Reykjavík sunset and sunrise forecast
Next sunrise: today at 08:55, flat and grey (31/100); the sun clears the hills at 09:29. The best light this week is the sunset on Thursday at 17:20: clear and golden (71/100), golden hour 15:58–17:52. Aurora: good chance Saturday night, best around 20:00 (Kp 5). Times are Iceland time (UTC).
- Sunrise
- 08:55 · ESE
- Sunset
- 17:27 · WSW
- Sun on the land
- 09:29–16:36
- Golden hour tonight
- 16:07–17:59
- Aurora tonight
- Clouded out
Updated 04:12Reykjavík: the weather now
The light, day by day
For photographers in Reykjavík: which sunrises and sunsets should colour, when the sun drops behind the hills, and the nights the aurora could show.
Best this week
- Yesterday26 Oct
- Today27 Oct
- Tomorrow28 Oct
- Thu29 Oct
- Fri30 Oct
- Sat31 Oct
- Sun1 Nov
- Mon2 Nov
An illustration of the forecast: the cloud is the hourly forecast, eased between the hours; the sun, moon and stars are where they will be. Skyline from Iceland's 10 m elevation model (ÍslandsDEM) nearby and coarser terrain beyond; trees and small buildings left out.
Clouded out
- Dark
- 19:17–07:07
- Activity
- Kp 0.7NOAA forecast
- Cloud
- 100%
A bright moon washes out a faint aurora but lights the landscape.
Cloud by layer from DMI's HARMONIE and ECMWF (via Open-Meteo), read toward the sun out to 300 km; skyline from ÍslandsDEM (Náttúrufræðistofnun Íslands, CC BY 4.0) and AWS Terrain Tiles; aurora activity from NOAA. The colour score is our own estimate, and skies like to surprise.
The sun at Reykjavík through the year
On the 15th of each month: when and where the sun rises and sets, when it's really on the land (from the skyline here), how long the golden light lasts, and the hours dark enough for the aurora.
| Month | Sunrise | Sunset | Sun on the land | Golden hour, a day | Dark for aurora |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 10:54 SE 143° | 16:20 SW 218° | 11:30–15:55 | 6 h 52 min | 14 h 12 min |
| February | 09:23 ESE 118° | 18:01 WSW 242° | 09:57–17:12 | 3 h 41 min | 11 h 45 min |
| March | 07:46 E 93° | 19:28 W 267° | 08:14–18:42 | 3 h 6 min | 8 h 49 min |
| April | 05:56 ENE 65° | 21:01 WNW 295° | 06:14–20:09 | 3 h 19 min | 4 h 20 min |
| May | 04:13 NE 40° | 22:37 NW 321° | 04:59–21:42 | 4 h 34 min | Too light |
| June | 02:57 NNE 21° | 00:00 NNW 340° | 03:57–22:51 | 6 h 49 min | Too light |
| July | 03:40 NNE 29° | 23:24 NNW 330° | 04:44–22:25 | 6 h 7 min | Too light |
| August | 05:18 NE 54° | 21:43 NW 305° | 05:47–20:51 | 3 h 37 min | 18 min |
| September | 06:50 E 81° | 19:53 W 278° | 07:17–19:07 | 3 h 5 min | 7 h 15 min |
| October | 08:17 ESE 108° | 18:07 WSW 252° | 08:51–17:21 | 3 h 20 min | 10 h 42 min |
| November | 09:56 SE 134° | 16:27 SW 226° | 10:30–15:53 | 5 h 16 min | 13 h 27 min |
| December | 11:16 SSE 151° | 15:29 SSW 209° | 12:03–15:03 | 5 h 56 min | 14 h 53 min |
Iceland time (UTC, all year). Directions are where the sun stands at sunrise and sunset, in degrees from north. Sun on the land: from when it clears the hills to when it drops behind them, from Iceland's 10 m elevation model within 3 km (trees and small buildings left out) and coarser terrain beyond. Golden hour: the sun between 6° above and 4° below the horizon. Dark for aurora: the sun more than 12° down.
Questions visitors ask
When is sunset at Reykjavík today?
Today (27 October) the sun sets at 17:27 in the west-southwest (241°), but it drops behind the hills at 16:36, 51 minutes earlier. The evening golden hour runs 16:07–17:59 and blue hour 17:59–18:18. Times are Iceland time (UTC, all year).
When is the best light for photography in Reykjavík this week?
The best-looking sunset is Thursday: clear and golden (sunset at 17:20, golden hour 15:58–17:52). The best-looking sunrise is Friday: a touch of colour (sunrise at 09:04, golden hour 08:31–10:27). The best aurora chance is Saturday night around 20:00 (good chance, Kp 5). Cloud forecasts more than three days out are rough, so check again the day before. Based on cloud by layer from DMI's HARMONIE and ECMWF and NOAA's aurora forecast as of 27 October 2026; times are Iceland time (UTC).
Can I see the northern lights at Reykjavík tonight?
Clouded out tonight (26 October), Kp 1. It's dark 19:17–07:07, with 100% cloud on average over those hours, and the moon is 99% lit. Aurora forecasts change by the hour, so check again in the evening.
Which direction does the sun set at Reykjavík?
It swings with the seasons. Around the June solstice the sun sets in the north-northwest (341°) at about 00:04 (just after midnight); at the equinoxes almost due west (267° in mid-March); in December in the south-southwest (208°) at 15:29. Sunrise swings the same way, from the north-northeast (20°) in June to the south-southeast (152°) in December. Times are Iceland time.
Does the sun set behind the mountains at Reykjavík?
Yes, before the almanac's sunset. Around 15 October the last direct sun is at about 17:21, 47 minutes before the sunset at 18:07; over the year the hills take 25–69 minutes off the evening sun. Worked out from Iceland's 10 m elevation model; times are Iceland time.
When is the best time of year to photograph Reykjavík?
It depends on the light you're after. For the aurora, the nights are dark enough from about 15 August to 26 April, and in December 14 h 53 min a day are dark enough. Golden light lasts longest in midwinter (about 6 h 52 min a day in January) and around midsummer, when sunset runs into sunrise (about 6 h 49 min in June). Around the equinoxes it's about 3 h 6 min a day, morning and evening together.
Cloud by layer from DMI's HARMONIE and ECMWF (via Open-Meteo), read toward the sun out to 300 km; skyline from ÍslandsDEM (Náttúrufræðistofnun Íslands, CC BY 4.0) and AWS Terrain Tiles; aurora activity from NOAA. The colour score is our own estimate, and skies like to surprise.