New Zealand's time zones
New Zealand runs on one time zone for the main islands and a second one for the Chatham Islands. Both shift by an hour for daylight saving.
| Zone | When | Offset |
|---|---|---|
| New Zealand Standard Time (NZST) | April to September | UTC+12 |
| New Zealand Daylight Time (NZDT) | September to April | UTC+13 |
| Chatham Islands standard time | April to September | UTC+12:45 |
| Chatham Islands daylight time | September to April | UTC+13:45 |
The Time Act 1974 sets standard time, and daylight time is set by Order in Council under the same Act. New Zealand standard time is 12 hours ahead of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC). The Chatham Islands are always 45 minutes ahead of the rest of the country.
New Zealand is one of the first places in the world to start each new day. When it's midday on Monday in Auckland, it's still Sunday evening in Los Angeles.
Daylight saving dates
Daylight saving starts at 2am on the last Sunday in September, when clocks go forward to 3am. It ends at 3am on the first Sunday in April, when clocks go back to 2am.
| Season | Clocks go forward | Clocks go back |
|---|---|---|
| 2026–27 | Sun 27 September 2026, 2am | Sun 4 April 2027, 3am |
| 2027–28 | Sun 26 September 2027, 2am | Sun 2 April 2028, 3am |
| 2028–29 | Sun 24 September 2028, 2am | Sun 1 April 2029, 3am |
Phones and computers change on their own. Oven clocks, car clocks and older watches usually need doing by hand.
Time difference with other places
The gap changes during the year, because New Zealand and other countries switch daylight saving on different dates. Some places don't use daylight saving at all.
| Place | NZ winter (July) | NZ summer (January) |
|---|---|---|
| Chatham Islands | 45 min ahead of NZ | 45 min ahead of NZ |
| Sydney | 2h behind | 2h behind |
| Brisbane | 2h behind | 3h behind |
| Perth | 4h behind | 5h behind |
| Tokyo | 3h behind | 4h behind |
| Singapore | 4h behind | 5h behind |
| London | 11h behind | 13h behind |
| New York | 16h behind | 18h behind |
| Los Angeles | 19h behind | 21h behind |
In the weeks around each change the gap can differ again. Sydney moves its clocks a week after New Zealand in spring, so for about a week in late September and early October, Sydney is 3 hours behind. London and New York change in March and October or November, so they spend a few weeks at 12 and 17 hours behind. The live table above always shows today's gap.
Worked example: a 9am call in Sydney
- In January, Sydney is on daylight time (UTC+11) and New Zealand is on NZDT (UTC+13).
- New Zealand is 2 hours ahead, so 9am in Sydney is 11am in New Zealand.
- A 9am call in Perth on the same day is 2pm in New Zealand, because Perth is 5 hours behind in summer.
Planning time off? See which days are public holidays.
NZ public holidays →How this clock works
The clock reads the time from your device and shows it in New Zealand's time zone. The time zone rules come from your browser, which uses the same time zone database as phones and servers. If your device clock is wrong, the time shown here will be wrong by the same amount.
Counting business days across a holiday? The working days calculator skips weekends and NZ public holidays. Sending money across the Tasman? Try the NZD to AUD converter.
Questions people ask
What time zone is New Zealand in?
New Zealand Standard Time (NZST) is 12 hours ahead of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC+12). During daylight saving, New Zealand moves to New Zealand Daylight Time (NZDT), which is UTC+13.
Is New Zealand on daylight saving now?
Daylight saving started at 2am on Sunday 27 September 2026 and ends at 3am on Sunday 4 April 2027. Between those dates New Zealand is on NZDT (UTC+13). The clock above shows which one applies right now.
When do the clocks change in New Zealand?
Clocks go forward one hour at 2am on the last Sunday in September, and back one hour at 3am on the first Sunday in April.
What is the time difference between New Zealand and Australia?
New Zealand is 2 hours ahead of Sydney for most of the year. It's 2 or 3 hours ahead of Brisbane, and 4 or 5 hours ahead of Perth, because Queensland and Western Australia don't use daylight saving.
What time is it in the Chatham Islands?
The Chatham Islands are 45 minutes ahead of the rest of New Zealand, all year. That's UTC+12:45 in standard time and UTC+13:45 during daylight saving.
Is my information saved?
No. Everything runs in your browser using your device's clock, and nothing you enter leaves your device.