Weather in Richmond in May

A good month. May is a solid month to be in Richmond. Highs average 15.7 °C, lows 9.8 °C, and rain falls on 12 days — nothing in the month is working against you.

May ranks 5 of 12 in Richmond: past the worst of the year but short of July, which is the month to book if the dates are open.

Rain on 12 days, 1 of them heavy. Enough to need a plan B, not enough to need a plan around it. Pack for 15.7 °C days and 9.8 °C nights; the spread matters more here than any single number.

What the averages hide

Averages flatten a month, and this one hides a few things: the day barely swings — 5.9 °C between the overnight low and the afternoon high. Across the twenty years measured, the hottest May day reached 28.3 °C and the coldest night fell to 4.1 °C.

May is statistically steady but not small: the year-to-year variation is modest in relative terms, yet the wettest May on record still delivered 95 mm against 10 mm in the driest. In a month this wet, even a tame spread is a lot of rain in absolute terms — the 60 mm average is a reasonable planning figure, not a promise.

Wind is light at 4.4 km/h, so the temperature on the page is close to the temperature on your skin, and humidity runs at 77%, high enough to notice on the warm days without dominating them.

How May sits in the year

The month is on the way up: 4 °C warmer than April, and June adds another 2.5 °C. Late in the month feels noticeably different from the start of it, which is worth knowing if the trip is short.

Daylight in May

May is at or near the longest days of Richmond's year: 14.2 hours of daylight, gaining 0.8 hours across the month. Evenings are the real gain — dinner outdoors still happens in full light.

An inland climate

Despite being inland, the year stays fairly even: 18.7 °C between the year's warmest afternoons and coldest nights.

How busy it gets

Shoulder. The value months — prices ease off and you get the place closer to itself.

Crowd levels are estimated from climate desirability and school-holiday calendars, not from visitor numbers.

May in Richmond versus nearby

If Richmond is one option among several, the nearby comparison is worth making. Virginia Beach is a better bet in May — 7.1 °C warmer, 1 day more rain. Washington is a better bet in May — 7.4 °C warmer, 1 day more rain.

So: May is a compromise. July is 26 points better and is what Richmond is actually like at its best — worth moving the trip for if that is possible, and worth adjusting expectations for if it is not.

Every month in Richmond

See all twelve months in Richmond, or where else to go in May.