How to Use: World Clock

The World Clock shows current local times in thousands of cities around the world.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Why doesn't it show the correct time?

Displaying the correct time for locations around the world is our core business, so we make sure to deliver clocks that you can rely on. Our team closely monitors local times around the world on a daily basis, always making sure that we incorporate and reflect all DST switches and time zone changes in real-time.

If you still think that the time is incorrect, please consider the following before sending us your error report:

  • Our clocks automatically reflect all Daylight Saving Time (DST) clock changes around the world in real-time. Perhaps the city you are looking at recently changed its clocks? To check, please click on the location's name and find DST information in the green DST boxes.
  • If the time is just a few seconds or minutes off, you might be looking at an outdated version of the page. Please refresh the page in your browser. For more information, please see How accurate are the clocks? below.

If you still believe that the wrong time is displayed, please let us know which city is affected and why you think the time is wrong.

Why does it show the wrong time for GMT or UTC?

Although mistakes can of course always happen, the time we display for UTC or GMT is most probably correct. Please note that neither UTC nor GMT ever switch for Daylight Saving Time (DST). This means that countries like the United Kingdom or Ireland do not use GMT when DST is active there. They are 1 hour ahead of GMT during that period. If you are looking for the local time in the United Kingdom, please use London as your reference, and not GMT or UTC.

Still think something's wrong? Please let us know.

How accurate are the clocks?

Displaying the correct time for locations around the world is our core business, so we make sure to deliver clocks you can rely on. We use the Network Time Protocol (NTP) to synchronize our servers to a number of time servers operated by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) as well as other similar institutions. This means the time we send to your browser is extremely accurate.

However, there are some factors we cannot control that may cause the time displayed on your screen to be very slightly off. For example, this may be the case if the time signal we transmit is somehow delayed on its way from our servers to your browser. We have a simple but effective mechanism in place to synchronize the client time (the time shown on your screen) to our server time. However, if you are on a very slow internet connection, this synchronization process may be slightly inaccurate. In most cases, this inaccuracy should amount to less than 1 second. If you think the time is slightly off, please refresh the page in your browser.

Why isn't my town included?

Our database of locations includes thousands of cities worldwide, and we now offer an additional 6 million places via the GeoNames database. However, only a small selection is listed on the main World Clock page, which only lists important world cities and cities people most often search for on the internet.

While we try to represent all countries and all time zones, our main World Clock page is certainly biased towards larger countries with a larger number of users. Countries with more than one time zone have more cities included in the list than larger countries like India and China, which observe a single time zone.

If you do not find your city on the main World Clock, check our Extended World Clock, which has a more extensive list of locations, or click on the link above the table showing the continent for the city. Alternatively, you can search for your city using the search field at the top of the page (or here).

What does the red asterisk mean?

It means that the city is currently observing Daylight Saving Time. This is mentioned at the bottom of the table.

To remove the asterisk or choose a different display option, click on the gear wheel symbol in the top-right corner of the table and make a selection in the Mark DST drop-down.

The time has the wrong format. How do I change between the 24-hour and AM/PM clock?

The World Clock supports both 24-hour and 12-hour (am/pm) clock formats. To change the format, please go to My Units and make a selection in the Time Format drop-down.

Why don't you list time zones, like Eastern Time?

Because of Daylight Saving Time (DST). Many people use terms like “Eastern Time” to denote the current local time in places like New York, without taking into account DST clock changes. So in effect, Eastern Time can mean two different things. To avoid confusion, we don't list time zones here at all.

Also, it is possible to display the time zone for each location in the World Clock. Simply click on the gear wheel symbol in the top-right corner of the table and select Yes in the Display Time Zone drop-down.

Can you add a symbol showing the current weather in each city?

Sure! You will find a World Clock with weather symbols here.

Is it possible to add the country name?

Yes. Click on the gear wheel symbol in the top-right corner of the table and select Country – City in the Name Display drop-down.

Is it possible to show/hide seconds?

Yes. Click on the gear wheel symbol in the top-right corner of the table and make a selection in the Display Seconds drop-down.

Is it possible to show/hide the time zone?

Yes. Click on the gear wheel symbol in the top-right corner of the table and make a selection in the Display Time Zone drop-down.

Is it possible to sort cities by local time?

Yes. Simply select Time in the Sort By drop-down in the top-left corner of the table.

What sorting and filtering options are there?

There are three different ways to sort the table:

  • Alphabetically, by city name.
  • Alphabetically, by country.
  • By increasing local time.

You can also filter the list based on continents. The continent links are located above the list.

Can I use ZIP or other postal codes to search for a city?

Yes, our city search engine supports ZIP and postal codes for the United States (5-digit ZIP codes only), Canada (first 3 letters/digits only), Germany, Austria, Switzerland, and Norway.

Where can I find more information about the site and its services?

The General FAQ Page answers your questions about timeanddate.com, our services, site-wide settings, customization options, advertising opportunities, and copyright policies.

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