About the Sunrise and Sunset Calculator
Sunrise and sunset times depend on where you are and on the date. This calculator takes the latitude and longitude of a place, a date and the time zone offset, and gives the times of sunrise and sunset, solar noon and the length of the day. Near the poles it says if the Sun stays up all day or stays below the horizon. Type the latitude, the longitude, the date and the time zone and the sunrise and sunset appears at once, with a few related figures underneath, and you can copy the result with one tap. The sums run in your browser, so nothing you enter is uploaded.
Updated October 2026
How to use the Sunrise and Sunset Calculator
- 1Enter the latitude, the longitude, the date and the time zone.
- 2Pick the units or options from the menus if the sunrise and sunset tool offers them.
- 3Read the sunrise and sunset in the large result box.
- 4Look at the extra rows for related figures.
- 5Press Copy result to keep the answer.
When you need the sunrise and sunset
Photographers use sunrise and sunset to plan golden-hour shoots, hikers to be off the trail before dark, gardeners and solar planners to understand daylight, and travellers to see how the day changes with the latitude.
The day is longest at the June solstice in the north and shortest in December. At the equator the day stays close to 12 hours all year, and near the poles it swings from none to 24 hours.
How the sunrise and sunset is worked out
The tool works out the Sun's declination and the equation of time for the date, then the hour angle at which the Sun's centre is 0.833 degrees below the horizon, which allows for the size of the Sun and for refraction in the air. For New York (40.71° N, 74.01° W) on 21 June 2026 with a time zone of −4, sunrise is at 05:25 and sunset at 20:31, a day of 15 hours and 6 minutes, with solar noon at about 12:58. In London on 21 December 2026, the day is about 7 hours 49 minutes, and Svalbard at 78° N has the midnight sun at midsummer.
Every answer on this page comes from that one rule, so you can check any result by hand with a calculator. The figures shown underneath, such as other units, are conversions of the same answer.
- Sunrise, sunset, solar noon
- Polar day and night
- Any place on Earth
Mistakes to avoid with sunrise and sunset
Enter the offset from UTC that applies on that date, including daylight saving time. London is 0 in winter and +1 in summer. West longitudes and south latitudes are negative. Results are accurate to within about 2 minutes at moderate latitudes, but less near the poles, and local terrain such as hills changes the real times.
On phone and computer
On a phone, type into the boxes one after another and read the sunrise and sunset underneath; Copy result puts it on the clipboard for a message or a note. On a computer the inputs sit on the left and the answer on the right, so you can change one figure and watch the sunrise and sunset move. The sunrise and sunset calculator works the same on both. Daylight is one part of a plan. Check the moon with the Moon Phase Calculator, convert between places with the Time Zone Converter, and find the day number with the Day of the Year Calculator.
Features
- Include daylight saving in the offset
- West and south are negative
- Accurate to about 2 minutes
- Clear messages when the sunrise and sunset inputs make no sense
- Copy the result with one tap
- Private: nothing is uploaded
Frequently asked questions
How do I calculate sunrise and sunset?
The tool works out the Sun's declination and the equation of time for the date, then the hour angle at which the Sun's centre is 0.833 degrees below the horizon, which allows for the size of the Sun and for refraction in the air. For New York (40.71° N, 74.01° W) on 21 June 2026 with a time zone of −4, sunrise is at 05:25 and sunset at 20:31, a day of 15 hours and 6 minutes, with solar noon at about 12:58. In London on 21 December 2026, the day is about 7 hours 49 minutes, and Svalbard at 78° N has the midnight sun at midsummer.
What is the formula for sunrise and sunset?
The tool works out the Sun's declination and the equation of time for the date, then the hour angle at which the Sun's centre is 0.833 degrees below the horizon, which allows for the size of the Sun and for refraction in the air. The sunrise and sunset calculator applies it exactly and rounds only the displayed answer to six significant figures.
What is solar noon?
The moment when the Sun is highest in the sky. It is not always at 12:00 on the clock.
Why is the day length different from 12 hours at the equinox?
Refraction and the size of the Sun's disc make sunrise earlier and sunset later, so the day is a few minutes over 12 hours.
What is the midnight sun?
When the Sun stays above the horizon for 24 hours, in the polar summer.
Is this sunrise and sunset calculator free and private?
Yes. It is free, needs no account and runs in your browser, so the numbers you type are not uploaded or stored.