The Golden Hour Calculator finds times when the sun is between -4° and +6° above the horizon, creating warm, golden light photographers (and others!) love. Enter a location to see today's golden hour times, or plan ahead for future dates.
Golden hour calculator features
Enter your location in the Location input field. Optionally, change the Date (otherwise, it defaults to today).
The tool calculates:
- Morning Golden Hour: From -4° elevation to +6° after sunrise
- Evening Golden Hour: From +6° elevation to -4° before sunset
- Sunrise and Sunset: Reference times for when the sun crosses the horizon
- Sun Position: See a live sun azimuth and elevation display in the status bar
- Live Countdown: Real-time countdown to the next golden hour... when viewing today's times
What is golden hour?
Golden hour is the period when the sun's low angle (sometimes even below the horizon!) creates warm, directional light.
The duration varies by latitude and season, so don't take the hour part literally – it might last 20 minutes near the equator or over 90 minutes in Alaska during summer. The warm color temperature (~ 3500K) and light angle create the "golden" quality.
Golden hour vs blue hour
While golden hour provides warm tones, blue hour offers cooler, more diffused light:
- Golden Hour: Sun between -4° and +6° above horizon (warm, directional light)
- Blue Hour: Sun between -6° and -4° below horizon (cool, diffused light)
Conventional wisdom says golden hour is for portraits, blue hour is for cityscapes – though you should find your own way!
Related tools
- Blue Hour Calculator - For twilight photography timing
- Sunrise Sunset Calculator - Comprehensive sun data with annual patterns
- Solar Angle Calculator - Detailed sun position calculations
- Daylight Hours Graph - Visualize daylight changes throughout the year
Methodology for the golden hour calculator
The calculator uses SunCalc.js to compute sun positions based on location and date. All calculations happen in your browser using local timezone data.
