Sun path in Sheffield: sunrise, sunset and the sun's height by month (2026)

Last checked: 23 October 2026. Written by the Flatwalk team.

Short answer. On 21 December, the shortest day, Sheffield has 7h 29m of daylight between sunrise at 08:19 and sunset at 15:48 GMT, and the sun gets no higher than about 13°. On 21 June it has 17h 00m, from 04:37 to 21:38 BST, with the sun about 60° up at midday. In December it climbs out of the southeast, at about 130°, and sinks in the southwest, at about 230°, keeping to the low southern sky that a hill can hide; by June it comes up at about 47° in the northeast and goes down at about 313° in the northwest. All of this assumes a flat horizon, and Sheffield is anything but flat: a slope to your south can take much of the winter sun.

See the sun at your own window

Sunrise, sunset and sun height in Sheffield, month by month

Sheffield city centre on the 15th of each month of 2026, calculated as if the horizon were flat. Times follow the clock (GMT in winter, BST from 29 March to 25 October), and directions are compass bearings from true north, where 90° means east, 180° south and 270° west.

Sheffield's turning points:

• 21 December: daylight lasts 7h 29m, from 08:19 to 15:48, and the sun peaks at 12:03 GMT only about 13° up, low enough for a ridge to hide it.
• 21 March: sunrise at 06:06 and sunset at 18:20 GMT sit on a line close to due east and due west, and the midday sun is about 37° up.
• 21 June: 17h 00m of light from 04:37 to 21:38, the sun topping out near 60° at 13:07 BST.

What time is the midday sun in Sheffield? About 12:03 GMT in winter and 13:07 BST in summer. Sheffield sits west of Greenwich, which accounts for the minutes past 12, and BST accounts for the extra hour.

Hours of sun on each side of a building in Sheffield

Direct sun on a wall, by the way it faces, at the solstices and the March equinox, assuming nothing at all stands in front. Treat these as the top limit. In Sheffield the hills cut into them as well as buildings and trees, which is why the real window needs checking.

The pattern, wall by wall:

• Winter sun lives on the south side. An open south wall has all 7h 29m of 21 December, sunrise to sunset; an east or west wall has about 3h 44m.
• North walls: summer only, mornings and evenings. About 7h 31m in June, but none at midday, and none at all from late September to about 20 March.
• June's best walls face southeast and southwest. They catch 10h 18m on 21 June: the midday sun, and one end of the long day as well.

What that means for flats in Sheffield

Sheffield is known as the city of seven hills, and many of its streets climb them steeply. In areas such as Walkley and Crookes, rows of terraces are stepped along the hillsides, so each house can sit a little below the one above it, and the far side of the valley can rise higher than both. That means the way your slope faces, and how high the hill opposite rises, can matter more in winter than the building across the road. To the west the land climbs towards the Peak District, so homes on the western edge may lose the late winter afternoon sun early behind higher ground.

• Facing and slope together. Look for south, southeast or southwest for winter sun, and in Sheffield look at the slope as well. A south-facing slope tilts homes towards the sun; on a north-facing one the hill itself can block the low winter sun. Mornings belong to east windows, evenings to west ones.
• The hill test. At about 13°, the midday winter sun is easily hidden by rising ground. A hillside to the south that looks low from the window can block the sun for hours in December and January, while the same window gets plenty from spring to autumn. Our tables assume a flat horizon, so before you buy, study the skyline to the south from the window, and if you can, visit around midday on a clear winter day.
• Floor by floor. Buildings hide the low winter sun easily too. On level ground at midday on 21 December, a five-storey block (about 15 m) throws a shadow about 64 m long, and across a street 20 m wide it climbs the facing wall to about 10.3 m: the fourth storey sits right on the line, and the fifth storey and above see the midday sun. By the March equinox, 21 March, the block's shadow has fallen to about 20 m: it stops at the far side and no floor is left without midday sun. For the detail, see the guide which floor gets the most sun.
• Balcony choices. A south balcony gets the winter sun if the view to the south is open, and in summer the high midday sun is shaded off by the balcony above. Turn the balcony west and late June evenings stay sunny until sunset at about 9:38 pm. To weigh south against west for a whole Sheffield home, see how much sun each side of a house gets.
• Gardens on a slope. A back garden facing south gets sun through the day, as the midday shadow of its own house falls the other way. In December, though, a 7 m high house throws about 30 m of shadow at midday, so a north facing garden may get little winter sun near the house, and on a hillside the houses above you to the south cast their shade further down the slope. If you are unsure which way yours points, which way does my garden face will tell you.
• Watch the gaps. A vacant plot or a planning application to your south could take hours of winter sun later, and on a slope a new building uphill to your south can block more than its height suggests. Ask yourself will a new building block my sun before you sign.

Check your own window in Sheffield in 3 steps

To see this for a real address, use Sun at your window, a free Flatwalk tool that traces the sun across a 3D model of your building. It knows the footprint of every building in Sheffield; their heights, though, are estimates from each building's type and size, and the screen says so. Spot a building opposite that is plainly too low or too tall? Something off? lets you give it the right height.

1. Search, then choose. On the satellite map, after searching under "See the sun at your window", tap the roof of your building. Pick A whole house or A flat, with Your floor to follow for a flat.
2. Pin the window. Tap the right wall (each carries a tag such as "South wall · sun side"), tap where the window sits, then tap See my sun.
3. Look at winter first. In a hilly city December is the month that matters, so press Shortest day before anything else; the 12 month bars and Typical weather, with Sheffield's usual cloud, fill in the rest of the year. If a building or tree is the culprit, What takes your sun names it.

Where it falls short:

• Estimates from maps. Nobody climbs your hill with a light meter; the hours are calculated from maps and the sun's position.
• Heights in Sheffield. Sheffield's building heights are estimates; measured ones exist only for London, Manchester, Cardiff, Edinburgh and Glasgow. Check what stands in front of your window and fix any height that looks off.
• Since the map was made. Something off? is also how you add what the map missed: buildings finished after its data, and trees planted or cut since about 2017 to 2019, which otherwise show up wrong or not at all.
• Cloud on average. No forecast here: Typical weather turns 2005 to 2023 into monthly averages, and one window's result may be about 10 to 15% off.
• Windows, and windows alone. Sloping lawns, terrace floors and roofs for solar panels are all off its list; it only does windows.
• No certificate. Choosing a flat is its job; arguing a case is not, since it holds no legal or certified standing and is not a right to light survey.
• Also left out: your own roof shape, glass tint and the window frames, and the outline on the map may stand a metre off the real wall.

See the sun at your own window

What Flatwalk does that older planners skip

Lit after dusk

When the sun drops behind the hill, lay out ceiling lights, lamps and LED strips and see where the rooms need them.

Your street, rebuilt

The buildings around your address, and the street they stand on, are drawn in 3D as far as the map goes.

Real sun, real address

Pick the date and hour; the real sun falls on your address and each room's direct-sun time is counted.

A sofa, at full size, at home

Try a sofa before it climbs the stairs: live on camera, or in a photo of the room, it stands on your floor at its real size.

Fitted rooms too

Doors and windows are picked by type, and kitchens, wardrobes and bathrooms are built out of their own parts.

One finger does it

Run a finger along the hour and the light follows through each room.

Swipe for more. Every picture is the app itself.

One flat, free

Questions people ask

What is the sun path in Sheffield? From the southeast to the southwest in winter, peaking at about 13° at midday; from the northeast to the northwest in summer, peaking at about 60°. For a few days around late March and late September the sun rises close to due east and sets close to due west.

What time does it get dark in Sheffield in December? The sun sets at 15:48 GMT on 21 December, after rising at 08:19, giving 7h 29m of daylight, and behind a hill to the southwest it can go earlier. In June, on the 21st, it does not set until 21:38 BST.

Do the hills in Sheffield block the winter sun? Yes, they can. With the midday sun only about 13° up in December, rising ground to the south, or a home on a north-facing slope, can lose it for hours. A south-facing slope works the other way. Look south from the window to see which you have.

Which way should my flat face in Sheffield? South, southeast or southwest for winter sun, ideally with open ground or a downhill view to the south. Evenings come from the west and mornings from the east. Any north window, on any slope, goes without direct sun from late September to about 20 March.

How high is the sun in Sheffield in winter? About 13° at midday on 21 December: enough, on flat ground, for a five-storey building to cast a shadow about 64 m long.