Golden hour in San Francisco in January

San Francisco lies at 37.77° N, in the mid-latitudes, where the seasons reshape the light noticeably. Its longest measured day falls on Thu 18 June 2026 with 14h 47m of daylight, and its shortest on Fri 18 December 2026 with 9h 33m — a difference of 5h 14m between the two extremes.

Evening golden hour in San Francisco runs for roughly 39 minutes at the height of summer, 35 minutes around the March equinox and 41 minutes at midwinter. The warm window is actually widest in the colder months, which makes winter evenings unusually forgiving here.

The sun sets toward 301° WNW in late June and toward 241° WSW in late December, a shift of about 60° in where the last light lands — worth checking before committing to a west-facing viewpoint. In San Francisco, the sky reaches full darkness between evening and morning twilight year-round.