Golden Hour Calculator

What are golden hour and blue hour?

Golden hour is when the sun sits between roughly −4° and +6° above the horizon: light travels through more atmosphere, turning soft, warm, and directional. Blue hour follows (or precedes) it, with the sun between −6° and −4°, when the sky glows deep blue and city lights balance beautifully against it.

Times are computed locally with the NOAA solar position equations — accurate to about a minute. Your location never leaves your browser.

Frequently asked questions

How long does golden hour actually last?

It depends on latitude and season. Near the equator the sun rises steeply, so golden hour can pass in 30 minutes; at high latitudes in summer it can stretch for hours — or all night.

Why do some times show a dash?

Inside polar circles the sun may never cross a given altitude on some dates (midnight sun or polar night), so that event simply doesn't occur.

What UTC offset should I enter?

The offset of the location you're calculating for, including daylight saving if active there (e.g. London in June is +1, New York in June is −4). The tool pre-fills your browser's current offset.