What time is it in America?
The United States is so wide it has several time zones. See the live time in each one, then pick a city or state.
The time in every US time zone right now
Eastern Time
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ET
New York
Central Time
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CT
Chicago
Mountain Time
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MT
Denver
Pacific Time
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PT
Los Angeles
Alaska Time
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AKT
Anchorage
Hawaii Time
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HST
Honolulu
Why does time change across the USA?
The Earth spins, so the Sun reaches the East Coast first and the West Coast about three hours later. If everyone used one clock, people in California would eat breakfast when the Sun was still down. So the country is divided into time zones, each about one hour wide.
Start in the east and go west: each time you cross into the next zone, the clocks go back one hour. Go east and they go forward one hour.
That is why a TV show that starts at 8 pm in New York starts at 5 pm in Los Angeles, and why the first shop to open in the morning is on the East Coast.
New York vs Los Angeles
Los Angeles is 3 hours behind New York all year.
The US time zones explained
| Zone | Winterstandard time | Summerdaylight time | Example city |
|---|---|---|---|
| Eastern Time (ET) | ESTEastern Standard Time | EDTEastern Daylight Time | New York |
| Central Time (CT) | CSTCentral Standard Time | CDTCentral Daylight Time | Chicago |
| Mountain Time (MT) | MSTMountain Standard Time | MDTMountain Daylight Time | Denver |
| Pacific Time (PT) | PSTPacific Standard Time | PDTPacific Daylight Time | Los Angeles |
| Alaska Time (AKT) | AKSTAlaska Standard Time | AKDTAlaska Daylight Time | Anchorage |
| Hawaii Time (HST) | HSTHawaii Standard Time | HSTNo change all year | Honolulu |
| Atlantic Time (AST) | ASTAtlantic Standard Time | ASTNo change all year | San Juan |
What do ET, EST and EDT mean?
Each zone has three names. Take Mountain Time as an example:
- MT is the zone's everyday name, Mountain Time. It is correct all year, so it is the safest one to use.
- MST is Mountain Standard Time. It is used in winter.
- MDT is Mountain Daylight Time. It is used in summer, when the clocks are 1 hour ahead.
The letters are easy to decode. The first letter is the zone (Eastern, Central, Mountain, Pacific). The middle letter is the season (Standard in winter, Daylight in summer). The last letter is T for Time.
Daylight saving time runs from the second Sunday in March to the first Sunday in November. Hawaii, Puerto Rico and most of Arizona keep the same time all year.
Time in 66 American cities
Eastern Time
Atlanta
GA
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ETBaltimore
MD
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ETBoston
MA
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ETBuffalo
NY
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ETCharleston
SC
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ETCharlotte
NC
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ETCincinnati
OH
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ETCleveland
OH
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ETColumbus
OH
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ETDetroit
MI
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ETHartford
CT
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ETIndianapolis
IN
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ETJacksonville
FL
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ETLouisville
KY
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ETMiami
FL
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ETNew York
NY
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ETNewark
NJ
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ETOrlando
FL
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ETPhiladelphia
PA
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ETPittsburgh
PA
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ETPortland
ME
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ETProvidence
RI
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ETRaleigh
NC
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ETRichmond
VA
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ETTampa
FL
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ETVirginia Beach
VA
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Central Time
Austin
TX
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CTBaton Rouge
LA
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CTBirmingham
AL
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CTChicago
IL
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CTDallas
TX
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CTDes Moines
IA
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CTHouston
TX
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CTKansas City
MO
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CTLittle Rock
AR
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CTMemphis
TN
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CTMilwaukee
WI
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CTMinneapolis
MN
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CTNashville
TN
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CTNew Orleans
LA
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CTOklahoma City
OK
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CTOmaha
NE
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CTSan Antonio
TX
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CTSt. Louis
MO
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CTWichita
KS
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Mountain Time
Pacific Time
Alaska Time
Hawaii Time
Atlantic Time
The capital, Washington, D.C., has its own page too.
Time in every state
States marked with a * are split between two time zones.
Mostly Eastern Time
Mostly Central Time
Mostly Pacific Time
Mostly Alaska Time
Mostly Hawaii Time
Want to explore more?
Questions about US time
How many time zones are there in the United States?
The 50 states use six time zones: Eastern, Central, Mountain, Pacific, Alaska and Hawaii-Aleutian. The lower 48 states use just four of them: Eastern, Central, Mountain and Pacific. Territories such as Puerto Rico add more.
What is the time difference between New York and Los Angeles?
Los Angeles is 3 hours behind New York all year. The two cities are about 2,450 miles (3,950 km) apart, and the Sun reaches New York about three hours before Los Angeles.
Why is New York three hours ahead of Los Angeles?
Time zones are roughly one hour wide, and the United States spans several of them from east to west. New York is in Eastern Time and Los Angeles is in Pacific Time, which is three zones to the west. When it is noon in New York it is only 9 am in Los Angeles.
Does every US state use daylight saving time?
No. Hawaii and most of Arizona stay on standard time all year. Everywhere else moves the clocks forward 1 hour on the second Sunday in March and back 1 hour on the first Sunday in November.
Which states have two time zones?
13 states are split between two zones: Florida, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan, Nebraska, Nevada, North Dakota, Oregon, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas. Each state page explains which parts use which zone.
What do EST, CST, MST and PST mean?
They are the short names of the four main zones in winter: Eastern Standard Time, Central Standard Time, Mountain Standard Time and Pacific Standard Time. In summer the S becomes a D for daylight, so EST becomes EDT, CST becomes CDT, and so on.
Which US time zone is the earliest?
Eastern Time is the earliest of the four main zones, so people on the East Coast see each new day first. Pacific Time is three hours behind. Hawaii and Alaska are further behind still.