Officially, there are nine US time zones spanning the contiguous United States, the non-contiguous United States, and territories of the United States. The four US time zones within the contiguous United States are, from east to west, the Eastern Time Zone, Central Time Zone, Mountain Time Zone, and the Pacific Time Zone. The Alaska Time Zone includes the U.S. state of Alaska, and the Hawaii-Aleutian Time Zone includes the U.S. state of Hawaii and the Aleutian Islands.
The Eastern Time Zone is the easternmost of all US time zones, and it runs from the Atlantic Coast westward through most of the Ohio Valley. The Central Time Zone runs from the border of the eastern standard time zone westward through the great plains. The mountain standard time zone runs the length of the Rocky Mountains and the states that contain them, and the Pacific Time Zone includes Pacific coastal states as well as the state of Nevada.
The US time zones do not necessarily stop at state borders. For example, South Dakota is divided nearly down the middle between the central standard time zone and the mountain standard time zone. North Dakota's southwest corner is also divided between the two. Indiana is divided between two US time zones, and therefore only part of the state observed daylight saving time, but since 2005, the entire state uses standard time and observes daylight savings time.
When it is 8 a.m. in New York in the Eastern Time Zone, it is 5 a.m. in Los Angeles in the Pacific Time Zone.As one moves westward through the US time zones, the clock falls back one hour for each time zone. For example, if one passes from the Eastern Time Zone to the Central Time Zone, the time will change at the border from two o'clock p.m. to one o'clock p.m. However, because some sections of the country -- the Hopi Nation in Arizona, for example -- do not observe daylight savings time, this rule does not always hold true.
When planning a trip or making a phone call to the United States, you should be aware of the different time zones in the USA. Learn about all eleven US time zones, the difference between UTC and CET, and Standard- and Daylight Savings Time.
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How many time zones does the USA have?
The United States of America has a total of eleven time zones. Four of them stretch across the contiguous mainland from the West Coast to the East Coast:
- Pacific Standard Time Zone (PST), UTC−8
- Mountain Standard Time Zone (MST), UTC−7
- Central Standard Time Zone (CST), UTC−6
- Eastern Standard Time Zone (EST), UTC−5
Additional time zones exist in Alaska, Hawaii, and for several small states and islands such as the Baker Islands, Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, and Wake Atoll:
- Baker Island Time Zone (BIT), UTC−12
- Samoa Standard Time Zone (SST), UTC−11
- Hawaii-Aleutian Standard Time Zone (HAST), UTC−10
- Alaska Standard Time Zone (AKST), UTC−9
- Atlantic Standard Time Zone (AST), UTC−4
- Chamorro Standard Time Zone (ChST), UTC+10
- Wake Island Time Zone (WAKT), UTC+12
What does UTC mean?
UTC is the abbreviation for Universal Time Coordinated. This refers to the worldwide basis for calculating local time.
Standard time vs. daylight saving time
Just like in many other countries in the world, there is also a daylight saving time in the USA, at which the clocks are changed. However, the so-called daylight saving time (or DST for short) is not implemented everywhere. Places without official daylight saving time include Hawaii and most of Arizona.
Fun fact
In terms of daylight saving time, the US state of Arizona is a special case, as only the Navajo Nation Reservation in the Northeast implements daylight savings time here.
The time changeover to daylight saving time takes place on the second Sunday in March at two o'clock in the morning. The clocks are then set back again on the first Sunday in November, also at two o'clock in the morning.
Daylight saving time in the USA
Because the USA does not switch completely to daylight saving time, some time zone borders are lifted for half of the year. For example, if you travel from California to Arizona during daylight saving time, you don't have to set your watch ahead.
Caution
The time change in the USA takes place on different days than in Europe (where it happens at the end of March or at the end of October). This leads to an additional difference between Central European Time and the time zones in the USA in the periods from mid to late March and early November.
Time zones of major US cities
If you're planning a round trip through the US, you'll get different dates for takeoffs and landings, picking up and dropping off rental cars, or even checking into hotels. Here are the most important US cities and their time zones:
| Boston | UTC-4 | UTC-5 |
| Chicago | UTC-5 | UTC-6 |
| Honululu | - | UTC-10 |
| Las Vegas | UTC-7 | UTC-8 |
| Los Angeles | UTC-7 | UTC-8 |
| New York City | UTC-4 | UTC-5 |
| San Francisco | UTC-7 | UTC-8 |
| Washington D.C. | UTC-4 | UTC-5 |
Wintertime is generally referred to as "standard time." Thus, daylight saving time is to be understood as a deviation from standard time.
Eastern Standard Time Zone (EST), UTC-5
In the East of the US mainland, the Eastern Standard Time zone prevails from the coast to the Great Lakes. As a UTC-5 zone, it is six hours behind Central European Time and completely includes 17 US states.
US states that lie entirely within the EST time zone include Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Vermont, Virginia, and West Virginia.
Parts of Florida, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, and Tennessee also fall within the Eastern Standard Time zone.
Eastern Daylight Time (EDT), UTC-4
The daylight saving variant of the Eastern Standard Time zone (EST) is called Eastern Daylight Time (EDT) and is in the UTC-4 range.
Eastern Time confusion
The American Eastern Standard Time zone is often confused with other time zones that also contain the word "Eastern." However, the Australian Eastern Standard Time (AEST), Eastern Africa Time (EAT), Eastern European Time (EET), and the East Greenland Time (EGT) are in completely different UTC zones.
Central Standard Time Zone (CST), UTC−6
The Central Standard Time zone applies to a large part of the central United States and includes, for example, the states of Alabama, Arkansas, Illinois, Iowa, Louisiana, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, and Oklahoma completely. Parts of Texas, North and South Dakota, and Nebraska are also in the CST zone.
Central Daylight Time (CDT), UTC-5
The daylight saving time variant of the Central Standard Time zone (CST) is called Central Daylight Time (CDT) and is in the UTC-5 range.
Mountain Standard Time Zone (MST), UTC−7
The Mountain Time Zone includes the Rocky Mountains with the US states of Colorado, Montana, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming. Parts of Arizona, Idaho, and Oregon are also in the MST time zone.
The daylight saving time variant of the Mountain Standard Time zone (MST) is called Mountain Daylight Time (MDT) and is in the UTC-6 range.
Pacific Standard Time Zone (PST), UTC−8
The West of the USA is located in the Pacific Standard Time zone. Unlike the other time zones of the US mainland, only two US states are completely subject to PST: California and Washington. However, some other states are partially in the PST time zone, namely Idaho, Nevada, and Oregon.
Pacific Daylight Time (PDT)
The daylight saving time (DST) variant of the Pacific Standard Time zone (PST) is called Pacific Daylight Time (MDT) and is in the UTC-7 range.
Time zone FAQ
You know everything about the time zones of the USA now. But are you still wondering about various time zone abbreviations that pop up when scheduling appointments between different countries? Then our time zones FAQ will help you:
What does GMT mean?
GMT is the abbreviation for "Greenwich Mean Time" and was used as world time before the introduction of UTC. Today, GMT is still used in Great Britain and parts of Africa but is increasingly being replaced by UTC there as well.
What does CET mean?
CET stands for "Central European Time" and is equivalent to UTC+1. This time zone applies, for example, in Germany, Austria, France, Hungary, Poland, Sweden, Norway, and many other European countries. Parts of Africa also use CET.
What does CEST mean?
CEST is "Central European Summer Time" and is equivalent to UTC+2. This time zone applies, for example, in Germany, Austria, France, Hungary, Poland, Sweden, Norway, and many other European countries from the end of March to the end of October.
USA flight: How to prevent jet lag
Even when flying within the USA, the time difference is clearly noticeable for you. If you fly to the USA from Europe, it will be even worse. Therefore, a jet lag master plan should always be part of your travel preparations for your vacation in the USA.
Popular tips include living on local time a few hours before you arrive in the USA (i.e., changing your clocks beforehand) and spending a lot of time outside in the fresh air after your arrival in the USA. Exercise and avoiding caffeine and alcohol are also said to help.
Do you need more tips about vacationing, living, and working in the USA? Then pay a visit to our ex-pat section or our USA Wiki.
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