Climate averages 1991–2020
Memphis weather
in May.
A warm, wet month: the 5th warmest and the 9th driest of the year.
Long-term climate patterns, not a forecast for a particular trip.
May is a warm month in Memphis: daytime highs average 26.3°C and nights cool to about 16.4°C. By daytime temperature it is the 5th warmest of the 12 months.
Expect about 117 mm of rain on roughly 11 days, which makes May a wet month (the 9th 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 Jonesboro (97 km away). In May its highs average 25.7°C, 0.5°C cooler than Memphis, with 113 mm of rain.
Among the 498 cities listed in the United States, Memphis ranks joint 146th of 498 for the warmest May highs and joint 432nd of 498 for the driest May (rainfall, lowest first). The mean May high of those 498 cities is 23.8°C; Memphis is 2.5°C warmer than that mean.
From May to June, average highs rise by 4.2°C to 30.5°C, and monthly rainfall falls from 117 mm to 87 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
Memphis climate table
| Month | Average highHigh / low | Average low | Rainfall mm/month | Rain days ≥1 mm/day | Daylight hours/dayDaylight h/day |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 9.3°C0.6°C | 0.6°C | 98 | 9.6 | 10.110 h |
| February | 11.8°C2.3°C | 2.3°C | 104 | 9.2 | 10.911 h |
| March | 16.5°C6.3°C | 6.3°C | 127 | 11.4 | 11.912 h |
| April | 21.6°C11.3°C | 11.3°C | 122 | 10.0 | 13.113 h |
| May, selected | 26.3°C16.4°C | 16.4°C | 117 | 11.0 | 14.014 h |
| June | 30.5°C20.9°C | 20.9°C | 87 | 9.7 | 14.514 h |
| July | 32.0°C23.1°C | 23.1°C | 93 | 10.4 | 14.314 h |
| August | 31.9°C22.6°C | 22.6°C | 75 | 8.5 | 13.513 h |
| September | 28.7°C18.9°C | 18.9°C | 74 | 7.4 | 12.412 h |
| October | 22.7°C12.7°C | 12.7°C | 102 | 7.4 | 11.311 h |
| November | 15.7°C6.5°C | 6.5°C | 101 | 8.5 | 10.410 h |
| December | 10.9°C2.4°C | 2.4°C | 126 | 9.7 | 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
- Jonesboro in MayUnited States · 97 kmHigh 25.7°C · Low 16.5°C · 113 mm rain
- Little Rock in MayUnited States · 209 kmHigh 26.6°C · Low 17.1°C · 138 mm rain
- Clarksville in MayUnited States · 287 kmHigh 25.1°C · Low 15.4°C · 121 mm rain
- Franklin in MayUnited States · 300 kmHigh 25.0°C · Low 15.3°C · 121 mm rain
- Tuscaloosa in MayUnited States · 314 kmHigh 27.5°C · Low 17.0°C · 104 mm rain
- Nashville in MayUnited States · 316 kmHigh 25.0°C · Low 15.0°C · 123 mm rain
- Jackson in MayUnited States · 317 kmHigh 28.1°C · Low 17.3°C · 104 mm rain
- Huntsville in MayUnited States · 319 kmHigh 25.8°C · Low 15.7°C · 106 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 Memphis) is explained once on the Memphis year overview and on the Sources, method and limits page.