when is shortest day

The shortest day of the year is the winter solstice, which happens once each December in the Northern Hemisphere and once each June in the Southern Hemisphere.

Northern Hemisphere

• The shortest day is around December 21 or 22 each year.

• In 2025 specifically, the shortest day falls on Sunday, 21 December.

Southern Hemisphere

• South of the equator, the shortest day is around June 20 or 21.

• That June solstice is their start of winter, with the fewest daylight hours of the year.

What “shortest day” means

• “Shortest day” means the day with the least daylight and the longest night, not a shorter 24‑hour period.

• It occurs when Earth’s axis is tilted farthest away from the Sun for your hemisphere, so the Sun follows its lowest, shortest path across the sky.

TL;DR:

• Northern Hemisphere: around December 21–22 (Dec 21, 2025).

• Southern Hemisphere: around June 20–21.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.