Sun Path: Sydney, Australia

Direct answer

In Sydney, the shortest day (21 June) has 9 h 54 min of daylight, from sunrise at 06:59 to sunset at 16:53 AEST, and the longest (22 December) has 14 h 25 min, from 05:41 to 20:05 AEDT. The noon sun climbs from 32.7° to 79.6° above the horizon over the year. Sunrise moves between 62° (ENE) and 119° (ESE) and sunset between 241° (WSW) and 298° (WNW). The earliest sunrise is 05:30 on 3 October and the latest sunset is 20:09 on 7 January, which are not the solstice dates. In 2026 Sydney's clocks go back to AEST (UTC+10) on 5 April and forward to AEDT (UTC+11) on 4 October.

Content and cited inputs reviewed by Harth team · Published 2026-08-26 · Updated 2026-09-25.

When does the sun rise and set in Sydney each month?

Times are local clock time on the 21st of each month in 2026, including daylight saving where it applies. Bearings are clockwise from true north.

How the sun moves over Sydney through the year

At -33.87° latitude the sunrise point swings 57° along the horizon over the year, from 62° (ENE) to 119° (ESE), and sunset moves between 241° (WSW) and 298° (WNW). On the shortest day the noon sun is 32.7° above the northern horizon; on 22 December it reaches 79.6°.

Solar noon falls at 11:48–13:08 on the clock through the year, because Sydney sits 1.2° of longitude from its time zone's reference meridian and the equation of time shifts noon by up to 16 minutes. Use the clock times in the table, not 12:00, when you set up a sun study.

Key sun dates for Sydney in 2026

• Shortest day: 21 June, 9 h 54 min (sunrise 06:59, sunset 16:53 AEST).
• Longest day: 22 December, 14 h 25 min (sunrise 05:41, sunset 20:05 AEDT).
• Earliest sunrise: 05:30 AEST on 3 October. Latest sunset: 20:09 AEDT on 7 January.
• Highest noon sun: 79.6° on 22 December; lowest: 32.7° on 21 June.
• Clocks: In 2026 Sydney's clocks go back to AEST (UTC+10) on 5 April and forward to AEDT (UTC+11) on 4 October.

How these times were calculated

Harth computed each value with NOAA's solar-position equations for the GeoNames point -33.8678, 151.2073, using the standard 90.833° zenith for sunrise and sunset (refraction plus the sun's radius) and the Australia/Sydney time zone. Hills, buildings and elevation move the sunrise and sunset you actually see by a few minutes; use surveyed site coordinates and a horizon survey for a specific building.

Where can you explore related guidance?

• Explore all solar data guidance
• Sun Path: Central Coast, Australia
• Sun Path: Wollongong, Australia
• Sun Path: Blue Mountains, Australia
• All solar & daylight data guidance for Australia
• House Construction Cost Planning: Sydney, Australia
• Office Construction Cost Planning: Sydney, Australia
• Retail Construction Cost Planning: Sydney, Australia
• School Construction Cost Planning: Sydney, Australia

Sources and method

Location: GeoNames point -33.8678, 151.2073 (GeoNames AU dump, CC BY 4.0, ID 2147714); time zone Australia/Sydney from the same GeoNames record. Sun positions, sunrise and sunset calculated by Harth with NOAA's solar calculator equations, including standard atmospheric refraction, for a sea-level horizon.

Source links

• download.geonames.org

• gml.noaa.gov