Converter · ET → CET / CEST

EST to CET

Central European Time is 6 hours ahead of Eastern Time for almost the whole year: 9:00 AM EST is 3:00 PM CET in Paris, Berlin, Rome, Madrid or Amsterdam, and 9:00 AM EDT is 3:00 PM CEST. For about three weeks a year the gap is only 5 hours.

Now in New York
--:-- ET
Now in Paris & Berlin
--:-- CET
Difference now
+6 h
Next ET clock change
Second Sunday in March

How many hours ahead is CET of Eastern Time?

Central European Time (CET) is UTC+1; its summer form, Central European Summer Time (CEST), is UTC+2. Eastern Time is UTC−5 as EST and UTC−4 as EDT. Winter gives −5 → +1 and summer gives −4 → +2: both sides move by one hour, so for about 49 weeks a year the rule is simply add six hours.

The exception comes from the calendar, not the clocks. The United States and Canada spring forward on the second Sunday in March and fall back on the first Sunday in November (see the daylight saving time guide); the European Union switches on the last Sunday in March and the last Sunday in October. In between, New York is already (or still) on EDT while Europe is on CET, and the gap drops to 5 hours. In 2027 that happens from March 14 to March 28 and from October 31 to November 7.

Timeline of 2027: New York is on EST until March 14 and from November 7, Paris on CET until March 28 and from October 31; the difference is 6 hours except March 14–28 and October 31–November 7, when it is 5 hours JFMAMJJASOND New York EST EDT EST Paris CET CEST CET Difference 6 h 6 h 6 h 5 h · Mar 14–Mar 28 5 h · Oct 31–Nov 7 2027 · orange = daylight saving time
Blue blocks: the 5-hour weeks of 2027.

When does the New York–Europe gap change in 2027 and 2028?

Every clock change on either side of the Atlantic in 2027 and 2028, and the New York–Paris gap that follows it
DateWho changes (local clocks)InstantNew York / ParisDifference after
Sunday, March 14, 2027US & Canada: 2:00 AM → 3:00 AM07:00 UTCEDT / CET5 h
Sunday, March 28, 2027EU (Paris, Berlin, Rome…): 2:00 AM → 3:00 AM01:00 UTCEDT / CEST6 h
Sunday, October 31, 2027EU (Paris, Berlin, Rome…): 3:00 AM → 2:00 AM01:00 UTCEDT / CET5 h
Sunday, November 7, 2027US & Canada: 2:00 AM → 1:00 AM06:00 UTCEST / CET6 h
Sunday, March 12, 2028US & Canada: 2:00 AM → 3:00 AM07:00 UTCEDT / CET5 h
Sunday, March 26, 2028EU (Paris, Berlin, Rome…): 2:00 AM → 3:00 AM01:00 UTCEDT / CEST6 h
Sunday, October 29, 2028EU (Paris, Berlin, Rome…): 3:00 AM → 2:00 AM01:00 UTCEDT / CET5 h
Sunday, November 5, 2028US & Canada: 2:00 AM → 1:00 AM06:00 UTCEST / CET6 h

Recurring meetings are where the mismatch bites. A weekly call fixed at 10:00 AM ET appears at 4:00 PM in Frankfurt most of the year, but at 3:00 PM CET on March 17 and 24, 2027, then jumps back to 4:00 PM CEST on March 31. Calendar apps get this right; memorised rules do not. The DST 2027 page lists the exact US transition instants.

EST to CET conversion table

The middle column is valid both for EST → CET in winter and EDT → CEST in summer. Use the right-hand column only in the mismatch weeks (mid-to-late March and the last days of October into early November).

Eastern Time to Central European Time, hour by hour. Highlighted rows fall inside 9 AM–5 PM in both cities in every season.
Eastern (ET)Paris · Berlin (6 h ahead, most of the year)Mismatch weeks (5 h ahead)
12:00 AM6:00 AM5:00 AM
1:00 AM7:00 AM6:00 AM
2:00 AM8:00 AM7:00 AM
3:00 AM9:00 AM8:00 AM
4:00 AM10:00 AM9:00 AM
5:00 AM11:00 AM10:00 AM
6:00 AM12:00 PM11:00 AM
7:00 AM1:00 PM12:00 PM
8:00 AM2:00 PM1:00 PM
9:00 AM3:00 PM2:00 PM
10:00 AM4:00 PM3:00 PM
11:00 AM5:00 PM4:00 PM
12:00 PM6:00 PM5:00 PM
1:00 PM7:00 PM6:00 PM
2:00 PM8:00 PM7:00 PM
3:00 PM9:00 PM8:00 PM
4:00 PM10:00 PM9:00 PM
5:00 PM11:00 PM10:00 PM
6:00 PM12:00 AM (next day)11:00 PM
7:00 PM1:00 AM (next day)12:00 AM (next day)
8:00 PM2:00 AM (next day)1:00 AM (next day)
9:00 PM3:00 AM (next day)2:00 AM (next day)
10:00 PM4:00 AM (next day)3:00 AM (next day)
11:00 PM5:00 AM (next day)4:00 AM (next day)

Convert any Eastern time to Central European Time

Enter a time and date in ET. US and EU daylight saving rules are applied on both sides, so the 5-hour weeks come out right too.

—

What is the best time for a meeting between New York and Europe?

The shared working window is short: 9:00–11:00 AM in New York is 3:00–5:00 PM in Paris or Berlin. That is two hours, at the tail end of the European day, so book the important calls first thing in the Eastern morning. Many teams stretch it with an 8:00 AM ET start, which is 2:00 PM in Europe.

In the 5-hour weeks the window briefly grows to three hours, 9:00 AM to noon ET (2:00–5:00 PM CET). From the West Coast it vanishes entirely: 9:00 AM PST is already 6:00 PM in Paris. And if the team also includes India there is no slot inside everyone's working day, because 9:00 AM EST is 7:30 PM in Bengaluru (see EST to IST). The full time zone converter compares any zones on any date.

Which countries use Central European Time?

CET/CEST is the clock of most of continental Europe: Germany, France, Italy, Spain (mainland and the Balearic Islands), the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, Switzerland, Austria, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Poland, Czechia, Slovakia, Hungary, Slovenia, Croatia, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Albania, Kosovo and Malta, plus Andorra, Monaco, Liechtenstein, San Marino, Vatican City and Gibraltar.

Algeria and Tunisia also call their time CET but stay on UTC+1 all year, so they are 6 hours ahead of EST and 5 hours ahead of EDT.

Neighbours that are not on CET

  • UK, Ireland, Portugal, Canary Islands: UTC+0 in winter, UTC+1 in summer, one hour behind Paris and, most of the year, 5 hours ahead of ET. London has its own page: EST to GMT.
  • Greece, Finland, Romania, Bulgaria, the Baltic states, Ukraine: Eastern European Time, UTC+2/UTC+3, 7 hours ahead of ET for most of the year.
  • Iceland: UTC+0 all year, with no clock changes.

Why is Spain on Central European Time?

By longitude, Spain belongs with London and Lisbon: Madrid lies at 3.7°W, west of Greenwich, and A Coruña in Galicia at 8.4°W. Spain ran on Greenwich time until the night of 16 March 1940, when clocks jumped from 11:00 PM straight to midnight to match Central Europe. The change, presented as provisional, was never reversed. It is usually told as Franco's gesture toward Nazi Germany, although the decree itself spoke of aligning Spain with other European countries.

The sky shows the cost. Calculated for June 21, the sun reaches its highest point at about 2:17 PM CEST in Madrid and 2:35 PM in A Coruña, but at 12:38 PM in Warsaw: the same clock, nearly two hours of solar difference. Spain's late meal hours, typically about an hour later than in France or Germany, are often linked to it. The Canary Islands kept UTC+0, so from New York they are 5 hours ahead, not 6.

Will Europe stop changing its clocks?

Europe's switch dates come from Directive 2000/84/EC, which obliges every EU member state to begin summer time at 01:00 UTC on the last Sunday of March and end it at 01:00 UTC on the last Sunday of October. While it is in force, no country may stop on its own.

A 2018 public consultation drew 4.6 million responses, 84% of them in favour of ending the switch, and the European Commission proposed abolishing it. The European Parliament backed the plan on 26 March 2019 by 410 votes to 192, with 51 abstentions, and pushed the target to 2021. The Council of the EU, where national governments sit, has never adopted a position because member states could not agree on which time to keep. In February 2026 the Commission launched a new impact study due by the end of 2026. As of late 2026 the clocks still change twice a year.

If it ever happens while the US keeps changing, the "add six" rule ends. Permanent CET (UTC+1) would put Paris 6 hours ahead of EST but only 5 hours ahead of EDT all summer; permanent summer time (UTC+2) would mean 7 hours in the northern winter and 6 in summer. The figures at the top of this page and on the live Eastern Time clock always follow the rules actually in force.

Frequently asked questions

Is it wrong to write CET in July?

Strictly, yes. In summer Central Europe is on CEST (UTC+2). Taken literally, "3:00 PM CET" in July is 4:00 PM on the clocks in Paris. Many people use CET loosely for the zone all year; when precision matters, write "Paris time" or give the UTC offset.

Are Berlin, Paris, Rome and Madrid on exactly the same time?

Yes. They share UTC+1 in winter and UTC+2 in summer and switch at the same instant, as do Amsterdam, Brussels, Vienna, Zurich, Stockholm, Oslo, Copenhagen, Warsaw and Prague. One conversion from Eastern Time covers all of them.

Is London on Central European Time?

No. The UK uses GMT in winter and BST (UTC+1) in summer, one hour behind Paris and 5 hours ahead of New York for most of the year.

What do MEZ and MESZ mean?

They are the German abbreviations: MEZ (Mitteleuropäische Zeit) is CET and MESZ (Mitteleuropäische Sommerzeit) is CEST. In Italy the same two states are called ora solare and ora legale.

What time does an overnight flight from New York land in Europe?

A 7:00 PM EST departure with a 7½-hour flight lands at 2:30 AM by New York clocks, which is 8:30 AM CET: a morning arrival after a very short night.

Explore

EST to GMT

London, Dublin and Lisbon: 5 hours ahead, 4 hours in the mismatch weeks.

EST to IST

India's half-hour offset and the 10½ / 9½-hour gap.

DST 2027

Exact US and EU switch dates and instants for 2027.