Current Time in China
The time in China right now, with its time zone, daylight saving dates and the difference from where you are.
China keeps China Standard Time: CST, UTC+8, all year.
Convert a time in China →Time in China
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China Standard Time · CST, UTC+8, all year
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- Daylight saving
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China’s time zone
China keeps China Standard Time (CST), UTC+8, all year round: its clocks do not change for summer. Phones and computers set China’s clocks from the Asia/Shanghai zone of the IANA tz database, and so does this page.
China keeps one time for the whole country, Beijing Time, UTC+8, even though it stretches over 60 degrees of longitude. In western Xinjiang the sun can rise after 9:00 am by the clock in winter. Many people there, especially Uyghurs, use an informal Xinjiang time two hours behind Beijing, which the tz database records as the Asia/Urumqi zone, UTC+6.
China tried daylight saving from 1986 to 1991, moving clocks forward in mid-April and back in mid-September, and has not used it since. Hong Kong and Macau keep the same UTC+8, as do Taiwan, Singapore, Malaysia and the Philippines. Because China does not change its clocks, it is 13 hours ahead of New York in winter and 12 hours ahead in summer, and 8 or 7 hours ahead of London.
CST = UTC +8
- China observed daylight saving time from 1986 to 1991 only. Source: IANA tz database, file “asia”.
- Xinjiang time, UTC+6, is widely used informally in Xinjiang; the tz database keeps it as the Asia/Urumqi zone. Source: IANA tz database, file “asia”.
China time compared with other cities
How far ahead or behind each place is, on Wednesday 13 January 2027 and Wednesday 14 July 2027, and the time there when it is 9:00 am in China in January.
| Place | In January | In July | At 9:00 am in China |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hong Kong | same time | same time | 9:00 am |
| Tokyo | 1 h ahead | 1 h ahead | 10:00 am |
| India | 2 h 30 min behind | 2 h 30 min behind | 6:30 am |
| Berlin | 7 h behind | 6 h behind | 2:00 am |
| London | 8 h behind | 7 h behind | 1:00 am |
| New York | 13 h behind | 12 h behind | 8:00 pm (day before) |
| Los Angeles | 16 h behind | 15 h behind | 5:00 pm (day before) |
| Sydney | 3 h ahead | 2 h ahead | 12:00 pm |
| UTC | 8 h behind | 8 h behind | 1:00 am |
Frequently Asked Questions
What time zone is China in?
China is on China Standard Time (CST), UTC+8, all year. Its tz database zone is Asia/Shanghai.
Does all of China use one time zone?
Officially, yes: Beijing Time (UTC+8) covers the whole country. In Xinjiang, many people also use a local time two hours behind, so a time quoted there may need checking.
Is Beijing time the same as Shanghai time?
Yes. Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Guangzhou and Chengdu all keep UTC+8. The tz database names the zone after Shanghai, Asia/Shanghai.
Is Taiwan on the same time as mainland China?
Yes. Taiwan keeps UTC+8 with no daylight saving, the same clock as Beijing, Shanghai and Hong Kong.