ERA5 almanac comparison — 8 years of real data
Panama City Beach vs Santa Barbara: weather in May
Essentially a tie in May: Panama City Beach is 43% clear historically, Santa Barbara is 46% clear (8-year ERA5 average) — within the noise. Avg high 81°F vs 73°F. Panama City Beach also sees measurably more rain than Santa Barbara this month (36% vs 9% of days). Pick based on flight time or price, not weather — the weather won't decide this one for you.
Panama City Beach
FL
- Clear days, May
- 43%
- Sample size
- n=248 days
- Avg high
- 81°F
- Early May (1st–15th)
- 48%
- Late May (16th–end)
- 38%
- Rain frequency
- 36% of days
Santa Barbara
CA
- Clear days, May
- 46%
- Sample size
- n=248 days
- Avg high
- 73°F
- Early May (1st–15th)
- 52%
- Late May (16th–end)
- 40%
- Rain frequency
- 9% of days
Compare Panama City Beach vs Santa Barbara in another month
All percentages are historical averages from the ERA5 reanalysis via Open-Meteo, 8 full years (2018–2025). “Clear” means avg high ≥ 72 °F, precipitation < 1 mm, and a non-precipitation weather code. This is history, not a forecast. The live 7-day outlook for any destination is on its own page and may differ from the long-run average. Data from Open-Meteo.