Santa Monica Pier · painted for this minute from Santa Monica’s own horizon and tonight’s cloud forecast
The sun is touching the horizon · clear at 29%
The sun goes down at
6:07 PM
T-00:05:00It sets straight into the water, so the official sunset time is when you will see it go. Look west-south-west, to the left of Sm Pier. Golden hour starts at 5:31 PM.
Sunset Score · Scattered clouds (34% cover): the best kind of sky, the clouds light up orange and pink. Thin high clouds (34%) that turn pink after the sun goes down; nothing low on the horizon, so you should see the sun all the way down.
Prefer the real thing? Watch the live Pacific Park cam →
Know Before You Go
Pier walk
free
rides priced separately
Pier fishing
no license
off the end, all year
Twilight
free
concerts on summer nights
Best photo
south rail
wheel framed against the sunset
see you at sunset
Tonight’s times, the week ahead and the year by month are below. Twilight on the Pier runs nightly, weather permitting, from about two hours before sunset.
Tonight, Wednesday, October 28, the sun sets at 6:07 PM at Santa Monica. It sets over open water here, so that is when you will see it go. Golden hour starts at 5:31 PM, and the sky stays light until about 6:31 PM. Tonight's Sunset Score is 9 out of 10. Scattered clouds (34% cover): the best kind of sky, the clouds light up orange and pink.
Sunrise today was at 7:11 AM, which gives Santa Monica 10 hr 56 min of daylight. It is fully dark by about 7:01 PM.
The next seven evenings at Santa Monica: when the sun goes down, when golden hour starts and when the last light fades, plus the Sunset Score from each night's cloud forecast.
| Day | Sunset | Golden hour | Last light | Cloud | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tonight | 6:07 PM | from 5:31 PM | 6:31 PM | 34% | 9/10 |
| Thu Oct 29 | 6:06 PM | from 5:30 PM | 6:30 PM | 86% | 3/10 |
| Fri Oct 30 | 6:05 PM | from 5:29 PM | 6:29 PM | 96% | 3/10 |
| Sat Oct 31 | 6:04 PM | from 5:28 PM | 6:29 PM | 100% | 3/10 |
| Sun Nov 1 | 5:03 PM | from 4:27 PM | 5:28 PM | 5% | 5/10 |
| Mon Nov 2 | 5:02 PM | from 4:26 PM | 5:27 PM | 100% | 3/10 |
| Tue Nov 3 | 5:01 PM | from 4:25 PM | 5:26 PM | 5% | 5/10 |
Tonight the sun goes down in the west-south-west (255° on a compass), to the left of Sm Pier as you face the water. The favorite place to watch is Santa Monica Pier.
Tonight’s timeline for Twilight on the Pier is at the top of this page.
Can’t make it to the beach? Watch the live Pacific Park cam at sunset.
The spot where the sun sets moves along the horizon through the year. Around June 21 it goes down furthest north, in the west-north-west (297°); around December 21 it goes down furthest south, in the west-south-west (242°). In June it drops behind land 11 miles away. In December it sets over open water.
Golden hour tonight runs from 5:31 PM to sunset at 6:07 PM. The sun is low, the light is warm and soft, and shadows are long. It is the best time for photos of people on the beach.
Blue hour follows, from about 6:21 PM to 6:41 PM, when the sun is below the horizon and the sky turns deep blue. The first lights come on along the shore and the water holds the last of the color.
Sunrise, sunset and daylight on the 15th of each month. Over the next year the earliest sunset is 4:46 PM (Sat Dec 5) and the latest is 8:11 PM (Tue Jun 29). Times are local and include daylight saving time where it applies.
| Month | Sunrise | Sunset | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|
| October 2026 | 7:00 AM | 6:22 PM | 11 hr 21 min |
| November 2026 | 6:28 AM | 4:52 PM | 10 hr 24 min |
| December 2026 | 6:53 AM | 4:48 PM | 9 hr 54 min |
| January 2027 | 7:00 AM | 5:08 PM | 10 hr 8 min |
| February 2027 | 6:40 AM | 5:39 PM | 10 hr 58 min |
| March 2027 | 7:06 AM | 7:02 PM | 11 hr 56 min |
| April 2027 | 6:24 AM | 7:26 PM | 13 hr 1 min |
| May 2027 | 5:54 AM | 7:49 PM | 13 hr 55 min |
| June 2027 | 5:44 AM | 8:08 PM | 14 hr 24 min |
| July 2027 | 5:55 AM | 8:07 PM | 14 hr 13 min |
| August 2027 | 6:17 AM | 7:43 PM | 13 hr 26 min |
| September 2027 | 6:38 AM | 7:03 PM | 12 hr 25 min |
The official sunset time is when the top of the sun sinks below a flat sea horizon. We also check Santa Monica’s real horizon: the hills, headlands and islands you can see from the sand. When land is in the way, the sun disappears before the official time, and we show you that earlier time. The Sunset Score rates how colorful the sky should be from the cloud forecast at sunset. Buildings are not included, so a tall hotel beside you can still hide the last minute.
The sun sets at 6:07 PM at Santa Monica today (Wednesday, October 28).
The sun rose at 7:11 AM at Santa Monica today.
10 hr 56 min of daylight, from 7:11 AM to 6:07 PM.
Golden hour at Santa Monica runs from 5:31 PM to sunset at 6:07 PM, when the sun is low and the light turns warm and soft. Blue hour follows, from 6:21 PM to 6:41 PM.
The sky stays light enough to see without a flashlight until about 6:31 PM, the end of civil twilight. It is fully dark by about 7:01 PM.
Tonight's Sunset Score is 9 out of 10, from the cloud forecast at sunset. Scattered clouds (34% cover): the best kind of sky, the clouds light up orange and pink.
Tonight the sun sets in the west-south-west, at 255° on a compass. Through the year it moves between the west-north-west in June and the west-south-west in December.
Yes. Tonight the sun sets over open water, to the west-south-west.
Over the next year the earliest sunset at Santa Monica is 4:46 PM on Saturday, December 5, and the latest is 8:11 PM on Tuesday, June 29.
Santa Monica Pier is the favorite spot at Santa Monica. Get there 30 to 45 minutes before sunset for a good place, and stay 20 minutes after for the afterglow.
Yes. The Pacific Park live cam shows Santa Monica in real time, linked from this page.
| Venice Beach sunset | 2 mi | 6:07 PM |
|---|---|---|
| Manhattan Beach sunset | 10 mi | 6:07 PM |
| Hermosa Beach sunset | 12 mi | 6:07 PM |
| Redondo Beach sunset | 13 mi | 6:07 PM |
| Zuma Beach sunset | 19 mi | 6:08 PM |
| El Matador State Beach sunset | 22 mi | 6:08 PM |
See every beach on one map: sunset times tonight across the US →