Climate averages 1991–2020
Gwangju weather
in May.
A warm, wet month: the 5th warmest and the 8th driest of the year.
Long-term climate patterns, not a forecast for a particular trip.
May is a warm month in Gwangju: daytime highs average 23.0°C and nights cool to about 11.9°C. By daytime temperature it is the 5th warmest of the 12 months.
Expect about 99 mm of rain on roughly 8 days, which makes May a wet month (the 8th driest of the 12 months). Daylight, from sunrise to sunset, lasts about 13 h 59 min on an average May day.
The nearest other city in this atlas is Masan (8 km away). In May its highs average 23.0°C, about as warm as Gwangju, with 97 mm of rain.
Among the 79 cities listed in South Korea, Gwangju ranks joint 18th of 79 for the warmest May highs and 46th of 79 for the driest May (rainfall, lowest first). The mean May high of those 79 cities is 21.9°C; Gwangju is 1.1°C warmer than that mean.
From May to June, average highs rise by 3.7°C to 26.7°C, and monthly rainfall rises from 99 mm to 164 mm.
The annual picture
May in context
Monthly rainfall
Average total · mmAverages from hourly ERA5 reanalysis data. Actual weather varies from year to year. How these numbers are calculated
Every month, side by side
Gwangju climate table
| Month | Average highHigh / low | Average low | Rainfall mm/month | Rain days ≥1 mm/day | Daylight hours/dayDaylight h/day |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 4.6°C-2.9°C | -2.9°C | 28 | 5.2 | 10.110 h |
| February | 7.0°C-1.9°C | -1.9°C | 36 | 5.2 | 10.911 h |
| March | 12.0°C1.1°C | 1.1°C | 63 | 7.6 | 11.912 h |
| April | 18.0°C6.3°C | 6.3°C | 88 | 7.8 | 13.113 h |
| May, selected | 23.0°C11.9°C | 11.9°C | 99 | 8.2 | 14.014 h |
| June | 26.7°C17.3°C | 17.3°C | 164 | 10.4 | 14.514 h |
| July | 28.7°C21.9°C | 21.9°C | 255 | 17.1 | 14.314 h |
| August | 29.3°C22.4°C | 22.4°C | 225 | 15.5 | 13.513 h |
| September | 25.7°C17.2°C | 17.2°C | 138 | 9.4 | 12.412 h |
| October | 20.2°C10.1°C | 10.1°C | 56 | 5.0 | 11.311 h |
| November | 13.5°C3.9°C | 3.9°C | 46 | 6.2 | 10.410 h |
| December | 6.8°C-1.3°C | -1.3°C | 30 | 5.1 | 9.810 h |
Rainfall is the average of the 30 separate monthly totals. A rain day is a local calendar day with at least 1 mm of precipitation. Daylight is the calculated sunrise-to-sunset length, not measured sunshine.
Compare places
May in nearby cities
- Masan in MaySouth Korea · 8 kmHigh 23.0°C · Low 12.0°C · 97 mm rain
- Koch'ang in MaySouth Korea · 37 kmHigh 22.1°C · Low 12.6°C · 88 mm rain
- Muan in MaySouth Korea · 44 kmHigh 21.8°C · Low 12.4°C · 92 mm rain
- Jeongeup in MaySouth Korea · 50 kmHigh 22.6°C · Low 12.3°C · 94 mm rain
- Nangen in MaySouth Korea · 51 kmHigh 23.2°C · Low 12.3°C · 102 mm rain
- Suncheon in MaySouth Korea · 57 kmHigh 23.1°C · Low 13.5°C · 138 mm rain
- Mokpo in MaySouth Korea · 61 kmHigh 19.6°C · Low 12.7°C · 102 mm rain
- Kwangyang in MaySouth Korea · 64 kmHigh 22.6°C · Low 13.7°C · 138 mm rain
Read the numbers correctly
Climate, not a promise.
These patterns help compare months. They cannot tell you the weather on a specific day of your trip.
Sources, method and limitsHow these numbers are made (what the highs, lows and rain days mean, the sources and the model cell used for Gwangju) is explained once on the Gwangju year overview and on the Sources, method and limits page.