Today's exact times for Berlin, plus the next 30 days. Auto-updated every page load. Computed from the same astronomical model that powers our live terrace map.
Berlin sits at 52.52° N, 13.40° E — a high-latitude European capital where the daylight swing across the year is extreme. The longest day of the year (around 21 June) gives Berlin 16 hours 50 minutes of daylight; the shortest (around 21 December) only 7 hours 39 minutes. That's the underlying reason this city pivots its entire social rhythm around the sun: a sunny April afternoon at 16:00 is a precious resource and Berliners treat it that way.
The times below are computed from SunCalc, the open-source astronomical library used by Météo-France, NOAA's interactive almanac, and (yes) our live terrace map. They're accurate to within ±1 minute against published astronomical almanacs. We use the city centre coordinates; suburbs differ by under 30 seconds.
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Golden hour |
|---|---|---|---|---|
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Times are useful, places are essential. Berlin sits on flat North European plain — there are no mountains and very few hills, so the best viewing spots are either elevated (a roof, a former hill, a bridge above the U-Bahn) or radically open (Tempelhofer Feld, the Wannsee shore, the rooftop of an East-side parking deck). Below: the seven we use ourselves, split by direction so you can match the day.
For a full ranked list with context for each, opening hours where applicable, and a live "is it sunny right now" check: the 10 best sunset spots in Berlin.
Berlin's sunrise time changes by roughly 2 minutes every day. In May the sun rises around 5:30 CEST; in December as late as 8:15 CET; on the longest day of the year (around 21 June) at 4:42 CEST. The exact time today is at the top of this page, recomputed every page load.
Berlin's sunset varies from about 15:55 CET in late December to 21:33 CEST around the summer solstice. Today's exact sunset time is at the top of this page. For the best places to actually watch it, see our live-tracked sunset spots guide.
Berlin's golden hour starts roughly one hour before sunset and ends with the sun crossing the horizon. The light is warmest and lowest, casting long shadows — perfect for rooftop drinks, walks along the Spree, or photography. In summer that means roughly 19:30 to 20:30; in winter, 14:50 to 15:55.
On the summer solstice (around 21 June), Berlin gets just over 16 hours and 50 minutes between sunrise and sunset — the longest day of the year. On the winter solstice (around 21 December), it's only 7 hours and 39 minutes. Berlin's high latitude (52.5° N) means the seasonal swing is bigger than in southern Germany or France.
All times are in Berlin local time (Europe/Berlin) — CET (UTC+1) from late October to late March, CEST (UTC+2) from late March to late October. The page automatically adjusts on daylight-saving transitions.
For unobstructed western horizon, the best spots are Klunkerkranich (Neukölln rooftop, west-facing), Viktoriapark (Kreuzberg's small hill with the waterfall), and Tempelhofer Feld (the open ex-airport runway). Oberbaumbrücke gives you sunset over the Spree with classic Berlin towers framing it. Full ranked list here, each cross-checked against today's cloud cover on our live map.
The east-facing options that actually work in Berlin's flat geography: Treptower Park's Spree-side path (open eastern horizon, almost no light pollution before 7am), Mont Klamott in Volkspark Friedrichshain (the 78 m artificial hill made of WWII rubble), and the Müggelturm at Köpenick (a real 88 m observation tower on a 115 m hill — 30 min S-Bahn from Mitte but worth it on a clear morning).
"Sunmaxxing" — a portmanteau of "sun" and "maximising" — is the practice of optimising for sun exposure throughout the day: which terrace is in direct sun right now, which seat in a beer garden gets the late afternoon, which rooftop hangs onto the golden hour longest. We named the site sunmaxxing.com because it captures what Berlin's sunny weekends are really about: a quiet, citywide negotiation with the sun's position. The map automates the search; this page tells you when the sun shows up at all.