Sunrise & sunset times in Houston
Sunrise in Houston today is at 07:15 and sunset is at 19:05, giving 11h 50m of daylight (times for Thursday, 1 October 2026, in Houston's local time zone). Evening golden hour runs 18:33 to 19:05. The moon is a waning gibbous at 67% illumination.
Live sunrise, sunset, solar noon, day length, golden hour, blue hour and moon times for Houston, United States. Pick any date to see the light for that day in local time.
On the 2026 June solstice the sun rises at 06:21 and sets at 20:25 in Houston (14h 4m of daylight). On the December solstice it rises at 07:12 and sets at 17:26 (10h 14m).
| Event | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length |
|---|---|---|---|
| March equinox | 07:25 | 19:33 | 12h 8m |
| June solstice | 06:21 | 20:25 | 14h 4m |
| September equinox | 07:09 | 19:17 | 12h 8m |
| December solstice | 07:12 | 17:26 | 10h 14m |
Full sun timeline for Houston
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 Houston
The best windows for warm and cool natural light on this date.
| Month | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 07:17 | 17:44 | 10h 27m |
| February | 07:01 | 18:10 | 11h 9m |
| March | 07:31 | 19:29 | 11h 58m |
| April | 06:55 | 19:48 | 12h 53m |
| May | 06:28 | 20:07 | 13h 39m |
| June | 06:20 | 20:23 | 14h 3m |
| July | 06:31 | 20:23 | 13h 52m |
| August | 06:49 | 20:02 | 13h 13m |
| September | 07:06 | 19:26 | 12h 21m |
| October | 07:23 | 18:50 | 11h 27m |
| November | 06:46 | 17:25 | 10h 39m |
| December | 07:09 | 17:24 | 10h 15m |
Sun and moon in Houston
For photographers, gardeners, runners and anyone chasing good light, the daily sun and moon schedule for Houston 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 Houston. Every value is calculated in the browser for the date you pick and shown in the local time of Houston, United States. Houston sits at roughly 29.76 degrees north, in the northern 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 Houston 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 Houston. 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 Houston, United States for any day of the year.
What time is sunset in Houston today?
The sun sets in Houston at 19:05 (just after midnight) today, Thursday, 1 October 2026, in Houston's own local time. The warm light starts well before that: evening golden hour opens at 18:33, giving 32 minutes of low golden light before the sun reaches the horizon. Sunset is not the end of the light either. Last light, the moment usable daylight ends at civil dusk, follows 24 minutes later at 19:29, and the sky is properly dark at 20:24, 1h 19m after sunset.
Tomorrow the sun sets at 19:05 in Houston. That is 1 minute 12 seconds earlier than today. Over the coming week sunset moves 8 minutes 16 seconds earlier.
Planning around the light? See golden hour in Houston.
Is the day getting longer or shorter in Houston right now?
Houston gets 11h 52m of daylight today, from sunrise to sunset. Tomorrow will be 1 minute 46 seconds shorter. Over the next seven days Houston loses 12 minutes 21 seconds of daylight.
That pace is not constant. In Houston the day length changes fastest around March, near the equinox, when it moves by about 1 minute 48 seconds per day, and it slows almost to a stop at the solstices in June and December. The word solstice means exactly that: the sun standing still.
When are the earliest and latest sunrise and sunset in Houston?
The earliest sunset of 2026 in Houston falls on 2 December at 17:21, 19 days before the December solstice, and the latest on 30 June at 20:26.
Sunrise runs on its own schedule: earliest on 10 June at 06:20, latest on 8 March at 07:39, 77 days after the December solstice. The four dates in the table below do not line up with the solstices, and they are not supposed to. Earth's orbit is slightly elliptical and its axis is tilted, so the sun runs a few minutes fast or slow against clock time through the year. That offset, the equation of time, is what pushes the earliest sunset ahead of the shortest day and the latest sunrise behind it.
| Extreme | Date | Local time | Why then |
|---|---|---|---|
| Earliest sunrise | 10 Jun 2026 | 06:20 | 11 days before the June solstice |
| Latest sunrise | 8 Mar 2026 | 07:39 | 77 days after the December solstice |
| Earliest sunset | 2 Dec 2026 | 17:21 | 19 days before the December solstice |
| Latest sunset | 30 Jun 2026 | 20:26 | 9 days after the June solstice |
These are wall-clock times, so Houston's daylight saving change is part of the picture: an hour moved by the clocks counts the same as an hour moved by the Earth.
For the longest and shortest day themselves, see day length in Houston.
How long does twilight last in Houston?
First light in Houston arrives 24 minutes before sunrise today, at 06:51. After sunset the light hangs on for another 24 minutes, until 19:29. That evening stretch is not the same all year in Houston: it runs from 24 minutes at its shortest, in September, to 27 minutes at its longest, in June. The lower the angle at which the sun crosses the horizon, the longer twilight lasts, which is why dusk is a slow affair at high latitudes and abrupt near the equator.
Full three-band twilight tables: dawn in Houston and dusk in Houston.
How high does the sun get in Houston?
At midday on the June solstice the sun stands 83.7 degrees above the horizon in Houston. On the December solstice it climbs only 36.8 degrees. Even at that lowest point, a noon shadow in Houston is only about 1.3 times the height of the object casting it.
Frequently asked questions about Houston
What time is sunrise in Houston today?
The sun rises in Houston, United States at 07:15 on Thursday, 1 October 2026, and sets at 19:05. Use the date picker above to check sunrise for any other day. All times are given in the local time zone of Houston.
When is golden hour in Houston?
Houston has two golden hours each day. On Thursday, 1 October 2026 the morning window runs from 07:15 to 07:47, and the evening window from 18:33 to 19:05, all in local time. Pick another date above to plan a shoot down to the minute.
Why do sunrise and sunset change through the year in Houston?
Because Houston lies in the northern hemisphere, its days are longest around June and shortest around December. In Houston the longer solstice day runs about 14h 4m and the shorter one about 10h 14m, 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 Houston accurate?
Yes. Times are computed with the well established SunCalc astronomy library using the coordinates of Houston 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 Houston?
Yes. The current moon phase, the percentage of the Moon that is lit, and the moonrise and moonset times for Houston are all shown for the selected date, so you can plan around a full moon or a dark new moon sky.
How much daylight does Houston gain or lose each day?
Houston has 11h 52m of daylight on Thursday, 1 October 2026 and is losing daylight: 12 minutes 21 seconds over the following seven days, with tomorrow 1 minute 46 seconds shorter than today. The daily change is at its largest near the March and September equinoxes and almost stops at the June and December solstices.
When is the earliest sunset in Houston?
The earliest sunset of 2026 in Houston is on 2 December at 17:21, 19 days before the December solstice. The earliest sunset and the shortest day are not the same date, because the sun runs a few minutes fast or slow against clock time through the year, an effect called the equation of time.
How long does it stay light after sunset in Houston?
About 24 minutes on Thursday, 1 October 2026. The sun sets at 19:05 and usable daylight ends at civil dusk, 19:29, with full astronomical darkness at 20:24. The higher the latitude, the longer that fade takes.
Data and methodology: every time on this page is computed from Houston's coordinates with SunCalc, an open source astronomy library, not estimated or looked up from a table. Coordinates 29.76, -95.37, time zone America/Chicago. Accurate to about a minute for a flat, unobstructed horizon; terrain, tall buildings and atmospheric conditions can shift the moment the sun is actually visible by a few minutes. Full method on methodology.
Nearby cities
Sun and moon times for places close to Houston. Sunrise and sunset shift as you move east, west, north or south.
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