Central Time Zone
The Central Time Zone uses CST (UTC−6) in winter and CDT (UTC−5) from the second Sunday in March to the first Sunday in November. Chicago, Houston, Dallas, San Antonio, Austin, Minneapolis, Kansas City, Nashville, Memphis and New Orleans are on Central time.
| Abbreviations | CST / CDT |
|---|---|
| UTC offset | UTC−6 / UTC−5 in summer |
| Reference zone | America/Chicago |
| Military letter | S (Sierra) |
States in the Central Time Zone
- Alabama
- Arkansas
- Illinois
- Iowa
- Kansas
- Louisiana
- Minnesota
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- Nebraska
- North Dakota
- Oklahoma
- South Dakota
- Tennessee
- Texas
- Wisconsin
Split states mostly in this zone
- Kansas, except four western counties on the Colorado border (Greeley, Hamilton, Sherman, Wallace)
- Nebraska, except the western Panhandle (Scottsbluff, Alliance, Sidney)
- North Dakota, except the southwest, roughly south and west of the Missouri River (Dickinson, Bowman)
- South Dakota, except the western half of the state (Rapid City, the Black Hills, Mount Rushmore)
- Tennessee, except East Tennessee (Knoxville, Chattanooga, Johnson City, Bristol)
- Texas, except El Paso and Hudspeth counties in far West Texas
Parts of other states
- Florida: the western Panhandle, west of the Apalachicola River (Pensacola, Panama City, Destin)
- Indiana: 12 counties: six in the northwest near Chicago (Jasper, Lake, LaPorte, Newton, Porter, Starke) and six in the southwest near Evansville (Gibson, Perry, Posey, Spencer, Vanderburgh, Warrick)
- Kentucky: the western half of the state (Bowling Green, Paducah, Owensboro)
- Michigan: four Upper Peninsula counties on the Wisconsin border (Gogebic, Iron, Dickinson, Menominee)
Major cities
| City | State |
|---|---|
| Birmingham | Alabama |
| Montgomery | Alabama |
| Mobile | Alabama |
| Huntsville | Alabama |
| Little Rock | Arkansas |
| Fayetteville | Arkansas |
| Fort Smith | Arkansas |
| Pensacola | Florida |
| Panama City | Florida |
| Chicago | Illinois |
| Springfield | Illinois |
| Peoria | Illinois |
| Rockford | Illinois |
| Gary | Indiana |
| Evansville | Indiana |
| Des Moines | Iowa |
| Cedar Rapids | Iowa |
| Davenport | Iowa |
| Wichita | Kansas |
| Topeka | Kansas |
| Kansas City | Kansas |
| Bowling Green | Kentucky |
| Paducah | Kentucky |
| New Orleans | Louisiana |
Central time in other US zones
Standard time; the gaps are the same in summer, except for Arizona and Hawaii.
| CST | Eastern | Central | Mountain | Pacific | Alaska | Hawaii–Aleutian |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 AM | 7 AM | 6 AM | 5 AM | 4 AM | 3 AM | 2 AM |
| 9 AM | 10 AM | 9 AM | 8 AM | 7 AM | 6 AM | 5 AM |
| 12 PM | 1 PM | 12 PM | 11 AM | 10 AM | 9 AM | 8 AM |
| 3 PM | 4 PM | 3 PM | 2 PM | 1 PM | 12 PM | 11 AM |
| 6 PM | 7 PM | 6 PM | 5 PM | 4 PM | 3 PM | 2 PM |
| 9 PM | 10 PM | 9 PM | 8 PM | 7 PM | 6 PM | 5 PM |
Outside the US
Saskatchewan, plus Alberta and the Northwest Territories, which since 2026 stay on UTC−6 all year. Most of Mexico, including Mexico City, uses UTC−6 all year. Also Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua and Costa Rica.
Questions people ask
What states are in the Central Time Zone?
16 states and territories use Central Time as their main time, and 4 more have parts in it. They're all listed above.
Is it CST or CDT right now?
From the second Sunday in March to the first Sunday in November it's CDT (UTC−5); the rest of the year it's CST (UTC−6). The live clock at the top shows which applies today.
What is Central Time in UTC?
UTC−6 in winter and UTC−5 in summer.
See all US time zones on the map · time zone converter