Sun & light planner

Golden hour in London

In mid-June golden hour in London starts at 20:26 and lasts 54 minutes; in mid-December it starts at 14:51 and lasts 61. The tool is set to London — pick your shoot date.

In London the evening golden hour starts at 20:26 in mid-June (54 min) and at 14:51 in mid-December (61 min). Pick a date for the exact day.
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A row of buildings or a hill: about 5° for a four-storey block 100 m away.
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Europe/London

  • golden (sun 6° to −0.8°)
  • dusk (−0.8° to −4°)
  • blue (−4° to −6°)
  • night
  • sun altitude
Golden hour, evening
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Blue hour, evening
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Golden hour, morning
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Sunrise
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Sunset
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Daylight
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Shadow of a 1.80 m person
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© OpenStreetMap · dashed: sunrise · solid: sunset · yellow: sun now · dark: shadow
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Golden hour in London, month by month

The evening window in London is longest in December (61 minutes) and shortest in March (44 minutes). Values for the 15th of each month, local time, daylight saving included.

London, 2026: sun times on the 15th (Europe/London)
MonthSunriseSunsetGolden hour, eveningLengthBlue hour untilDaylight
January08:0016:2115:23–16:2157 min16:598 h 20 min
February07:1617:1516:27–17:1548 min17:509 h 59 min
March06:1618:0517:20–18:0544 min18:3811 h 49 min
April06:0619:5619:11–19:5645 min20:3213 h 51 min
May05:1020:4619:56–20:4650 min21:2715 h 36 min
June04:4421:2020:26–21:2054 min22:0716 h 36 min
July05:0121:1320:21–21:1352 min21:5816 h 12 min
August05:4620:2519:39–20:2547 min21:0314 h 39 min
September06:3619:1818:34–19:1844 min19:5112 h 42 min
October07:2518:0917:23–18:0946 min18:4310 h 45 min
November07:1916:1315:20–16:1353 min16:508 h 54 min
December08:0015:5214:51–15:521 h 01 min16:337 h 52 min

Where the sun goes down

Around the June solstice the sun sets in London at 310° (NW), around the December solstice at 230° (SW) — 80° apart. A façade that gets backlight at the end of a summer day is lit from the side in winter, and a street that frames the sunset in July may not see it at all in January.

The highest sun of the year stands at 62° at noon, the lowest at 15°. Below about 15° the light turns warm and the shadows long enough to shape a face; the day chart in the tool shows when the sun crosses that line on your date.

Clock changes

Europe/London changes the clocks on 29 March and 25 October 2026. On those dates every time in the table jumps by an hour overnight — a schedule copied from the week before the change puts the exterior an hour into the dark (or an hour too early).

Filming in London: permits

Shoots on public ground in London need a permit from the local authority (listed source: filmlondon.org.uk). If a golden-hour setup sits on public space, apply for a weather cover day at the same time — the light will not wait for the paperwork.

As of 2026-08

Frequently asked

When does golden hour start in London today?

The tool above opens on today’s date for London. As a guide: in mid-June it starts at 20:26, in mid-December at 14:51.

How long is golden hour in London?

Between 44 minutes (March) and 61 minutes (December) in the evening, measured from 6° sun altitude to sunset.

Does a building to the west change this?

Yes. Set the obstruction slider to its angle: a four-storey building 100 m away is about 5° and ends direct sun noticeably before sunset. The tool shows how many minutes you lose.