Abstract Plastic shrinkage cracking (PSC) in concrete is related to the amount and rate of free pore water loss due to evaporation. This study investigates the influence of solar radiation on evaporation, the concrete temperature, plastic shrinkage and cracking. Literature suggests that exposure to solar radiation can either: increase the concrete temperature and, consequently, increase the rate of tensile strength gain resulting in less severe PSC or can increase the concrete temperature, resulting in a higher amount and rate of pore water loss to produce more severe PSC. The results of this study indicate that exposure to solar radiation significantly increases the amount and rate of pore water loss as well as plastic shrinkage and severity of PSC. To study PSC, many authors have estimated the evaporation rate from wind speed, air and concrete temperature and humidity which would result in significantly underestimating the actual evaporation rate if the concrete is exposed to moderate or high solar radiation. The accuracy of several radiation-related evaporation estimation models was evaluated by comparing the models to the actual rate of evaporation from specimens placed in the sun. A more accurate model was identified to estimate the evaporation in concrete specimens when exposed to solar radiation.