Climate averages 1991–2020
Rochester (New York), United States weather
in May.
A mild, moderately wet month: the 5th warmest and the 4th driest of the year.
Long-term climate patterns, not a forecast for a particular trip.
May is a mild month in Rochester (New York), United States: daytime highs average 17.3°C and nights cool to about 9.0°C. By daytime temperature it is the 5th warmest of the 12 months.
Expect about 81 mm of rain on roughly 11 days, which makes May a moderately wet month (the 4th driest of the 12 months). Daylight, from sunrise to sunset, lasts about 14 h 39 min on an average May day.
The nearest other city in this atlas is Cheektowaga (97 km away). In May its highs average 18.6°C, 1.3°C warmer than Rochester (New York), United States, with 84 mm of rain.
Among the 498 cities listed in the United States, Rochester (New York), United States ranks joint 480th of 498 for the warmest May highs and joint 222nd of 498 for the driest May (rainfall, lowest first). The mean May high of those 498 cities is 23.8°C; Rochester (New York), United States is 6.5°C cooler than that mean.
From May to June, average highs rise by 5.2°C to 22.5°C, and monthly rainfall rises from 81 mm to 89 mm.
The annual picture
May in context
Monthly precipitation
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
Rochester (New York), United States climate table
| Month | Average highHigh / low | Average low | Precipitation mm/month | Wet days ≥1 mm/day | Daylight hours/dayDaylight h/day |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | -0.2°C-6.7°C | -6.7°C | 85 | 15.5 | 9.49 h |
| February | 0.4°C-7.1°C | -7.1°C | 67 | 11.1 | 10.510 h |
| March | 4.5°C-3.4°C | -3.4°C | 80 | 11.6 | 11.912 h |
| April | 10.9°C2.6°C | 2.6°C | 100 | 11.8 | 13.413 h |
| May, selected | 17.3°C9.0°C | 9.0°C | 81 | 11.4 | 14.615 h |
| June | 22.5°C14.8°C | 14.8°C | 89 | 11.5 | 15.315 h |
| July | 25.7°C18.2°C | 18.2°C | 89 | 11.1 | 15.015 h |
| August | 25.1°C17.8°C | 17.8°C | 80 | 11.7 | 13.914 h |
| September | 21.6°C14.3°C | 14.3°C | 88 | 10.7 | 12.513 h |
| October | 14.8°C8.4°C | 8.4°C | 109 | 13.3 | 11.111 h |
| November | 8.2°C2.3°C | 2.3°C | 95 | 14.0 | 9.810 h |
| December | 2.6°C-2.7°C | -2.7°C | 95 | 15.9 | 9.19 h |
Precipitation (rain or snow, as water) is the average of the 30 separate monthly totals. A wet 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
- Cheektowaga in MayUnited States · 97 kmHigh 18.6°C · Low 9.8°C · 84 mm rain
- Amherst in MayUnited States · 98 kmHigh 18.9°C · Low 9.9°C · 84 mm rain
- Buffalo in MayUnited States · 107 kmHigh 18.0°C · Low 10.2°C · 87 mm rain
- Niagara Falls in MayCanada · 118 kmHigh 18.3°C · Low 9.7°C · 87 mm rain
- Syracuse in MayUnited States · 120 kmHigh 19.4°C · Low 9.8°C · 100 mm rain
- Oshawa in MayCanada · 129 kmHigh 16.1°C · Low 8.6°C · 76 mm rain
- St. Catharines in MayCanada · 132 kmHigh 17.4°C · Low 9.5°C · 83 mm rain
- Whitby in MayCanada · 134 kmHigh 16.4°C · Low 8.8°C · 80 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 Rochester) is explained once on the Rochester (New York), United States year overview and on the Sources, method and limits page.