Daylight cycle

A time-lapse of the daylight cycle.

The daylight cycle is a 20-minute-long cycle between two main light settings.

Behavior

During the daylight cycle, the sun and moon appear to rotate around the player, appearing directly overhead at midday and midnight, respectively. The sun and moon always remain in the same position relative to the stars, and to each other. Solar eclipses are therefore impossible, and technically the moon would constantly be eclipsed by the world, even though it exhibits phases depending on the number of nights elapsed.

In Bedrock Edition, the daylight cycle never pauses unless the game is shut down. If the game is paused, the cycle continues. In Java Edition, the daylight cycle pauses when a single-player game is paused unless a GUI window (such as the inventory) is opened. In multiplayer, time proceeds normally as long as the server is running.

The daylight cycle continues while the player is in the Nether or The End, although the world itself does not change until the Overworld is loaded again. A village created in another dimension observes a normal village schedule.

Conversions

In Minecraft, time is exactly 72 times faster than normal time. This can be easily calculated as the proportion ¹⁴⁴⁰⁄₂₀ = 72, since there are 1440 minutes (86400 seconds) in a real day (3600sec × 24hr) and 20 minutes (1200 seconds) in a full Minecraft day, assuming the tick speed is maintained at 20 ticks/second. A collection of time unit conversions is listed below:

A chart showing the approximations of Minecraft time to real time.

Minecraft time to real time

Minecraft time	Minecraft ticks	Real time
1 second	0.27	0.0138 seconds
1 minute	16.6	0.83 seconds
1 hour	1,000	50 seconds
1 day	24,000	20 minutes
1 week (7 days)	168,000	2.3 hours (2h 20min)
1 lunar cycle (8 days)	192,000	2.6 hours (2h 40min)

Real time to Minecraft time

The approximation of real time to Minecraft time:

Real time	Minecraft time
1 tick	3.6 seconds
1 second	1 minute and 12 seconds (72 seconds)
10 seconds	12 minutes (720 seconds)
50 seconds	1 hour (60 minutes, 3600 seconds)
1 minute	1 hour and 12 minutes (72 minutes, 4320 seconds)
20 minutes	1 day
1 hour	3 days
1 day	72 days
1 month	2,160 days
1 year (365.24 Days)	26,297 days (To the nearest day)

24-hour Minecraft day

Image	Minecraft time of day	Minecraft ticks	Real time (minutes)	Event
	06:00:00.0	0 (24000)	0:00 (20:00)	Beginning of the Minecraft day. Players and villagers awaken and rise from their beds.
	06:10:01.2	167	0:08.35	The moon disappears on the horizon.
	07:00:00.0	1000	0:50	Time when using the /time set day command.
	08:00:00.0	2000	1:40	Villagers begin their workday.
	11:43:22.8	5723	4:46.15	The clock starts showing exactly midday.
	12:00:00.0	6000	5:00	Noon; the sun is at its peak.
				Time when using /time set noon.
	15:00:00.0	9000	7:30	Villagers end their workday and begin socializing.
	17:50:02.4	11834	9:41.7	The moon appears on the horizon.
	18:00:00.0	12000	10:00	Beginning of the Minecraft sunset. Time when using the /time set sunset‌ command. Villagers go to their beds and sleep.
	18:00:36.0	12010	10:00.5	In rainy weather, beds can be used at this point. In rainy weather, the internal sky-light level begins to decrease. In rainy weather, creakings start to spawn.
	18:02:24.0	12040	10:02	In sunny weather, the internal sky-light level begins to decrease.
	18:32:31.2	12542	10:27.1	In clear weather, beds can be used at this point. In clear weather, bees enter the nest/hive for the night. In clear weather, undead mobs no longer burn. In clear weather, creakings start to spawn.
	18:36:36.0	12610	10:30.5	The clock shows exactly dusk (day to night).
	18:47:09.6	12786	10:39.3	The solar zenith angle is 0. Horizon stops getting darker.
	18:58:08.4	12969	10:48.45	First tick when monsters spawn outdoors in rainy weather.
	19:00:00.0	13000	10:50	Beginning of the Minecraft night. Time when using the /time set night command.
	19:11:16.8	13188	10:59.4	First tick when monsters spawn outdoors in clear weather.
	19:40:12.0	13670	11:23.5	The internal sky-light level reaches 4, the minimum at night.
	19:42:07.2	13702	11:25.1	The sun disappears on the horizon.
	23:50:34.8	17843	14:52.7	The clock starts showing exactly midnight.
	00:00:00.0	18000	15:00	Midnight; the moon is at its peak.
				Time when using the /time set midnight command.
	04:18:00.0	22300	18:35	The sun appears on the horizon.
	04:19:51.8	22331	18:36.55	The internal sky-light level begins to increase.
	04:48:43.2	22812‌	19:00.6	Last tick when monsters spawn outdoors in clear weather.
	04:48:46.8	22813‌	19:00.65
	05:00:00.0	23000	19:10	Beginning of the Minecraft sunrise. Time when using the /time set sunrise‌ command.
	05:01:51.6	23031	19:11.55	Last tick when monsters spawn outdoors in rainy weather.
	05:02:27.6	23041	19:12.1	The clock starts showing exactly dawn.
	05:12:57.6	23216	19:20.8	The solar zenith angle is 0.
	05:27:36.0	23460	19:33	In clear weather, beds can no longer be used. In clear weather, bees leave the nest/hive. In clear weather, undead mobs begin to burn. In clear weather, creakings begin to despawn.
	05:57:39.6	23961	19:58.1	In sunny weather, the internal sky-light level reaches 15, the maximum. Horizon stops getting brighter.
	05:59:31.2	23992	19:59.6	In rainy weather, beds can no longer be used. In rainy weather, the internal sky-light level reaches 12, the maximum. In rainy weather, creakings begin to despawn.

Daytime

This is the start of a new day.

Daytime, not including sunset and sunrise, is equal in length to nighttime, lasting 9 minutes and 10 seconds.

• Start: 1000 ticks (07:00:00.0)
• Mid: 6000 ticks (12:00:00.0)
• End: 12000 ticks (18:00:00.0)

When a player first spawns in singleplayer, the daylight cycle always starts at the beginning of the daytime (0:00). Most multiplayer servers also start at the beginning of the daytime, but the daylight cycle continues regardless of any new players joining.

During the daytime, the sun rises up to its peak in a light blue sky. The exact color of the sky depends on the current biome; for example, desert skies are a lighter shade of blue than plains skies.

All blocks that are in direct vertical view of the sky receive sunlight at the internal sky light level 15, which is the maximum. Sunlight provides ample light for the growth of saplings and grass blocks. Most undead mobs (including zombies and skeletons) exposed to direct sunlight (and are not in shade, in water, or wearing helmets) are set on fire. Additionally, sunlight renders spiders neutral, unless they are currently chasing a player, and any endermen exposed to sunlight teleport randomly when near the player and randomly become neutral if having been aggressive for at least 30 seconds. For more details see Light § Effects of light.

Sunset/dusk

Example sunset seen from a high spot on the map.

Sunset is the period between daytime and nighttime, and always lasts 50 seconds.

• Start: 12000 ticks (18:00:00.0)
• End: 13000 ticks (19:00:00.0)

During sunset, the Sun descends on the western horizon, and the Moon rises on the eastern horizon. The sky near the setting Sun glows a vibrant orange-red. The internal sky light level decreases. Eventually, undead mobs exposed to direct sunlight are set not to burn.

Between dusk and dawn, players may sleep in a bed. In singleplayer mode, doing so advances the daylight cycle to dawn and sets the weather to clear. This also occurs in multiplayer as long as every player online is in a bed simultaneously. Time does not pass for other aspects of the world, however; for example, crops do not grow and furnaces do not cook or smelt as they would when players are awake.

A snowy tundra biome during the night; various mobs can be seen.

Nighttime

Nighttime lasts 9 minutes and 10 seconds.

• Start: 13000 ticks (19:00:00.0)
• Mid: 18000 ticks (00:00:00.0)
• End: 24000 ticks (06:00:00.0)

During the night, the Moon rises to its peak in a dark blue sky dotted with small white stars. The stars appear to move with the Moon and can be first seen toward the end of the sunset.

During the nighttime, the world is covered in darkness; the internal sky light level falls to a minimum of 4, which allows hostile mobs to spawn on the surface. The exact duration for which hostile mobs are able to spawn in exposed areas is 13188 ticks.

Regardless of the low internal sky light level, crops continue to grow during the night as long as they have sufficient client‌ or internal‌ light level, and at least one player is not sleeping to avoid skipping the night.

Example of the Sun rising in the horizon.

Sunrise/dawn

Sunrise is the period between nighttime and daytime, and always lasts 50 seconds.

• Start: 0 ticks (06:00:00.0)
• End: 1000 ticks (07:00:00.0)

During sunrise, the Moon sets on the western horizon and the Sun rises on the eastern horizon. The sky near the rising Sun glows orange.

The internal sky light level increases. Eventually, the effects of sunlight return, dissipating the threat of most hostile mobs.

Clocks

Clock animation

A clock allows players to determine Minecraft time. A clock is useful while underground where the current day/night cycle is not visible. A clock helps the player avoid mistakenly surfacing at night and falling prey to night-spawned mobs on the surface.

Clocks spin uselessly in the Nether and the End, because there is no daylight cycle in those dimensions.

Commands

If commands are enabled, then it is possible to change the current time with the /time commands, as detailed below. To enable or disable the daylight cycle, use the following command: /gamerule doDaylightCycle true|false

Set time

Specific times can be set with the /time set command.

Syntax: /time set <number|day|noon|sunset|night|midnight|sunrise>

Examples:

/time set 0 – Sets the time to the beginning of the Minecraft day.

/time set day – Sets the time to 1000.

/time set 12000 – Sets the time to dusk/sunset.

/time set sunrise‌ - Sets the time to 23000.

/time set noon - Sets the time to 6000.

Moon phases

Each day that progresses adds 24000 ticks to the time counter. While each day looks the same, the Moon appears in one of eight different phases each night. The phase of the moon can also alter some events in game such as Slime spawning and Spider effects. Although there is no explicit command to change the Moon's phase, using /time add 24000 advances the Moon to its next phase. Using /time set midnight also sets the moon's phase to fullmoon no matter what. Furthermore, any of the phases can be accessed with the use of one of the following commands:

• /time set 14000 – Full moon
• /time set 38000 – Waning gibbous
• /time set 62000 – Third quarter
• /time set 86000 – Waning crescent
• /time set 110000 – New moon
• /time set 134000 – Waxing crescent
• /time set 158000 – First quarter
• /time set 182000 – Waxing gibbous

Achievements

[hide]
Icon		Achievement	In-game description	Actual requirements (if different)	Gamerscore earned	Trophy type (PS)
PS4	Other
		Castaway	Eat nothing but dried kelp for three in-game days	Eat dried kelp once; in the following three in-game days, eat nothing but dried kelp.	20	Bronze
		Passing the Time	Play for 100 days.	Play for 100 Minecraft days, which is roughly equivalent to 33 hours in real time (if the player has not slept).	20	Bronze
		Sleep with the Fishes	Spend a day underwater.	Spend 20 minutes underwater without any air. Can be done with a conduit, water breathing potions, or bubble columns.	30	Silver

Graph

A graph of the events in a day.

History

[hide]Java Edition Indev
20100211-2327							Added the daylight cycle, as well as the sun and the moon.
							Currently, each cycle lasts about 15 minutes, with day and night each lasting 7.5 minutes.
20100212-1210							Daylight cycle now lasts 20 minutes.
							Stars now appear in the night sky.
[hide]Java Edition Infdev
20100227-1414							Removed the daylight cycle.
20100313							Reimplemented the daylight cycle, however with a 16 minute duration instead of 20.
20100316							The daylight cycle is now again 20 minutes.
[hide]Java Edition Beta
1.5							The stars at night are now darker.
1.8			Pre-release				In the leaked 1.8 pre-release version, the player can manipulate the time by pressing F6 to reverse time and F7 to advance time.
							Daylight cycles no longer require chunk updates and are now a smooth transition.
[hide]Java Edition
1.0.0			Beta 1.9 Prerelease 4				Notch mentioned on his Twitter that the Sun actually rose in the north in Minecraft. This was a bug and was fixed in Beta 1.9 Prerelease 4, so the Sun and Moon now both rise in the east; this also changed the South-West rule to the South-East rule.
							Added lunar phases.
1.3.1			12w21a				The stars that appear at night were updated to be slightly smaller.
1.5			13w01a				Daylight sensors determine what time of day it is by outputting a redstone signal.
1.6.1			13w24a				/gamerule doDaylightCycle added, which turns the daylight cycle on or off.
[hide]Pocket Edition Alpha
v0.2.0							Added the daylight cycle.
v0.4.0							Increased the length of the daylight cycle from 14,400 ticks (12 minutes) to 19,200 ticks (16 minutes).
v0.5.0							The Nether reactor core sets the time to night.
v0.7.3							Added sunrises, sunsets, the Sun, the Moon, and stars.
v0.10.0			build 1				Added the daylight cycle to creative mode.
							The time of day is now more accurately synced in multiplayer.
							Daylight cycles no longer require chunk updates and are now a smooth transition.
v0.11.0			build 1				Added option to disable daylight cycle, in creative mode only.
v0.12.1			build 1				Increased the length of the daylight cycle to 24,000 ticks.
[hide]Pocket Edition
1.1.0			alpha 1.1.0.0				The sun and moon now rise in the east and set in the west. (Previously they rose in the north and set in the south.)
[hide]Legacy Console Edition
Xbox 360	Xbox One	PS3	PS4	PS Vita	Wii U	Switch
TU1	CU1	1.00	1.00	1.00	Patch 1	1.0.1	Added the daylight cycle, as well as the sun and the moon.
TU7							Sun and moon now rise in the east instead of the north.
TU19	CU7	1.12	1.12	1.12			Daylight sensors determine what time of day it is by outputting a redstone signal.
							Added a host option do enable or disable the daylight cycle.
TU25	CU14	1.17	1.17	1.17			Added host options for setting the time of day to day or night.

Trivia

• The sun and moon are both visible when standing or flying at a height above the terrain at approximately 1.4× the set render distance.
• The highest value of time that can be set with the /time set command is 2,147,483,647 (2³¹−1; the 32-bit integer limit). This is equivalent to 89478 days and 11647 ticks. Real-time equivalent (counting from January 1, 1 CE, year 0 did not exist): December 25, 1581 CE at 11:28:58.8. Without leap years it would be January 1, 1582 CE at 17:28:58.8. Elapsed real-life time: approximately 1242 days (3 years and 147 days, ignoring leap years) and 18 hours.
• Using NBT editors, the largest time value that can be set is 9,223,372,036,854,775,807 (2⁶³−1; the 64-bit integer limit). After this point, the value overflows to be −2⁶³, and as it adds up, the daylight cycle progresses "backward". At this time, 384,307,168,202,282 days, 7 hours, 48 minutes and 25.2 real-life seconds would have elapsed, or approximately 1,052,197,288,656.939773689169981 years.

Gallery

In other media

• 

  Official glow-in-the-dark T-shirt artwork "Survival" featuring the daylight cycle. Made by JINX.