Daylight Gained

Daylight Gained › Seattle

How much daylight has Seattle gained since the solstice?

Seattle's shortest day this winter is Monday, December 21, with 8 hours, 25 minutes of daylight. That is 50 minutes less than New York gets on its shortest day. By January 31 it has gained 1 hour, 6 minutes.

Hours of daylight over 12 months
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DateDaylightSunriseSunset
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Seattle daylight dates, winter 2026–27

Earliest sunsetThursday, December 10, 4:18 pm
Shortest dayMonday, December 21, 8 h 25 min (sunrise 7:55 am, sunset 4:20 pm)
Latest sunriseFriday, January 1, 7:58 am
9 hours of daylightTuesday, January 19
First sunset after 5 pmTuesday, January 26 (5:01 pm)
10 hours of daylightWednesday, February 10
11 hours of daylightSunday, February 28
12 hours of daylightThursday, March 18
Longest dayMonday, June 21, 15 h 59 min

The December solstice is at 12:50 pm on December 21, Seattle time.

Daylight gained in Seattle, by date

DateSince solsticeDaylightThat daySunriseSunset
Jan 1+5 min 24 sec8 h 31 min+56 sec7:58 am4:28 pm
Jan 15+27 min8 h 52 min+2 min7:53 am4:45 pm
Feb 1+1 h 09 min9 h 35 min+2 min 51 sec7:36 am5:10 pm
Feb 15+1 h 52 min10 h 18 min+3 min 13 sec7:15 am5:33 pm
Mar 1+2 h 39 min11 h 04 min+3 min 24 sec6:50 am5:54 pm
Mar 15+3 h 27 min11 h 52 min+3 min 28 sec7:22 am7:15 pm
Apr 1+4 h 26 min12 h 51 min+3 min 26 sec6:48 am7:39 pm

Seattle: questions people ask

When is the earliest sunset in Seattle?

December 10, 2026, at 4:18 pm. That is 11 days before the shortest day, because solar noon drifts later through December. The evenings are already a little lighter by the solstice.

Does Seattle get less winter daylight than New York?

Yes. Seattle's shortest day is 8 h 25 min, 50 minutes shorter than New York's (9 h 15 min). Summer is the other way round: on the longest day Seattle gets 15 h 59 min, 54 minutes more than New York.

When do the mornings start getting lighter in Seattle?

Not until after the latest sunrise, 7:58 am on Friday, January 1, 11 days after the shortest day. Mornings then brighten slowly: on February 1 the sun rises at 7:36 am.

When does Seattle gain daylight fastest?

Around the March equinox, when it gains 3 minutes, 28 seconds a day (fastest on March 18). Right after the solstice the gain is small: 56 seconds a day on January 1, and 2 minutes, 51 seconds a day by February 1.

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Sun times use NOAA's solar equations, checked against U.S. Naval Observatory tables. City data from GeoNames (CC BY 4.0).