinburg: North Carolina's warmest Maynormal high 83°F