Cary, NC · 2026
Sunrise and sunset in Cary, North Carolina
Short answer
- Longest day
- 14 h 35 min
- Shortest day
- 9 h 44 min
Cary daylight through 2026
Daylight in Cary runs from 9 h 44 min on December 21 to 14 h 35 min on June 21, a seasonal swing of 4 h 51 min between June 21 and December 21. That swing ranks 176th of 342 US cities of 100,000+, where 1st is the largest. Around the March equinox the city gets 12 h 08 min, and around the September equinox 12 h 09 min.
Cary daylight by month
| Month | Average | Sunrise | Sunset |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 10 h 04 min | 7:16 AM to 7:25 AM | 5:12 PM to 5:41 PM |
| February | 10 h 54 min | 6:46 AM to 7:15 AM | 5:42 PM to 6:09 PM |
| March | 11 h 59 min | 6:37 AM to 7:35 AM | 6:10 PM to 7:36 PM |
| April | 13 h 07 min | 6:24 AM to 7:01 AM | 7:37 PM to 8:01 PM |
| May | 14 h 04 min | 6:00 AM to 6:23 AM | 8:02 PM to 8:25 PM |
| June | 14 h 33 min | 5:58 AM to 6:02 AM | 8:26 PM to 8:35 PM |
| July | 14 h 18 min | 6:02 AM to 6:22 AM | 8:20 PM to 8:35 PM |
| August | 13 h 28 min | 6:23 AM to 6:46 AM | 7:43 PM to 8:19 PM |
| September | 12 h 23 min | 6:47 AM to 7:09 AM | 7:00 PM to 7:42 PM |
| October | 11 h 16 min | 7:10 AM to 7:36 AM | 6:20 PM to 6:58 PM |
| November | 10 h 17 min | 6:37 AM to 7:05 AM | 5:01 PM to 5:19 PM |
| December | 9 h 47 min | 7:06 AM to 7:25 AM | 5:01 PM to 5:11 PM |
Earliest sunrise, latest sunset and the clock
The earliest sunrise comes on June 8 at 5:58 AM and the latest sunset on June 23 at 8:35 PM. The latest sunrise is 7:36 AM on October 31. Daylight saving time starts and ends on March 8 and November 1, which shifts every clock time by an hour.
On standard time the clocks run 5 hours behind UTC, the time of the 75° W meridian. Cary sits at 78.82° W, so the sun runs about 15 minutes behind the zone clock. Solar noon is at 12:24 PM on January 15 and 1:21 PM on July 15.
Compared with nearby cities
Raleigh, the state capital, gets about the same June daylight. Day length depends on latitude, so the table lists the paired cities from north to south.
| City | Latitude | June 21 | December 21 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Winston-Salem, NC | 36.10° N | 14 h 37 min | 9 h 42 min |
| Greensboro, NC | 36.09° N | 14 h 37 min | 9 h 42 min |
| High Point, NC | 35.99° N | 14 h 36 min | 9 h 43 min |
| Durham, NC | 35.98° N | 14 h 36 min | 9 h 43 min |
| Raleigh, NC | 35.83° N | 14 h 36 min | 9 h 44 min |
| Cary, NC | 35.78° N | 14 h 35 min | 9 h 44 min |
| Concord, NC | 35.39° N | 14 h 33 min | 9 h 46 min |
| Charlotte, NC | 35.21° N | 14 h 32 min | 9 h 47 min |
| Fayetteville, NC | 35.08° N | 14 h 31 min | 9 h 48 min |
| Wilmington, NC | 34.21° N | 14 h 26 min | 9 h 52 min |
Questions people ask
What is the longest day of the year in Cary?
June 21, 2026, with 14 h 35 min of daylight: sunrise 5:59 AM, sunset 8:34 PM.
What is the shortest day in Cary?
December 21, 2026, with 9 h 44 min: sunrise 7:21 AM, sunset 5:05 PM.
When is the latest sunset in Cary?
8:35 PM on June 23, 2026. The earliest sunset is 5:01 PM on November 30.
What time zone is Cary in?
America/New_York. Clocks change on March 8 (to EDT) and November 1 (to EST) in 2026.
Sources and data as of
Data as of: computed for 2026 at the Census internal point of Cary, 35.781° N, 78.823° W; time zone from Open-Meteo.
- 01SunCalc library (Vladimir Agafonkin), algorithms after Jean Meeus
- 02IANA time zone database (clock times and daylight saving rules)
How every number is computed: methodology. Spotted a wrong figure? Report an error.