What time is it in CST?
Current time in CST
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America/Chicago · UTC−6
CST stands for Central Standard Time, an offset of UTC−6, used across the central United States. But the region also shifts for summer: Central Daylight Time (CDT, UTC−5) applies from the second Sunday in March to the first Sunday in November, so a clock casually labelled “CST” in July is really showing CDT. The live clock above follows the America/Chicago zone and shows whichever offset is in force. CST is ambiguous: it also stands for China Standard Time, which is UTC+8. This page tracks the US zone, the one Chicago, Dallas and Houston use.
Convert a specific timestamp
Detected: ISO 8601 (UTC)
Your timezone
UTC · GMT+00:00 · UTC
Mon, Jun 01, 2026, 11:10:52 AM
Common formats
UTC
Mon, Jun 01, 2026, 11:10:52 AM
ISO 8601
2026-06-01T11:10:52.000Z
Unix (seconds)
1780312252
Unix (millis)
1780312252000
Relative
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World clock
Los Angeles PDT
Mon, Jun 01, 2026, 04:10:52 AM
GMT-07:00
Chicago CDT
Mon, Jun 01, 2026, 06:10:52 AM
GMT-05:00
New York EDT
Mon, Jun 01, 2026, 07:10:52 AM
GMT-04:00
London BST
Mon, Jun 01, 2026, 12:10:52 PM
GMT+01:00
Paris CEST
Mon, Jun 01, 2026, 01:10:52 PM
GMT+02:00
Kolkata IST
Mon, Jun 01, 2026, 04:40:52 PM
GMT+05:30
Shanghai CST
Mon, Jun 01, 2026, 07:10:52 PM
GMT+08:00
Tokyo JST
Mon, Jun 01, 2026, 08:10:52 PM
GMT+09:00
Sydney AEST
Mon, Jun 01, 2026, 09:10:52 PM
GMT+10:00
Time zone facts
- Standard time
- Central Standard Time (CST), UTC−6
- Summer time
- Central Daylight Time (CDT), UTC−5
- Daylight saving
- Observed from the second Sunday in March to the first Sunday in November
- IANA timezone
- America/Chicago
Common questions
- What time is it in CST right now?
- The clock at the top of this page shows the current time in CST, updated every second, with today's date and the day of the week beneath it. It reads your device's clock and converts it using the America/Chicago rules, so it stays correct across daylight-saving changes.
- What UTC offset is CST?
- CST is UTC−6; its summer counterpart CDT is UTC−5, in force from the second Sunday in March to the first Sunday in November. Outside that window the offset is UTC−6.
- Does CST observe daylight saving time?
- CST is the winter half of the arrangement, but the region it refers to does change its clocks. They go forward an hour for Central Daylight Time, which runs from the second Sunday in March to the first Sunday in November, and back again at the end of it.
- What does CST stand for?
- Central Standard Time. In everyday use people write “CST” to mean the local time of the central United States, which is actually CDT for a good part of the year. The clock above resolves that for you.