How the light changes today
Each colour is a stage of the sky, from full night to full daylight and back. The marker is the time in Cape Town right now.
Morning
- Astronomical dawn04:22
- Nautical dawn04:55
- Civil dawn · blue hour05:26
- Golden hour begins05:36
- Sunrise05:52
- Golden hour ends06:26
Evening
- Golden hour begins18:35
- Sunset19:09
- Golden hour ends · blue hour19:25
- Civil dusk19:35
- Nautical dusk20:06
- Astronomical dusk20:39
What do civil, nautical and astronomical twilight mean? Read the guide →
Where the sun rises and sets
Directions from Cape Town today. The shaded fans show how far sunrise and sunset swing between June and December; the dot is the sun right now.
Coming up in Cape Town
Sunrise and sunset on any date
Pick a day of 2026 to see its sunrise, sunset and daylight in Cape Town.
Moon 90% lit
Full moon
- Moonrise
- 19:50
- Moonset
- 05:36
- Full moon
- today
- New moon
- 9 Nov
100%
97%
92%
85%
76%
65%
54%
Today in Cape Town
Today the sun rises over Cape Town at 05:52 and sets at 19:09, giving 13 h 17 min of daylight.
Being south of the equator, Cape Town has its longest days in December and its shortest in June.
Across 2026 the day length in Cape Town swings by 4 h 31 min, from 9 h 54 min on 21 June to 14 h 25 min on 21 December.
The earliest sunrise of 2026 falls on 5 December, at 05:28 - not on the longest day, because the equation of time pulls the two apart.
The moon is waning tonight, 100% lit.
A year of daylight in Cape Town
Every column is one day of 2026, from midnight at the top to midnight at the bottom. Hover or drag across it to read any day.
The light in Cape Town, season by season
Through the year
- 64 days with more than 14 hours of daylight, from 20 November to 22 January.
- Earliest sunset of the year: 17:44 on 11 June, 10 days before the shortest day.
- Latest sunrise: 07:52 on 30 June, 9 days after the shortest day.
For photographers
- Golden hour this evening: 18:35–19:25, with the sun low in the west (255°).
- Blue hour right after: 19:25–19:35.
- Over the week the evening golden hour moves from 18:35 today to 18:40 on 1 November.
- Tomorrow's morning golden hour: 05:35–06:25.
Cape Town compared with other cities
How much daylight each city gets between the shortest and the longest day of 2026.
Johannesburg, on the same clock, sees the sun rise 29 min earlier than Cape Town today.
On 21 June Rio de Janeiro gets 50 min more daylight than Cape Town, and on 21 December 52 min less.
October 2026 in Cape Town
Sunrise, sunset and day length for every day of the month. The bar shows where the daylight falls in the 24 hours.
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Daylight | Day length | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Thu | 06:23 | 18:49 | 12 h 26 min | +3 min | |
| 2Fri | 06:22 | 18:50 | 12 h 28 min | +2 min | |
| 3Sat | 06:21 | 18:51 | 12 h 30 min | +2 min | |
| 4Sun | 06:19 | 18:51 | 12 h 32 min | +2 min | |
| 5Mon | 06:18 | 18:52 | 12 h 34 min | +2 min | |
| 6Tue | 06:17 | 18:53 | 12 h 36 min | +2 min | |
| 7Wed | 06:15 | 18:53 | 12 h 38 min | +2 min | |
| 8Thu | 06:14 | 18:54 | 12 h 40 min | +2 min | |
| 9Fri | 06:13 | 18:55 | 12 h 42 min | +2 min | |
| 10Sat | 06:11 | 18:56 | 12 h 44 min | +2 min | |
| 11Sun | 06:10 | 18:57 | 12 h 46 min | +2 min | |
| 12Mon | 06:09 | 18:57 | 12 h 49 min | +3 min | |
| 13Tue | 06:07 | 18:58 | 12 h 51 min | +2 min | |
| 14Wed | 06:06 | 18:59 | 12 h 53 min | +2 min | |
| 15Thu | 06:05 | 19:00 | 12 h 55 min | +2 min | |
| 16Fri | 06:04 | 19:01 | 12 h 57 min | +2 min | |
| 17Sat | 06:02 | 19:01 | 12 h 59 min | +2 min | |
| 18Sun | 06:01 | 19:02 | 13 h 1 min | +2 min | |
| 19Mon | 06:00 | 19:03 | 13 h 3 min | +2 min | |
| 20Tue | 05:59 | 19:04 | 13 h 5 min | +2 min | |
| 21Wed | 05:58 | 19:05 | 13 h 7 min | +2 min | |
| 22Thu | 05:57 | 19:06 | 13 h 9 min | +2 min | |
| 23Fri | 05:55 | 19:06 | 13 h 11 min | +2 min | |
| 24Sat | 05:54 | 19:07 | 13 h 13 min | +2 min | |
| 25Sun | 05:53 | 19:08 | 13 h 15 min | +2 min | |
| 26Mon | 05:52 | 19:09 | 13 h 17 min | +2 min | |
| 27Tue | 05:51 | 19:10 | 13 h 19 min | +2 min | |
| 28Wed | 05:50 | 19:11 | 13 h 21 min | +2 min | |
| 29Thu | 05:49 | 19:12 | 13 h 23 min | +2 min | |
| 30Fri | 05:48 | 19:13 | 13 h 25 min | +2 min | |
| 31Sat | 05:47 | 19:13 | 13 h 27 min | +2 min |
Common questions about the sun in Cape Town
What time does the sun rise in Cape Town?
Today the sun rises in Cape Town at 05:52, local time.
What time does the sun set in Cape Town?
Today the sun sets in Cape Town at 19:09, local time.
How long is the day in Cape Town today?
Cape Town gets 13 h 17 min of daylight today, from sunrise to sunset.
When is the longest day of the year in Cape Town?
The longest day of 2026 in Cape Town is 21 December, with 14 h 25 min of daylight.
What phase is the moon in tonight?
The moon is waning over Cape Town tonight, 100% lit.
Where does the sun rise in Cape Town?
Today it rises in the east (106°). Through the year the sunrise point swings from the north-east (62°) in June to the south-east (119°) in December.
When is golden hour in Cape Town today?
In the morning from 05:36 to 06:26, and in the evening from 18:35 to 19:25.
When is the earliest sunset in Cape Town?
On 11 June, at 17:44. It comes 10 days before the shortest day, which is 21 June.
Cities at the same latitude as Cape Town
At a similar latitude the day lasts almost the same on any date; the clock time of sunrise and sunset still depends on each time zone.