When do the days start getting longer?

Straight after the winter solstice on Monday 21 December 2026 – but the evenings get lighter sooner. In London the earliest sunset is on 12 December, while the mornings stay dark until the latest sunrise on 30 December. Below: the same dates for 76 cities, how fast the daylight comes back and when it stays light until 5 pm.

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London
Earliest sunset 12 Dec
Shortest day 21 Dec
Latest sunrise 30 Dec

Lighter evenings, city by city

The darkest evening of the winter comes before the shortest day and the darkest morning after it. For each city: the earliest sunset, the length of the shortest day, the latest sunrise, the first day the sun sets at 5 pm or later, and how much longer the day is by 31 January and by 28 February than on the solstice. Times are on the local clock, before the clocks go forward in March, and every city links to its own page with the whole year.

United Kingdom and Ireland

Winter 2026–27 in the UK and Ireland, on the local clock (GMT)
City	Earliest sunset	Shortest day	Latest sunrise	Sunset after 5 pm from	Longer by 31 Jan	Longer by 28 Feb
London	12 Dec, 15:51	7 h 50 min	30 Dec, 08:06	7 Feb	+1 h 17 min	+3 h 00 min
Birmingham, England	13 Dec, 15:53	7 h 39 min	30 Dec, 08:18	5 Feb	+1 h 21 min	+3 h 08 min
Manchester	13 Dec, 15:49	7 h 28 min	30 Dec, 08:25	6 Feb	+1 h 25 min	+3 h 16 min
Liverpool	13 Dec, 15:53	7 h 29 min	30 Dec, 08:28	4 Feb	+1 h 24 min	+3 h 16 min
Leeds	13 Dec, 15:45	7 h 25 min	30 Dec, 08:24	8 Feb	+1 h 26 min	+3 h 19 min
Sheffield	13 Dec, 15:47	7 h 29 min	30 Dec, 08:21	7 Feb	+1 h 24 min	+3 h 15 min
Newcastle upon Tyne	14 Dec, 15:38	7 h 10 min	29 Dec, 08:31	9 Feb	+1 h 31 min	+3 h 30 min
Nottingham	13 Dec, 15:48	7 h 34 min	30 Dec, 08:18	7 Feb	+1 h 23 min	+3 h 12 min
Leicester	13 Dec, 15:49	7 h 38 min	30 Dec, 08:16	7 Feb	+1 h 21 min	+3 h 09 min
Bristol	12 Dec, 16:01	7 h 50 min	30 Dec, 08:16	1 Feb	+1 h 17 min	+3 h 00 min
Southampton	12 Dec, 15:59	7 h 56 min	31 Dec, 08:08	3 Feb	+1 h 15 min	+2 h 56 min
Brighton	12 Dec, 15:55	7 h 56 min	31 Dec, 08:03	6 Feb	+1 h 15 min	+2 h 55 min
Plymouth	12 Dec, 16:13	8 h 01 min	31 Dec, 08:17	27 Jan	+1 h 14 min	+2 h 52 min
Cardiff	12 Dec, 16:04	7 h 50 min	30 Dec, 08:18	31 Jan	+1 h 17 min	+3 h 00 min
Swansea	12 Dec, 16:06	7 h 49 min	30 Dec, 08:22	30 Jan	+1 h 18 min	+3 h 01 min
Belfast	14 Dec, 15:58	7 h 15 min	29 Dec, 08:46	31 Jan	+1 h 30 min	+3 h 26 min
Glasgow	14 Dec, 15:43	6 h 59 min	29 Dec, 08:48	6 Feb	+1 h 36 min	+3 h 38 min
Edinburgh	14 Dec, 15:38	6 h 58 min	29 Dec, 08:44	8 Feb	+1 h 36 min	+3 h 39 min
Aberdeen	15 Dec, 15:25	6 h 41 min	28 Dec, 08:48	12 Feb	+1 h 42 min	+3 h 52 min
Dublin	13 Dec, 16:06	7 h 30 min	30 Dec, 08:40	28 Jan	+1 h 24 min	+3 h 15 min
Cork	13 Dec, 16:23	7 h 46 min	30 Dec, 08:42	20 Jan	+1 h 19 min	+3 h 03 min

United States and Canada

Winter 2026–27 in the United States and Canada, on local standard time
City	Earliest sunset	Shortest day	Latest sunrise	Sunset after 5 pm from	Longer by 31 Jan	Longer by 28 Feb
New York	8 Dec, 16:28	9 h 15 min	4 Jan, 07:20	21 Jan	+50 min	+1 h 59 min
Boston	8 Dec, 16:11	9 h 05 min	3 Jan, 07:14	3 Feb	+53 min	+2 h 07 min
Philadelphia	7 Dec, 16:35	9 h 20 min	4 Jan, 07:23	15 Jan	+48 min	+1 h 56 min
Washington, D.C.	7 Dec, 16:46	9 h 26 min	5 Jan, 07:27	5 Jan	+47 min	+1 h 51 min
Atlanta	4 Dec, 17:29	9 h 55 min	8 Jan, 07:43	all winter	+38 min	+1 h 31 min
Chicago	8 Dec, 16:19	9 h 08 min	3 Jan, 07:18	28 Jan	+52 min	+2 h 04 min
Detroit	8 Dec, 17:00	9 h 05 min	3 Jan, 08:01	all winter	+53 min	+2 h 07 min
Minneapolis	9 Dec, 16:31	8 h 46 min	2 Jan, 07:51	17 Jan	+59 min	+2 h 20 min
Houston	2 Dec, 17:22	10 h 14 min	10 Jan, 07:18	all winter	+32 min	+1 h 18 min
Dallas	4 Dec, 17:21	9 h 59 min	8 Jan, 07:30	all winter	+37 min	+1 h 28 min
Denver	7 Dec, 16:35	9 h 21 min	4 Jan, 07:21	15 Jan	+48 min	+1 h 55 min
Phoenix	4 Dec, 17:20	9 h 56 min	8 Jan, 07:33	all winter	+38 min	+1 h 30 min
Salt Lake City	8 Dec, 17:00	9 h 15 min	4 Jan, 07:52	all winter	+50 min	+1 h 59 min
Seattle	10 Dec, 16:18	8 h 26 min	1 Jan, 07:58	25 Jan	+1 h 06 min	+2 h 35 min
Portland, Oregon	10 Dec, 16:27	8 h 42 min	2 Jan, 07:51	20 Jan	+1 h 01 min	+2 h 23 min
San Francisco	6 Dec, 16:51	9 h 33 min	5 Jan, 07:25	30 Dec	+45 min	+1 h 47 min
Los Angeles	4 Dec, 16:43	9 h 53 min	7 Jan, 06:59	7 Jan	+39 min	+1 h 32 min
Anchorage	16 Dec, 15:40	5 h 27 min	26 Dec, 10:16	30 Jan	+2 h 15 min	+4 h 52 min
Toronto	9 Dec, 16:41	8 h 56 min	3 Jan, 07:51	10 Jan	+56 min	+2 h 13 min
Ottawa	10 Dec, 16:20	8 h 43 min	2 Jan, 07:43	26 Jan	+1 h 00 min	+2 h 22 min
Montreal	10 Dec, 16:11	8 h 42 min	2 Jan, 07:34	1 Feb	+1 h 00 min	+2 h 23 min
Halifax	9 Dec, 16:34	8 h 49 min	2 Jan, 07:51	15 Jan	+58 min	+2 h 18 min
Winnipeg	11 Dec, 16:27	8 h 05 min	31 Dec, 08:27	18 Jan	+1 h 13 min	+2 h 50 min
Calgary	12 Dec, 16:29	7 h 54 min	30 Dec, 08:40	16 Jan	+1 h 17 min	+2 h 58 min
Edmonton	13 Dec, 16:14	7 h 28 min	29 Dec, 08:50	24 Jan	+1 h 26 min	+3 h 18 min
Vancouver	11 Dec, 16:14	8 h 11 min	31 Dec, 08:08	27 Jan	+1 h 11 min	+2 h 46 min

Europe

Winter 2026–27 in Europe, on the local clock
City	Earliest sunset	Shortest day	Latest sunrise	Sunset after 5 pm from	Longer by 31 Jan	Longer by 28 Feb
Paris	11 Dec, 16:54	8 h 15 min	1 Jan, 08:44	27 Dec	+1 h 09 min	+2 h 42 min
Brussels	12 Dec, 16:37	7 h 56 min	31 Dec, 08:45	12 Jan	+1 h 15 min	+2 h 55 min
Amsterdam	13 Dec, 16:27	7 h 41 min	30 Dec, 08:51	17 Jan	+1 h 20 min	+3 h 07 min
Berlin	13 Dec, 15:52	7 h 39 min	30 Dec, 08:17	6 Feb	+1 h 21 min	+3 h 08 min
Copenhagen	14 Dec, 15:37	7 h 01 min	29 Dec, 08:39	9 Feb	+1 h 34 min	+3 h 36 min
Warsaw	13 Dec, 15:23	7 h 42 min	30 Dec, 07:45	21 Feb	+1 h 20 min	+3 h 06 min
Prague	12 Dec, 16:00	8 h 04 min	31 Dec, 08:01	4 Feb	+1 h 12 min	+2 h 50 min
Vienna	11 Dec, 16:00	8 h 20 min	1 Jan, 07:45	5 Feb	+1 h 07 min	+2 h 38 min
Zurich	11 Dec, 16:35	8 h 27 min	1 Jan, 08:13	14 Jan	+1 h 05 min	+2 h 33 min
Madrid	8 Dec, 17:48	9 h 17 min	4 Jan, 08:38	all winter	+49 min	+1 h 57 min
Rome	8 Dec, 16:39	9 h 08 min	4 Jan, 07:38	12 Jan	+52 min	+2 h 04 min
Lisbon	7 Dec, 17:15	9 h 27 min	5 Jan, 07:55	all winter	+46 min	+1 h 50 min
Stockholm	16 Dec, 14:47	6 h 05 min	27 Dec, 08:45	23 Feb	+1 h 56 min	+4 h 20 min
Oslo	16 Dec, 15:11	5 h 54 min	27 Dec, 09:20	12 Feb	+2 h 01 min	+4 h 28 min
Helsinki	16 Dec, 15:12	5 h 49 min	27 Dec, 09:25	12 Feb	+2 h 03 min	+4 h 32 min

“All winter” means the sun never sets before 5 pm there, even in December. Is your town not listed? The list of cities has 500, each with its own page, or use your own location below.

Why the evenings get lighter before the mornings

If sunrise and sunset simply moved towards each other until the solstice and then apart again, the darkest evening and the darkest morning would both fall on the shortest day. They do not, because the middle of the day by the sun – solar noon – is not fixed on the clock. In late December it comes about 30 seconds later each day, and the whole stretch of daylight slides later with it.

Before the solstice the shrinking day pulls the sunset earlier while the slide pushes it later. In London the slide wins from 12 December, the earliest sunset of the year at 15:51, so the evenings are already drawing out while the days are still getting shorter. In the morning the two pull the same way: the sunrises get later until the solstice, and the slide keeps them coming later for another 9 days, to the latest sunrise on 30 December at 08:06.

Sunrise
Sunset
Daylight
The shortest day

Sunrise and sunset in London from 1 November to 27 March, on the local clock. The earliest sunset is on 12 December at 15:51, the shortest day on 21 December and the latest sunrise on 30 December at 08:06. Between the two curves is the daylight: it is narrowest on the shortest day, but its bottom edge, the sunset, has been moving later for 9 days by then.

The slide comes from the equation of time: the Earth moves fastest along its orbit in early January, when it is closest to the sun, and the tilt of its axis adds to the effect around the solstices. The same drift draws the sun’s figure of eight in the sky, the analemma. There is more in why the earliest sunset is not on the shortest day and why solar noon is not at 12:00.

How fast the days get longer

Slowly at first, then faster. In London the day grows by only 2 minutes in the whole first week after the solstice. By the end of January it gains about 3.3 minutes a day, and around the March equinox about 4 minutes a day, the fastest of the year. By 31 January the day is 1 h 17 min longer than on the shortest day, and by 28 February 3 h 00 min longer.

London, week by week from the shortest day (GMT)
Date	Sunrise	Sunset	Day length	That week
21 Dec	08:04	15:53	7 h 50 min	shortest day
28 Dec	08:06	15:58	7 h 52 min	+2 min
4 Jan	08:06	16:05	8 h 00 min	+8 min
11 Jan	08:03	16:14	8 h 12 min	+12 min
18 Jan	07:57	16:25	8 h 28 min	+16 min
25 Jan	07:49	16:37	8 h 48 min	+20 min
1 Feb	07:39	16:50	9 h 10 min	+22 min
8 Feb	07:28	17:02	9 h 35 min	+24 min
15 Feb	07:15	17:15	10 h 00 min	+26 min
22 Feb	07:01	17:28	10 h 27 min	+27 min
1 Mar	06:46	17:40	10 h 54 min	+27 min
8 Mar	06:31	17:53	11 h 22 min	+28 min
15 Mar	06:15	18:05	11 h 49 min	+28 min
22 Mar	05:59	18:17	12 h 17 min	+28 min

New York, week by week from the shortest day (EST)
Date	Sunrise	Sunset	Day length	That week
21 Dec	07:17	16:32	9 h 15 min	shortest day
28 Dec	07:19	16:36	9 h 17 min	+2 min
4 Jan	07:20	16:42	9 h 22 min	+5 min
11 Jan	07:19	16:49	9 h 29 min	+8 min
18 Jan	07:17	16:57	9 h 40 min	+11 min
25 Jan	07:12	17:05	9 h 53 min	+13 min
1 Feb	07:06	17:13	10 h 07 min	+15 min
8 Feb	06:59	17:22	10 h 23 min	+16 min
15 Feb	06:50	17:31	10 h 41 min	+17 min
22 Feb	06:41	17:39	10 h 58 min	+18 min
1 Mar	06:30	17:47	11 h 17 min	+18 min
8 Mar	06:19	17:55	11 h 36 min	+19 min

The further from the equator, the bigger the swing: Edinburgh gains more daylight each week than London, and Los Angeles less than New York. On Sunday 28 March 2027 the clocks go forward in the UK and Ireland and the sunset jumps from 18:25 to 19:27 overnight; in the United States and Canada that happens on Sunday 14 March 2027. Why the pace changes is explained in how day length changes with latitude and season.

When do the days start getting longer in Australia and New Zealand?

South of the equator the seasons run the other way. The shortest day is the June solstice, Tuesday 22 June 2027, and the days start getting longer straight after it. The pattern is the same, mirrored: in Sydney the earliest sunset is on 12 June at 16:53 and the latest sunrise on 1 July at 07:01, and by 31 July the day is 32 minutes longer than on the solstice.

Winter 2027 south of the equator, on local standard time
City	Earliest sunset	Shortest day	Latest sunrise	Longer by 31 Jul	Longer by 31 Aug
Sydney	12 Jun, 16:53	9 h 54 min	1 Jul, 07:01	+32 min	+1 h 27 min
Melbourne	13 Jun, 17:07	9 h 33 min	29 Jun, 07:37	+37 min	+1 h 41 min
Brisbane	10 Jun, 17:00	10 h 24 min	3 Jul, 06:39	+24 min	+1 h 06 min
Perth	11 Jun, 17:19	10 h 03 min	1 Jul, 07:18	+30 min	+1 h 20 min
Adelaide	12 Jun, 17:11	9 h 48 min	30 Jun, 07:24	+33 min	+1 h 30 min
Canberra	13 Jun, 16:58	9 h 47 min	30 Jun, 07:13	+34 min	+1 h 32 min
Hobart	15 Jun, 16:42	9 h 01 min	28 Jun, 07:43	+46 min	+2 h 02 min
Auckland	13 Jun, 17:11	9 h 38 min	30 Jun, 07:35	+36 min	+1 h 37 min
Wellington	14 Jun, 16:58	9 h 11 min	29 Jun, 07:48	+43 min	+1 h 55 min
Christchurch	15 Jun, 16:59	8 h 56 min	28 Jun, 08:04	+47 min	+2 h 05 min
Cape Town	12 Jun, 17:44	9 h 54 min	30 Jun, 07:52	+32 min	+1 h 28 min
Johannesburg	9 Jun, 17:23	10 h 30 min	3 Jul, 06:56	+23 min	+1 h 03 min
Buenos Aires	12 Jun, 17:49	9 h 50 min	30 Jun, 08:01	+34 min	+1 h 30 min
Santiago	11 Jun, 17:41	9 h 56 min	30 Jun, 07:48	+32 min	+1 h 26 min

Your own location

The same dates for any place on Earth: enter its coordinates, or let the browser find where you are. Nothing is sent anywhere – the sun is worked out on your device.

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