Daylight Saving Time 2026 — When Do Clocks Change?
Last updated October 18, 2026
US clocks go forward on Sunday, March 8, 2026, and back on Sunday, November 1, 2026. Both are the earliest dates the rules allow, so American summer time starts and ends as early as it ever can. Europe changes later in spring (March 29) and earlier in autumn (October 25).
2026 DST Dates: United States
| Event | Date | Day | Clock change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring forward | March 8, 2026 | Sunday | 2:00 AM becomes 3:00 AM (one hour lost) |
| Fall back (DST ends) | November 1, 2026 | Sunday | 2:00 AM becomes 1:00 AM (one hour gained) |
That moves Eastern, Central, Mountain and Pacific time from EST, CST, MST and PST to EDT, CDT, MDT and PDT. Arizona (except the Navajo Nation) and Hawaii stay on standard time all year, and so do Puerto Rico, Guam and the other US territories. In Canada, Saskatchewan and Yukon don't change either. British Columbia stopped after March 8, 2026, and Alberta and Manitoba have decided to keep their summer time too, so none of the three goes back on November 1, 2026.
What's Different About 2026
The gap between the American and European spring changes is 21 days this year, March 8 through March 28. That's three full weeks when New York and London are four hours apart instead of five hours, and it's longer than the same window in 2027 or 2028 (14 days each).
Autumn flips the order. Europe goes back on October 25, a week before the US on November 1, so 7 days of the four-hour gap land in late October. Anyone running a weekly New York and London call will see the London time move twice in spring and twice in autumn.
European summer time lasts 30 weeks in 2026, a week shorter than in 2027 and 2028. US summer time is 34 weeks every year, because the rule always runs from the second Sunday of March to the first Sunday of November.
In Sydney, Melbourne, Canberra, Hobart and Adelaide, daylight saving ends on April 5, 2026 (clocks back to AEST, UTC+10) and starts again on October 4, 2026 (forward to AEDT, UTC+11). Brisbane, Perth and Darwin don't change.
2026 DST Dates: International
| Country / region | Clocks go forward | Clocks go back |
|---|---|---|
| United States | March 8, 2026 | November 1, 2026 |
| Canada (most provinces; British Columbia, Alberta and Manitoba do not go back) | March 8, 2026 | November 1, 2026 |
| United Kingdom | March 29, 2026 | October 25, 2026 |
| European Union | March 29, 2026 | October 25, 2026 |
| Australia (NSW, VIC, ACT, TAS, SA) | October 4, 2026 | April 5, 2026 |
| New Zealand | September 27, 2026 | April 5, 2026 |
Australia and New Zealand are in the Southern Hemisphere, so their "back" date comes first in the calendar year (April) and their "forward" date in the spring there (September or October). Every change happens on a Sunday, in the early hours of the morning local time.
The Weeks When the US and Europe Disagree in 2026
The US and Europe don't change on the same weekends, so for 21 days in spring and 7 in autumn the New York to London gap is four hours instead of five. Here's what a Monday 10:00 AM New York call looks like on a London calendar through 2026:
| Mondays in this period | London time | New York to London |
|---|---|---|
| Before March 8 | 3:00 PM | five hours |
| March 9 to March 28 (US has changed, UK hasn't) | 2:00 PM | four hours |
| March 30 to October 24 (both on summer time) | 3:00 PM | five hours |
| October 26 to October 31 (UK has changed, US hasn't) | 2:00 PM | four hours |
| November 2 on (both back on standard time) | 3:00 PM | five hours |
India doesn't change its clocks, so New York to India is 10 hours 30 minutes in winter and 9 hours 30 minutes from March 8 until October 31. The time zone converter handles any 2026 date you pick, and the DST glossary entry covers how the rule began.
If You Work With Sydney
New York and Sydney both change their clocks, in opposite halves of the year, so the gap moves four times in 2026. Hours Sydney is ahead of New York:
| January 1 to March 7 | 16 hours |
| March 8 to April 4 | 15 hours |
| April 5 to October 3 | 14 hours |
| October 4 to October 31 | 15 hours |
| November 1 to December 31 | 16 hours |
The widest gap, 16 hours, is in the northern winter, when New York is on EST and Sydney is on summer time. The narrowest, 14 hours, runs from April to early October, when Sydney is on standard time and New York is still on summer time.
Where Clocks Don't Change
Most countries leave their clocks alone. India, Japan, China, Singapore, the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Russia stay on one offset all year, and so does most of Africa. Most of Mexico stopped in 2022 (cities on the US border still follow US dates) and Paraguay in 2024, which makes Chile the main South American country still changing its clocks. Timeanddate counts about 70 countries using daylight saving time in 2026.
Related Tools
DST dates for other years: