Climate averages 1991–2020
Tucson weather
in May.
A hot, very dry month: the 5th warmest and the driest of the year.
Long-term climate patterns, not a forecast for a particular trip.
May is a hot month in Tucson: daytime highs average 32.4°C and nights cool to about 17.2°C. By daytime temperature it is the 5th warmest of the 12 months.
Expect about 2.7 mm of rain on fewer than one day, which makes May a very dry month (the driest month of the year). Daylight, from sunrise to sunset, lasts about 13 h 47 min on an average May day.
The nearest other city in this atlas is Nogales (102 km away). In May its highs average 29.3°C, 3.1°C cooler than Tucson, with 4.1 mm of rain.
Among the 498 cities listed in the United States, Tucson ranks 17th of 498 for the warmest May highs and 3rd of 498 for the driest May (rainfall, lowest first). The mean May high of those 498 cities is 23.8°C; Tucson is 8.6°C warmer than that mean.
From May to June, average highs rise by 5.0°C to 37.5°C, and monthly rainfall rises from 2.7 mm to 4.6 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
Tucson climate table
| Month | Average highHigh / low | Average low | Rainfall mm/month | Rain days ≥1 mm/day | Daylight hours/dayDaylight h/day |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 17.6°C4.0°C | 4.0°C | 29 | 4.0 | 10.310 h |
| February | 19.3°C5.4°C | 5.4°C | 28 | 3.8 | 11.011 h |
| March | 23.3°C8.5°C | 8.5°C | 17 | 3.0 | 12.012 h |
| April | 27.6°C12.3°C | 12.3°C | 6.0 | 1.4 | 12.913 h |
| May, selected | 32.4°C17.2°C | 17.2°C | 2.7 | 0.8 | 13.814 h |
| June | 37.5°C22.6°C | 22.6°C | 4.6 | 1.2 | 14.214 h |
| July | 36.8°C25.1°C | 25.1°C | 33 | 7.8 | 14.014 h |
| August | 36.0°C24.4°C | 24.4°C | 33 | 7.5 | 13.313 h |
| September | 34.1°C21.3°C | 21.3°C | 25 | 3.7 | 12.412 h |
| October | 29.2°C14.9°C | 14.9°C | 14 | 2.3 | 11.411 h |
| November | 22.6°C8.5°C | 8.5°C | 17 | 2.5 | 10.511 h |
| December | 17.1°C3.8°C | 3.8°C | 31 | 4.3 | 10.110 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
- Nogales in MayMexico · 102 kmHigh 29.3°C · Low 13.0°C · 4.1 mm rain
- San Tan Valley in MayUnited States · 122 kmHigh 33.2°C · Low 17.4°C · 4.1 mm rain
- Chandler in MayUnited States · 148 kmHigh 34.3°C · Low 17.8°C · 3.5 mm rain
- Mesa in MayUnited States · 158 kmHigh 33.9°C · Low 17.7°C · 4.3 mm rain
- Tempe in MayUnited States · 161 kmHigh 34.1°C · Low 18.3°C · 4.1 mm rain
- Agua Prieta in MayMexico · 165 kmHigh 30.5°C · Low 14.9°C · 4.9 mm rain
- Scottsdale in MayUnited States · 170 kmHigh 33.8°C · Low 18.2°C · 4.1 mm rain
- Phoenix in MayUnited States · 173 kmHigh 34.2°C · Low 18.8°C · 4.1 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 Tucson) is explained once on the Tucson year overview and on the Sources, method and limits page.