Sunrise & sunset times in Kyoto
Sunrise in Kyoto today is at 05:52 and sunset is at 17:40, giving 11h 48m of daylight (times for Friday, 2 October 2026, in Kyoto's local time zone). Evening golden hour runs 17:06 to 17:40. The moon is a waning gibbous at 67% illumination.
Live sunrise, sunset, solar noon, day length, golden hour, blue hour and moon times for Kyoto, Japan. Pick any date to see the light for that day in local time.
On the 2026 June solstice the sun rises at 04:43 and sets at 19:14 in Kyoto (14h 31m of daylight). On the December solstice it rises at 07:00 and sets at 16:48 (9h 48m).
| Event | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length |
|---|---|---|---|
| March equinox | 06:01 | 18:08 | 12h 7m |
| June solstice | 04:43 | 19:14 | 14h 31m |
| September equinox | 05:44 | 17:54 | 12h 10m |
| December solstice | 07:00 | 16:48 | 9h 48m |
Full sun timeline for Kyoto
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 Kyoto
The best windows for warm and cool natural light on this date.
| Month | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 07:04 | 17:07 | 10h 3m |
| February | 06:43 | 17:38 | 10h 55m |
| March | 06:08 | 18:03 | 11h 55m |
| April | 05:25 | 18:28 | 13h 3m |
| May | 04:53 | 18:53 | 13h 59m |
| June | 04:42 | 19:12 | 14h 30m |
| July | 04:53 | 19:11 | 14h 18m |
| August | 05:16 | 18:46 | 13h 30m |
| September | 05:39 | 18:04 | 12h 26m |
| October | 06:02 | 17:22 | 11h 20m |
| November | 06:30 | 16:51 | 10h 21m |
| December | 06:57 | 16:46 | 9h 49m |
Sun and moon in Kyoto
Landscape and street photographers who plan around the light rely on the daily sun and moon schedule for Kyoto, Japan. 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 Kyoto. Every value is calculated in the browser for the date you pick and shown in the local time of Kyoto, Japan. Kyoto sits at roughly 35.01 degrees north, in the northern hemisphere, so it sees a clear but moderate seasonal swing, with noticeably longer days in summer and cosier, earlier sunsets in winter. Because the length of the day changes with the seasons, the exact sunrise and sunset in Kyoto 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 Kyoto. 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 Kyoto, Japan for any day of the year.
What time is sunset in Kyoto today?
The sun sets in Kyoto at 17:40 today, Friday, 2 October 2026, in Kyoto's own local time. The warm light starts well before that: evening golden hour opens at 17:06, giving 34 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 25 minutes later at 18:05, and the sky is properly dark at 19:04, 1h 24m after sunset.
Tomorrow the sun sets at 17:38 in Kyoto. That is 1 minute 24 seconds earlier than today. Over the coming week sunset moves 9 minutes 39 seconds earlier.
Planning around the light? See golden hour in Kyoto.
Is the day getting longer or shorter in Kyoto right now?
Kyoto gets 11h 48m of daylight today, from sunrise to sunset. Tomorrow will be 2 minutes 10 seconds shorter. Over the next seven days Kyoto loses 15 minutes 8 seconds of daylight.
That pace is not constant. In Kyoto the day length changes fastest around March, near the equinox, when it moves by about 2 minutes 13 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 Kyoto?
The earliest sunset of 2026 in Kyoto falls on 5 December at 16:44, 16 days before the December solstice, and the latest on 29 June at 19:15.
Sunrise runs on its own schedule: earliest on 13 June at 04:42, latest on 7 January at 07:05, 17 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 | 13 Jun 2026 | 04:42 | 8 days before the June solstice |
| Latest sunrise | 7 Jan 2026 | 07:05 | 17 days after the December solstice |
| Earliest sunset | 5 Dec 2026 | 16:44 | 16 days before the December solstice |
| Latest sunset | 29 Jun 2026 | 19:15 | 8 days after the June solstice |
For the longest and shortest day themselves, see day length in Kyoto.
How long does twilight last in Kyoto?
First light in Kyoto arrives 25 minutes before sunrise today, at 05:26. After sunset the light hangs on for another 25 minutes, until 18:05. That evening stretch is not the same all year in Kyoto: it runs from 25 minutes at its shortest, in September, to 30 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 Kyoto and dusk in Kyoto.
How high does the sun get in Kyoto?
At midday on the June solstice the sun stands 78.4 degrees above the horizon in Kyoto. On the December solstice it climbs only 31.6 degrees. A midday sun that low throws a shadow about 1.6 times the height of whatever casts it, so even at noon in midwinter the shadows in Kyoto are long ones.
Frequently asked questions about Kyoto
What time is sunrise in Kyoto today?
The sun rises in Kyoto, Japan at 05:52 on Friday, 2 October 2026, and sets at 17:40. Use the date picker above to check sunrise for any other day. All times are given in the local time zone of Kyoto.
When is golden hour in Kyoto?
Kyoto has two golden hours each day. On Friday, 2 October 2026 the morning window runs from 05:52 to 06:25, and the evening window from 17:06 to 17:40, 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 Kyoto?
Because Kyoto lies in the northern hemisphere, its days are longest around June and shortest around December. In Kyoto the longer solstice day runs about 14h 31m and the shorter one about 9h 48m, 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 Kyoto accurate?
Yes. Times are computed with the well established SunCalc astronomy library using the coordinates of Kyoto 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 Kyoto?
Yes. The current moon phase, the percentage of the Moon that is lit, and the moonrise and moonset times for Kyoto 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 Kyoto gain or lose each day?
Kyoto has 11h 48m of daylight on Friday, 2 October 2026 and is losing daylight: 15 minutes 8 seconds over the following seven days, with tomorrow 2 minutes 10 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 Kyoto?
The earliest sunset of 2026 in Kyoto is on 5 December at 16:44, 16 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 Kyoto?
About 25 minutes on Friday, 2 October 2026. The sun sets at 17:40 and usable daylight ends at civil dusk, 18:05, with full astronomical darkness at 19:04. The higher the latitude, the longer that fade takes.
Data and methodology: every time on this page is computed from Kyoto's coordinates with SunCalc, an open source astronomy library, not estimated or looked up from a table. Coordinates 35.01, 135.77, time zone Asia/Tokyo. 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 Kyoto. Sunrise and sunset shift as you move east, west, north or south.
Popular cities
More light tools
Understand the light
Plain-English guides to the moments that shape the day in Kyoto and everywhere else.
Keep Kyoto in your calendar
Subscribe to a live feed of Kyoto'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.