Provisional Met Office statistics show just how notable May 2026 has been, with the month ranking as the UK’s joint third warmest on record for mean temperature.
Provisional figures indicate that May 2026 was a notably warm month across the UK, ranking as the joint third warmest May on record for mean temperature. The warmth was particularly pronounced across England and Wales, where temperatures reached exceptional levels for the time of year.
England recorded its second warmest May on record, while Wales experienced its joint third warmest May. Northern Ireland also saw notably above-average temperatures, with its joint tenth warmest May. These figures highlight the widespread nature of the warmth across much of the UK.
In contrast, Scotland, while still experiencing generally above-average conditions, did not rank within its top ten warmest Mays on record, pointing to a more moderate temperature signal compared to other parts of the UK.
But what did May’s weather stats look like regionally? Let’s find out.
May 2026 temperatures
May 2026 rainfall
Rainfall during May was below average across all four nations, although no national records were set. A clear regional contrast was evident within England, with southern areas receiving around 59% of average rainfall, compared to close to average totals in the north at around 99%.
May 2026 Sunshine
The UK recorded slightly above-average sunshine overall during May. England was the sunniest of the four nations, while both Scotland and Northern Ireland experienced sunshine totals below the long-term average.
The full set of stats can be explored using the visualisations below. Click the menu on the top left to see different temperature or sunshine stats or hold control and scroll or zoom in to view rainfall data.
Where does the monthly data come from?
The Met Office’s monthly climate statistics use HadUK‑Grid data to work out county, regional and UK‑wide averages. The dataset takes weather observations from across the country and interpolates them across the UK onto a 1km x 1km grid, covering every part of the UK. Some of these records stretch all the way back to 1836, meaning almost 200 years of weather data.
READ MORE: How do we know when weather records are broken?
READ MORE: What is HadUK-Grid?
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