Chicago time now, live flip clock
Central Time runs down the middle of the United States, from Chicago to Houston. It keeps CST, UTC-6 in winter and CDT, UTC-5 in summer, so the clocks change twice a year. The clock above shows Central Time now, live, with seconds.
Time in Chicago, United States at a glance
- Time zone
- Central Time (CST)
- Standard time
- CST, UTC-6
- Daylight saving time
- CDT, UTC-5
- Used in
- the United States
Time zone names for developers
IANA time zone identifier: America/Chicago
Other database entries keeping this time, each with its own history America/Indiana/Knox, America/Indiana/Tell_City, America/Menominee, America/North_Dakota/Beulah, America/North_Dakota/Center, America/North_Dakota/New_Salem.
Places on Central Time
Ten states keep Central Time throughout, and ten more keep it in part. The table names each state, the part of it on Central Time and its main cities. Every part listed changes its clocks with the zone.
| Place | Where | Clock changes |
|---|---|---|
| Alabama | The whole of it | Changes with the zone |
| Arkansas | The whole of it | Changes with the zone |
| Florida | The western panhandle: Escambia, Santa Rosa, Okaloosa, Walton, Holmes, Washington, Bay, Jackson and Calhoun counties, and the northern part of Gulf CountyPensacola, Panama City | Changes with the zone |
| Illinois | The whole of it | Changes with the zone |
| Indiana | Lake, Porter, LaPorte, Newton, Jasper and Starke counties in the northwest, and Gibson, Posey, Vanderburgh, Warrick, Spencer and Perry counties in the southwestGary, Hammond, Evansville | Changes with the zone |
| Iowa | The whole of it | Changes with the zone |
| Kansas | All of the state except four western countiesWichita, Kansas City, Topeka | Changes with the zone |
| Kentucky | The west of the stateBowling Green, Owensboro, Paducah | Changes with the zone |
| Louisiana | The whole of it | Changes with the zone |
| Michigan | Gogebic, Iron, Dickinson and Menominee counties, on the Wisconsin borderIronwood, Iron Mountain, Menominee | Changes with the zone |
| Minnesota | The whole of it | Changes with the zone |
| Mississippi | The whole of it | Changes with the zone |
| Missouri | The whole of it | Changes with the zone |
| Nebraska | The east and center of the stateOmaha, Lincoln, North Platte | Changes with the zone |
| North Dakota | Most of the stateFargo, Bismarck, Grand Forks, Minot | Changes with the zone |
| Oklahoma | The whole of it | Changes with the zone |
| South Dakota | The east of the stateSioux Falls, Aberdeen | Changes with the zone |
| Tennessee | The rest of the stateNashville, Memphis | Changes with the zone |
| Texas | Most of the stateHouston, San Antonio, Dallas, Austin | Changes with the zone |
| Wisconsin | The whole of it | Changes with the zone |
When the clocks change in Chicago, United States
Clocks in Chicago change twice a year.
- On Sunday 8 March 2026 at 2:00 AM, clocks went forward one hour, to CDT.
- On Sunday 1 November 2026 at 2:00 AM, clocks go back one hour, to CST.
- On Sunday 14 March 2027 at 2:00 AM, clocks go forward one hour, to CDT.
How many hours ahead or behind Chicago
On 7 October 2026, New York is 1 hour ahead of Chicago.
| City | Difference from Chicago |
|---|---|
| New York | 1 hour ahead |
| Denver | 1 hour behind |
| Los Angeles | 2 hours behind |
| London | 6 hours ahead |
| Mexico City | 1 hour behind |
| Kolkata | 10 hours 30 minutes ahead |
| Tokyo | 14 hours ahead |
| Sydney | 16 hours ahead |
| Your time zone | Detected after this page loads |
Where the rules differ on Central Time
- The ten split states
- 10
- Ten states have a Central part and a part on a neighboring zone. Florida, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan and Tennessee are divided between Eastern and Central Time. Kansas, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota and Texas are divided between Central and Mountain Time. Each state's stretch of line has its own paragraph and follows county lines, rivers or survey lines. Towns sitting on the Central and Mountain line keep Mountain Time, except Murdo in South Dakota.
- Six database entries for one clock
- 6
- Six entries in the tz database keep Central Time beside Chicago's. Each entry covers a region whose clocks have all agreed since the start of the seventies. Starke County and Perry County in Indiana have one each. Both have moved between Eastern and Central Time. Four counties in Michigan's Upper Peninsula share the Menominee entry. Three North Dakota entries record counties that moved from Mountain to Central Time one by one.
- The same letters in China and Cuba
- CST
- China writes its time as CST, UTC+8, the same letters as Chicago's winter time. China is 14 hours ahead of Chicago in winter, and one hour less in summer. Cuba's own time uses the same two codes, CST, UTC-5 and CDT, UTC-4. Havana is 1 hour ahead of Chicago in winter and in summer. The IANA database warns that these letters mean different things on different continents. Give the UTC offset with the letters, and the zone is clear.
- Mexico's Central zone
- Same
- Most of Mexico keeps CST, UTC-6 all year, the letters and offset Chicago uses in winter. Mexico City no longer changes its clocks. Mexico City is on the same time as Chicago in winter. In summer Chicago moves one hour ahead and Mexico City stays put. The exception is the strip along the US border. Matamoros, Reynosa and Nuevo Laredo follow the US dates instead. They keep CDT, UTC-5 in summer, in step with Texas.
Questions about Central Time
What time is it in Central Time now?
The clock above runs on Chicago's time, which is Central Time now, live to the second. It applies the right code for the date, so you never have to work out which one is in force. Houston, Dallas and San Antonio show the same time as Chicago.
Is CST the same as Central Time?
Not quite. Central Time is the zone. CST is Central Standard Time, the winter half of it. CDT is Central Daylight Time, the summer half, one hour ahead. If a summer meeting is set in CST, ask whether CDT is meant.
Which states are on Central Time?
Ten states keep Central Time throughout. They are Alabama, Arkansas, Illinois, Iowa, Louisiana, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Oklahoma and Wisconsin. Ten more keep it in part, from the Florida panhandle to most of Texas. The table above lists every part. To check one state, split ones included, use this site's time zone by state page.
What is the time difference between Central and Pacific Time?
Los Angeles is 2 hours behind Chicago all year. Both zones change their clocks on the same nights, so the gap holds. Noon in Chicago is ten in the morning in Los Angeles. Denver sits between them, 1 hour behind Chicago.
What is the time difference between Central Time and the UK?
London is 6 hours ahead of Chicago for most of the year. The gap narrows by one hour for two or three weeks each spring and one week each autumn. The UK moves its clocks on different Sundays from the US. In those weeks a nine o'clock call in Chicago reaches London at two in the afternoon.
Sources
We checked each fact on this page against these sources on 2 October 2026. Times, offsets and clock changes come from the time zone database.