Central Time Zone
Time Zone of a Place
What is the Central Time Zone?
Answer
Central Time Zone
UTC−6 (CST) and UTC−5 (CDT)
The same offset as a plain number: UTC−6.
Time Zone Facts
- Abbreviations
- CST / CDT
- Standard time
- UTC−6
- Daylight saving time
- UTC−5
- Clock changes
- daylight time from March 8, 2026 and standard time from November 1, 2026
- Daylight saving time in effect now
- Yes
Where This Zone Applies
The clocks do not change everywhere in this zone: some places stay on standard time all year.
| Place | Standard time | Clock changes |
|---|---|---|
| Canada — Manitoba and western Ontario | UTC−6 | Yes |
| Canada — Saskatchewan, which keeps Central Standard Time all year and does not switch | UTC−6 | No |
| United States — from the Gulf Coast to the Dakotas | UTC−6 | Yes |
| Alabama | UTC−6 | Yes |
| Arkansas | UTC−6 | Yes |
| Florida — the Panhandle west of the Apalachicola River, including Pensacola | UTC−6 | Yes |
| Illinois | UTC−6 | Yes |
| Indiana — the northwest around Gary, the southwest around Evansville, plus Starke and Perry counties | UTC−6 | Yes |
| Iowa | UTC−6 | Yes |
| Michigan — four counties of the Upper Peninsula on the Wisconsin border: Gogebic, Iron, Dickinson and Menominee | UTC−6 | Yes |
| Missouri | UTC−6 | Yes |
| Nebraska — the eastern two-thirds, including Omaha and Lincoln | UTC−6 | Yes |
| Ontario — the far west beyond Thunder Bay, including Kenora and Rainy River | UTC−6 | Yes |
| Saskatchewan — the whole province except Lloydminster: Central Time all year, with no switch to summer time | UTC−6 | No |
| South Dakota — the east, including Sioux Falls and Pierre | UTC−6 | Yes |
| Tennessee — the middle and the west, including Nashville and Memphis | UTC−6 | Yes |
| Texas — almost the whole state, including Houston, Dallas, Austin and San Antonio | UTC−6 | Yes |
| Kansas — almost the whole state, including Wichita, Topeka and Kansas City | UTC−6 | Yes |
| Kentucky — the western part, including Bowling Green, Owensboro and Paducah | UTC−6 | Yes |
| Louisiana | UTC−6 | Yes |
| Minnesota | UTC−6 | Yes |
| Mississippi | UTC−6 | Yes |
| North Dakota — most of the state, including Fargo, Bismarck and Minot | UTC−6 | Yes |
| Oklahoma | UTC−6 | Yes |
| Wisconsin | UTC−6 | Yes |
| Birmingham, Alabama | UTC−6 | Yes |
| Chicago | UTC−6 | Yes |
| Montgomery, Alabama | UTC−6 | Yes |
| Sioux Falls | UTC−6 | Yes |
Time Difference
- UTC
- 5 hours behind
- Eastern Time
- 1 hour behind
- Mountain Time
- 1 hour ahead
- Pacific Time
- 2 hours ahead
- Moscow Time
- MSK−9 in standard time, MSK−8 in daylight time
Current time in the zone
UTC−5
UTC−5 — subtract 5 hours from UTC
Found an error in the calculation or the information?
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See Also
- Time Until Calculator - Count down the hours, minutes and seconds to a specific time
- Add or Subtract Time - Time Calculator - Add or Subtract Days, Hours and Minutes from Now
- Seconds converter - Convert Seconds to Minutes/Hours/Days/Months/Years
- Hours and Minutes in Minutes - Convert Hours and Minutes to Minutes
- Hours and Minutes as a Decimal - Convert Hours and Minutes to Decimal and Fraction
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Named Time Zones
Time Zone of a Place
This reference shows what time zone a place is in: the name of the zone and its abbreviations, the UTC offset in standard and daylight time, whether the clocks change there and when, plus the difference from UTC, from the four US zones and from Moscow. For example, it can help you find out what is the Central Time Zone? (The answer is: UTC−6 (CST) and UTC−5 (CDT)). Pick a place or a zone (e.g. 'Central Time') and hit the 'Find out' button.
Time Zone of a Place