East, but due east on only two days a year: the March and September equinoxes. Between March and September the sun rises north of east and sets north of west. Between September and March it rises south of east and sets south of west.
That is true everywhere on Earth, in Sydney as much as in London. What changes from place to place is how far round it goes. At the equator the sunrise moves up to 23° from due east over the year. At London's latitude it moves up to 41°, and at Reykjavik's up to 70°. Longitude makes no difference: two places on the same latitude see the sun rise in the same direction on the same day.
Sunset is the mirror image. On any day, the sun sets as far north or south of due west as it rose north or south of due east, to within a degree.
On the two solstices, when the sun is furthest from due east. Southern latitudes see almost the same bearings as northern ones on the same day: in June the sun rises north of east in Buenos Aires just as it does in Madrid. The two agree to within a degree up to 30° and drift up to 4° apart by 60°, because the air bends the sun's light at the horizon, which carries a summer sunrise slightly further round and holds a winter one slightly back.
| Latitude | Sunrise, 21 June | Sunrise, 21 December | Sunset, 21 June | Sunset, 21 December |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0° | 23° north of east bearing 67°, ENE |
23° south of east bearing 113°, ESE |
23° north of west bearing 293°, WNW |
23° south of west bearing 247°, WSW |
| 10° | 24° north of east bearing 66°, ENE |
24° south of east bearing 114°, ESE |
24° north of west bearing 294°, WNW |
24° south of west bearing 246°, WSW |
| 20° | 25° north of east bearing 65°, ENE |
25° south of east bearing 115°, ESE |
25° north of west bearing 295°, WNW |
25° south of west bearing 245°, WSW |
| 30° | 28° north of east bearing 62°, ENE |
27° south of east bearing 117°, ESE |
28° north of west bearing 298°, WNW |
27° south of west bearing 243°, WSW |
| 40° | 32° north of east bearing 58°, ENE |
31° south of east bearing 121°, ESE |
32° north of west bearing 302°, WNW |
30° south of west bearing 240°, WSW |
| 50° | 39° north of east bearing 51°, NE |
37° south of east bearing 127°, SE |
40° north of west bearing 310°, NW |
37° south of west bearing 233°, SW |
| 60° | 55° north of east bearing 35°, NE |
51° south of east bearing 141°, SE |
55° north of west bearing 325°, NW |
50° south of west bearing 220°, SW |
The table stops at 60° because not much further on the question stops having an answer. From about 66° north or south there are summer days when the sun does not set at all, and from about 67.5° winter days when it does not rise.
Ordered from north to south. Each city's own page draws the sunrise and sunset direction on a map for any date, and gives the sun's position right now.
| City | Sunrise, 21 June | Sunrise, 21 December | Sunrise today (30 September) | Sunset today |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reykjavík Iceland, 64.1° N |
70° north of east bearing 20°, NNE |
62° south of east bearing 152°, SSE |
4° south of east bearing 94°, E |
4° south of west bearing 266°, W |
| Anchorage United States, 61.2° N |
58° north of east bearing 32°, NNE |
53° south of east bearing 143°, SE |
4° south of east bearing 94°, E |
4° south of west bearing 266°, W |
| Helsinki Finland, 60.2° N |
55° north of east bearing 35°, NE |
51° south of east bearing 141°, SE |
4° south of east bearing 94°, E |
4° south of west bearing 266°, W |
| Oslo Norway, 59.9° N |
55° north of east bearing 35°, NE |
50° south of east bearing 140°, SE |
4° south of east bearing 94°, E |
4° south of west bearing 266°, W |
| London United Kingdom, 51.5° N |
41° north of east bearing 49°, NE |
39° south of east bearing 129°, SE |
3° south of east bearing 93°, E |
3° south of west bearing 267°, W |
| Toronto Canada, 43.7° N |
34° north of east bearing 56°, NE |
33° south of east bearing 123°, ESE |
3° south of east bearing 93°, E |
2° south of west bearing 268°, W |
| New York United States, 40.7° N |
32° north of east bearing 58°, ENE |
31° south of east bearing 121°, ESE |
3° south of east bearing 93°, E |
2° south of west bearing 268°, W |
| Madrid Spain, 40.4° N |
32° north of east bearing 58°, ENE |
31° south of east bearing 121°, ESE |
3° south of east bearing 93°, E |
3° south of west bearing 267°, W |
| Tōkyō Japan, 35.7° N |
30° north of east bearing 60°, ENE |
29° south of east bearing 119°, ESE |
3° south of east bearing 93°, E |
3° south of west bearing 267°, W |
| Cairo Egypt, 30.0° N |
28° north of east bearing 62°, ENE |
27° south of east bearing 117°, ESE |
3° south of east bearing 93°, E |
3° south of west bearing 267°, W |
| New Delhi India, 28.6° N |
27° north of east bearing 63°, ENE |
27° south of east bearing 117°, ESE |
3° south of east bearing 93°, E |
3° south of west bearing 267°, W |
| Dubai United Arab Emirates, 25.3° N |
26° north of east bearing 64°, ENE |
26° south of east bearing 116°, ESE |
3° south of east bearing 93°, E |
3° south of west bearing 267°, W |
| Mexico City Mexico, 19.4° N |
25° north of east bearing 65°, ENE |
25° south of east bearing 115°, ESE |
2° south of east bearing 92°, E |
2° south of west bearing 268°, W |
| Bangalore India, 13.0° N |
24° north of east bearing 66°, ENE |
24° south of east bearing 114°, ESE |
2° south of east bearing 92°, E |
3° south of west bearing 267°, W |
| Singapore Singapore, 1.3° N |
23° north of east bearing 67°, ENE |
23° south of east bearing 113°, ESE |
3° south of east bearing 93°, E |
3° south of west bearing 267°, W |
| Quito Ecuador, 0.2° S |
23° north of east bearing 67°, ENE |
23° south of east bearing 113°, ESE |
2° south of east bearing 92°, E |
3° south of west bearing 267°, W |
| Nairobi Kenya, 1.3° S |
23° north of east bearing 67°, ENE |
23° south of east bearing 113°, ESE |
3° south of east bearing 93°, E |
3° south of west bearing 267°, W |
| Jakarta Indonesia, 6.2° S |
24° north of east bearing 66°, ENE |
24° south of east bearing 114°, ESE |
3° south of east bearing 93°, E |
3° south of west bearing 267°, W |
| São Paulo Brazil, 23.5° S |
25° north of east bearing 65°, ENE |
26° south of east bearing 116°, ESE |
3° south of east bearing 93°, E |
3° south of west bearing 267°, W |
| Sydney Australia, 33.9° S |
28° north of east bearing 62°, ENE |
29° south of east bearing 119°, ESE |
3° south of east bearing 93°, E |
4° south of west bearing 266°, W |
| Cape Town South Africa, 33.9° S |
28° north of east bearing 62°, ENE |
29° south of east bearing 119°, ESE |
4° south of east bearing 94°, E |
4° south of west bearing 266°, W |
| Wellington New Zealand, 41.3° S |
31° north of east bearing 59°, ENE |
33° south of east bearing 123°, ESE |
4° south of east bearing 94°, E |
4° south of west bearing 266°, W |
The Earth's axis is tilted 23.4° to its orbit. Over a year that carries the sun from 23.4° north of the equator in June to 23.4° south of it in December, and the point on the horizon where it rises moves with it. At the equator the sunrise moves by exactly the tilt. Further from the equator the horizon meets the sun's path at a shallower angle, so the same movement of the sun carries the sunrise further round.
For anyone who wants to calculate it: ignoring refraction, the sunrise lies at an angle a north of east given by sin a = sin δ / cos φ, where δ is the sun's declination that day and φ your latitude. The figures on this page come from the same solar model as the rest of this site, which also allows for refraction at the horizon.
North of the Tropic of Cancer, which includes Europe, the United States, China and northern India, the sun is due south at solar noon, every day it is up. South of the Tropic of Capricorn it is due north at noon. Between the two tropics it passes north of overhead for part of the year and south of it for the rest. Singapore's noon sun is in the north in June and in the south in December.
North of the Tropic of Cancer this is why a south-facing wall gets the midday sun all year while a north-facing one gets sun only early and late on summer days, when the sun rises and sets north of east and west. In London the June sunrise is at 49°, almost exactly north-east, and the December one at 129°, almost exactly south-east, so a window facing north-east looks straight at one and is side-on to the other. South of the Tropic of Capricorn, swap north and south.
Or browse all countries. Every city page draws the sunrise and sunset direction for any date on a map of the city.