Chicago, IL · 2026
Sunrise and sunset in Chicago, Illinois
Short answer
- Longest day
- 15 h 13 min
- Shortest day
- 9 h 08 min
Chicago daylight through 2026
Daylight in Chicago runs from 9 h 08 min on December 21 to 15 h 13 min on June 21, a seasonal swing of 6 h 05 min between June 21 and December 21. That swing ranks 53rd of 342 US cities of 100,000+, where 1st is the largest. Around the March equinox the city gets 12 h 09 min, and around the September equinox 12 h 10 min.
Chicago daylight by month
| Month | Average | Sunrise | Sunset |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 9 h 33 min | 7:04 AM to 7:18 AM | 4:30 PM to 5:04 PM |
| February | 10 h 37 min | 6:27 AM to 7:03 AM | 5:06 PM to 5:40 PM |
| March | 11 h 58 min | 6:15 AM to 7:14 AM | 5:41 PM to 7:15 PM |
| April | 13 h 22 min | 5:48 AM to 6:33 AM | 7:16 PM to 7:48 PM |
| May | 14 h 34 min | 5:18 AM to 5:46 AM | 7:49 PM to 8:18 PM |
| June | 15 h 10 min | 5:15 AM to 5:19 AM | 8:19 PM to 8:29 PM |
| July | 14 h 52 min | 5:19 AM to 5:43 AM | 8:09 PM to 8:29 PM |
| August | 13 h 48 min | 5:44 AM to 6:15 AM | 7:25 PM to 8:08 PM |
| September | 12 h 27 min | 6:16 AM to 6:46 AM | 6:33 PM to 7:23 PM |
| October | 11 h 04 min | 6:47 AM to 7:22 AM | 5:46 PM to 6:32 PM |
| November | 9 h 50 min | 6:23 AM to 6:57 AM | 4:20 PM to 4:44 PM |
| December | 9 h 12 min | 6:58 AM to 7:18 AM | 4:19 PM to 4:29 PM |
Earliest sunrise, latest sunset and the clock
The earliest sunrise comes on June 8 at 5:15 AM and the latest sunset on June 20 at 8:29 PM. The latest sunrise is 7:22 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 6 hours behind UTC, the time of the 90° W meridian. Chicago sits at 87.68° W, so the sun runs about 9 minutes ahead of the zone clock. Solar noon is at 12:00 PM on January 15 and 12:56 PM on July 15.
Compared with nearby cities
Springfield, the state capital, gets 14 minutes less daylight than Chicago on June 21 and 13 minutes more on December 21. Day length depends on latitude, so the table lists the paired cities from north to south.
| City | Latitude | June 21 | December 21 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Green Bay, WI | 44.52° N | 15 h 33 min | 8 h 49 min |
| Madison, WI | 43.09° N | 15 h 22 min | 9 h 00 min |
| Milwaukee, WI | 43.06° N | 15 h 22 min | 9 h 00 min |
| Grand Rapids, MI | 42.96° N | 15 h 22 min | 9 h 00 min |
| Rockford, IL | 42.26° N | 15 h 16 min | 9 h 05 min |
| Elgin, IL | 42.04° N | 15 h 15 min | 9 h 07 min |
| Chicago, IL | 41.84° N | 15 h 13 min | 9 h 08 min |
| Aurora, IL | 41.76° N | 15 h 13 min | 9 h 09 min |
| Naperville, IL | 41.75° N | 15 h 13 min | 9 h 09 min |
| South Bend, IN | 41.68° N | 15 h 12 min | 9 h 09 min |
| Joliet, IL | 41.52° N | 15 h 11 min | 9 h 10 min |
| Peoria, IL | 40.75° N | 15 h 06 min | 9 h 15 min |
Questions people ask
What is the longest day of the year in Chicago?
June 21, 2026, with 15 h 13 min of daylight: sunrise 5:15 AM, sunset 8:29 PM.
What is the shortest day in Chicago?
December 21, 2026, with 9 h 08 min: sunrise 7:14 AM, sunset 4:22 PM.
When is the latest sunset in Chicago?
8:29 PM on June 20, 2026. The earliest sunset is 4:19 PM on December 4.
What time zone is Chicago in?
America/Chicago. Clocks change on March 8 (to CDT) and November 1 (to CST) in 2026.
Sources and data as of
Data as of: computed for 2026 at the Census internal point of Chicago, 41.837° N, 87.685° 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.