Background <p>Cochlear implant (CI) technology predominantly aims to enhance sound intensity and improve speech perception. However, its effect on spatial hearing skills, the ability to hear and process acoustic stimuli from different directions, has received less attention. The purpose of the current study was to measure spatial hearing performances across time in postlingually implanted adults.</p> Methods <p>Eighty-six participants who underwent bilateral CI surgery (mean age: years) and 86 normal-hearing listeners (mean age: years) participated. Spatial hearing ability was assessed using the Spatial Hearing Questionnaire (SHQ) and Speech, Spatial, and Qualities of Hearing Scale (SSQ) by collecting data before CI surgery and at 6 months and 12 months following CI. Speech perception was also measured using the word recognition score (WRS) test.</p> Results <p>We found a significant improvement in SHQ and SHQ total scores and subscale scores from pre-CI to 6 months post-CI and 12 months post-CI (repeated measure ANOVA, <i>p</i> &lt; 0.001), with the most improvement during the first 6 months after implantation. However, SHQ and SHQ scores were significantly greater for normal hearing listeners than the CI users. There was a strong relationship between the SHQ and SSQ scores. Furthermore, the WRS scores were also positively correlated with SHQ/SSQ scores (p-value &lt; 0.001).</p> Conclusion <p>Bilateral CI will result in improved spatial hearing performance in postlingually deaf adults, with the most advantage occurring within the first 6 months of cochlear implantation.</p>