If you live in Alaska or northern New England, the “fall back” on Sunday, Nov. 1, is about to hit you the hardest. Some towns there will see the sun set before 4:30 p.m., and plenty of big cities won't be far behind.

When the clock “falls back,” everyone in every state that abides by daylight saving time will “gain” an hour, but what that feels like can be very different depending on where you live and even your time zone.

That earlier sunset can be tough for many of us, and if you are in a place where the sun sets before 5 p.m. and rises after 7 a.m., you may be going to work in the dark and coming home in the dark — which can be a bummer and a danger.

(MORE: Now is the time to get ahead of the winter blues)

The danger after the clock changes

While multiple studies have found an increase in car accidents when we “spring forward” for the beginning of daylight saving time, there’s a different danger when we “fall back.”

A 2025 study in the Journal of Safety Research found that while car crashes decreased in the five weeks after the fall change, deadly pedestrian and bicyclist crashes rose 13%. Researchers linked the crashes to the changing light conditions.

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(MORE: Your kid’s morning bus stop is getting darker and more dangerous)

On the bright side, the earlier sunrise can really help you get up and move if you’re an early bird or a workout-before-work enthusiast. 

Check out this map that shows how the sunrises and sunsets shift in the week after the time changes. Among major cities, Chicago has one of the earliest sunsets at 4:39 p.m., but cities like New York, Los Angeles and Seattle aren’t far behind.

But look at Eastport, Maine, where the sun will set around 4:10 p.m. Does that mean they’re eating dinner by 5?

And those cities have nothing on Utqiagvik and Juneau, Alaska, where the sun will be down before 4 p.m.!

Why you’ll keep losing daylight

Then there’s the double whammy of losing more daylight as we move toward the winter solstice — and that’s not connected to the time change at all.

(MORE: Daylight saving time and heart attacks)

Daylight hours shrink after the summer solstice until the shortest day of the year, the winter solstice on Dec. 21.

The farther north you live, the more daylight you lose. So even though you’ll be gaining an hour of sleep, the change can still mess with your circadian rhythm. And every parent knows the nightmare it can cause for kids’ sleep schedules.

For tips on how to start adjusting to the time change now, check out this article, which answers more of your questions about daylight saving time.