Sun & light planner

Golden hour in Toronto

In mid-June golden hour in Toronto starts at 20:18 and lasts 44 minutes; in mid-December it starts at 15:55 and lasts 47. The tool is set to Toronto — pick your shoot date.

In Toronto the evening golden hour starts at 20:18 in mid-June (44 min) and at 15:55 in mid-December (47 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.
Exact coordinates

America/Toronto

  • 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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Highest sun
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Sun at chosen time
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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 Toronto, month by month

The evening window in Toronto is longest in December (47 minutes) and shortest in March (38 minutes). Values for the 15th of each month, local time, daylight saving included.

Toronto, 2026: sun times on the 15th (America/Toronto)
MonthSunriseSunsetGolden hour, eveningLengthBlue hour untilDaylight
January07:4917:0616:21–17:0645 min17:389 h 18 min
February07:1717:4817:08–17:4840 min18:1710 h 31 min
March07:3119:2418:46–19:2438 min19:5211 h 53 min
April06:3620:0119:22–20:0139 min20:3113 h 25 min
May05:5320:3619:55–20:3641 min21:0914 h 43 min
June05:3621:0120:18–21:0144 min21:3715 h 25 min
July05:5020:5820:15–20:5843 min21:3215 h 07 min
August06:2320:2319:43–20:2340 min20:5414 h 00 min
September06:5819:3018:52–19:3038 min19:5912 h 32 min
October07:3218:3617:57–18:3639 min19:0511 h 04 min
November07:1216:5416:11–16:5443 min17:259 h 41 min
December07:4516:4215:55–16:4247 min17:158 h 57 min

Where the sun goes down

Around the June solstice the sun sets in Toronto at 303° (WNW), around the December solstice at 237° (WSW) — 66° 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 70° at noon, the lowest at 23°. 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

America/Toronto changes the clocks on 8 March and 1 November 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 Toronto: permits

Shoots on public ground in Toronto need a permit from the local authority (listed source: toronto.ca/film). 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 Toronto today?

The tool above opens on today’s date for Toronto. As a guide: in mid-June it starts at 20:18, in mid-December at 15:55.

How long is golden hour in Toronto?

Between 38 minutes (March) and 47 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.