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| Stellar May conditions |
May has gotten off to a cool start in the nation’s capital following an unusually warm and dry March and April. May is the third and final month of "meteorological" spring and often feels like summer by the end of the month.
Average daily temperatures in May rise appreciably from a high/low of 73°/54° on May 1 to 80°/63° by the end of the month. DC’s hottest May temperature on record of 99° occurred on May 31, 1991. Meanwhile, DC’s coldest May temperature of 33° occurred long ago on May 11, 1906.
DC’s May weather can be quite streaky. For example, four of DC’s 10 warmest May’s have happened since 2012. By comparison, four of the last six May’s have been cooler than average. May 2025 didn’t feature any 90-degree heat for the second time in the last three years.
May is DC’s third wettest month of the year according to NOAA, with an average monthly rainfall total of 3.94”. Rain can accumulate quickly this time of year. For instance, May 2008 was DC’s third wettest with 10.66” of rain. It had an incredible total of five days with an inch or more of rain. Last May was DC’s ninth wettest with 7.73”.
May is frequently an active severe weather month in the DMV (DC, Maryland and Virginia). On several dates a trace of snowfall (enough to accumulate, but not enough to measure) has occurred. However, it isn’t actually snow this time of year, but hail. For example, on May 2, 2016, a severe weather outbreak produced a lot of hail around the nation’s capital. Small accumulations of hail were reported in spots such as National Airport where a “trace” of frozen precipitation was observed.
Although summer doesn’t officially arrive until June, May often features summer-like heat. The nation’s capital has averaged between one and two May days with highs in the 90s over the last 30 years, according to NOAA. DC residents can also expect to see a high of at least 95° roughly once every five years, with the last such time being a high of 96° on May 31, 2022.
NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center expects May 2026 to feature near to below average temperatures with average rainfall in the nation’s capital. Even average May temperatures would prevent the three-month period of March, April and May from finishing among DC’s warmest “meteorological” springs.
