Current time in London

How to interpret a city's local time

London uses Greenwich Mean Time (GMT, UTC+0) during winter and British Summer Time (BST, UTC+1) during summer. The United Kingdom changes clocks on the last Sundays of March and October under its current rules. UTC is an international reference scale, but that does not mean London follows UTC as its civil clock time throughout the year.

Civil time cannot always be calculated by adding a fixed number of hours to UTC. Individual authorities set standard time, possible daylight-saving rules and transition dates. The IANA time-zone database documents these decisions for representative regions. Web browsers use the data to convert a single UTC instant to the applicable local clock time.

Two cities may have matching clocks today yet follow different rules later in the year. That is why this page names the geographical IANA zone, not just today's UTC offset. The calendar date matters as well: on opposite sides of the International Date Line it can differ from the date observed in Switzerland.

Compare with Switzerland accurately

London is normally one hour behind Geneva or Paris because the United Kingdom and continental European countries currently move their clocks on matching dates. New York follows a different seasonal schedule, so the usual London–New York time difference changes for short periods in spring and autumn. Always include the date when planning flights or online meetings.

Switzerland uses Central European Time (CET, UTC+1) in winter and Central European Summer Time (CEST, UTC+2) during its daylight-saving period. Its official time scale, UTC(CH), is realised and disseminated by METAS. The difference between Switzerland and London may vary when one region changes clocks before another, or does not change them at all.

For international appointments, specify the full date, city and IANA time-zone identifier. During an autumn clock change, the same local hour can occur twice. Recording the underlying UTC instant removes that ambiguity for software and time-sensitive communications.

Daylight saving and local rules

Under current rules, daylight saving begins on the last Sunday of March and ends on the last Sunday of October. Do not use today's UTC offset as if it applied to every date: future appointments may occur under a different seasonal offset.

Frequently asked questions

What time is it in London right now?

The clock at the top displays civil time in London according to your browser's time-zone data for Europe/London. To check how your browser is calibrated against the time server, visit the Accuracy page.

Does London change its clocks during the year?

Under current rules, daylight saving begins on the last Sunday of March and ends on the last Sunday of October. Do not use today's UTC offset as if it applied to every date: future appointments may occur under a different seasonal offset.

Why show Europe/London rather than a fixed UTC offset?

A numerical offset describes a specific moment; the zone identifier Europe/London describes rules that may produce another offset on a future date. Government decisions can change these rules, so time-zone data must be kept current.