This is the last day the sun will go down after 6pm in NYC until spring 2027

New York’s most reliable free evening entertainment is about to change its hours. The sun, unconcerned with our commutes or post-work plans, will soon clock out before 6pm—and stay on that schedule for months.

This Sunday, October 25, marks the city’s final sunset after 6pm in 2026, according to Time and Date’s solar calendar. Sundown is listed at 6:01pm, giving you just enough time to appreciate the milestone before it's gone. On Monday, October 26, the sunset slips to 5:59pm. That makes this weekend a great excuse to linger along the Hudson River, or finally take the autumn walk you’ve been discussing since September.

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The bigger afternoon ambush comes the following weekend: daylight saving time ends on Sunday, November 1, when clocks turn back from 2am to 1am. That means an extra hour overnight after Halloween, but it also means sunset will land around 4:52pm that Sunday, a particularly rude development for anyone whose workday ends at five.

The clock change shifts daylight into the morning; it doesn’t remove an hour of actual sunshine. But the days themselves are also getting shorter as we approach the winter solstice. Together, those two developments explain why a perfectly ordinary afternoon errand will soon feel like a late-night expedition.

This year’s shortest day falls on Monday, December 21, with just nine hours and 15 minutes of daylight in New York and a 4:31pm sunset. After that, total daylight starts increasing again, but the initial gains are small enough that you probably won’t be celebrating them on your evening subway platform.

The 6pm barrier finally breaks on Sunday, March 14, 2027, when daylight saving time returns. Sunset jumps to roughly 7:01pm that day, while the previous evening’s sunset lands around 6pm. The reward comes with the usual catch: clocks spring forward, taking an hour of sleep with them. 

Until then, consider moving your outdoor ambitions into your lunch break, whether that's a midday park lap or a waterfront coffee. As for this Sunday? Give the sunset your full attention.