Sydney in May
In May, Sydney has 72.7 mm (2.86 in) of rain, a daily high of 20.7 °C (69.3 °F) and a daily low of 12.7 °C (54.9 °F), as 1991-2020 model estimates; figures in brackets are converted. The daily high is a model estimate, adjusted against station records.
Last updated : first sourced version.
Best time to visit Sydney: May meets our rule. Expect 7.4 rain days (model estimate) and days that shorten by 41 min.
What May is like in Sydney
- Light art and projections glow from late May along a walk from Circular Quay through The Rocks and Barangaroo to Darling Harbour. Source: Destination NSW: Vivid Sydney 2026 program, checked .
- Little penguins swim back to Manly to breed from May. They usually come ashore to their burrows at sunset, when the dark hides them. Source: NSW Environment and Heritage: Manly's little penguins, checked .
- Maple trees fill the Japanese Garden of Auburn Botanic Gardens and turn yellow as the weather cools. Each May the gardens host an Autumn Colours Festival. Source: Sydney.com (Destination NSW): The best places to see Sydney's autumn colours, checked .
Key figures
Weather in May, 1991-2020 model estimates
- Daily high
- 20.7 °C (69.3 °F)
- Daily low
- 12.7 °C (54.9 °F)
- Rain
- 72.7 mm (2.86 in) in the month
- Sunshine
- no data
Model estimate 1991-2020, not a weather station: ERA5-Land model estimates (Copernicus), computed by City by Month for the grid cell nearest the city. Daily high and Days with rain: model estimate, adjusted against station records. Licence: CC BY 4.0. Checked . How we make and test model estimates
Model estimate for the ERA5-Land grid cell at 33.9° S, 151.2° E, 4 km from the city centre point.
How we define and convert these figures
Notes. Sunshine: Not in our ERA5-Land estimates.
Daylight on 15 May 2026
- Sunrise
- 06:40 local time
- Sunset
- 17:03 local time
- Day length
- 10 h 23 min
Day length 1-31 May: 10 h 45 min to 10 h 04 min, -41 min.
Source: NOAA Solar Calculator equations, checked .
Month by month
Each month: daily high in °C, then rain in mm, 1991-2020 model estimates.
ERA5-Land model estimates 1991-2020, as above, checked .
This month against the year
| Measure | May | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Daily high | 20.7 °C | 4th coldest |
| Daily low | 12.7 °C | 5th coldest |
| Rain | 72.7 mm | 6th wettest |
| Sunshine | no data | no data |
| Day length | 10 h 23 min | 3rd shortest |
Equal values share a rank. How we rank months
Sydney in May, on average: 7.4 rain days (1 mm or more). Model estimate, adjusted against station records.
ERA5-Land model estimates 1991-2020, as above, checked .
Day length: NOAA solar equations, checked .
Public holidays this month
May 2026: none.
May 2027: none.
Checked against the official list, .
Source: holidays Python library, checked . Library: holidays 0.105.
Same month in 8 model-estimate cities
Sydney is warmer than 1 of our 8 model-estimate cities in May by mean daily high. How we rank cities
Closest high and low in May: Porto (0.7 °C apart), Istanbul (0.8), Lisbon (1.9).
| City | Gap from Sydney, °C | High, °C | Low, °C | Rain, mm | Sunshine, hours |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sydney (this page) | — | 20.7 | 12.7 | 72.7 | no data |
| Porto (closest) | 0.7 | 21.8 | 12.4 | 98.1 | no data |
| Istanbul (closest) | 0.8 | 21.6 | 13.3 | 37.0 | no data |
| Lisbon (closest) | 1.9 | 22.5 | 14.7 | 45.1 | no data |
| Melbourne | 3.4 | 17.6 | 9.0 | 50.5 | no data |
| Mumbai | 13.6 | 34.0 | 26.5 | no data | no data |
| Bangkok | 14.0 | 34.7 | 26.7 | no data | no data |
| Delhi | 16.6 | 41.2 | 25.4 | no data | no data |
Sources (1991-2020): ERA5-Land model estimates, checked . Each city's page names its grid cell. All sources in full on Methodology.
Sources
- Attribution: Copernicus Climate Change Service (2025): ERA5 Land hourly time-series data from 1950 to present. Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S) Climate Data Store (CDS). DOI: 10.24381/ee82e357. Accessed on the check date shown. Generated using or contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information 2025. Neither the European Commission nor ECMWF is responsible for any use that may be made of the Copernicus information or data it contains. Licence: CC BY 4.0. Checked .
- NOAA Solar Calculator equations, computed locally, NOAA Global Monitoring Laboratory (method); City by Month (computation). Attribution: Computed with the NOAA Solar Calculator method (no NOAA endorsement implied). Licence: Method, not data. Checked .
- holidays Python library, run locally. Attribution: holidays library, Vacanza team. Licence: MIT. Checked .
Cite this page: City by Month. "Sydney in May: weather, daylight, holidays". https://citybymonth.com/cities/australia/sydney/may/. Last updated 8 November 2026.