Sunniest Cities in the World

People move for all kinds of reasons, but a change of weather is high on the list. Especially when it comes to sunshine hours. We all need our Vitamin D! So why not move to one of the sunniest cities in the world? Below, we’ve put together a list of sunniest places per continent, According to Sleepopolis, so you can choose how near or how far you want to go for those extra daylight hours.

Let’s get to it!

The Sunniest Cities in the World

Africa

When it comes to daylight hours in Africa, Egypt takes the cake. There are 8760 hours in a year, and in Marsa Alama, Dakhla Oasis, and Kharga, the sun is available more than 40% of the time; that means many days of sunshine per year. That’s not to say that the rest of Egypt and its neighboring countries aren’t sunny as well, but these three cities certainly take the cake with more than 3700 sunshine hours recorded yearly.

Asia

Because the Middle East is between Africa and Asia, it might feel like cheating that its representatives are topping both charts, but the facts are the facts! The current tourist hot-spot Dubai is the sunniest city in Asia with 3500 sunlight hours per year. That being said, Muscat, Oman comes in as a close second with 3490 hours.

Europe

Hello, Cyprus! If you’re looking for long days and shorter nights, the city of Nicosia is the place for you. In general, the sunniest places in Europe can all be found along the Mediterranean, as is the case for Greece. The cities of Ierapetra and Athens are also topping the European sunshine charts.

North America

What is the sunniest city in the US? If you want sun, look no further than southwest United States. Yuma, Arizona is the sunniest city in the United States (and the world). It takes the cake overall with 4000 sunlight hours recorded. That means 50% of your life in Yuma will be bathed in sunlight. Nice! (It does get very hot, of course). Phoenix and Tucson are also fine options if you’re looking to work on your tan.

South America

In South America, Chile is synonymous with sunshine, as far as sunlight hours are concerned. The city of Calamara offers its residents 3900 hours of sun, with Antofagasta coming in second. If you’re looking for options beyond Chile, Arequipa, Peru would be another great option, though you’d be giving up some 600 hours.

Oceania

Well, Australia. The city of Perth is the chart topper with 3229 hours. However, Darwin, Brisbane, Canberra, and Adelaide are all north of 2700 hours, which is still pretty great. Yay, sun!

Honorable mentions

Many other cities are incredibly sunny, but they ended up not making it on this list because they were–pardon the pun–outshined by other contenders in the same continent. In the US, for instance, you could also give Las Vegas, Nevada or El Paso, Texas a try. In Africa, Namibia’s Keetmanshoop is also top-tier when it comes to average sunlight hours.

You can view the full Sleepopolis infographic here.

And there you have it! From Yuma, Arizona, the sunniest place on Earth, to Adelaide, Australia (which is still pretty sunny), you have plenty of options to choose from.

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