Sunrise & sunset times in Cape Town
Sunrise in Cape Town today is at 07:41 and sunset is at 18:04, giving 10h 24m of daylight (times for Wednesday, 29 July 2026, in Cape Town's local time zone). Evening golden hour runs 17:28 to 18:04. The moon is a full moon at 100% illumination.
Live sunrise, sunset, solar noon, day length, golden hour, blue hour and moon times for Cape Town, South Africa. Pick any date to see the light for that day in local time.
On the 2026 June solstice the sun rises at 07:51 and sets at 17:44 in Cape Town (9h 54m of daylight). On the December solstice it rises at 05:31 and sets at 19:56 (14h 25m).
| Event | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length |
|---|---|---|---|
| March equinox | 06:49 | 18:57 | 12h 8m |
| June solstice | 07:51 | 17:44 | 9h 54m |
| September equinox | 06:35 | 18:42 | 12h 7m |
| December solstice | 05:31 | 19:56 | 14h 25m |
Full sun timeline for Cape Town
Civil dawn, when the sky starts to brighten before sunrise.
The moment the top edge of the sun appears on the horizon.
End of the soft, warm morning light photographers love.
The sun reaches its highest point in the sky for the day.
Start of the warm, low evening light before sunset.
The moment the sun dips fully below the horizon.
Civil dusk, when the last usable daylight fades.
Golden hour and blue hour in Cape Town
The best windows for warm and cool natural light on this date.
| Month | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 05:50 | 20:00 | 14h 10m |
| February | 06:21 | 19:39 | 13h 18m |
| March | 06:45 | 19:04 | 12h 19m |
| April | 07:08 | 18:23 | 11h 15m |
| May | 07:31 | 17:53 | 10h 22m |
| June | 07:49 | 17:43 | 9h 54m |
| July | 07:49 | 17:55 | 10h 6m |
| August | 07:25 | 18:16 | 10h 51m |
| September | 06:45 | 18:37 | 11h 52m |
| October | 06:04 | 18:59 | 12h 55m |
| November | 05:34 | 19:27 | 13h 53m |
| December | 05:29 | 19:53 | 14h 24m |
Sun and moon in Cape Town
If you are scheduling a rooftop dinner or an early hike, the daily sun and moon schedule for Cape Town is easy to check here. This page shows live sunrise, sunset, solar noon, day length, morning and evening golden hour, blue hour, dawn and dusk, plus the current moon phase and the moonrise and moonset times for Cape Town. Every value is calculated in the browser for the date you pick and shown in the local time of Cape Town, South Africa. Cape Town sits at roughly 33.92 degrees south, in the southern hemisphere, so it sees a gentle seasonal swing, since day length stays fairly even through the year and the sun climbs high overhead in summer. Because the length of the day changes with the seasons, the exact sunrise and sunset in Cape Town shift from week to week. Pick any date with the date picker to see how the light will fall on a specific day, which is handy for planning a shoot, an event, a wedding, a flight or simply the best moment to catch the last warm light of the evening. Golden hour, that soft warm window near sunrise and sunset, is the favourite of photographers in Cape Town. Blue hour, the cooler stretch just before sunrise and just after sunset, is ideal for cityscapes and long exposures. Combined with the moon phase and moon times, this gives you a complete picture of natural light over Cape Town, South Africa for any day of the year.
Frequently asked questions about Cape Town
What time is sunrise in Cape Town today?
The sunrise time in Cape Town, South Africa is shown at the top of this page for today's date and updates automatically. Use the date picker to check sunrise for any other day. All times are given in the local time zone of Cape Town.
When is golden hour in Cape Town?
Cape Town has two golden hours each day: one just after sunrise in the morning and one just before sunset in the evening. Both windows are listed above with their exact start and end times for the date you select, so you can plan a photo session down to the minute.
Why do sunrise and sunset change through the year in Cape Town?
Because Cape Town lies in the southern hemisphere, its days are longest around December and shortest around June. In Cape Town the longer solstice day runs about 14h 25m and the shorter one about 9h 54m, as shown in the table above. As Earth orbits the Sun, the point on the horizon where the Sun rises and sets moves, which lengthens or shortens the day and shifts sunrise and sunset times.
Are the times for Cape Town accurate?
Yes. Times are computed with the well established SunCalc astronomy library using the coordinates of Cape Town and shown in its local time zone. They are accurate to about a minute for a clear, flat horizon. Hills, tall buildings and atmospheric conditions can shift the moment you actually see the Sun by a few minutes.
Does this page show the moon phase for Cape Town?
Yes. The current moon phase, the percentage of the Moon that is lit, and the moonrise and moonset times for Cape Town are all shown for the selected date, so you can plan around a full moon or a dark new moon sky.
Data and methodology: every time on this page is computed from Cape Town's coordinates with SunCalc, an open source astronomy library, not estimated or looked up from a table.
Nearby cities
Sun and moon times for places close to Cape Town. Sunrise and sunset shift as you move east, west, north or south.
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Understand the light
Plain-English guides to the moments that shape the day in Cape Town and everywhere else.
Keep Cape Town in your calendar
Subscribe to a live feed of Cape Town's sunrise and sunset in your own calendar app, so today's light is always a glance away. It updates by itself, with no account.