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Timezone Prime

CST to UTC converter

Convert Central Time (CST/CDT) to Coordinated Universal Time (UTC), with daylight saving applied for the exact date you pick.

From

Tue, Oct 27

To

Tue, Oct 27 Same day

CDT 9 to 5 UTC 9 to 5

From zone
Central Daylight Time
Offset and clock
UTC−5 Daylight saving time
IANA name
America/Chicago
To zone
Coordinated Universal Time
Offset and clock
UTC+0 No daylight saving time
IANA name
Etc/UTC

UTC is 5 hours ahead of CDT.

Time difference
UTC is 5 hours ahead of CDT for most of the year (238 days in 2026). The gap is 6 hours for about 18 weeks in 2026.
Meeting window
Working days of 9 AM to 5 PM overlap from 9:00 AM to 12:00 PM CDT, which is 2:00 PM to 5:00 PM UTC while CDT and UTC apply.
Daylight saving
Central Time changes its clocks twice a year; Coordinated Universal Time does not.

Where CST and UTC apply

Shaded areas follow the official zone boundaries, so a country split across zones is split here too. Hover or tap a region for its local time.

  • Central Time
  • Coordinated Universal Time
  • Same UTC offset right now, different zone rules

Drag to pan. Ctrl and scroll, or pinch, to zoom. Boundaries: timezone-boundary-builder, © OpenStreetMap contributors

Hour by hour

Every hour of Tuesday, October 27, 2026, side by side. Days with a clock change show 23 or 25 rows.

Shaded rows fall inside working hours in both places.

Hourly comparison of the two time zones. Choose a time to load it in the converter.
Chicago (CDT) Greenwich meridian (UTC) Working hours
12:00 AM 5:00 AM
1:00 AM 6:00 AM
2:00 AM 7:00 AM
3:00 AM 8:00 AM
4:00 AM 9:00 AM
5:00 AM 10:00 AM
6:00 AM 11:00 AM
7:00 AM 12:00 PM
8:00 AM 1:00 PM
9:00 AM 2:00 PM Both working
10:00 AM 3:00 PM Both working
11:00 AM 4:00 PM Both working
12:00 PM 5:00 PM
1:00 PM 6:00 PM
2:00 PM 7:00 PM
3:00 PM 8:00 PM
4:00 PM 9:00 PM
5:00 PM 10:00 PM
6:00 PM 11:00 PM
7:00 PM 12:00 AM next day
8:00 PM 1:00 AM next day
9:00 PM 2:00 AM next day
10:00 PM 3:00 AM next day
11:00 PM 4:00 AM next day

CST to UTC conversion table

Every hour of the Central Time day, plus the common half hours, and their UTC equivalents. The second column covers the part of the year when the clocks are on a different gap.

CST to UTC conversion table
Central Time UTC 5 h ahead, most of the year (238 days in 2026) UTC 6 h ahead, about 18 weeks in 2026
12:00 AM 5:00 AM6:00 AM
1:00 AM 6:00 AM7:00 AM
2:00 AM 7:00 AM8:00 AM
3:00 AM 8:00 AM9:00 AM
4:00 AM 9:00 AM10:00 AM
5:00 AM 10:00 AM11:00 AM
6:00 AM 11:00 AM12:00 PM
7:00 AM 12:00 PM1:00 PM
8:00 AM 1:00 PM2:00 PM
9:00 AM 2:00 PM3:00 PM
9:30 AM 2:30 PM3:30 PM
10:00 AM 3:00 PM4:00 PM
10:30 AM 3:30 PM4:30 PM
11:00 AM 4:00 PM5:00 PM
11:30 AM 4:30 PM5:30 PM
12:00 PM 5:00 PM6:00 PM
12:30 PM 5:30 PM6:30 PM
1:00 PM 6:00 PM7:00 PM
1:30 PM 6:30 PM7:30 PM
2:00 PM 7:00 PM8:00 PM
2:30 PM 7:30 PM8:30 PM
3:00 PM 8:00 PM9:00 PM
3:30 PM 8:30 PM9:30 PM
4:00 PM 9:00 PM10:00 PM
4:30 PM 9:30 PM10:30 PM
5:00 PM 10:00 PM11:00 PM
5:30 PM 10:30 PM11:30 PM
6:00 PM 11:00 PM12:00 AM (next day)
7:00 PM 12:00 AM (next day)1:00 AM (next day)
8:00 PM 1:00 AM (next day)2:00 AM (next day)
9:00 PM 2:00 AM (next day)3:00 AM (next day)
10:00 PM 3:00 AM (next day)4:00 AM (next day)
11:00 PM 4:00 AM (next day)5:00 AM (next day)

How the gap changes in 2026 and 2027

Each row is a stretch of days with one constant difference, split at every clock change.

Time difference periods between CST and UTC
Dates CST UTC Difference
Thu, Jan 1, 2026 until Sun, Mar 8, 2026 CST UTC UTC 6 h ahead
Sun, Mar 8, 2026 until Sun, Nov 1, 2026 CDT UTC UTC 5 h ahead
Sun, Nov 1, 2026 until Sun, Mar 14, 2027 CST UTC UTC 6 h ahead
Sun, Mar 14, 2027 until Sun, Nov 7, 2027 CDT UTC UTC 5 h ahead
Sun, Nov 7, 2027 until Sat, Jan 1, 2028 CST UTC UTC 6 h ahead

Upcoming clock changes

  1. Central Time Sunday, November 1, 2026: at 2:00 AM clocks go back 1 hour to 1:00 AM
  2. Central Time Sunday, March 14, 2027: at 2:00 AM clocks go forward 1 hour to 3:00 AM
  3. Central Time Sunday, November 7, 2027: at 2:00 AM clocks go back 1 hour to 1:00 AM
  4. Central Time Sunday, March 12, 2028: at 2:00 AM clocks go forward 1 hour to 3:00 AM

About the two zones

Central Time (CST / CDT)

Central Time follows the clock in Chicago: Central Standard Time (CST, UTC−6) in winter and Central Daylight Time (CDT, UTC−5) during US daylight saving time.

IANA zone
America/Chicago
Offset
UTC−6 standard, UTC−5 daylight saving
Used in
the central United States and parts of Canada
Major cities
Chicago, Houston, Dallas, Minneapolis, Winnipeg, New Orleans

CST is also used for China Standard Time (UTC+8) and Cuba Standard Time. Here CST means US Central Time (America/Chicago).

Coordinated Universal Time (UTC)

Coordinated Universal Time is the reference every time zone is measured from. It never changes for daylight saving time. Servers, aviation, logs and APIs use it because it is unambiguous.

IANA zone
Etc/UTC
Offset
UTC+0 all year
Used in
no single country; it is the world reference clock

CST and UTC, answered

What is the time difference between CST and UTC?

UTC is 5 hours ahead of CDT for most of the year (238 days in 2026). The gap is 6 hours for about 18 weeks in 2026.

How do I work out UTC from CST?

UTC is 5 hours ahead of CDT for most of the year (238 days in 2026). The gap is 6 hours for about 18 weeks in 2026. Type any CST time into the CST to UTC converter to see the UTC time for any date.

What is 9:00 AM CST in UTC?

9:00 AM CDT is 2:00 PM UTC for most of the year (238 days in 2026). 9:00 AM CST is 3:00 PM UTC for about 18 weeks in 2026.

What is 12:00 PM CST in UTC?

12:00 PM CDT is 5:00 PM UTC for most of the year (238 days in 2026). 12:00 PM CST is 6:00 PM UTC for about 18 weeks in 2026.

What is 10:00 AM CST in UTC?

10:00 AM CDT is 3:00 PM UTC for most of the year (238 days in 2026). 10:00 AM CST is 4:00 PM UTC for about 18 weeks in 2026.

What is 5:00 PM CST in UTC?

5:00 PM CDT is 10:00 PM UTC for most of the year (238 days in 2026). 5:00 PM CST is 11:00 PM UTC for about 18 weeks in 2026.

Is UTC ahead of CST, and by how many hours?

Yes. UTC is 5 hours ahead of CDT for most of the year (238 days in 2026). The gap is 6 hours for about 18 weeks in 2026.

What is a good meeting time for CST and UTC?

Working days of 9 AM to 5 PM overlap from 9:00 AM to 12:00 PM CDT, which is 2:00 PM to 5:00 PM UTC while CDT and UTC apply.

Does daylight saving time affect CST to UTC?

Central Time changes its clocks twice a year; Coordinated Universal Time does not. The next change is on Sunday, November 1, 2026 in Central Time.

Which CST does the CST to UTC converter use?

CST is also used for China Standard Time (UTC+8) and Cuba Standard Time. Here CST means US Central Time (America/Chicago).

Related conversions

From Central Time

To Coordinated Universal Time