Outer Banks Sea Temperature in May

Looking to find out what the average sea water temperature in Outer Banks is for May? Find out what the lowest, highest, and average water temperatures are for Outer Banks over the past 10 years.

Average water temperature in Outer Banks for May

The average, high, and low temperatures below should help you if you can swim in the water in Outer Banks in May.

17.8° C

(64.03° F)

  • highest: 24.32° C (75.78° F)
  • lowest: 11.31° C (52.36° F)

At this temperature, water will feel cold compared to a swimming pool, but with a bit of experience and practice most people will find the water relatively comfortable to swim in.

Water temperature range by day in May in Outer Banks

The chart below shows the range of low and high temperatures by day for the month of May in Outer Banks.

Water temperatures for May in Outer Banks in recent years

Day 2024 2023 2022 2021
1 14.9° C 14.51° C 13.66° C 15.77° C
2 0° C 14.27° C 14.17° C 16.22° C
3 0° C 14.24° C 14.69° C 17.47° C
4 0° C 14.15° C 15.38° C 17.83° C
5 0° C 14.2° C 15.37° C 18.02° C
6 0° C 14.46° C 15.42° C 18.26° C
7 0° C 14.79° C 16.13° C 17.56° C
8 0° C 15.53° C 15.59° C 16.9° C
9 0° C 16.5° C 13.17° C 17.12° C
10 0° C 16.39° C 13.19° C 16.94° C
11 0° C 16.3° C 12.3° C 16.57° C
12 0° C 16.78° C 11.31° C 16.29° C
13 0° C 17.64° C 11.69° C 15.99° C
14 0° C 18.43° C 13.04° C 15.74° C
15 0° C 17.22° C 14.15° C 15.78° C
16 0° C 17.84° C 15.99° C 16.07° C
17 0° C 18.23° C 17.24° C 16.25° C
18 0° C 18.47° C 17.12° C 16.63° C
19 0° C 18.23° C 17.75° C 17.43° C
20 0° C 18.32° C 18.36° C 17.97° C
21 0° C 17.8° C 19.69° C 18.1° C
22 0° C 17.88° C 20.4° C 18.83° C
23 0° C 17.63° C 20.54° C 19.38° C
24 0° C 16.67° C 20.19° C 19.35° C
25 0° C 16.16° C 18.79° C 19.35° C
26 0° C 15.99° C 19.22° C 19.79° C
27 0° C 15.45° C 19.18° C 20.3° C
28 0° C 16.36° C 18.8° C 20.51° C
29 0° C 17.07° C 19.68° C 19.91° C
30 0° C 17.39° C 21.16° C 19.2° C
31 0° C 17.32° C 22.03° C 18.89° C

Water temperature in May for locations near Outer Banks

Waves

United States, North America

0.59 miles away

Salvo

United States, North America

1.32 miles away

Rodanthe

United States, North America

2.89 miles away

Avon

United States, North America

14.47 miles away

Buxton

United States, North America

20.43 miles away

Cape Hatteras

United States, North America

21.84 miles away

Data source and citation

Raw data for the calculations made to find the sea surface temperature in Outer Banks comes from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and their 1/4° daily Optimum Interpolation Sea Surface Temperature.

The water temperature data is constructed by combining observations from different platforms (satellites, ships, buoys, and Argo floats) on a regular global grid. A spatially complete sea surface temperature map is then built by interpolating to fill in gaps in the data.

If you'd like to use any of the information above in the format it is presented, please use the citation tool below.

  • "Outer Banks Sea Temperature in May". SeaTemperatures.net. Accessed on May 3, 2024. http://seatemperatures.net/north-america/united-states/outer-banks-may-temperature/.

  • "Outer Banks Sea Temperature in May". SeaTemperatures.net, http://seatemperatures.net/north-america/united-states/outer-banks-may-temperature/. Accessed 3 May, 2024

  • Outer Banks Sea Temperature in May. SeaTemperatures.net. Retrieved from http://seatemperatures.net/north-america/united-states/outer-banks-may-temperature/.