Sunrise alarm for iPhone: wake with the sun

Updated October 9, 2026

A sunrise alarm wakes you at, or relative to, the local sunrise instead of a fixed clock time, so it moves a little each day with the seasons. Jera works out sunrise every day from your location, or from a city you type in, and offers three modes: wake at sunrise, start at sunrise, or your own time between first light and the end of golden hour.

At a glance

A sunrise alarm follows the sun, not the clock: it rings at a different time each day.
Three modes: full volume at sunrise, the rise starting at sunrise, or your own time between first light and the end of golden hour.
Recalculated every day from your location or a city you type in. Location access is optional.
It rises gently like every Jera alarm, along the profile you choose.
It isn’t a light. It changes when your alarm rings, not how bright your room is.

What is a sunrise alarm?

A normal alarm rings at the same clock time all year. A sunrise alarm rings at a time tied to the sun, so it’s later in winter and earlier in summer, and it shifts by a minute or two from one day to the next.

It suits mornings that can move with the seasons: weekends, holidays, working from home, or anyone who’d rather get up with the daylight than before it. For a train or a meeting at a set time, a fixed-time alarm is still the right tool, and you can have both.

How do Jera’s three sunrise modes work?

Wake at sunrise. The alarm reaches full volume as the sun comes up. The rise starts a little before, as long as the profile’s rise time.
Start at sunrise. The first soft notes begin with the sunrise, and the alarm reaches full volume a rise time later.
Your own time. Pick any time between first light, when the sky starts to brighten before the sun appears, and the end of golden hour, when the low morning sun is up.

Whichever you choose, the alarm keeps the rest of its profile: its sound, curve, peak volume, snooze and backups.

How much does sunrise move through the year?

More than most people expect. In London, the sun rises before 5 a.m. in June and around 8 a.m. at the turn of the year. A fixed 7 a.m. alarm goes off in the dark for months; a sunrise alarm always rings with the sun.

Line chart of sunrise times through 2026. In New York, sunrise is after 7 a.m. in January and early February, for two weeks after the clocks spring forward in March, from mid-October until the clocks fall back, and again through December. In London, it’s after 7 a.m. from January to late February, and from October to the end of the year apart from two weeks after the clocks go back. — Sunrise in New York and London through 2026, on local clock time. Below the dashed line, the sun isn’t up yet when a 7 a.m. alarm goes off; the breaks in each line are the clock changes. Calculated with NOAA’s solar equations.

Because Jera works out each day’s sunrise in local time, clock changes are handled for you: the day the clocks go back, a sunrise alarm moves with them. To see the times where you live, try our sunrise calculator.

No. You can allow location access or type in a city instead. Either way, it’s used only to calculate sunrise times, on your iPhone; it stays on your iPhone, isn’t synced through iCloud, and we never receive it. Our privacy policy has the details.

Sunrise alarm or wake-up light?

They do different things. A wake-up light, or sunrise lamp, slowly brightens your room before your alarm. A sunrise alarm changes when your alarm rings, so it lines up with the real sunrise. You can use both: let a light or smart bulb brighten the room, and let Jera’s sound rise with it.

If you’re curious what research says about light and dark mornings, including dawn-simulating lights, see Why it’s harder to wake up on dark winter mornings.

Frequently asked questions

What time will my sunrise alarm ring?

It depends on the mode you choose and on that day’s sunrise where you are. Jera recalculates it every day, so it follows the seasons on its own.

Does a sunrise alarm suit every time of year?

It suits mornings that can move. In summer it can ring very early, and in winter quite late, so for days with a fixed start time, use a fixed-time alarm instead. Each alarm can be either.

Do I need Location Services on?

No. Type in a city and Jera uses its sunrise times. If you allow location access, it’s used only on your iPhone to calculate sunrise.

Is a sunrise alarm the same as a sunrise lamp?

No. A sunrise lamp is a light that brightens before you wake. A sunrise alarm is about timing: it rings at, or relative to, the actual sunrise. The two work well together.

Does a sunrise alarm still rise gently?

Yes. It uses the same gradual rise as any Jera alarm, from the profile you pick.